Album Review: The Gospel Youth – Always Lose

The Gospel Youth haven’t been around for too long and already released one hell of a record. After having released a couple of EPs, their debut album is here: ‘Always Lose’. The band originates from Brighton, UK, home to many other great bands like Architects, As It Is and Royal Blood. It might not be a coincidence that this south-English coastal town brought forward so many amazing musicians that became very big, because with this album the same might be going to happen to The Gospel Youth.

Poppunk is a genre that very easily loses its credibility and originality in this day and age, where poppunk bands seem to outnumber Nando’s restaurants in the United Kingdom. But every once in a while, along comes a band that does things slightly differently and brings something unique to the table. The Gospel Youth are one of these bands. Opening track ‘I Will Feed You to the Fireflies’ reminds us of the epic pop tunes of late The Wonder Years at times, and at times vocalist Samuel Little’s voice sounds like Panic at the Disco’s Brendon Urie with a little bit imagination.

The album is filled with upbeat tunes, like track ‘Wildfire’: ‘In my soul there is a fire that this body can’t contain, please don’t let me burn away, I am meant for something more’. The sound of the band, consisting of ex-members from The Auteur and Fleeing From Finales, can be compared to other British poppunk bands like Deaf Havana, Lower Than Atlantis Mallory Knox, with just that extra bit of edge and excitement.

Their first single off the record, ‘Moods Like English Weather’, was released in May this year. Despite its cheerful sound, the lyrics are more serious than they first appear. Comparing his mood to the English Weather, notorious for being rainy and very changeable, Little comments on his unstable and negative state of mind:
‘All these moods like English weather
Are never getting better
I might stay inside forever
Where at least I know it’s warm’
With this song, the band raises attention to mental health issues, a thing many individuals struggle with worldwide. The comment section of the video includes, after the lyrics, the information to (inter)national suicide hotlines and the UK Samaritans, along with the comment ‘You are not alone. Your life matters’. It’s very important that bands call out pressing issues that so many people struggle with, especially young music fans in the United Kingdom.

To conclude: this album is a breath of fresh air in the overcrowded poppunk scene. It’s a fun album that addresses important issues as well and I am a firm believer that a good vehicle can deliver any important message. This album is definitely a very good vehicle to do this. A very good debut record, I cannot wait to hear more from these lads.

‘Always Lose’ is released on Friday 14 July 2017 on Rise Records. Catch them live at Warped Tour across the United States.

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