Burnaby - Wasted Time
BURNABY GOES FOR IT ON ‘WASTED TIME’ EP
Snap, crackle and pop-punk outfit Burnaby recently dropped their Wasted Time EP. And it’s a good one.
Burnaby
Hailing from Kitchener, Ontario, the band is made up of Jeff Ringwald (guitar, vocals), TJ Bruyea (bass), Conor Gray (drums, vocals), and Luke King (guitar).
Self-described as: “Burnaby is a group of four friends from KW Ontario who love making music together. Growing up on a diet of pop-punk and The Beatles, the boys have grown up with a healthy dosage of emo angst combined with the fun spirit of not giving a fuck. Take life too seriously and you'll never have fun, don't take it seriously enough, you'll waste it. Listen to us as we try and fail to find that balance.”
The band cites their musical influences as Modest Mouse, The Beatles, Taking Back Sunday, The Flatliners, Tallest Man on Earth, and Blink-182.
With five-tracks, Wasted Time opens with the title track, a tight and right pop-punk number with buzzsaw guitars accented by a jangly lead riff. A bass heavy rhythm pulses with throbbing heft, driving the tempo, as a nasal, rasping tenor delivers lyrics full of intense punk nonchalance.
“I say let's go / You say I don't know / I say let's go / It doesn't matter.”
“Strings” features shimmering guitars punching out beau coup edgy colors, as Gray’s drums sizzle with crisp percussive slaps. I love the rounded resonant guitar solo on this track, rife with sneering savors. After the solo, the vocals layer up with nuanced timbres.
“The Other Side” rides snarling, strident guitars as the nasal, twang-tight vocals grimace out confessional-textured lyrics full of half-depressed indecisiveness.
“I've been all alone, for far too long it's getting to me / And I can't find, a way to get my feet on the ground / I can't find a way to see that you're alright / I'm fine, I guess, it's just you're out of your mind.”
“Blend” delivers a pop-punk melody infused with alt-rock flavors, resulting in a slightly laid-back sonic signature. “Fraudulent Gump” opens on jagged guitars and walloping drums with delicious accents on the tom-toms. There’s a tight industrial feel to the galloping momentum of this track, infusing it with a delicious field of suppressed teenage energy.
Wasted Time pushes out oodles of raw dynamics, rhythms with palpable bursting surges, and marvelously grubby vocals. Burnaby lays it down with oomph!
