The Constant (Deluxe Edition)

The Constant finds S.O.T.Y. settled into their post-hardcore sound, yet daring to take risks by lacing some of their punkish power-pop with heavy metal trimmings. “The Children Sing” opens with actual children singing an eerie refrain before grungy guitars come hammering down. The kids also pipe in for the choruses here, inadvertently recalling the 1987 hit “Cry Little Sister” from Gerard McMann’s contribution to the soundtrack for The Lost Boys. “The Ghost of You and I” unleashes mammoth-sized rawk riffs that interestingly contrast the kind of delayed staccato strumming that have become synonymous with The Edge from U2. Frontman Dan Marsala howls himself hoarse, musing about a relationship gone horribly wrong while Josh Wills brutally assaults his drum kit. “I’m Alive” takes a detour with an anthemic power ballad that’s as catchy as it is formulaic. “To the Burial” returns the band to their hardcore roots with relentlessly pummeling beats that sound influenced by early Discharge albums, and while “Won Threw Ate” attempts the same approach, it contains a more commercially accessible melody.