Cabin Boy Jumped Ship - 'Pathways' EP Review

Tracklist: 1. The Beginning 2. Dead Ends 3. The New World Order 4. Interlude 1 5. Pathways And Promises 6. Waste Away 7. Interlude 2 8. Replace The Hate

From reading blogs, Facebook group pages and review sites, it became clear to me very quickly Cabin Boy Jump Ship are a marmite band. Love them or hate them, there doesn't appear to be any kind of in-between, yet here I sit and I can't really decide how I feel about their latest EP release 'Pathways'. I don't hate it, but I'm certainly not in love. They cite themselves as being Electronicore and the electronic elements are certainty present it's quite hard to place their style as they seem to hop from genre to genre. Sometimes it works, like on 'The New World Order' other times it just sounds a mess, 'Dead Ends' being the worst culprit.

Musically the band sound tight with combinations of riff heavy guitar work and electro style grooves and Lead singer Connor has a really nice voice but it's often reduced to near unbearable growls. Don't get me wrong, I love harsh/screamo vocals on tracks but only when executed correctly. Connor needs to showcase the vocals he almost appears to be hiding because underneath it all is a lot of potential for a more rounded sound.

The thing that hits me most here though goes beyond the music and focuses on the band themselves. With the release of the EP's lead single 'Replace The Hate' comes a campaign that will see all profits from digital sales go to Ditch The Label, an anti-bullying charity. An incredible gesture and one that incidentally comes from the EP's strongest song by far.

I have been left unsure exactly how I feel about this release. There is so much going on that there are parts I really enjoy and yet I find myself almost reluctant to truly give in and let the music take over. I'm left wondering if it's a grower and a few more listens may open me up to it more or if it really is a case of, love or hate. With fans chomping at the bit to get their hands on it, I don't believe my thoughts are going to matter all that much. Here is a release that has left me arguing with my own opinion and that in itself is rather interesting.

Stand Out Track: Replace The Hate

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