After establishing himself in previous grime-punk project Asteroid Boys as a frontman full of energy and potential guitarist/vocalist Philipos ‘Traxx’ Davies proves that he’s capable of restrained grace as well as ripping up the stage. Intro track ‘Shout’ sets the mood for the rest of the album, mixing a smooth jazz keyboard with building punk drums and Traxx’s screamed gratitudes and affirmations. The soul of the album is truly on show from the beginning here, with messages of positivity backed up by experimental soundscapes alongside punk energy.
Don’t think that experimentation means that XL Life can’t tear it up with the best of them, as proven by the track ‘If You Want It Come And Get It’, with thrash-punk energy and complex guitar riffs acting as a backdrop for Traxx to break out a series of hardcore slogans. Drummer Jasper Gaskin really shows off on this track, shredding blistering hardcore beats with ease and style.
A standout track on The Boogie Down South is lead single ‘Baby Steps’, by far the longest track on the album, clocking in at almost four and a half minutes but never outstaying it’s welcome. Juxtaposing scorching hardcore drums with soaring atmospheric guitars and featuring a verse from grime-punk favourite Bob Vylan. With some of the best instrumental work on the album and a singalong shouted chorus that feels primed to carry this track onto every rock playlist in the country. The only time the track stumbles is with Bob Vylan’s verse which, although poignantly putting across it’s message, slows down the pace of the track too much for a relatively short verse, ‘Baby Steps’ shows off XL LIFE’s diverse songwriting ability but either needed to give Vylan a longer verse to justify slowing down or needed to provide Bob Vylan a high energy verse to go all out on.
Bound to become a mainstay of their live show, song ‘Feeling Away brings a slightly more classic punk feel reminiscent of The Stooges or The Ramones. With the beat on the verses moving to a cowbell supporting gang vocals and a stomping bassline, this is easily the most danceable track on the album, expect to see even the grumpy guy in a Black Flag t-shirt at the back of every punk show nodding his head. This danceable groove joined with the shouted messages of positivity and being grounded by your loved ones make ‘Feeling Away’ a prime candidate for radio rock shows around the country.
Following track ‘Grey Place’ takes a slightly more introspective feel with jagged alt-rock guitar chords and a steady pace building to a dramatic, cathartic punk breakdown. ‘Grey Place’ is a distillation of XL LIFE’s ethos with lyrics about their working class background accompanied by diverse sonic experimentation including expert utilisation of a distorted vocal sample throughout. A shout-out has to go to bassist Khalid Awad Khan for holding the whole track down by jumping between a steady, thumping bassline and keeping up with the thrashing hardcore guitars.
‘These Days’, the album’s penultimate song, features some of the more accessible instrumentals which stand up to some of the heavyweights of alt-rock by turning the emo up to 11, chorus drenched, strummed chords and dramatic lead lines inspired by bands like Jawbreaker and Nirvana act as a refreshing palate cleanser on an album of hardcore bangers. The true star of this track is the opposition of the gloomy rock instrumentals and Traxx’s screamed delivery, swimming in atmosphere and full of emotion, XL LIFE prove themselves as one of the finest up-and-coming songwriting talents across multiple genres. The album’s culmination ‘Built To Last’ is a chugging hardcore finale that teases a spectacular career to come. The short track’s spoken word intro, barked gang vocals and down-tuned riffs slowly fade into a single wavering synth line leaving you wanting more.
On the whole The Boogie Down South brings unexpected depth and heart in a genre defining package introducing XL LIFE as a name to watch in coming years. XL LIFE reveal themselves as a uniquely thoughtful and deep counterpart to the countless macho, meathead hardcore bands occupying the scene.