I first discovered City of Ships when band’s vocalist, Eric Jernigan, became a permanent member of Rosetta, one of my favorite post metal bands. His clean vocals gave The Anaesthete, the first Rosetta album he sang on, a breath of fresh air, and ultimately lead me to check out what kind of music he plays with his main band. Since I’m writing a review of their latest album, 2015’s Ultraluminal, you can say that I was captivated.
City of Ships play a grubby combo of alt rock and sludge, with a bit of good ol’ grunge. Riffs are muddy, song textures teeming with energy; old school production just further amplifies the feel of rust and decay while listening to the music. Definitely not a bad thing; Ultraluminal is a quality piece of contemporary hard rock. Don’t get me wrong; there are sludge elements in the music, but they are subtle and can only be discovered after repeat listens.
Songs are short; almost all span less than four minutes; the album is also nimble in length, lasting just a bit under forty minutes. This makes the album feel like a short hiking on a very steep ledge; you’ll feel exhausted and fulfilled, even if the hike was a short one. That’s the best feature of this album; it gives you a tremendous amount of creative energy packed in a pretty small box. Songs flow seamlessly, giving the listener a sensation of a free stream that just goes on and on, without any intermission.
Picking standout songs is daunting work, because of the before mentioned statement about the free flow of the album. But, after more than a dozen plays, there are a couple of compositions that stand out of the pack. The Light You Stole is a prime example of the type of music City of Ships play; a tightly packed burst of grungy energy that will wake you up in a matter of milliseconds. Alarm is a nice change of pace; calming, down tuned song with a catchy chorus. Metadata Blues, proof that City of Ships can be melodically absorbing when they want it. Old Man, an emotionally packed piece with a heartbreaking story.
Ultraluminal is an enjoyable album, with a couple of misses, but with lots of hits. If liking your hard rock to be (more than) a bit different, this one’s for you. You can download the album from their Bandcamp page, for a pay-what-you-want price.
