I’ve never been totally sold on Emery. Their albums have flattered to deceive, showing glimpses of a great band but ultimately falling back on a sing/shout/breakdown style that sounds horrendously dated. The EP they released last October showed another side to the band as they toned down the screams and brought some more subtle edges to their sound and this album takes that on further. It’s not perfect and, sadly, the band still fall back on those borrowed and tired ideals to shout and scream their way through. But when the band go full on with the singing and melodies, as they do on ‘Curbside Goodbye’ and the outstanding ‘Inside Our Skin’, Emery shine.
‘In Shallow Seas We Sail’ attempts to do what every band say they want to do, which is make their album heavier yet more melodic. When Emery do the latter, it works very well. The band will never be Hatebreed so the screams sound a little weak and forced at times. It ruins the opening track ‘Cutthroat Collapse’ and, if I’m honest, I did anticipate the worst after such a poor start. But the album does pick up and the middle section is quite impressive indeed. The riff of ‘Butcher’s Mouth’ sounds great juxtaposed against the vocals, while ‘The Smile, The Face’ reminds me of Underoath at their most melodic. Overall, there’s more killer than filler.
‘In Shallow Seas We Sail’ isn’t perfect. At times it’s tired and generic and extremely obvious. But when the band get it right, ‘In Shallow Seas We Sail’ is a good listen. It won’t be your new favourite record and it may not totally change your opinion of the band, but credit for not re-hashing their last album.