Following up the success of their EP, Recreational Love, Virginia rockers Flight Club hopes to pump up listeners’ inner-energy source with the release of their debut full-length album, Until The Sun Drowns. Flight Club utilized the unfortunate nature of the global pandemic to push forward to new heights and continued to do what they love: make kick-ass sounding tunes.
But, are listeners ready to watch the sun drown with Flight Club? Or, do these up-and-coming rockers fly too close to the sun? Let’s find out.
The Review
Another Great Unknown:
Talking with Substream Magazine, Flight Club actually revealed that “Another Great Unknown” was the last song to be written for Until The Sun Drowns. Starting things off with a mellow rock track usually shouldn’t work. But, Flight Club captures lightning in a bottle with “Another Great Unknown,” giving subtle teases of their electrifying personalities that will surely erupt as the album progresses.
Instrumentally, “Another Great Unknown” is your usual garage band affair. Nothing too special but just the right amount of heart-pounding beats, riffs, and bass lines to keep listeners tapping along with their feet. Far from my favorite track off the band’s debut album, but it does a great job at grabbing initial attention from wandering listeners.
Adolescence:
The lead-in from “Another Great Unknown” right into “Adolescence” is one of my favorites. Turning the volume up to 8 from 5, “Adolescence” is a fun, joyful, and carefree musical experience. With the perfect combination of grooving summer heat and festival vibes, listeners are sure to love this one. “Adolescence” is the track off of Until The Sun Drowns that I can’t wait to experience in a live setting as I don’t believe its true potential is showcased in studio form.
“Just a soul without a body/Now I’m lying in my skin again,” a truthful embodiment of words for the soul that should grasp listeners full force, taking them on a trip of full sounds and escapism from their mundane lifestyles for just a few minutes. “Adolescence” is indeed a top 5 track.
I’ve Been Kicked Out Of Better Homes Than This:
If you’re big on out-of-this-world instrumentals, this is the song for you. Following in the same footsteps as “Another Great Unknown,” “I’ve Been Kicked Out Of Better Homes Than This” falls just an inch short of being a great track. It’s a fun time, and while that’s important in rock music, there’s just something missing from this one that I can’t seem to put my finger on. But, it is mindless fun.
Challenging their inner stadium-rock, Flight Club certainly proves their preparing themselves for the big leagues, and who knows, maybe my opinion on this one would change once experienced from the view of a crowd.
High Roller:
This one sounds strangely familiar? “High Roller” is the track that will throw itself at listeners’ earworm and feed it for weeks at a time. A combination of dance-hall vibes and high vocal notes creates a perfect sunset scene to plan a coordinated dance number. A radio-friendly tune that perfectly excreates summer vibes of long shadows and drunken walks home.
This track, along with “Adolescence,” is what I want from Flight Club. These two tracks set them apart from all the other acts out there that sound the same. Instrumentally, “High Roller” is a fun mixture of Fall Out Boy meets DNCE to celebrate summertime in fun and big ways. Seriously, that bass slaps, and I’m completely here for it—hopefully, the guys in Flight Club plan on having this one in heavy retention when it comes to their setlist.
Dust Bunny:
Vocally, “Dust Bunny” is hands down my favorite. It’s a melodic carousel ride showcasing the tolls that come with the lack of personal growth. A subtle taste of light-hearted, delay-centric guitar riffs and Flight Club’s brand of energy-induced rock makes for a wonderful eargasmic experience. “Dust Bunny” is a raw timepiece, a reflection skewed by a broken mirror and lonely shadows moshing in a dingy back alley.
This is the start of Flight Club’s takeover. “The scars of yesterday/With time/Will fade away,” only the truth shall be found in regards to the lyrical quality of “Dust Bunny.” A fierce contender for the top of the class when it comes to the 11 tracks featured on Until The Sun Drowns.
Two Tongues:
Aggression is Flight Club’s middle name, and “Two Tongues” is their snake oil. A fun ode to more traditional rock bands, Flight Club’s use of heavier-sounding guitar tones gives this track the backbone it honestly needed. Vocally and lyrically, “Two Tongues” is bottom of the barrel when placed side-by-side with other songs included in the album. But, it’s not much of an issue when listeners can simply get lost in the rough and raw soundscape being created around their “fuck-it-all” senses.
