On ‘NEVER ENOUGH,’ Turnstile Stretch Hardcore Toward Pop and Mostly Pull It Off

Turnstile’s NEVER ENOUGH is not a hardcore record. It is a hardcore band’s record about everything else — pop, synth, 1980s new wave, and the sheer reach of what a punk rhythm section can carry. The Baltimore five-piece spent four years following up Glow On, and the result is a 45-minute album that treats genre as a suggestion rather than a rule. It is ambitious, frequently thrilling, and only occasionally overstuffed.

“There’s so much else happening, a profusion of ideas so deftly handled that it never feels sprawling or indulgent.”

Track by Track

“Never Enough” opens the album with a grinding bassline, a hook that could live on pop radio, and a chorus that refuses to let go. It is the mission statement, and it lands. “Sole” follows with a tighter, more aggressive pulse — the closest the record gets to the band’s hardcore roots. “I Care” slows the pace into a melodic stretch, and it works because the band commits fully to the sentiment.

“Dreaming” is a two-and-a-half-minute synth-pop detour that feels like a breath. “Light Design” and “Dull” arrive as short, sharp interludes — they do not overstay, but they also do not demand much attention. “Sunshower” is the pivot: a stretch of shimmering guitar and a vocal melody that reaches for the sky. It is one of the best things the band has ever recorded.

“Look Out For Me” stretches long, a slow-burning epic that earns its length through dynamics rather than repetition. “Ceiling” is a brief fragment, a palate cleanser before the back half. “Seein’ Stars” brings the bounce back, playful and propulsive. “Birds” is a two-and-a-half-minute burst of energy that could have been a single.

“Slowdive” wears its name proudly — dreamy, layered, and surprisingly pretty. “Time Is Happening” is a brief, shimmering coda. “Magic Man” closes the album with a three-minute anthem that ties the threads together: hardcore muscle, pop melody, and a sense that the band is having fun.

Critics Weigh In

The Guardian wrote: “There’s so much else happening, a profusion of ideas so deftly handled that it never feels sprawling or indulgent.”

NME noted the album’s pop ambitions, and Kerrang! called it “cinematic in its scope and execution.” The record holds a Metacritic score of 83 out of 100. Pitchfork gave it 7.8 out of 10, and AllMusic rated it 4.5 out of 5.

Weak Spots

The weaker moments are the interludes.

“Light Design,” “Dull,” and “Ceiling” are fine but forgettable, and they pad a track list that does not need padding. The stronger moments — “Sunshower,” “Magic Man,” “Look Out For Me” — are as good as anything Turnstile has released. The album’s reach is its risk, and for the most part, it pays off.

NEVER ENOUGH is not a retreat from the band’s edge. It is an expansion of it. The guitars are still there, but they share space with synths and choruses and a willingness to sound like a band that has outgrown its own label. It is a confident, genre-defying statement from a group that knows exactly what it is doing.

album review · hardcore · pop-punk · punk · Turnstile