If you like big, anthemic, slow-burning emo then ‘Far From Home’ is going to make your day. The debut record from Brampton, Ontario based New Design is a mature, professional and realised effort from this young band.
With Kenny Bridges (of Moneen (sorry, .moneen.) fame) at the desk, ‘Far From Home’ swells and grows throughout, moving seamlessly from slow, gentle intros to huge, crashing endings that will please fans of Moneen, Moving Mountains, Prawn et al.
Right from opener ‘When We Drown’, New Design wear their influences with pride. Listening to this record feels like visiting old friends after years apart, it feels instantly familiar and comfortable. Were it still the heady days of the early 2000s when brooding emo was in its heyday, New Design would be blowing up. This band has crafted a record that harks back to the glory days, whilst still remaining fresh and exciting.
‘The Things We Can’t Forget’ has the best chorus of the whole record with an incredible picked riff, played by vocalist/guitarist Jeffrey Lee, that comes out of nowhere and takes you by complete surprise. New Design do this really well, they utilise their musical ability perfectly and they never overdo it, they know how and when to drop a sweet riff or a huge chorus. Take ‘I’ve Never Seen The Ocean’, for example. The song starts off as the best kind of emo song, a lone vocal over a single guitar before the rest of the band comes crashing in and you imagine kids falling over each other to scream the lyrics back at Lee. The ending, though, is just perfect. It builds up suggesting a huge, classic double-time ending is coming, but instead drops into this beautiful tapped acoustic riff and it’s in this moment that New Design really get it right. They keep you on your toes.
They’re also not afraid to keep it simple and classic, with the ending of ‘There Is No Safe Place’ a case in point, with screeching guitars contrasting with crashing cymbals whilst gang vocals sit beautifully on top. ‘So Long’ is another classic emo song, a slow burner soaked in reverb and delay before gang vocals and a huge ending hit you in the back of the neck and make you think of every late night drive you’ve ever taken with friends.
This record is just a great example of emo song writing and if you spent your early teens searching Pure Volume for bands, you will love this. This band is young and extremely talented and have clearly spent a lot of time crafting these songs and making this album a piece that should be listened to as a whole, rather than just jumping in and out. You should definitely check this out.
CONOR MACKIE