“Two Tongues” doesn’t do it for me. But, fans of Flight Club’s harder-sounding instrumentals and larger-than-life vocal displays will be in for a sure-fire treat.
Good Company:
Looking for a good time? You’re in good company with Flight Club, and listeners are in for a fun-filled sing-along experience when they encounter the lighthearted tones and light on their feet display of musical prowess that is “Good Company.” “Good Company” is a fun time that’s guaranteed to be a repeat player on streaming services. Fitting more in line with “Dust Bunny,” “High Roller,” and “Adolescence,” “Good Company” brings things back around in terms of high octane guitar riffs that will leave pop-punk fans wanting more.
“Face to face/With all my mistakes” get those lyrics stuck in your head because if you give “Good Company” a spin, chances are you’ll be singing them over and over again while doing other activities anyway.
Like You Mean It:
Fast, faster, fastest! “Like You Mean It” brings Flight Club back to their inner punk identities with fast-paced guitar riffs and aggressive drum beats that will have the social era moshing down the streets. Keeping up with their style of high-energy sound, Flight Club does a great job showcasing what makes them tick on this tune with crazy ease. What is already a great song can only be amplified with a raging crowd of punk-rock fans partying in an intimate venue singing each note back to the band.
“Like You Mean It” continues to fuel my head cannon that two different albums are coming into play within Until The Sun Drowns. Flight Club’s wanting to showcase their inner rock nostalgia while also giving way to their punk roots that keep the energy flowing past midnight. It’s songs like “Like You Mean It” that can land on their own two feet where others on the album would quickly fall flat on their face. Quite possibly, the best track on Flight Club’s debut album, “Like You Mean It,” is bound to have tons of fans grasping for more.
Visitors:
Described as a track that attempts to highlight “anxiety and mental unrest through the lens of Aliens and astral projection,” “Visitors” is a mellow experience that does a great job of calming down the heart rate while conveying its bigger themes with ease. After so much in-your-face energy running through the veins of Until The Sun Drowns, “Visitors” is a welcome sound that, if it were a physical object, would be like a weighted blanket making all things right in the world.
Tackling issues of mental health is never an easy thing, as much as people might think so. But, Flight Club does an incredible job bringing these issues front and center in a welcoming and calming experience. Instrumentally, “Visitors” turns down the band’s signature energetic personalities for just a few minutes of bliss and a sense of peace. A good time all around.
Come Back:
Experiencing the aftermath of a suicide is never easy, and Flight Club brings these emotions front and center with “Come Back.” A somber and tear-inducing track that will have listeners shed tears left and right as some come face-to-face with these exact feelings again. A beautiful and tragic track that will be highly relatable to many. A personal experience that Flight Club shares with the world also creates a true top 5 worthy experience. (Information regarding suicide prevention can be found here).
I’ve never heard better-sounding guitar wails paired with the raw vocal nature that these Virginia rockers display here.
Patterns:
Closing on a true bookend experience. “Patterns” brings things full circle as listeners learn the experiences shared within Until The Sun Drowns make each of us who we are. Some of these experiences might create the best of memories, while others might shove us into the dark corners of our minds. These experiences are crucial to finding out who we want to become and how we show ourselves to the world.
Flight Club does an amazing job showcasing these beliefs with pure musical fusion that brought me to the biggest smile. Instrumentally, “Patterns” finds a nice medium between punk and old-school rock while finding the time to keep things on the more danceable side of the spectrum of sound. A fun listen that turns life’s twists and turns into a more digestible prescription that only music knows how to fill.
Wrapping Up
Until The Sun Drowns has its ups and downs and, in some instances, a bit of an identity crisis. But, as a whole, Flight Club manages to capture life’s struggles perfectly in less than 35 minutes. I might not put the entirety of the album on repeat. But, I can already tell which tracks will find their way on my everyday playlist in which they’ll be in heavy rotation among some of my favorite songs and albums.
A fun and eye-opening experience. Flight Club’s Until The Sun Drowns deserves a listen, which you can do now via your preferred streaming service.
If you’d like to keep tabs on all things Flight Club, I’ve got the link for you. Through that link, you can connect with the guys via the band’s social accounts, as well as snag tickets to some of their upcoming shows.
