Allow me to introduce you to Red Vox, the New York based psychedelic indie rock group, brought to you by lead singer, guitarist, Staten Island resident and video game streamer Vincent PizzaPasta – or as he’s perhaps better known, Vinny Vinesauce. You might have seen him lurking around on YouTube, corrupting games and doing various bizarre impressions. When he’s not doing that, he’s doing this, and this is great too.
The band has just released their second album, Another Light, which is a continuation of their first album, What Could Go Wrong. Inspired by bands such as Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Who and Nirvana, Red Vox tries to bring more depth and experimentation to the world of rock music. And in this album, that’s exactly what they’ve achieved.
Another Light picks up swiftly from where the band left off in 2016, with the guitar riff from the back end of “In A Dream” opening up the new album. However, instead of that riff being used to lay the album quietly to rest like it was last time, we’re suddenly thrust into their next chapter of music as that guitar comes back louder than ever. It’s rare to see ties like this between albums, and really, it’s what is missing from a lot of music.
It’s refreshing to see a new face pick up on this – Red Vox makes sure that it’s a band we follow keenly in order to understand it, instead of listening to a few of their more established songs on and off every now and again. It’s this kind of attitude that gives much more meaning to music, but I digress. Basically, the first song is great, and it captures the new atmosphere of the band perfectly.
The singles from this album stand out a lot more than they did previously, as they have had much more time in the spotlight and hold much more weight than the previous albums singles did. Songs like “In The Garden” and “From The Stars” have a much more fleshed out identity than the songs “Atom Bomb” and “Back to School” ever did.
Their message is more subtle, and they’ve been out for a much longer time, and like the weeds in the back garden that we hear about during “In the Garden”, the early release of these singles has helped them to grow on the audience. Vinny made the right choice in being more open about the development process and utilising his singles more effectively, as it’s given the singles that define the album a greater, more distinctive identity.
One song in particular caught my attention, though, and it was so good that I couldn’t go without discussing it in this review. Originally dropped in July, “Reno” is an unexpectedly brilliant track from this album. The song is passionate, very well mixed, and has some of the best guitar solos in the history of ever.
I’ve been somewhat obsessed with it for the past few days, even though I still have no idea what it’s about. Maybe that’s a part of the charm, I don’t know. My point is that this band has stuck to their promises in striving to be more profound in their music, and this song in particular really showcases that.
There have been a lot of shifts for Red Vox in this album – a greater focus on variety, psychedelics, new instruments, along with higher mixing quality, and this album isn’t red, it’s green – but anyone familiar with Red Vox (or any of the Vinesauce related brand) will be quick to notice that this album isn’t as jokey or goofy as some of the previous releases.
In the first album, tracks like “There She Goes” and “Trolls and Goblins” weren’t such serious pieces – at least, not lyrically. Their last project, Blood Bagel, was an EP that was a total joke – literally. Clowns were heavily involved within the production of it.
Another Light has come in and made a statement for the band, taking it into a more mature and unique identity, essentially saying that it’s had its fun and now wants to go on a sort of musical pilgrimage with its newfound audience. I could be wrong. Red Vox might release another EP like Blood Bagel at some point. However, in my opinion, the band has really found its feet with this release, and I hope to see more like it in the future.
Whilst the outro isn’t quite as strong as it was on the last album, it’s still a good one, and it is once again delivered in a well wrapped metaphor. Overall, Another Light is an amazing album, and an overlooked one too. This small little indie band isn’t afraid to make an awful lot of big, loud, and astounding noise. Make sure you check them out and support them if you’re feeling generous – trust me, you won’t regret it.
Purchase Red Vox’s Another Light album on iTunes here.
Words by Jack Hodgson
