This is what good punk should be. It’s got blood on the mic as well as in the lyrics book, but from the still gushing vein it finger paints something beautiful.
‘Once A Rose, Now A Parasite‘ is a track title that wears its heart on its sleeve. There’s a certain poetry to it that had me intrigued. The title instantly brought to mind Farse‘s ‘Once Was A Rose‘ which was a stand out track for the ska-punk band. However the two tracks are similar in title alone, with Sentiment turning up amps to 11 to properly express the explosive emotion of their track.
It begins with a fuzzy little riff that has just enough pop to set the mood for the song. When the vocals come in it’s incredibly rich and clean with a nice range, dancing beautifully atop the thunderous drum backbeat. When it switches to the chorus it morphs into a different beast altogether though as the growling hook is howled to the moon. At around 3 minutes the band dial into another universe with a ridiculously fun little solo that leads into the finale.
Sentiment have amazing versatility in their sound, every song shows a new side to the band and their influences as well as the enormous wealth of their talent. While many before them have experimented blending different genres, tropes, and techniques together it doesn’t always fit so cleanly.
‘Once A Rose, Now A Parasite‘ is a song that puts a very positive spin on coming out of a toxic relationship much stronger for it. It’s a great message riding on top an absolutely gargantuan sound. It does lean a little too far into a poppy sound but this track is the exception not the rule for the band.
Words by Matt Miles
