LIFE//LOST - Constant Failure EP REVIEW
As a city-boy that plans to explore more music outside the city, I can’t help but to exhort myself to discover music without the reach of an FB page or any social media account. That plan alone will take a while to organize my schedule, dates, and logistics and this plan alone will take a while for me to actually ‘get out’ there and see if there is anything I could find really good.
Once several music enthusiasts mention the hardcore scene that either take place within the cityscape of Metro Manila or the outskirts of its closest provinces (let’s say regions like Bulacan, Batangas, and Laguna are the most notable cities where the hardcore punk scene is thriving), it is impossible for them not to mention about San Pablo City -- which is the largest city in the region of Laguna – and its strong hardcore movement. Their scene remains to be as one of the most influential underground scenes in the CALABARZON territory. Bands like Barred and Pathogen for instance paved the way for other bands as the years go by. Sub-genres began to prosper from its roots, and Life/Lost are one of the bands that are looking to claim their territories with their own quality of post-hardcore. Their music are unique like the odd fruits in the basket when they are lined-up in a show full of hardcore punk bands. Life//Lost brings something to the table when performing, making them standouts in one of those shows. These ‘sad-boys’ of San Pablo have finally released their long-awaited EP titled “Constant Failure” which is available for purchase and streaming in their Bandcamp.
Knowing Life/Lost for a year made me open my eyes when I was new to the hardcore scene. Their mix of spoken word poetry that mull over on loss and regret while the instrumentals work out like a painful Saturday morning. The first track of Constant Failure is titled, “Brightest Star”, it opens with Old Gray-ish guitar lines, the intro of this EP welcomes the listener for a ride they would never expect. As the song progresses, the production builds up as the lead vocals’ voice become more heart throbbing. The second track that followed is titled, “Moving Forward”, and to be honest, it sounded like “Wildfire” to me. The spoken word was consistent but it didn’t hit me as much the first track did. The third track which was, “Wildfires”, this was a single that exceeded my expectations when it was released along with this whole project. It sounded a whole lot better than it was in the demo where you can hear Alex Ravana’s scream more than the actual music, it actually surprised me to hear the same artist but with a better sound this time. “Die and Decay” which is their fourth track, is their heaviest track they ever worked on. The build was intense and Alex did a great job projecting some painful emotion in his lyrics.
The mixing in this project was levelled to where it should be while the variation came along with frontman Alex Ravana’s scorning words that hit and misses every so often, but not regularly once I listen to this project in its entirety. There are some instances that I felt like some the tracks in here were so unmoving. I felt numb rather than I felt sincere pain while listening to the last half of this EP. Spoken Word poetry is an art that speaks for itself when read, but once executed in a way where the emotion and projection should be presented, the speaker of the poetry should do it with justice. Alex Ravana has done so much to make the project listenable but there are some parts where the instrumentals didn’t do enough to capture what Alex’s words are picturing. Life/Lost’s live performances are a thumbs up but “Constant Failure” made me want to anticipate their live sets more than their actual material.
Life//Lost’s most-awaited EP digs deep in the heart of its listeners but it didn’t dig deep enough to resonate with me as much as my peers did when they felt the pain and regret.
I really wish good luck for these guys especially for the hard work they put on this EP and I guess I’ll see them soon in the good near future.
FAVORITE TRACKS: BRIGHTEST STAR, WILDFIRES, DIE AND DECAY