4 \'Til Ruin - Nostalgia\'s Shade

4 'Til Ruin is a heavily armed quartet of musical renegades consisting of Robert Seymore on guitars & vocals, Patrick West on bass guitar, Kevin Rowell on percussion and pianist/vocalist Shawn Shuart, who manages to shout out the verbal invective on 'Nostalgia's Shade' with passionate verocity that pushes the lyrical convent right into your face as if to say, 'Things may not be that great, but guess what... we're not gonna take it anymore!"

Many of the tracks on this new release blast with indignant aggression at human nature gone out of control, as on the opener Selfish which follows connections between the narrow self-interest of individuals as well as nations, and the follow-up track, Transparent Concrete, which tracks a similar line on the topic of betrayal and the damage it can create.

Guitarist Seymore peppers this material with arching and broad sonic strokes, while the rhythm section of West and Rowell fits as tight as the locked barrel on a loaded machine gun, releasing powerful musical patterns that refuse to get sloppy.

Nicely fitted with a variety of musical hooks to ground the material and hang the weight of their signature upon, 4-Til Ruin broadens their musical tapestry significantly on Nostalgia's Shade, as demonstrated on the poignant, quiet, and melodically peaceful closing track, Free, which features Shuart solo on an acoustic piano and vocals, and serves as a fitting conclusion, calming the listener after being propelled through the musically sonic storm that colors the bulk of the material.

With lyricist Kevin Gromada credited for half the songwriting credits, and singing back-ups on several tracks, the added evolution of musical texture and depth on 4 'Til Ruin's latest effort is apparent.