Seasonal are a fresh Brit-rock band chronicling their journey through life with thoughtful lyrics and a nice tone and their debut EP Bloom perfectly exemplifies this. Honest, talented and humble these lads from Surrey are making English country music from a sunny shade of sadness.
With comparisons to Jimmy Eat World, Deaf Havana and Taking Back Sunday the band have got a touch of influence from each but their own collective identity stands out from the crowd. Yet as clearly as the sounds of those bands have inspired them so too does the passion they’ve invoked in the group and Bloom takes that energy and multiplies it exponentially.
Although Bloom is a typical record for the genre it’s presented well and infused with genuine love, which is a good thing. You can’t fault someone for following their intuition and Seasonal are doing what they know best and doing it with conviction. Even if at times this come out as generic pop-rock their optimistic message is the sort of thing that will please the older generation and happy children while it meanders on tales from across the fence.
Seasonal have a summery disposition but that doesn’t stop them from being chill. Bloom is a verbose album utilizing technique and expresses a high-level of intelligent design on their first release. While it may not be everyone’s cup of tea, it’s certainly one to get the kettle boiling.
7/10
