SONG REVIEW: Plainview - "Make Yourself"
Plainview drop a triumphant follow-up to their last single with “Make Yourself”
Written by JD Walker
Just last month, the Michigan quintet Plainview debuted their single “Breathe” on Ghost Killer Entertainment, a high energy banger of the song that was short, sweet, and to the point. The band’s Underoath-esque brand of emo rock/post-hardcore is on full display once again, this time in the melodic offering “Make Yourself”. The song utilizes many of the same elements that made their previous effort such a great song, though it goes in a much different direction and creates a unique smattering of pop-punk and old school emo for the audience that’s truly captivating.
The song fades into a verse that plays more like a buildup, creating anticipation for the massive sounding chorus to follow that’s full of intense drumming from Chris Wilczewski, soaring guitar melodies from Aaron Rush and Chris Parker, rumbling bass from Andrew Momeyer, and the infectiously catchy vocal lines of Steven Dechausse. What Plainview continues to do incredibly well is create energy and maintain it throughout the song. Even into the more reserved second verse, the combination of Wilczewski and Dechausse drove the (marginally) more tranquil verse into another highly intense chorus.
“Make Yourself” is a great example of how shorter, highly energetic songs can affect the listener - it’ll be ripe for repeated listens from their fanbase as well as new listeners that may stumble upon their music. Clocking in at just under 3 minutes, “Make Yourself” is another quick banger from Plainview that never gives the audience a second to catch their breath until the very end. The last few seconds of the song featured an acapella outro amongst a majority of the band and displayed just how talented they are as musicians, picking out perfect harmonies to compliment Dechausse’s lead melody.
Songwriting truly does make or break a song, and Plainview have shown advanced proficiency in adapting to the times of short attention spans by catching the listener’s ear within the first few seconds and never letting go. Plainview has the ability of captivating the audience with the force of a vice grip and “Make Yourself” is representative of that; the band’s whole catalogue is of the same vein of their last two singles and full of fierce, felicitous songs that gives the listener just enough to come back wanting more.