SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: CHOKECHERRY – MESSY STAR

CHOKECHERRY
MESSY STAR
FEARLESS RECORDS

The emotional structures of our deepest and darkest thoughts and feelings are often built on imperfect, shaky ground. At times, moving faster than what we can process, these feelings of joy, sadness, pain, anger, fear, anxiety, and happiness can sometimes lead us down a messy and complicated road to finding peace in our lives. It’s this process that alt-pop grunge band chokecherry explores on their latest EP, Messy Star.

Harnessing this emotional spark, chokecherry kisses their evocative lyrics with a pearly alternative pop rock sheen and infuses such vibrance with gritty, shoegaze brilliance. Despite their nebulous and blackened instrumental energies, their lyricism is driven by change in a world draggled with evil and the exploitation of others.

The EP opens with “No Other Place” and “Afterglow”, establishing a captivating and melodically audacious tone, seamlessly blending light and airy moments with heavier elements, showcasing chokecherry’s effortless, yet inventive, chemistry. Throughout the next four experiences, the band continues to expertly weave these elements together, incorporating understated layers that add depth and artful variation to the overall experience.

“Messy Star” and “I Know You” continue reviving the EP’s misty energies. Fiery and emotionally driven, chokecherry’s musical composition remains piercing, whether it’s gorgeously harmonizing over peeved chords, or their trademark stardust atmosphere over its brooding soundscapes, finding ways to cleverly blend such familiar and atypical musical territories while bringing the EP to a satisfying close.

Messy Star is an exemplary album that seamlessly blends alternative pop and grunge. Staying faithful to the essence of both genres, while also innovatively playing with the weighty atmosphere to craft an experience that resonates with the raw origins of these genres, they are evolving into something even more profound.

SPILL FEATURE: BUILDING SOMETHING MORE – A CONVERSATION WITH CHOKECHERRY

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