Like Pacific - 'In Spite Of Me'

Canadian outfit Like Pacific sure know how to pack a punch, with their upcoming album, ‘In Spite Of Me’ sounding absolutely huge. 

Like Pacific return after a two year hiatus sounding bigger and better than ever, whilst still hitting so close to home carrying all the attributes fans loved from their first album. Sonically, these songs could nestle into previous release 'Distant Like You Asked', no problem. However, since their debut was so strong, this shouldn’t be seen as a fault; in fact, quite the opposite.  

As usual, frontman Jordan Black’s vocals are coarse, yet perfectly in tune, with singles like 'In Spite Of Me' relaying 4 minutes of utter angst. This single is most definitely one of the strongest on the album, giving us copious amounts of energy and anger. Of course, the generics of pop punk can be found on this release. 'Sedatives' holds all the  to a new wave pop punk hit - a catchy chorus and punchy riffs.  

It seems that this album is fuelled by anger and frustration, which when given an intellectual twist, sounds absolutely incredible. The honesty in Black’s lyrics take us all to an often painful place that we all wish we’d never had to visit. This is especially prominent in single 'The Spring', which immediately pulls on your heart strings.  That being said, Like Pacific have also revealed a lighter, more goofy side through their newly released visuals for 'Self Defeated' which is really refreshing to see.

'In Spite Of Me' is a very enjoyable record, but there are some slightly less memorable singles, such as 'Consider Me' and 'Something Missing'. However, these singles are still undeniably good, although when compared to high energy memorable hits like 'Sedatives', it’s easy for these singles to become overshadowed. 

Gritty & hard-hitting single 'Had It Coming' is another strong point of this release, with Black’s vocal range taking centre stage. this song sports bouncy riffs whilst offering a real sense of resentment, which is what this band portrays so well.  For a sophomore release,  'In Spite Of Me' really is something to be proud of. This is most definitely an album you can jam to year-round, so keep your ears open forJuly 27th when the new album drops via Pure Noise Records!

Words of Cait Briggs