EP Review | Caustic Waves | Full Circle

Glasgow based Caustic Waves serves up heavy hitting rock ‘n’ roll with debut EP “Full Circle”.

It’s been just under a year since Caustic Waves officially launched with debut single “Regenerate” but work on ‘Full Circle’ can be traced back to April 2020. The man behind Caustic Waves, Neil Thomas, wrote, performed, produced and engineered the EP at his home studio in Glasgow. You may also recognise Neil from his time as guitarist in metal band Keitel and bassist in power-pop band The Chinaskis.

Clocking in at 28 minutes and 16 seconds, Full Circle offers plenty to discuss. So let’s get into it.

1. Knocking At My Door

We kick off with a short acoustic riff which may leave you wondering if you’ve pressed play on the wrong artist. But you don’t have to wait long for that bone crunching distortion to kick in. Lyrically the track suggests leaving negativity in the past. There’s talk of shackles being broken and a newfound sense of freedom. There’s a particularly good key change shortly after the three minute mark which I really enjoyed. It’s clever moments like this that keep longer songs interesting.

2. Invisible Enemy

A song that the entire world can relate to really, the lyrics talk of the difficulties we all faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. The uncertainty we all faced but more importantly, the hope of better days ahead. Invisible Enemy isn’t quite as in your face as the opening track, more alternative rock with a fairly simple chorus that you can imagine a crowd belting out.

3. Regenerate

Track three is Caustic Waves’ Linkin Park reminiscent debut single. Starting with echoey drums, we get a quick verse before heading into the chorus. It’s arguably the best track on the EP. As the title suggests, the lyrics deal with wanting to change as a person. Whether it’s a personal change or a Doctor Who reference remains open to interpretation.

4. Barriers

I really like the lyrics of this one. “Break down all these barriers and turn them into bridges back to where we began.” I’m sure we can all agree it’s a great message. Barriers is the most popular single released by Caustic Waves so far on Spotify.

5. Idiocracy

At five and a half minutes, Idiocracy is the longest track of Full Circle. For the first three minutes there’s a good rock song here, the remaining two and half are what really elevates this song, from good to excellent. There’s a huge tone shift that leads to this sense of anticipation, a build up that has you on the edge of your seat. I’d have liked a big mosh pit inducing moment after this but it’s still a highlight for me.

6. Evolution

The final and shortest track has punk laced verses, although it’s still around double the length of your average punk song. The chorus sees an overdriven guitar take over and I’d argue this is the track that best shows off Neil’s powerful voice.  

Full Circle will be released on the 3rd of March. It will be available on all major streaming platforms and limited editions CD’s are also available from the link below. Be sure to check out the Caustic Waves YouTube channels to see some amazing vocal covers and you can also find Caustic Waves on social media via the link below.