“Burn It To The Ground” is the latest full-length album by Roughneck Riot, a Warrington-based folk-punk group. It has been two years since this album was released, and the CD version recently arrived at our headquarters. Soundwise, Roughneck Riot goes beyond classic folk-punk sound. Their music resonates with the finest properties borrowed from Celtic folk, classic folk, and anti-folk, but you’ll also notice how they incorporated melodic punk rock and orgcore elements into it. These experimentations with many different but complementary subgenres resulted in a powerful sonic display where their brilliant ideas and exceptional musicianship collide harmoniously. Each sonic ingredient has its place and purpose in this sonic equation, so you’ll have a pleasant listening experience if you’re into folk-punk or melodic punk rock music.
Roughneck Riot thoroughly planned everything while writing, composing, arranging, recording, and producing this material. You’ll have a hard time picking your favorite tracks because the entire album is one big standout stacked with many impressive moments. Each song arrives with perfect structure, garnered with many instrumentations and orchestrations. The best part about it is how every instrument resonates equally in the mix. You’ll hear how the interplay between mandolin and banjo delivers many expertly assembled leads, themes, melodies, harmonies, chord progressions, and other sonic maneuvers. Those leads and melodies are one of the heaviest weapons in Roughneck Riot’s arsenal, as they retain the listener’s attention. In the meantime, the heavily distorted, powerful, equally audible riffs serve as a perfect backdrop, supporting all the mentioned instrumentations to the max. Also, the accordion plays one of the significant roles by contributing to the additional layer of harmonies and accentuations. All these orchestrations support powerful shoutouts, back vocals, and singalongs. The marvelous vocal harmonies balance between low, mid, and high notes, emphasizing everything these experienced musicians aimed to achieve with these tracks. The back vocals and singalongs contribute to the anthemic feel, which became a trademark of folk rock bands over the years.
Of course, these songs wouldn’t sound this good without a rock-solid rhythm section. You’ll notice how equally complex, vividly hearable basslines offer more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth while simultaneously binding all the mentioned instrumentations with drums. The outstanding drumming performance dictates groove and tempo with energetic, well-accentuated beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics. Each member plays a significant role in this sonic equation, ensuring a marvelous listening experience worth repeating over and over again. We’re Still Here, Stay Awake, A New Day Is Dawning, Lampedusa, Cognitive Dissonance, Tired Eyes, and Fuck’s Sake are the standout tracks, but the entire material deserves your utmost attention. Roughneck Riot is one of the best folk-punk bands you’ll stumble upon in the contemporary underground scene, so head over to your favorite streaming platform or purchase vinyl/CD via SBAM Records.
Thoughts Words Action 