You Can Be My Wave

The first time a friend showed me Sorry, You're Not a Winner, it was kind of mind blowing. I was still getting acclimated to the sweet and sour flavour of 2000s emo and post-hardcore, and then the British quartet, Enter Shikari, threw me for a loop. It's not so much that the band incorporates elements of eurodance and rave EDM into their post-hardcore sound, but instead joining the two genres in the most unholy of marriages. The thing is though, Sorry, You're Not a Winner demonstrated that these two genres can play nicely together. The ebb and flow of modern EDM perfectly overlaps post-hardcore's dichotomous harmony and angst. Off the strength of this song and perhaps one or two more singles, I picked up this record to add to my collection. And there it sat for many years unplayed. I can probably count the number of times I've played the whole thing on one hand despite owning it for nearly fifteen years. Revisiting this record after so many years has revealed why.

The clean singing is generally quite great, especially during the moments where Rou Reynolds and bassist Chris Batten can trade lines and harmonize with each other. Some great examples of this occur on the first few moments of Anything Can Happen In the Next Half Hour and on the joyous Adieu. My first big gripe with this record however, has to do with Reynolds' inconsistent harsh vocals. I respect the attempt at different vocal techniques, but some are just not as developed as others. The constipated (I don't know what to call it)... growls that frequently pop up - navigate to the beginning of Return to Energiser for a quick example - are incredibly unflattering. I've seen some liken them to a sound the Cookie Monster would make and I think that is pretty apt. He also performs these throaty tunnel wails that more often than not is just rushes of air without much body. These two deliveries unfortunately sound more goofy to me than aggressive and it's something I've never been able to get over.

I would also say the songwriting is a little inconsistent too. Return to Energiser can't really build momentum as the song transitions from one disjointed section to another. I'm not all that thrilled by No Swweat either with its campy dance beats and cringy, confrontational lyrics that don't particularly come off all that tough or threatening. Enter Shikari and Mothership also have their moments like the former's breakdown that is ultimately reprised numerous times throughout the album, or Batten's vocal support on the latter, but these tracks are also pretty underwhelming in my opinion. Today Won't Go Down In History is perhaps the sleepiest tune on the record given that it takes way too long to build up to something, and when it eventually does, it has the most plain, lifeless drum beat. It is not really a good example of the band trying to take things down to a more mellow place.

A good example on the other hand is the aforementioned Adieu. I love the crisp acoustic guitar, the timbre of all the synths that pad the background, and above all, the feel-good melody. The track has a really joyous, healing quality that is difficult not to be swept by. Johnny Sniper is similarly joyous despite being more in the band's post-hardcore vein. The tapping guitar line is super sweet, the noodly basslines go down really smooth, the voice clips add this larger than life feeling, and of course those screams offer a passionate and cathartic release. Fifteen years later and this song is still just as satisfying as the day I heard it. Sorry, You're Not a Winner also has classic status. The jungle, drum and bass intro, the distinct fight riff, the stark juxtaposition between the verses and choruses in terms of style and tempo, and the climactic breakdown at the end with the sharp stabs of dissonant synths; all qualities that make this tune incredibly memorable.

At moments, Take To the Skies demonstrates sparks of genius, and at others amateurish songwriting. Although, you can't expect everyone to knock it out of the park on their first go. The band I'm guessing were still in their mid to late teens around the time that many of the songs for this album were written and that is pretty impressive. Even though I have mixed feelings on this record, I still want to make it clear how much respect I have for Enter Shikari. They were combining genres that beforehand were maybe only toyed with on records like The Shape Of Punk To Come and they were operating almost entirely independently: production, marketing, promotion, they totally embodied the D.I.Y. ethics. Again, they were in their mid to late teens. The focus, drive, and initiative the band had is tremendously inspiring. Definitely worth praise.