Rock Bytes Review

Rock Bytes by MARK WINK is an expansive and confident rock project that connects old and new worlds of rock with a vintage-inspired sound, amplified and edited for modern listeners. This album is one of the rare projects that will appeal to old heads as much as it does to new fans of the genre or those just getting into rock for the first time. That mixture between new and old, accessible and honest, makes this project unique. The opening track, Old Soul, explores this sonic evolution with a train of thought style lyrical base that grows and changes as the track goes.

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The guitar begins restrained with muted strumming, holding the song together, affecting the rhythm and melody simultaneously. It gives contrast to the bold, rock-infused chorus with its subtlety. The vocals are refined while still being personal and raw. You get a sense that the vocalist feels what they are singing instead of just delivering the lines with perfect robotic execution. The extra passion elevates the track far more than any vocal technique. The drums are another strong point. They hiss and crash throughout the track, adding texture to its sonic landscape. Their timbre contrasts with the crunchy guitar, providing a complex musical soup for the listener to get lost in. Sugar Sugar, another standout track, takes a different tone from the get-go. It opens with this confident and charismatic guitar lick that sets the tone for the rest of the song. It comes in and out of the mix throughout, almost as a call and response to the vocals, as if it is the duet part in this fun and charming rock banger. I like the way the different parts bounce off each other. The real catharsis in this track is the moments when different melodic ideas interact, combining their traits and personalities to create a new sound. 

This project is so much fun to listen to. They’ve nailed it tonally, and the sonic execution is also very impressive. I’m looking forward to what they do next!