Sleepy Eyes - Empty Shells & Plastic Smiles

4th September 2015

Chesterfield based Sleepy Eyes may have released their debut EP Empty Shells & Plastic Smiles back in November 2014, but they are still a band to get excited about! For a relatively new band, this EP comes across as a well rehearsed piece, full of thought and practice. However, there is still a lot of work yet to be done in the recording studio, as sometimes it feels like the vocals, although good, drown out most of the rest of the band, with the exception of the bass drum, which takes over during the song "Thanks For Everything." That being said, all is made up for quickly in the third track "It's Always Sunny In Surrey," a sadder song than the previous two, the occasional addition of harsher backing vocals during the chorus gives this particular song a real boost, setting it up as the uncontested best track of the whole album. Sadly, the next song up "Le Douche" (also released as a single with accompanying music video) goes in the opposite direction, with the vocals seeming very strained, and, despite being 3minutes 43seconds long, comes across as very repetitive, drawing the track out. However, a redeeming feature is a quasi-breakdown (yes, pop-punk has breakdowns too sometimes) towards the end. Empty Shells & Plastic Smiles is rounded off brilliantly though, with the final track, which shares its name with the EP, sounding like the beautiful love child of Funeral for a Friend and Brand New. The gang vocals halfway through really gives it a sense of emo pop-punk of old, before bursting into a heavy ending section to conclude an interesting journey through this EP.

3/5

Tracks to check out:

- "It's Always Sunny In Surrey"
- "Empty Shells & Plastic Smiles"

(Both of these tracks make the EP worth a listen)

Sam Muckley
@s_muckley