Rebuilder - Rebuilder (Cover Artwork)
Staff Review

Rebuilder

Rebuilder (2013)

Refuse Rethink Rebuild


Make your own label. Put out your own records. Look for bands and do the same. This is what Rebuilder does. Fearless? Brave? Well, guts aside, Rebuilder's self-titled effort has enough punch for you to stand up and take note. It's fun, a summer record for most parts, and hopefully, it'll keep you vested in them.

This is a step up on pop-punk, nothing groundbreaking though, with faster breakdowns and nifty bridges. It's aptly cliched an EP but you can't help but admire sturdy tracks like "Everything I Hate" and "Keep Me Awake". Fest 12 should prove to be a great stage for them to cut teeth and with catchy, crisp and a tight structurally sound array of tracks, Sal Ellington (Vocals, Guitar) and Craig Stanton (Guitar, Vocals) should find the time of their life leading.

There are polished tones to the record that speaks volumes to what old-school Bouncing Soul did, and to what a band like Masked Intruder fashions, for all intents and purposes. This Boston band isn't reshaping or redefining their poppy disposition, and 'poppy' is being used loosely because "Headrush" closes out to a dramatic, faster and edgier punk-ish finale.

With stuck-in solos well calculated, even in the weakest tracks, Rebuilder manages to, well, build a great record. These 'architects' have confidence and balance it with brashness, and I can see this taking them far. Rebuilder is fundamentally sound and a great foundation laid.