The Campbell Apartment Drop A Rock Soiree
A new album release from The Campbell Apartment breeds a slew of rock influences that range from pop to classic, and a lot in between. Even hints of vintage-punk come through in some of the song writing and energy, but it all has this great sort of pop overtone that makes things as colorful as they are edgy.
The (510) album kicks things off with a track that certainly gives a unique style of classic rock undertones called "30,000 Days", and this one is really cool because it has a kind of fuzz tone distortion to it, making it feel a little bit like garage rock, but with a super classic rock songwriting style. Because of that, it gives you little bouts of nostalgia while boasting that harder tonality.
I feel like this is a great track to introduce the record with simply because it does boast some of the staples that you can expect on the rest of the album however, listening to this record in full, is the only way to go.
You may get an idea of the record by listening to a few tracks here and there, but this is a record that's more of a full experience when listened to from start to finish.
There are some surprises around the corners, and a lot of different approaches to songwriting throughout.
The track that follows is called "In My Dreams", which as I just mentioned, bears a completely different feel. This has an acoustic pop rock kind of aapproach to it and it's super catchy, it bops, and showcases a load of character and personality.
As you listen through the record, you start to grasp some of that personality along the way because of the lyrics, and the vocal approach across the board, is really fun because it has that brightness to it. It hits with a lot of catchy hooks, not just during the choruses, but also in the verses.
There's also a really robust energy that fluctuates through the release but still you get the feeling that some of these songs were recorded live on the floor, and everyone involved was feeding off each other's energies the entire time.
There's something about this album that gives you the air of that live performance, and the aesthetic is brilliant, and something you end up getting attached to.
One of my favorite tracks on this record is called "Grudge", and this one leans much more towards a classic '90s grunge feel and done perfectly, if you ask me.
The enthralling distortion is way more sonically driving and the energy level packs quite a punch.
The riffs are also really well done here because they stick to that grunge approach by writing something that's semi-simplistic so that the chords aren't all over the place, and you can focus on those vocal melodies.
I feel like the drums drive this song massively.
The drumming on this record is the driving point and I feel like a lot of the rest of the band sort of pull off of that percussive push, which works beautifully.
It's not just this track but all of the songs that everyone really understands their mission. When they're going for a certain sound influenced by something different, they hit the nail on the head for that particular rock breed.
Like I mentioned before, this is influenced by us slew of different eras and sounds, genres and styles of rock music and you can hear almost all of them in this one fat record.
This is definitely one for the books, and I would again, suggest listening to it from start to finish because there are great riffs and guitar work, loads of attention to the tone of the instruments, even the way songs were recorded affect the aesthetic of how they come through. The tone is aimed towards what their vision was based on as much as the songwriting was.
These guys really had a particular idea for this record and it came through all the way, even though it was so diverse. That is actually part of the album's feel. It is meant to have rock diversity and to showcase this band's many influences.
A lot of the stuff feels anywhere from the late '70s through the late '90s, and not only did the record give me those bouts of nostalgia, but I kind of got hooked on the fact that most of these songs work so well as singles.
There are so many choruses and hooks that stick in your head for days after the songs have ended that it's crazy.
This is an album you listen to nice and loud. There's no point really listening to this at a super low volume.
It is a rock record but showcases other approaches and softer sides, so there's a lot of layers and textures to soak in, but it's well worth your time, especially if you love real rock music that isn't afraid to be written or released with fewer boundaries than you may be used to.
Most bands wouldn't release a record with so much diversity in rock music on one release.
I'm super happy these guys did.
I'll say it one last time; even though I mentioned a few songs here, the entire record is well worth your time. Pop this release on, and give yourself the half an hour it takes to go through it, because you're going to find more than a handful of gems here.
But don't take my word for it. Have a listen for yourself.
