Off Road Minivan will drop their debut full-length album Swan Dive on May 15th via Tooth & Nail Records. The band consists of Melvin Brinson, Dave Trumboli, Miles Sweeny, Evan Garcia-Renart, and Ryan Tuck O’leary (of Fit For A King). The band shared the following in a recent press release:
“For us, this album touches on the sounds that made us want to play in the first place-an alternative rock landscape from early 00’s emo to grunge influence. We aren’t here to teach any defining life lesson, just trying to sing about the ones we’ve experienced.”
Swan Dive is inspired by stories and characters from their Hudson Valley hometown and addresses emotions felt, yet rarely discussed, between the band members and their loved ones.
All Punked Up got an exclusive look at Off Road Minivan’s Swan Dive. Check out our thoughts below and follow Off Road Minivan on social media!
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Swan Dive exceeds the expectations of a raw, well-balanced alternative album.
This twelve track record captures the alternative rock spectrum that the band is inspired by flawlessly. Emo, alternative, easycore, punk, and grunge elements are in each and every track. This beautiful mix of the rock spectrum has created Off Road Minivan’s unique and soon-to-be iconic sound. Swan Dive brings late 90s and early 00s rock to 2020 and we are forever grateful.
The record opens with “It’s Harder To Make It Below Third” and opens with a feel-good pop-punk riff. The verses utilize soft vocals with the melody and fun bassline to build to the chorus. The main lyric “don’t go breaking my heart” is very catchy and emo. I feel like I should be headbanging at the barricade as the Sad Summerfest headliner closes out with this track.
While “It’s Harder To” gives iconic 00s emo vibes, “Vampire” gives me the heavier emo pop-rock or pop-punk feel. I get this exact vibe with many tracks on the record including “Swan Dive” and “Platinum.” You know that 2000s subgenre that mixes emo with heavier rock, alt-pop, and grunge that no one really can describe as anything other than alternative? Off Road Minivan nails that indescribable but very enjoyable sound perfectly. “Supernova” pulls more from the grunge and alt-pop scene. It keeps the low and slow feel throughout the song with powerful guitar and drums backing the vocals during the chorus.
Swan Dive closes with a very light track focusing on a single guitar line and vocals that really pulls on your heartstrings. “737” brings the album to a slow speed and gives the record a definitive ending. The album is closed with the line “can’t turn back around” which sums the feelings and stories of Swan Dive perfectly.
“Keepsake” is my favorite song on this record. That opening riff just makes my body want to get up and move around. Throughout this song, I see myself jumping in and out of the pit as well as constantly crowd surfing. I cannot wait to hear it live.
Off Road Minivan has mastered the combination of all of our favorite subgenres in the scene to create a masterpiece. Swan Dive has just enough influence of the popular sounds of the scene to quickly climb charts while also maintaining Off Road Minivan’s own sound. We are very excited for Off Road Minivan to release Swan Dive.
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