Review | Naked Giants – Shine Away

Label: Devil Duck Records

By Lexi Joyce

Legendary Seattle trio Naked Giants are pushing the boundaries of genre and making their mark with new third album, ‘Shine Away‘. 

They have been building attention since their first single, ‘Easy Eating’ in 2016. Naked Giants have proven again why their versatility should be recognised and celebrated.

Throughout the album, instrumentals slowly build up on each other as the songs progress creating a crescendo of rock. Each follows the template of a classic story, exploring ideas on reflections of hard decisions, or allusions to emotional discovery. 

The trio feed from an amalgamation of influences from Weezer to Joyce Manor with admirable similarities to Palace, Bleachers, and Wallows.

With an almost sombre, yet piercingly recognisable male vocal lead, the band mould melancholic lyrics into something that draws you in with pure energy.

Though it’s hard to penetrate the indie rock genre, they’ve certainly made their mark, with this album being a landmark in their success story. 

The album’s lead single, and opening track, ‘Apartment 3’, immediately submerges you into something unexpected. Though, I’ve come to realise that with Naked Giants, you are to expect the unexpected.

The slowly building instrumentals become screeching and consuming, setting the tone of their album’s journey. The song reminded me of Weezer in the chorus and something more lingering like Her’s in the verses.

Though the layering of harmonies add an enticing dynamic, the guitars speak for themselves in tracks like ‘Missed Out’ and ‘Dissolve’ which were instant changes of tone from the opening track.

‘Missed Out’ has grungy elements, fuelled with anger, yet also a journey of self-reflection. The lyrics of “as I learn to let go”, explore the bittersweet reality of regretting actions whilst knowing it could be for the better.

Songs like ‘Oh Michael’ and ‘The Case of the Bastards’ were highlights: proper punchy tunes. The trio’s creativity and versatility truly shone through with these, as previous duller tones turned into something energetic and gripping.

‘Dissolve’ sounded otherworldly, like a science-fiction novel, or the retro game ‘Space Raiders’; I really couldn’t get enough of that one. 

Through the whole album, vocalist Grant Mullen and his recognisable tone had its own spotlight and accompanied the thumping bass and drums extremely well. Similar to Van McCann or Julian Casablancas, this is a voice you can hear and can be transported back to the nude reality of alt indie-rock.

This was particularly relevant to the track ‘Bad Guys Win’ where Mullen’s ominous vocals were assertive, drawing me into their world, like a siren, or a call to arms. 

As the album draws to a close, the final track and title track ‘Shine Away’ is the pinnacle with brilliant production and feeling like nostalgia itself. 

With Naked Giants’ third album, we hear an eclectic mix of experimental sound combinations, whilst staying true to their authentic rock origins.

These songs play like a soundtrack of revelation and encouragement alongside the despair and anger of the lyricism. This combination really stuck out to me, and I look forward to seeing more of it.