Music Review: Marianas Trench - Ever After

Ever After is the latest album released by Canadian pop-punk band Marianas Trench.

Following suit with as much theatricality and drama as any of its previous releases, the fact that Ever After is a concept album adds a new level of intrigue. The album revolves around a man waking up in a mysterious land run by an evil queen who builds toys to steal hearts. This is just one level of the album. Listeners may not pick up on the metaphors, but will still be able to relate and appreciate each track.

Overall, the songs represent heartbreak, the process of moving on and a multitude of other issues faced throughout the course of a relationship. Every intricacy of emotions between two people is exploited to evoke completely relatable emotions.

"Haven't Had Enough" is the first single and for obvious reasons. The pop-punk synths immediately coursing throughout the song will have listeners moving to the beat almost instantly. The harmony is upbeat and the lyrics are catchy, but without Marianas Trench's traditional blend of pop-punk infused with heavier rock chords, this song becomes sickly sugary after just a few plays.

Other songs like "Fallout" and "B Team" keep your adrenaline going, but are more reminiscent of the classic Marianas Trench sound. Lead singer Josh Ramsay's voice belts out heartfelt post-breakup lyrics such as "Don't tell me to fight / to fight for you / After this long / I shouldn't have to," in "Fallout." With simple, strong lyrics and powerhouse choruses, it's easy to sink into a song and get lost in it for five minutes.

If there's anything Marianas Trench can execute perfectly, it's a ballad. Ramsay's striking voice croons along with simple but powerfully built up melodies in "Porcelain" with enough aching intensity to put anyone in a reflective mood. "So Soon" follows suit with lyrics like "I won't keep / keep your for myself / but I don't wanna see you happier with somebody else."

A unique twist on the album is how there are no breaks between songs. Each song flows seamlessly into the next, creating a fluid musical backdrop as the story unfolds within the lyrics. At times, Ever After seems more like a movie than an album, and it's easy to visualize it as a soundtrack to something like Alice in Wonderland or The Wizard of Oz.

Every song on the 12-track album is strong enough to be a standalone single, yet the combined effort of each on Ever After won't be strong enough to push it into mainstream music yet. The "oh, oh, oh's" executed throughout most of the songs give the album a prominent pop feel, but the combined strength of lyrics, harmonies and a wide array of instruments create a palpably dramatic mix of sound.

4 Stars