The fifth studio album from Broadside, called Nowhere, At Last, is a great mix of styles that the band has tinkered with over the past few efforts. Into The Raging Sea marked a dramatic, and darker turn in the band’s sound, while Broadside’s previous album of Hotel Bleu found them painting with broad and colorful strokes. Nowhere, At Last seems most comfortable brooding in the darkness, as marked by the color aesthetic used in the album cover art and their recent music videos. The music itself found on this record is vibrant, and it blends great guitar parts over electronic elements to keep things at their most engaging and interesting. Lead vocalist Oliver Baxxter continues to improve his vocal performance all over this LP that is brimming with great thematic elements, thoughtful lyrics, and impressive songwriting.

Usually when you check into a new hotel, it has a funny way of changing your outlook and mindset for the days to come. Whether it’s settling down in a hotel for a vacation, work trip, or just a weekend getaway, these places tend to have their own unique personality attached to them. Broadside have this concept well on the top of their mind on their fourth full-length record, called Hotel Bleu. The interesting thing about this album is that it finds Broadside tinkering with their sound and exploring the depths of their songwriting. While their last effort, Into The Raging Sea, took listeners on a journey through the darkest of thoughts, Hotel Bleu may just be the polar opposite. The latest LP by Broadside (Oliver Baxxter [vocals], Domenic Reid [guitar], and Patrick Diaz [bass]) is vibrant, lush, and as colorful as the name implies.

The Richmond, Virginia pop-punk band Broadside have been through some intense changes in their lives, and they are still alive to tell the tale on Into The Raging Sea. Lead vocalist Oliver Baxxter looked inward for inspiration on this latest chapter on his band’s journey to finding their own voice in the crowded punk scene. The themes of overcoming the odds, growing up, and finding inspiration for a “rebirth” of sorts are prevalent on this record. When asked about his plan for overcoming all of the past heartache and the current state of his life, Baxxter said, “From the very beginning, my attitude was: I don’t have shit to look forward to, and everything behind me is trash, so I’m going to make myself the hero of my own story. I’ve always known struggle. As I get older, it’s more mental than physical, but it’s always there.” By taking his own lumps and persevering through it all, Baxxter becomes an instantly relatable presence for the misplaced army of his followers. Into the Raging Sea is a sprawling collection of songs that teeter on the edge of epic proportions, and every now and then Broadside meet their lofty goals on this expansive record.