Review: Staring Out The Sun – “Break the Silence”
With its debut EP, Staring Out The Sun has decided to not take any side roads, as there’s a real go 
for it, or go home vibe with Break the Silence.
Coming out of the consistently crammed UK music scene, Staring Out The Sun brings with it a very slick, dare we say commercial rock vibe to this four-track offering. Now, we aren’t talking about the Nickelback (shudder) commercial rock vibe, as that would be way too mean to suggest. Rather, we are talking about the commercial rock that is so positively layered, hook-laden and riff friendly, it’s almost impossible to not be impressed by the effort to make this EP not sound as if it were recorded in a tin can. Unfortunately, this is a trap too many indie bands fall into: rushed production.
The primary criticism here, however, is that as much effort as there was in ensuring that the EP sounded professional production wise, the first three tracks – “Trust No One,” “YMEE” and “Secrets” – are not widely distinguishable. Basically, if you’re not paying attention to the tracklisting while listening, you may not know when one song swings into another.
On Break the Silence‘s closing track, “Anaesthesia,” Staring Out The Sun slide out of that previous three-song comfort zone for something a little more power ballad-esque. It’s a far more ambitious track than what precedes it, but there is a little cheddar attached to it.
That said, Staring Out The Sun will have no problem getting lots of audience members. While I respectfully won’t be one of them, there is a large contingent of music fans that foam at the mouth for such a band.
Sonically, the guys are moving at a nice rate and the vocals boast some serious conviction. But moving forward, it’d be best for Staring Out The Sun to take its sound and apply it in more dynamic directions – the talent is there.
-Adam Grant
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