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The Penske File

Half Glow

Written by: PP on 08/01/2024 22:57:42

What I've always liked about The Penske File from Burlington, ON is how genuine their songs feel and sound like. "Salvation" was one of the highlight records in 2018 exactly because it represented a style of 'troubadour punk', or indie punk as it is more commonly known, that bigger bands like The Menzingers and The Gaslight Anthem were slowly transitioning away from. Where larger stages have long since removed every ounce of passion from the latter two's records, it's different here on The Penske File's fourth album "Half Glow".

Here you'll still find it by the boatload in songs like "Bad Dreams", "Chorus Girl", or "Ride It Out". You can hear it in the way vocalist/guitarist Travis Miles oozes warmth and earnest positivity in his voice as he stretches to the top of his clean range, or in the slight gravel he adds in other songs for a slightly more rough-around-the-edges feel. The latter is especially the case in "Will We Ever Know?", where they utilize dual vocals much more extensively than elsewhere on the record. Here, the scratchy secondary vocals switch up their expression more towards a Hot Water Music one than what we've heard so far on the record.

"Half Glow" is uplifting, upbeat, AND sing-alongable throughout, following the exact ideals of the great American rock song popularized by the likes of Bruce Springsteen. It's mostly clean and polished but never feels too poppy or overproduced. That's a huge reason why you can feel the passion and the buzzing warmth throughout every song on the record. It's a joyous listen because of how unassuming their expression is: "Wolves Gather" is an example of a song that sounds like it just wants to be heard by as many people as possible. It's simplistic, but its melody is oh-so-infectiously catchy.

The only question that remains is how on earth is The Penske File not more popular given how strong their past two albums have been. Don't sleep on them.

Download: Will We Ever Know?, Bad Dreams, Chorus Girl, Ride It Out, Wolves Gather
For the fans of: The Smith Street Band, The Menzingers, Spanish Love Songs, Modern Baseball, The Gaslight Anthem
Listen: Facebook

Release date 21.07.2023
Stomp Records / Gunner Records