This album starts off with “Alt Shells”. It’s a sweet intro, harkening back to their early EP’s. These guys have a really retro, sort of 90’s vibe when it comes to their style. At least from the intro, because when this one picks up it really picks up nicely. The riffs on this one sound seriously determined, and while I do sort of wish lead singer Rebecca Ryskalczyk’s performance was a little more wild sounding, I still think this is a great intro. I will say this about Rebecca’s performance though, it’s mighty passionate, and I do think it goes well with these instrumentals. Speaking of which, I love the very melodic and catchy instrumentals, and I continue to love all the glorious feedback that make Bethlehem steel come off like a catchier and more melodic Sonic Youth. “Alt Shells” is a solid intro, and while I think the vocals are a still a little to be desired, the instrumentals are certainly on point. Now, “Fig” is much more direct right off the bat. I still love the tight and rigid playing that really brings me back to some of the early days of indie. But here, Rebecca’s vocals are sort of bringing me down. I just feel like some of her vocals really bring down the crunchiness of these instrumentals. Cause let’s be honest, there are a few moments here that are just so explosive and ridiculously heavy. As far as that goes, this one is all gravy, and I really love the clashing loud and soft dynamics. I’m still gonna give this one a pass just because of how instrumentally sound they’re coming off. But I need to hear a little more enthusiasm from Rebecca in the future. Like for example, I love just how out of control she sounds on the last few bars. That’s exactly where I want to hear her. On “Klonopinterest”, Bethlehem Steel go for a more quaint sound that I wasn’t really expecting to hear, with some more melodic riffs that are so much easier on the ears. Now, on this one, Rebecca sounds so much more passionate and I really love a lot of her bars. Here, she sounds truly dynamic and really stands out as a frontwoman. But there’s sort of a disconnect here. Like, Rebecca’s vocals here are so overblown and passionate, and the instrumentals that come along with it sort of don’t match up. Instrumentally on “Klonopinterest”, I’m looking for some of those crunchier moments we saw earlier. It’s on “Florida 2” that the band really start blowing me away. I actually think this one has a really cool tone right from the intro. To be honest, this one seems to be the perfect animal for these guys. The instrumentals on “Florida 2” may not be as heavy, but they’re determined and direct, and for once accompany Rebecca’s vocals almost perfectly. I still think some of the loud vs. soft dynamics is something that really isn’t capitalized on as much anymore, and it comes off really well for the band. I have nothing bad to say about this one at all, and it’s moments like this that make me feel like Bethlehem steel are here to stay.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wQUGjCSAk0
“Deep Back” on the other hand, starts off real slow and ends up building up some nice tension. In this atmosphere, Rebecca sounds a whole lot more subdued. But in this case, it actually comes off seriously charming. Some of the dual vocals here are actually really chilling, in the best way, and come off super passionate. For a softer tune from Bethlehem Steel, “Deep Back” is easily the best track I’ve heard from them like this. It’s really sweet, and in a strange way therapeutic. Not to mention, it shows some really nice unity between the band and Rebecca. “Finger It Out” on the other hand really doesn’t do much for me. I mean, this one just comes off as so disjointed. I appreciated that the band is going back in the much harder direction they started with, and that’s fine. But this one comes off with this really awkward divide between the band and Rebecca’s performance. The result is just so flat. I think there are some real moments throughout “Finger It Out” that are brilliant on everyone's part. For example, some of Rebecca’s later vocals are unbelievably passionate. But this one isn’t nearly as calculated or well thought out sadly. It’s moments like “Untitled Entitlement” however where the band really brings in some tension that I feel like their real strength comes out. I absolutely actually love the opening monologue from Rebecca, and the punchy, almost Post-Hardcore instrumental that comes along with it makes this one come off wild and instantaneous feeling. This one just comes off so powerful and truly off the wall. However, it was a serious risk for Bethlehem Steel, because this could have been truly awful. Rebecca’s performance is downright hypnotizing, and the band just do so well in backing her up. Then we have “Support Each Other” which is a serious wake-up call. This is easily the most intense, explosive, and well thought out tunes here. Not to mention, it’s just so catchy and likable. So why in the hell is it only 17 seconds?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X45-oh21fxE
