The band are back with their 5th studio album, Safe In Sound, and it seems they have let their rough edge slip.

Opening with single, Had Enough, Lower Than Atlantis hold nothing back as the aggressive guitar-thundering intro blasts right in your face. However, it soon falls flat with the entering of Mike Duce’s vocals. Though all the elements for a banger are present, it does not seem to collide the right way. The finish comes across a bit too polished to evoke any major feelings.

Following up is Dumb, and though this tune features so great basslines from Declan Hart, the general composition comes across as rather flat and uninspiring.

Safe In Sound is Lower Than Atlantis’ fifth studio album, and the follow up to their most commercially successful self-titled release. “Everything we achieved with the self titled completely surpassed our expectations and now it’s time to make an album that can really take us to the next level,” comments frontman Mike Duce.

Finally hitting up some bigger chords on Long Time Coming, Lower Than Atlantis ambitiously bring in a bit of their rougher edge, combined with their recent refined composure. With tangy guitars and prolonged vocal delivery, this track is possibly the album’s most exciting.

Contrasted to the rock edge is Boomerang that features heavy electronic production and a distinctive pop vibe in the soundscape. The tune is a bit blasé, but pushes through towards the end, bringing in a bit of chaos and deconstruction to the otherwise so stoic melody.

Work For It‘s slapping chords and anthem-like chorus, is followed by bitter-sweet Could Be Worse. Lyrically, the album is half-soaked in self-pity, so it’s refreshing to hear that even Duce knows “it could be way worse”. Eddy Thrower’s percussion lifts this tune up from merely a bluntly singsong track, though it still is not quite there.

Another highlight is fast-pace, I Would that gives major throwback vibes to 2000 movie-soundtracks, in the best way. This tune is considerably more coherent than the previous, and in collective effort, Lower Than Atlantis sound great.

The album does come across with a sense of self-indulgent sadness, however I Don’t Want To Be Here Anymore feels genuinely heartfelt. Centring around Duce’s vocals and the story to be told, the tune is outstanding from the further tacks, both in composition and style. Beautifully backed by strings, the song feels a bit out of place by the staccato guitar-based tracks. Rounding off with another guitar track, guitarist Ben Sansom has definitely had enough work done on this album.

The album is refined with immensely well-constructed tunes, yet it seems as though Lower Than Atlantis, in their eagerness to ride the wave of success have been a bit carried away, and lost their initial edge and spark. It is consistently well-produced, though it can feel a bit over-manufactured leaving it with a shallow feel. Safe In Sound is an alright album, that sadly falls flat.