Ben Rankin’s This Is More Than Enough doesn’t ask for your attention, it storms in, demands it, and leaves an emotional crater in its wake. Recorded entirely solo in his home studio in Canberra, this self-produced EP channels metalcore rage, hard rock grit, and emo vulnerability into a five-track spiral of intensity. What’s striking isn’t just the aggression, but the aching honesty buried beneath the distortion.
From the get-go, “1984” throws a curveball, opening with a deceptive jazz-like intro before erupting into sheer chaos. Rankin’s guttural screams of “save your prayers” snap us into a dystopian headspace, fueled by breakdowns and maniacal laughter. It sets the tone: this is going to be anything but predictable.
One of the most explosive tracks here is “All Is Well in Hell.” Fueled by pent-up rage and an urgent need to expel emotional poison, it’s pure fire. Guitar riffs sear through with calculated brutality, while the vocals bleed with conviction. Rankin doesn’t just flirt with darkness, he dances in it, unflinching and unfiltered.
But just when you think you’ve found your footing in the wreckage, “Can You Stay Here?” flips the table. This ballad closes the EP with a sense of aching vulnerability. Slower, melodic, and piercingly emotional, it lays bare the hollow aftermath of love gone cold. There’s restraint here that makes the anguish even more potent, like watching someone silently shatter.
Between those highs and lows lie “The Bed We Made” and “Misery Loves Company,” songs that explore the slow unraveling of intimacy and the bitter clarity that follows. The former feels like reading pages from a diary you weren’t meant to see, and the latter rips through with grunge-infused fury that feels equal parts angry and liberated.
The magic of this EP lies not just in its sonic punch but in its storytelling. It traces the arc of a breakup with honesty so raw it borders on uncomfortable, anger, denial, nostalgia, and that lingering “what if?” Rankin’s ability to switch between metalcore mayhem and emotional fragility is what makes This Is More Than Enough feel more than just a rock project, it’s a personal reckoning.
If you’re into bands like Avenged Sevenfold, The Devil Wears Prada, or The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, you’ll find a familiar pulse here, but what stands out is Rankin’s total control over every aspect of this creation. It’s jagged, heartfelt, and entirely his own.
This is not just a collection of songs created for a random EP, it’s a full-bodied dive into emotional wreckage. Unexpected? Yes. Rough? Absolutely. But above all, it’s real!
