TURNSTILE dust off HxC with “Turnstile Love Connection”.

Written by Album Review, Featured

On June 28th, TURNSTILE kicked off the summer with the release of their EP “Turnstile Love Connection”. The band took everyone by surprise by posting a short movie directed by singer Brendan Yates, incorporating all the songs from the record.

The video might look a bit naive and directed like a Supreme ad, but it captures the magic of freedom found in vast sunny urban spots, the ones highlighted in 90s skateboarding videos. It’s fresh and innocent without being passé. Here’s the pitch: beyond the exercise of style, Turnstile (still) has a lot of energy and fun to spare. Faithful to their contagious vivacity, Turnstile keeps dusting off a genre stuck in its own clichés.

“Turnstile Love Connection” is no exception to the rule. Even better, we feel that the band is still polishing what will be the real Turnstile crossover, something that breathes and oozes NYHC: the old school sequence riffing, the contagious groove on top of raging drums, and captivating hooks and hip-hop sounding vocals of Brendan Yates. Opening track “Holiday” perfectly reflects this, adding a warm and enticing bass line coupled with electronic arrangements. Feels like looking up to the sun and yell “HOLIDAY!!!”. Simple, terribly catchy and addictive.

The following 45 seconds are among the most disconcerting the band has ever delivered. We discover melodic vocals from bassist Franz Lyons on top of a minimalist instrumental reminiscent of Frank Ocean or the convoluted sounds of Tyler The Creator. But this dreamy, fairy-tale interlude (say what!) only serves the purpose of captivating and heady third track “Mystery”, the poppier and catchier tune ever produced by the band. Seriously, I never thought I would use the words “fairy” and “dreamlike” in a HxC review, and yet it fits! There is plenty of groove and melodies, it’s heavy, and while we wonder how they manage to put out such fun tracks, “Mystery” is shaping up as a perfect summer anthem.

Hardcore has never sounded so lighthearted and fun. Turnstile captures the essence of the moment and doesn’t give a damn about any etiquette. Everything kids want to hear in 2021. But “Turnstile Love Connection” heralds even better things to come. As I write, new single “Blackout” from their upcoming album “Glow On” (out August 27) is out. With its pastel pink artwork, produced by Mike Elizondo — Dr Dre’s faithful collaborator — we behold a future game-changer just like Refused or Snapcase did before them. But one thing is for sure: hardcore still has a lot to offer.

Last modified: 24 August 2021