So Far So Good – It’s a Riot

It’s a Riot is a punkrock band out of Umeå Sweden that has been active since 2016, and So Far So Good is their fifth album.

The first thing that hits me is how lyrically talented this band is. There’s no songs that I think are an afterthought on this album, they are all written and sung with a purpose. Thematically dealing a lot with social media and online culture, alt-right trolls and conspiracy theorists, there’s high quality in the writing throughout and it’s clear from the get go in Here Is The News that the band takes a somber look at society and what’s going on out there right now.

Frontman Jockes voice is nicely gruff, sometimes reminding me of Mike McColgan from Dropkick Murphys (from their first album) and Street Dogs. Pair that with backing vocals that goes a bit back and forth with the main vocals and we got interesting dynamics and song structure. It almost sounds a little bit like Dead Kennedy’s in my ears when it comes to how the songs are structured.

After having listened to it a tenfold times it strikes me that not many songs from the album stays in my head for very long after I have turned it off. It’s a nice and engaging listen when I have it on, but I’m not left with songs that I go humming on during the day. Perhaps it’s not always as melodic as I prefer, even though it’s well written, or it’s just not that kind of music. Songs doesn’t always have to stick like glue to have an impact. With that said, there are some standout tracks that I return to, such as Just a Different Name and Means a Lot To Me, that resonates more with me and strikes a good mix of variation in tempo and melody. The same goes for the the cover of Creedence Bad Moon Rising, which is an interesting addition to the track-list. It’s a song that does really well in a punkrock rendition as it turns out. I’ve never thought much about the lyrics on that one before, but today they feel more relevant than ever, and fits with the theme of the rest of the album.

So Far So God by It’s a Riot is a record that I was bit surprised by, even though I went in without much expectations as I haven’t heard much from these guys before. It’s got an interesting style and song structure with good dynamics and really well written lyrics, but is perhaps lacking a bit in variation musically. Well worth checking out though, as It’s a Riot has a nice sound that stands out a bit from the rest.