IN REVIEW: The Motorleague - "Holding Patterns"

With 2013's Acknowledge, Acknowledge, The Motorleague made good on years of hard work and heavy touring with an energetic, punk-leaning record with a few surprises; splashes of acoustic east coast flavour (Oh, How the Mighty Have Fallen), groove-heavy rock (We Are All Going Directly to Hell), and even a little indie rock (Burned in Effigy) found their way into the core sound of the record. However, for me it was the incendiary post-grunge screamer Failsafes that hit hardest; given a few spins, that song stuck out from the pack thanks to its intensity and its catchiness in equal measure. More than any other song on that record, Failsafes married melody and force in a way that made it a clear favourite of mine, for not just the album but indeed the year itself.

Having earned a higher national profile thanks to Canadian major distribution and more hard miles on the road, The Motorleague went into Holding Patterns sessions with a higher profile producer in Eric Ratz (the man at the boards for albums by Cancer Bats, Billy Talent and Monster Truck, among others). It was a wise move, as the result is a thicker, cleaner sounding effort.

The Motorleague don't have any wild detours in store for fans, but what they do have is an overall more varied and accessible record than Acknowledge, Acknowledge; the grooves are upfront on opening track and lead single The Boards, which recalls Monster Truck while bearing the harmonic stamp that stands as The Motorleague's most improved characteristic on this record. The choruses are sharper and bigger on Holding Patterns than they've ever been for this band, as evidenced strongly on the pop-punk fist pumper For the Last Time Forever, the smoldering near-ballad Burn Everything, the grungy arena rocker Take Like You're Giving and the muscly power popper Don't Look Away.

Perhaps the album's most effective overall track, though, is Wounded Animal; taking a cue from the recent success of bands like Royal Blood while piling on harmonies and combining them into a formidable rocker that occupies the middle ground between the album's most intense and melodic moments. It screams out for future single consideration, if not for the fact that the four other non-singles I mentioned in the paragraph above would all sound great on rock radio too.

That's not to say that Holding Patterns is a cold, calculated bid at airplay, it's just that this is where The Motorleague's talents have taken them. Nothing on the record feels like a concession in any way, rather refinements in the craft that come with years of playing together and the guidance of a proven veteran producer. It's also got enough variance in tone and tempo throughout to ensure a consistently engaging album experience. A few tracks don't quite provide the same endorphin rush as the rest, but any negative effects they have on the whole are minimal. Holding Patterns is a tight, concise and thoroughly enjoyable record from a band that's rightfully extended their reach far beyond the Maritimes.

October 16, 2015 • Sonic/Warner
Highlights The Boards • Wounded Animal • For the Last Time Forever