Album/EP

Boston Manor - Sundiver (Album Review)

Walladmin

Heavy Metal Wordsmith

Sep 6, 2024

7 min read

Boston Manor - Sundiver
Released: September 6th, 2024

Line Up:

Henry Cox // Vocals
Mike Cunnif // Lead Guitar
Ash Wilson // Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals
Dan Cunniff // Bass
Jordan Pugh // Drums

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Picture this, it's September of 2024 and you're patiently awaiting for fifth studio album Sundiver from the best thing to come out of Blackpool (aka Boston Manor) to drop in just a few days time. The album serves as a Part II to its predecessor, Datura, released back in 2022, and is a new beginning for the band.

It opens with 'Datura (Dawn)', an almost seven-minute prelude to the record, with birds chirping as guitars fade in from the distance. "Could you please open up that window, let the new world in" are the opening lyrics and it seems fitting seeing as it's a rebirth of the band and a continuation of the previous release. It's slightly melancholic in its vibes, and the fade-out at the end is like a cassette tape (the thing we had before CDs and after vinyl records for you kids out there) reaching its ending. 'Container' is a complete 180 and is definitely way more upbeat in comparison, with some seriously funky guitars. It has a slight tone shift about halfway through, and feels a lot grittier, before reverting back to more energetic and rocky. This track is followed by 'Sliding Doors' and it honestly kind of gives me Rage Against The Machine vibes, especially with the super Tom Morello-esque guitar parts, and Henry Cox’s honey-smooth vocals. Sometimes rock borderlines on being ‘sleazy’, rather than ‘sexy’, but ‘Sliding Doors’ is firmly in the sexy camp in all of the right ways. Probably my favourite song on the record.

‘HEAT ME UP’ is next and reminds me a little bit of Minutes To Midnight era Linkin Park, think along the lines of ‘What I’ve Done’, and is more alt-rock than pure rock, but that’s definitely not a bad thing. It’s also a bit anthemic than the other tunes we’ve heard so far. Sometimes a song just makes you smile and has good vibes from the first note, ‘Horses In A Dream’ is one of those and has undertones reminiscent of early MUSE. It’s got a killer bassline that really pulls the instrumentals together, and is a total bop. It’s rocky and it’s funky and it’s perfectly placed in terms of tracklisting on the album. ‘Morning Star’ follows, which is an instrumental refresher that sits smack bang in the middle of Sundiver and I guess you could call it a little bit of a pallet cleanser that prepares you for the second half, or the fourth quarter’ depending on how you look Boston Manor's releases.

‘Why I Sleep’ commences, which is a super drum-heavy tune, with Jordan Pugh being the backbone and highlight of the track, at least for me. Cox also gets to show off his rather impressive vocal range on this one and overall it's a pretty great release. Then we have 'Fornix' which really feels like a song about burning everything old down, and being re-born from the ashes and starting over.

'Dissolve' is up next and transports us back to being a classic rock album, but with added dance moments with a really sick groove feel to it. "I can change if you want me to, I can be whoever you need me to be" is one of the driving lyrics of the chorus and it feels like that's what the song is really about, changing to be what someone else needs to be, and dissolving into that person rather than maybe being yourself. 'What Is Taken, Will Never Be Lost' is the penultimate offering and the intro is raw with only Cox's vocals and one guitar, taking the place of the album's ballad. It's not exactly a sad song, but it feels a little melancholic, and would be the live show highlight that gets the crowds with their lighters up and swaying a bit. It's very fitting that "This is how it ends" is a prominent chorus line in the last track on Sundiver, called 'DC Mini' and featuring upcoming metalcore band Heriot. The feature is a subtle one, but you can hear the difference in styles musically, especially when compared to the rest of the record but it's a perfect note to end on.

Sundiver is eleven different tracks, subtle at times and very in your face at others. Whether you want to look at it in the bigger picture of being Part II to Dature, or as a standalone, you're going to be satisfied with what the five-piece delivers.