Immediately from the start, Nevereven caught my ear with the electric fence sounds and 8-bit robotic bits in “The World Of Tomorrow.” Overall, the song carries a strong message that is backed by guitars that sound like their spiraling downwards and harmonious group vocals. “Remainder” started off being my favorite track on The Progress Of Disaster, however, there comes a point towards the end of the song that vocalist Gary Pickard’s voice tries to hit a high note and just cracks under the pressure. That’s one of the only negative things I can say about the band—Pickard seems like he’s exerting too much effort and that makes his voice a bit whiny and hard to listen to after awhile. Although the rest of the release has dark motifs, “Give” seems to shed some light onto the The Progress Of Disaster. It also happened to be one of the only songs that I felt Pickard wasn’t trying too hard. The guitars, which reminded me of people marching into battle or climbing a staircase, added just the right amount of gloom to not make this cut veer too far off the track. The final cut, “Orpheus,” redeemed the whole album. The crying guitars, exploding drums and slick bass groove fit so well together and Pickard’s voice was on point. I suppose Nevereven was saving the best for last.
Despite having strong lyrics and instrumentals, The Progress Of Disaster lacked a wow factor for me. But what is bland for one may be savory for another—give Nevereven’s album a chance and decide for yourself.
In A Word: Alright
