Mark Vennis & Different Place are back with another fine piece of sonic artistry that will immediately resonate with anyone looking for expertly composed and flawlessly performed music. “Sunrise” is their brand-new extended play release, carrying five incredible compositions, suitable for even those newbies to the rock ‘n’ roll sound. Heavily promoted with “In These Times…,” an excellent introductory piece that vividly showcases what you might expect from the remainder of this material, “Sunrise” arrives after “Small Town Vampire,” a marvelous full-length album released in 2024 that you should immediately check out. For those who somehow missed our previous articles about this outstanding band, Mark Vennis & Different Place combines several rock subgenres, depicting a luxuriant ambiance that continuously levitates between nostalgia and modern sound. They skillfully blend alternative, indie rock, post-punk, rock ‘n’ roll, and power pop, offering catchy, memorable, engaging tunes that grab you by the collar and refuse to let go long after this EP ends.
This marvelous extended play commences with the “Song For Sunrise,” a track that showcases their dedication to the craft. It’s a track that vividly showcases how they thoroughly plan even the tiniest details and nuances with the aim of delivering a premium alternative rock sound. If you pay close attention, you’ll notice that “Song For Sunrise” arrives with a carefully composed structure, adorned with profoundly detailed segments, brilliant ideas, and marvelous instrumentations. Mark Vennis’ excellent vocal performance commands attention and guides the listening apparatus from scratch to finish while emphasizing all those instrumentations. The slight raspiness in his voice serves as a perfect contrast to those melodies, harmonies, chord progressions, and riffs, expertly garnered with wisely measured distortion. The guitars shine in the mix, providing an adequate backdrop for Vennis’ vocals to shine upon while the rhythm section propels this composition to new heights. It’s an incredible opening song that promises many listening pleasures along the way.
This epic sonic journey continues with “In These Times,” a beautiful number that represents one of the standouts of this material. It’s it’s a power pop-infused indie rock track with many impressive sonic delicacies included in each section. You’ll hear how the guitar interplay shapes an adequate backdrop for all the vocal maneuvers to shine upon. The tastefully constructed, flawlessly performed, generously distorted chord progressions and riffs resonate on one side while the catchy, memorable, engaging themes, melodies, harmonies, and other sonic delicacies shine on the other. These guitar works define the melodic core of the song while the rhythm section serves as a backbone that holds everything together. You’ll hear how equally intricate, audible, warm-sounding basslines rumble beneath all those guitar layers, offering more than necessary heaviness, clearness, and depth while binding everything together. In the meantime, the experienced drummed keeps everything in line while dictating groove and tempo with moderate beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics. It’s one of those songs that showcases all the brilliance, creativity, and experience of Mark Vennis & Different Place.
This EP proceeds at the same pace with “Collapsing Buildings,” a song that continues the tradition of “In These Times…,” but with the punk rock undercurrent lurking around. Perhaps these experienced musicians deliver other excellent indie rock tracks where their musicianship shines on so many levels, but there are some nods to the classic punk rock sound included in the song’s core. Think of bands like The Clash, The Jam, or Newtown Neurotics, but garnered with Mark Vennis & Different Place’s signature melodies, harmonies, and other impressive sonic maneuvers. It’s one of those tracks that instantly transports you into a completely different scenery and leaves you in that state until the song ends. Anyone even remotely into writing and composing songs knows that’s a difficult task to achieve, especially nowadays when the contemporary rock scene is enormously saturated with so many artists and bands, but Mark Vennis & Different Place successfully managed to construct the track that resonates with nostalgia, forcing the listener to contemplates about life.
“This Heartless Land” is another calm, soothing, relaxing, ethereal indie rock composition where the rhythm section dominates the most. You’ll hear all those groovy, punchy, warm-sounding low-end roaming around and contributing to the warm ambiance of this track while the well-accentuated, moderate rhythmic patterns elevate everything to an entirely new level. In the meantime, the guitars deliver an entire collection of clean, polished yet subtly distorted themes, melodies, harmonies, and other sonic delicacies. This style suits Mark Vennis & Different Place pretty well, and it’s one of those tracks that signifies a closure of this material. “Solid Ground” continues at the same pace, but with more cinematic ambiance vibes, achieved by subtle keys, soothing guitar works, and more flawlessly performed vocal harmonies. It’s a beautiful closing track and an unquestionable standout of this material, as these experienced musicians poured heart and soul while assembling it. It carries a marvelous structure fully stacked with many detailed instrumentations and incredible ideas. It showcases their dedication to the craft to the max.
“Sunrise” EP is magnificent material, garnered with so many qualities that you’ll immediately place it among your favorite releases this year. From marvelous vocal harmonies, and memorable guitar interplays to intricate basslines and excellent drumming performance, Mark Vennis & Different Place push the boundaries of alternative and indie rock, positioning themselves as one of the finest bands you could stumble upon on the contemporary scene. “Sunrise” is available on all streaming platforms. Don’t miss it!
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