Album Review: Chunk! No, Captain Chunk - 'Get Lost, Find Yourself'

REVIEW by Matty Sievers. 

If you haven't had the chance to hear about the Easycore Revival then this review is here to be your ray of sunshine into the pit of darkness that you call your life.

2015 is, arguably, the year of the EZ. With Four Year Strong, one of the forebears of EZ dropping their eponymous fourth album and now Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! releasing their third album, there is no doubt that 2015 is the comeback of Easycore. And it’s better than ever!

Chunk!'s 'Get Lost Find Yourself' is the pinnacle of the said (and perhaps, overly specific) sub-genre. It no longer feels cheesy or corny or in any way like a guilty pleasure. There's a level of sophistication to the music in the structure and the interwoven guitar riffs and melodies that makes the album come to life. The drums and bass provide the level of heaviness needed to make this an EZ album. And boy is it heavy! The constant pounding of the rhythm section never misses a beat (insert laughs), always providing the low end with both precision and skill. What makes the rhythm section so desirable is that it doesn't just simply contain breakdown after breakdown; instead it actually creates a solid sound bed for everything else to shine.

Equally, it wouldn't be EZ without some killer major key melodies that fill out the sound. On 'Get Lost...' the soothing and fulfilling guitar lines, on tracks like 'Set It Straight' and 'Twist the Knife', juxtapose the heavy and relentless rhythm section and guitar and as a result they grab your attention and pull you even further into the songs. The level between the melodies and the low end are always on point, one never detracting from the other with both always blending at just the right time to give of the desired result: happy, upbeat music you can move to.

It's been a journey and half for our friend Bert Poncet and his lyricism. Although his ability to write vocal hooks and choruses is almost masterful (seriously, it actually hurts when you don't sing along with him), his lyrics have always been cringeworthy at best. We've had the beautiful: "Hey dudes are you ready to/ Understand why some of your friends aren't true/" and "There's no party now" from 'Something for Nothing' and then some very generic and lacklustre ones on 'Pardon My French'. However, on 'Get Lost...' they are a level above. Although, thematically, we're still talking about breakups, being the best you can be and back stabbing friends, the lyrics and the way they've been written are now actually quite impressive. Not "Holy shit that changed my life!" impressive but more of a nod-your-head-and-gesture-your-hand-impressive. There's a lot of flow in the rhymes and phrasing that Poncet pulls out here that only adds to their aesthetic and catchiness.

Here it is children, the album we have been waiting for it. The album that will define the year of the EZ: Chunk! No, Captain Chunk!'s return to the market of 'Get Lost, Find Yourself'. It's everything that a revival needs. Heavy instrumentation that makes movement a must in any given situation and warm melodies and pop-hooks that will bring even those who consider heavy music Satanic to the flock. It's blended perfectly with no aspect overriding another while each still being defined enough to be appreciated and loved. This is the definitive proof that now is the time of the EZ.

1. Playing Dead

2. City Of Light

3. The Other Line

4. Set It Straight

5. Pull You Under

6. What Goes Around

7. Worst Case Scenario

8. Twist The Knife

9. Get Lost, Find Yourself

10. Every Moment