The Story So Far’s Under Soil and Dirt was an instant classic for fans of modern pop punk with an edge. It explored anger, sadness, betrayal, and every other topic you’d want to violently yell about while jumping around to energetic guitar riffs. While the band’s following effort, What You Don’t See, is widely seen as failing to deliver that same freshness, it would be a bad idea to stop following the band’s new releases now. A very, very bad idea.
The stream of TSSF’s new song, “Clairvoyant,” was unexpected, eye/ear-widening, and certainly fresh to death. It is off the band’s summer split with hardcore act Stick To Your Guns, so when I pressed play, I expected to be greeted with those same in-your-face chords and a pissed off vocal delivery. Instead, I was pleasantly greeted with acoustic, layered finger picking and a quiet, melodious verse with just the slightest echo. AND IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. It seems rare in the past few years that an otherwise heavier alternative band has released a breathtaking acoustic track, but The Story So Far are bringing the magic back. We knew that they could write songs with a more low-key sound, as showcased in “Placeholder,” but Clairvoyant takes it another step further, and it should not go unappreciated.
Frontman Parker Cannon sings “don’t paint me black when I used to be golden,” and we’re immediately reminded of the group’s talent and future potential. Kudos, TSSF, kudos. Pre-order the split now, which will also feature the band covering “Loro” by Pinback. Listen below and bask in the glorious-ness.
