Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
In April, after years of playing reunion shows, New Jersey post-hardcore legends Thursday released a new song, their first in over a decade. “Application for Release from the Dream” took the cavernous atmosphere that marked the three LPs of their post-War All the Time career and bruised it up, a comeback single that would fit on Common Existence just as much as it would surely please the fans who flocked to their Full Collapse anniversary shows. It was a clear mission statement: Thursday is back. Now they’re closing out 2024 with another new song. If “Application for Release” was meant to signal that Thursday’s still got it, “White Bikes” makes it clear that they won’t just be retreading old ground. It’s a new era, and they’ve got a new sound to ring it in.
In a statement about the single, vocalist Geoff Rickly mentioned that it originated as “an idea from Norman Brannon, who came to us from one of our favorite bands of all time, Texas Is the Reason, and you can hear his distinctive style all over this song. It might be the first true example of our ‘Thursday Is the Reason’ era.” You can hear it in the sparkling lead riff, not unlike Brannon’s work on the more melodic cuts from Texas Is the Reason; it’s the closest Thursday’s ever come to really emulating their emo influences, and it does indeed represent a break from the classic post-hardcore of “Application for Release.” But “White Bikes” isn’t pastiche or soulless copy-pasting from their idols. This is still Thursday, just updated for the times.
By the song’s chorus, for example, Rickly’s voice is layered in a way that recalls the biggest hooks from A City by the Light Divided, and the shimmery riff that floats in before the final chorus could’ve fit on some of the proggier No Devolucion songs. But the whole thing works together to feel fresh. As much as it wouldn’t stick out on any previous Thursday album, it isn’t representative of any of them, either; it genuinely feels like “White Bikes” provides a path forward for the band post-hiatus that doesn’t rely on clinging to the past.
It’s the bridge that really elevates it, as with so many Thursday songs. It’s elliptical in a way that suggests motion, building ever so slightly. As guitars cascade over Rickly’s voice, threatening to overtake him, he asks, “When your friends are here / and the music’s loud / how do you turn it down? / When your song comes on / how do you turn it down?” But if sounds this good, why would you want to?
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Zac Djamoos | @gr8whitebison
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