Girl at the Rock Shows

It’s one of those nights where I just want to sit at home and listen to some new music. Unfortunately, I have a show here in a couple of hours. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m excited for yet another night of the unknown but I also could use a night in just cuddled up on the couch with the cats. I may not have a lot of time before I have to leave for the night but I have just enough time to live the best of both worlds so here I am, on my couch with alarms set so I don’t forget to leave the house on time, checking out some new music before my show starting with ‘I CHOOSE LOVE’ from Bayline.

This thirteen song album kicks off with “Dead End Life”. The song starts off with wailing and mesmerizing guitars before powerful vocals come in and take this track over. The first thing that struck me about this song was the sheer emotional power. Typically when I say that I am referring to the vocals but, in this case, I am also referring to the instrumentation. Every note is placed and recorded with care and that’s easy to hear. It as if each instrument in this powerful band has a voice as angsty and powerful as the main vocals. It’s a stunning way to kick off an album and to say that I was already hopelessly in love with Bayline and this album in particular by the end of this first song would be an understatement.

The power continues into “Speaking In Tongues” but seems to take a more severe turn. Whereas I was getting an almost Thrice vibe from the opening song, I felt like there were moments throughout “Speaking In Tongues” where I was getting a more chaotic almost Refused feeling but with a chorus that was infectiously catchy and somehow tender even with the power it brought. Again, the emotion in this song is deafening and I’m starting to catch onto the fact that that will be a signature throughout this album so I promise to stop bringing it up but it’s something that will definitely leave you breathless.

“I.” delivers a small break in the masterful power with a single minute of pure beauty. It’s a lo-fi piece that doesn’t fit with the previous two tracks yet is a perfect way to catch your breath. It’s as if Bayline knew they had just hit you with a deafening amount of power and knew they had to give you a slight break. That break only lasts exactly a minute and, after that, Bayline plunges you back into their world with “Elephant”. The speed in this track is amazing. Although it’s a fast paced anthemic punk song, there’s organization in the song making sure it doesn’t bridge into the world of chaos that it so easily could have.

Fifth on this album is “A Crow Left of the Murder”. This song starts off with the same style of mesmerizing guitars that the album started off with but takes a more tender approach on everything. This makes a lot of sense as the lyrics of this track seemed to serve as a warning. Obviously, I’m not going to tell you what that warning is but I loved the artistry that I heard through the words. I’m sure this has been there the whole time but now that I’ve come to terms with the sheer power of this band, I am finally able to actually focus in on the lyrics and what I heard was as deafening and as impactful as everything else in this album.

“Black Masks” turns Bayline’s sound completely around. I know I said that “A Crow Left of the Murder” was tender but it still had Bayline’s signature angst and energy. “Black Masks” slows everything down. The dazzling guitars and slamming guitars seems to chill out for this one giving you a chance to see the heart of this band- the emotion and creativity. Okay, okay, okay, I know I said I wouldn’t keep bringing up the emotion of this band but in this song it’s enough to break you. There’s just something so beautiful and raw about it. You can hear the vocals rise and fall throughout the track and, at one point, you almost hear them break. It’s a stunning almost ballad-like track that will surely make something catch in your throat.

Thankfully, Bayline comes in clutch with yet another quick break in the emotional power of their music with “CHOOSE.”. This is another perfectly crafted yet odd for this band lo-fi track that seamlessly ushers you out of “Black Masks” and into “A Little Learning is a Dangerous Thing”. I definitely wouldn’t call Bayline a stadium-ready act or anything like that but this eighth song, “A Little Learning Is A Dangerous Thing” seems to be leaning into that world. The sound of this entire album is huge but something about this track in particular that just feels larger than life and, while listening to it, I couldn’t help but see myself watching the band rock out at a giant arena or stadium.

I think I listened to the introduction to “Lost Connection” about a dozen times before letting this three minute song play all the way through. The beginning just spoke to me with the beauty and simplicity that came through with the keyboard part that opens up this song. It’s quick at just around five seconds but it definitely drew me into this song. Okay, who am I kidding, I am so hopelessly in love with this band that I was already drawn into this song just based on how much I was loving this album but that intro, as quick as it was, really caught me. I really wish there had been a call back to that opening lick in this song but also liked how it contrasted the rest of the track.

The last thing I thought I was going to get from Bayline and this album in particular would be a midwest-punk jam but I feel like “Trophy Heads” leaned into that side of things ever so slightly but enough to catch me off guard. This song has an almost Midwest punk sensibility to it that reminded me a bit of Banner Pilot and Arms Aloft with the tug and pull of power and tenderness that battles throughout the track. I love this entire album, I truly do, but I think I’ll go ahead and say that “Trophy Heads” is my favorite off of this album because of this tug and pull.

You can still hear a bit of that midwest punk attitude bleed into “Ignore the Devil” but you also hear the band creeping back into their normal style. It was the gang vocals in this track that really seemed to get me. They are subtle and not like your typical pop-punk chaotic gang vocals. Instead, they are perfectly layered and spaced out without it being completely obvious. That was a huge contradictory sentence if you could even follow it but it’s something that you just have to hear for yourself.

I have actually heard (and shared out) “Sound The Alarm”, the twelfth track on this album, before. I won’t get super into the detail on this track as you can go back and read the full track review HERE but I will say that listening to this tonight was like being wrapped in a cozy blanket. It was familiar but still felt exciting to me. There’s something about Bayline and the way that they craft their music that makes every song sound new each time you hear it. You notice different elements that you hadn’t heard before or you follow a different line of notes than you did the first time. Regardless of what it is, I found myself just as hooked by this track now as I did the first time I heard it.

‘I CHOOSE LOVE.’ ends with another lo-fi track. This one is entitled “LOVE.” and lasts for two minutes and ten seconds. It’s much longer than the previous ones but it is a great way of easing you back into the real world after the intense and, at times, chaotic journey you just took. It wasn’t until sitting here, listening to this track play through that I realized the three lo-fi tracks that broke up this album come together with their names to write, “I. CHOOSE. LOVE.”– the title of the album. Maybe I was just a little slow to that but I thought that was another absolutely stunning showing of Bayline genius.

My Favorite Track(s): “Trophy Heads”

For Fans Of: Thrice; Deafening Emotion

Mosh-ability: 9 out of 10

What My Cats Thought Of It: All three cats screamed for dinner

How Badly I Want To See This Performed Live: 9 out of 10

My Overall Rating: 9 out of 10

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