ALBUM REVIEW: L.S. Dunes – ‘Violet’

Heavy basslines, catchy guitar riffs, great rhythm, and an amazing voice that sounds like an angel. L.S. Dunes are back for their second studio album, ‘Violet’. This full-length album dropped on Friday, January 31st, and includes 10 tracks, one less than their first record, ‘Past Lives’. Featuring songs including: ‘Fatal Deluxe’, ‘Machines’, ‘Paper Tigers’ and the title track ‘Violet’.

Their second album includes incredible guitar riffs written by Frank Iero who also is a guitarist for My Chemical Romance and Travis Stever, the guitarist for Coheed and Cambria. The lyrics, written by Anthony Green, are relatable and sound absolutely amazing, making the songs feel personal and emotional. Tim Payne, who plays bass and part of the band Thursday, adds a strong additional sound to the mix, while Tucker Rule who also plays in the band Thursday, plays the drums amazingly, giving the band its signature post-hardcore style.

Their first single ‘Fatal Deluxe’, was released on September 20th. This song marks the beginning of a new era for L.S. Dunes. It opens with a cool guitar riff, immediately leading into Anthony screaming before he transitions into his beautiful singing voice. The track features catchy guitar riffs, made by Travis Stever, and a great rhythm that allows listeners to dance away their emotions. The song ends with a calm bridge, creating a contrast with the rest of the track, and the lyrics “Sure enough, sure enough, shut up” reveal a more emotional side of the band.

On October 17th, the band announced their second album, it’s going to be called ‘Violet’, that will be released on January 31. The following day, they dropped their second single ‘Machines’. This track opens with a solid rhythm and an incredible bassline played by Tim Payne. The chorus is powerful, and the song may remind listeners of ‘Grey Veins’ from their first album, but it brings something new and fresh. The backing vocals are strong and add another layer to the song, which makes it even better to listen to.

On October 23rd, Rise Against announced that they will tour Europe with L.S. Dunes, Dunes being their support act. A few weeks later, they released the third single from Violet, titled ‘Paper Tigers’, on November 22nd. The song begins with a catchy guitar riff written by Frank Iero, who initially wasn’t sure it was fit for L.S. Dunes, but after some reflection, he decided it works perfectly together with the band. The band says that everything fell into place when they ended up in the studio and all worked on this song. The song features powerful guitar riffs, cool drums, and a feeling of a heavy ballad. Anthony Green’s vocals shine on this track, sounding angelic and giving the song emotional depth.

The final single before the album that they released on January 8th, was the title track ‘Violet’. The song starts with a great rhythm from Tucker Rule that pulls you into the track, while the riff from the distorted guitar is incredibly addictive. Anthony’s passionate vocals in the chorus bring an emotional weight to the song. ‘Violet’ perfectly captures the band’s post-hardcore sound with a hard rhythm, distorted guitar riffs, and a deep, distorted bass tone that make it an excellent choice for the album’s title track.

The album opens with ‘Like Magick’, which starts with the lead vocalist singing acapella. As the band joins in, the tempo and rhythm remain relatively calm, before a bridge builds into a more heavy section of the song. A cool guitar riff substantiates Anthony’s vocals in the background, and the song ends on a calm note with staccato chords, making the ending emotional. Following ‘Like Magick’, we move into ‘Fatal Deluxe’, which fits perfectly on the album with its amazing guitar riffs and emotional charge. Anthony’s voice is incredible, the song’s energy makes it an amazing track. Next on the album is ‘I Can See It Now…’, the song opens with an awesome drum fill and a strong bassline. The chorus features a powerful message with the band’s heavy sound, in the background, you hear screams while Anthony sings, creating a feeling of someone trying to escape a palace the person is trapped in. The title track ‘Violet’, follows up, bringing everything we know and love about L.S. Dunes together in a perfect post-hardcore anthem. The song has all the elements fans expect, making it a fitting choice as the album title track. The first part of the album ends with ‘Machines’, this song has an outstanding bassline that makes it fit as an amazing closer for the first half of the album.

The second part of the album begins with ‘You Deserve To Be Haunted’. The track opens with a guitar slide and a fast strumming pattern that immediately pulls the listener in. Tucker Rule’s drumming shifts throughout the song during the verses, he plays a pattern on the toms, while in the chorus, he uses a more uptempo rhythm on the cymbals, which gives the song an amazing structure. After the second chorus, a guitar solo plays alongside the vocals, and the song ends with a spooky sound, leading us into the next track, ‘Holograms’. This song is more laid-back, compared to some other songs on the album. It’s rawer and less heavy, but still maintains the post-hardcore edge with its vocals and instrumentals. Even though it’s one of the album’s weaker tracks, it still sounds like an amazing song. Next up is ‘Paper Tigers’, this song stands out as one of the album’s best tracks. It features heavy guitar riffs played by Frank and Travis, fantastic rhythm, meaningful lyrics, and absolutely stunning vocals by Anthony Green. The song is a perfect example of the band’s evolving sound and music abilities. After this amazing track we move into ‘Things I Thought Would Last Forever’. The song feels powerful, with strong drums, guitar riffs, and a bassline that makes you want to dance. The final track on the album ‘Forgiveness’, is a stunning closer. It brings all the emotions of the album together in one song, with a calmer instrumental track that sounds incredible, the vocals complete the song and make it a great closer. The song ends with a fast build up, filled with fast drum beats, strummed guitar chords and a fast bass line, ending the album on a perfect note.

Violet is an amazing follow-up album to the first one. The band has clearly learned a lot from their debut, It’s a well-rounded record that balances heavy post-hardcore riffs, emotional depth and cool song structures. With the chemistry between Anthony and his incredible vocals, Frank his guitar work, Travis playing amazing riffs, the solid rhythm section from Tim Payne and cool basslines from Tucker Rule. L.S. Dunes have certainly made themselves known in the post-hardcore scene. Violet is a perfect example of the kind of music they are capable of producing, with the talent they possess. It’s just the beginning of the Violet era and I can’t wait for what’s to come. It’s exciting to imagine where this talented group of musicians will go next. If you enjoy heavy, melodic music with raw emotion, Violet is the album for you.