“Donnie” brings in that Post-Hardcore feel that we saw earlier and comes off just as tense, I’ll give them that. It’s becoming really obvious that when they really focus on building tension, they can really do some big things. It’s in these atmospheres also that Rebecca comes off at her most passionate and explosive, especially when some of the instrumentals are at their sweeter and lighter side. Not to mention, it picks up nicely into one of the more likable upbeat tunes here. But then the album’s finale “Yolk”” shows up, and all I really can say is Ughh. Just when I feel like Bethlehem Steel is building up a lot of steam with some of these tunes, I feel like this one goes back to just how disconnected some of the early tunes were here. Like, they’re really trying for some pretty fancy instrumental tricks here, and almost none of them come off very well. As a matter of fact, it’s only when they get back to basics later in the track that “Yolk” gets a little easier to swallow. But there’s still a massive disconnect and I can’t get past that. Not to mention, this just feels so safe for an ending, and I was expecting a bit more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wQUGjCSAk0
“Deep Back” on the other hand, starts off real slow and ends up building up some nice tension. In this atmosphere, Rebecca sounds a whole lot more subdued. But in this case, it actually comes off seriously charming. Some of the dual vocals here are actually really chilling, in the best way, and come off super passionate. For a softer tune from Bethlehem Steel, “Deep Back” is easily the best track I’ve heard from them like this. It’s really sweet, and in a strange way therapeutic. Not to mention, it shows some really nice unity between the band and Rebecca. “Finger It Out” on the other hand really doesn’t do much for me. I mean, this one just comes off as so disjointed. I appreciated that the band is going back in the much harder direction they started with, and that’s fine. But this one comes off with this really awkward divide between the band and Rebecca’s performance. The result is just so flat. I think there are some real moments throughout “Finger It Out” that are brilliant on everyone's part. For example, some of Rebecca’s later vocals are unbelievably passionate. But this one isn’t nearly as calculated or well thought out sadly. It’s moments like “Untitled Entitlement” however where the band really brings in some tension that I feel like their real strength comes out. I absolutely actually love the opening monologue from Rebecca, and the punchy, almost Post-Hardcore instrumental that comes along with it makes this one come off wild and instantaneous feeling. This one just comes off so powerful and truly off the wall. However, it was a serious risk for Bethlehem Steel, because this could have been truly awful. Rebecca’s performance is downright hypnotizing, and the band just do so well in backing her up. Then we have “Support Each Other” which is a serious wake-up call. This is easily the most intense, explosive, and well thought out tunes here. Not to mention, it’s just so catchy and likable. So why in the hell is it only 17 seconds?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X45-oh21fxE
“Donnie” brings in that Post-Hardcore feel that we saw earlier and comes off just as tense, I’ll give them that. It’s becoming really obvious that when they really focus on building tension, they can really do some big things. It’s in these atmospheres also that Rebecca comes off at her most passionate and explosive, especially when some of the instrumentals are at their sweeter and lighter side. Not to mention, it picks up nicely into one of the more likable upbeat tunes here. But then the album’s finale “Yolk”” shows up, and all I really can say is Ughh. Just when I feel like Bethlehem Steel is building up a lot of steam with some of these tunes, I feel like this one goes back to just how disconnected some of the early tunes were here. Like, they’re really trying for some pretty fancy instrumental tricks here, and almost none of them come off very well. As a matter of fact, it’s only when they get back to basics later in the track that “Yolk” gets a little easier to swallow. But there’s still a massive disconnect and I can’t get past that. Not to mention, this just feels so safe for an ending, and I was expecting a bit more.
Rating: 7.6/10
Give A Listen To: “Alt Shells”, “Florida 2”, “Untitled Entitlement”, “Donnie”
Genre: Indie Rock / Alternative Rock
Overall Thoughts: Overall this certainly isn’t a terrible debut album. There’s actually a whole lot on this album that I dig. I feel like Rebecca has so much potential to be a seriously dynamic Frontwoman, and that comes out on some of the more slower paced tunes here. But some of these tracks just have this massive disconnect that makes it sound like Rebecca and the rest of the band are playing two entirely different tunes.
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