As It Stands - "The Lost Tapes" EP Review!!

It's now time for our 139th monthly CD review at The Sault Metal Scene, and this is almost a decade in the making, as we're looking at defunct local hardcore quintet As It Stands' posthumous third EP "The Lost Tapes"! Recorded back in the summer of 2011 at Metalworks Studio in Mississauga with producer Kevin Dietz, a planned contemporary release did not occur before As It Stands broke up in 2014, but members finally had the material mixed locally by ex-guitarist Ryan McLaughlin at Relentless Audio and released on digital streaming and download platforms on December 18th. The band's first paid music output since 2007's now-obscure "Kill The Music, Save The Children", this new EP features the exact same lineup, including singer Justin Pregent, guitarists Garrett Masters & Albert Bourrier, bassist Angelo Huckson, and drummer John Mignacca. As of press time, "The Lost Tapes" is only available digitally, but it only runs for $1.99 on Amazon!

You can also stream this EP on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music, and we'll let you know if it ever sees a physical release. Note that "The Lost Tapes" do not include the cover of Blink-182's "Stay Together For The Kids" that A.I.S. also recorded at Metalworks, presumably for copyright reasons, despite that song being included with the EP's (now-deleted) unmixed Soundcloud posting in 2016. With four songs running for about 16 minutes, let's begin this review with the opening lost tape, "A Sinking Sinner"! Kicking off a steady drum intro from John, the band slowly joins in until everyone gets to their usual hardcore fury in the first verse, and just in case you need a refresher, early-2010s As It Stands had definitely trended heavier than you may recall from them in the mid-late 2000s! In fact, this song has some slight tweaks to the verse-chorus-verse structure that work well, and the guitar riffing pounds along well to match!

Justin's screaming is very solid here, and his two clean choruses have a nice grit to them, but the backing gang vocals don't mesh too well to me, and a guitar solo would have been a nice addition. Still, a strong metalcore opener that doesn't abide completely by the formula and showcases their musical growth! Next up is the longest song on offer, "Embay The Terrible", which immediately launches into a breakdown with vocals from Justin, but the music proper gets more melodic as the song progresses, especially in the choruses. No clean vocals here, but the gang backing vocals are used better, and Justin does go even harsher at points with his screaming! Angelo's bass work fills this one out nicely, and there's a proper guitar solo on offer too, if somewhat buried in the mix. This is definitely a more aggressive and entertaining track that will definitely please hardcore fans!

Song #3 is the peculiarly named "Oh Herm, Herm Delish" (honestly, I never liked that title), and after a lo-fi intro, the full band and production values kick into gear, complete with even more ferocious metalcore, including copious breakdowns early! The drum-centric bridge in the middle comes out of nowhere and somewhat kills the momentum,  but everything around it works nicely, including more varied screaming from Justin in the second half, pounding percussion from John, and a catchy rhythm, so fans will get a kick out of this one! The EP closes with it's shortest song, "One Less Than Wayne Gretzky" (fitting, given that the NHL season began yesterday!) Very punk-style intro to this one before the vocals bring us back into hardcore land, including the return of the "Sinking Sinner"-style backing vocals that sound like they were sung in a cave.

Musically, there's nothing too shocking here to report from the preceding three songs. It's very heavy and has good breakdowns to mosh to, and Garrett & Albert pair well on the riffs, but it does end abruptly, and it could have used a guitar solo to pad it out a bit. Still a solid track that stands up with the others! So, what are my final thoughts on As It Stands long, long awaited third EP? Overall, it's a strong batch of original material that will definitely make up for the long wait time for their old fans and interest new metalcore fans alike! While only one song from their mid-2000s EPs exists online for comparison, it's clear that "The Lost Tapes" are a huge jump in recording and writing quality. Justin's screaming was top notch, Albert & Garrett had strong guitar riffs and breakdowns throughout, Angelo's low end work was reliable, and John's known drum skill was put to good & varied use!

I appreciate the variance in normal song structures here, and the heaviness was almost non-stop, but it would have been nice to hear more of Justin's clean vocals, more than one guitar solo, and more natural sounding backing vocals. Of course, I understand why they dropped the Blink-182 cover (maybe they can post it for free again?), but it would have been nice if they expanded this EP via including the songs that As It Stands recorded in the Soo and in Stoney Creek in 2010, which never had a paid release of their own. Maybe we'll see them down the line, let alone re-releases of their early EPs, if this one does well! That all said, it took almost 10 years to get the Metalworks sessions released in a paid form, and I think it was worth the wait! Stream or download As It Stands' new EP above, and I hope you guys liked this month's CD review! That said, what are we reviewing on the site in February?

We will be looking at one more Relentless Audio-mixed album next, namely local punk project 9 Times Dark's debut album "Vicissitude", so look for that next month, and stay tuned for a new post by Sunday! Thanks everyone!