"Unpleasantly Sweet": Basement Royalty Show Their Passion for Pop Punk and Alternative Rock12/12/2018 Some of the most beloved sounds out of the 1990s and 2000s were alternative rock and pop punk and to this day said genres are still being explored all over the world and Puerto Rico is no exception as bands like Corre Forrest, Late Night Drive and Baby Bhang continue to keep said soundscapes alive. Recently, San Juan-based Basement Royalty released their debut project, Unpleasantly Sweet, a presentation that shows the love Puerto Rican musicians still have for the aforementioned genres and what they are doing to bring something new to them. Unpleasantly Sweet starts with the short instrumental “Honeydew,” which slowly transitions to the alternative rock track “Steadfast,” a tune that shows some of the band’s pop punk influences. Afterwards, listeners are brought to “Impatient,” a song that continues to explore pop punk sounds while touching on the subject of communication and disconnecting from others. From there, the group moves on to “Wrong,” another pop punk and alternative rock blend that would definitely play well in the 2000s era of the Vans Warped Tour. Finally, the first part of Unpleasantly Sweet ends with the album single “Slow Pace,” a track that presents the group’s potential for mainstream success with its crowd singing moments and fantastic guitar solo. The second half of Unpleasantly Sweet starts with “Midas Touch,” a very moving and danceable tune that will surely have listeners shaking their bodies in one way or another. Next, Royalty deliver the acoustic “Unpleasant,” a song that shows the group’s ability to make ballads with a lighter approach towards writing. Then we are taken into “Longer Nights,” a track that shows a bit of the band’s heavier influences while maintaining their pop punk and alternative rock sound and exploring the theme of loneliness. Afterwards, they deliver “Only Clouds,” a short and somber tune led by the drummer’s vocals that perfectly sets up the final song in the project, “Take It Slow,” which closes the album with a bang with its heavy guitar riffs and fun drums. As mentioned previously, Basement Royalty’s Unpleasantly Sweet is an album that shows a young band slowly finding their sound as they pay tribute to their love for pop punk and alternative rock. While the project could probably be deeper and more raw in its lyrics, it manages to demonstrate the group’s mainstream appeal and potential success in said field. Hopefully, as the group continues to grow they’ll be fearless with their musical and lyrical exploration potentially delivering more fleshed out and gut-wrenching work.
Listen to Unpleasantly Sweet on Spotify All of the pictures in this article were found in Basement Royalty’s Facebook
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AuthorFernando E. E. Correa González is the author behind over 30 self-published poetry books. He has been published by literary magazines & journals [Id]entidad, El Vicio del Tintero, Sábanas Magazine, Smaeralit, The Occulum, Tonguas and Hound Magazine. Other than writing, Correa is also the host of FENCast, a podcast dedicated to documenting the Puerto Rican independent art scene. Aside from this, he experiments with filmmaking, photography, drawing, painting, multimedia and transmedia. He currently lives in his native Puerto Rico. Archives
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