Revealing a tenacity that has served them well through a lengthy if bumpy career, last year’s hiatus-quashing All Bright Electric demonstrated new levels of maturity and aplomb on all fronts. The previous two albums, 2010’s Renegades (7⁄10) and 2012’s Generation Freakshow (8⁄10) – both now bolstered with an abundance of B-sides and bonus tracks – illustrate the band’s anthemic grunge-lite shtick as good as any.
Reaching for a musical riposte to counter a post-greatest hits dip, Renegades adopts an edgier, scuffed dynamic, though any early momentum gradually dissipates as the tracks stack up. Generation Freakshow sticks with the beef yet returns to the lush, soaring melodies that frontman Grant Nicholas seemingly breathes out at will.
The songcraft is assured, the simple hooks legion. It’s only the incidences of transcendence that waver, though another argument could run that in such a mass of consistent quality, it’s harder for the gems to shine.
