“Castle, PA” is the latest single by snakesnakewhale, an Asheville-based quintet. It’s their first song in 2024 and an adequate follow-up to “You’ll Get Than On These Big Jobs,” another exceptional single released last year. Soundwise, snakesnakewhale combines several different but complementary music genres to illustrate such a rich and luxurious ambiance. Perhaps modern emo sound comes to mind first, but don’t be surprised if you stumble upon some of the finest properties borrowed from pop punk, post-hardcore, alternative, and indie rock. snakesnakewhale uses these additional elements as more than necessary enhancements, accentuations, decorations, and other details that unquestionably uplift their latest number on an entirely new level, while the band simultaneously remains loyal to the primary sonic direction. Therefore, their experimentations with many different but complementary music genres resulted in a catchy, ear-appealing track that will appeal to even the pickiest listeners.
As soon as you press play, you’ll notice that these folks are not joking around with their music. snakesnakewhale thought about everything while writing, composing, arranging, recording, and producing, so “Castle, PA” carries many brilliant ideas distilled into impressive musicianship. Perhaps this number resonates with modern emo, pop-punk, and post-hardcore ambiance, but you’ll also notice some orchestrations that evoke recognizable late eighties and early noughties sounds. “Castle, PA” immediately strikes with perfectly assembled leads, themes, melodies, and harmonies, supported with tastefully distorted riffs and chord progressions. These guitar dualities act as a perfect backdrop for outstanding vocal performance, which flawlessly emphasizes all the segments and instrumentations. The lead vocalist perfectly balances low, mid, and high notes, while the back vocals and singalongs contribute to the song’s complexity.
Of course, “Castle, PA” wouldn’t sound this good without equally complex, vividly hearable, warm-sounding basslines that offer heaviness, depth, and clarity, but also serve as a binding element between guitars and drums. The excellent drumming performance based upon cleverly arranged, well-accentuated beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics dictates groove and tempo, but also keeps the remainder of the band in line. Each instrument works to the advantage of the song, which resonates with such an ethereal ambiance. snakesnakewhale thought about even the tiniest details and nuances, so you’ll have a fun time listening to this marvelous number. Their ability to merge so many elements from other genres, but remain loyal to modern emo sound goes beyond comprehension so many times during the entire song. You should put “snakesnakewhale” on your radar as soon as possible because these guys know what they’re doing and doing it pretty well. The single is available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss it!
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