Jason Crews is the owner and editor of INFRARED MAGAZINE and a Dallas–Fort Worth-based music journalist and concert photographer. Through INFRARED MAGAZINE and JASON CREWS PHOTOGRAPHY, he covers rock, metal, country, and live music with a focus on album reviews, artist features, concert coverage, and photography. His work is driven by a genuine passion for music and helping artists connect with new audiences through honest writing, strong visuals, and meaningful storytelling.
Rating: 8 / 10 Stars
LOOK RIGHT PENNY is: Mariel Diaz-Carrion – Vocals, Cotee Embry – Lead Guitar, Justin Embry – Synth, Ronnie Rios – Bass, Ghaith Khder – Drums
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REVIEW – There is no denying that female-fronted rock, metal, and alternative bands have become increasingly visible, and with any movement that starts gaining attention, there are going to be bands that get unfairly lumped together simply because they share a few surface-level characteristics. That can make it difficult for a band to separate itself from an already crowded field. LOOK RIGHT PENNY may operate in territory that immediately brings bands like PARAMORE, METRIC, PICTURE ME BROKEN, and FLYLEAF to mind, but Sugar Lane has enough personality and musicianship to make the comparison more of a starting point than a final judgment.
The album blends heavier guitar riffs with pop-punk melodies and a softer alternative-rock accessibility that gives these songs plenty of crossover potential. There is definitely a college-radio quality running through the record, but that accessibility works in the band’s favor. LOOK RIGHT PENNY understand how to balance heaviness with melody without allowing either side of their sound to completely overwhelm the other.
The biggest strength on Sugar Lane is Mariel Diaz-Carrion. She has the vocal ability to carry this material, and when the songs give her enough room to work, she becomes the personality at the center of the record. The opening three tracks are particularly strong and immediately demonstrate what the band can do when everything comes together. Mariel delivers the melodies with confidence, while the heavier moments keep the songs from drifting too far into straightforward pop-rock territory.
Guitarist Cotee Embry is another major reason the album works. His playing gives Sugar Lane some much-needed muscle, with riffs that add weight underneath the melodic vocals. The guitar work keeps the record moving and helps establish a heavier identity than the band’s poppier hooks might initially suggest. There is a real chemistry between Embry’s playing and Mariel’s vocals, and that combination becomes the foundation of the album.
Is LOOK RIGHT PENNY reinventing alternative rock with Sugar Lane? No, but originality does not always have to mean completely rewriting the rules. Sometimes it comes down to taking familiar ingredients and delivering them well, and that is where this record succeeds. The band clearly understands the style they are working within, and instead of treating those influences as a weakness, Sugar Lane shows a young band with the talent necessary to eventually push beyond them.
The comparisons to PARAMORE, METRIC, PICTURE ME BROKEN, and FLYLEAF are understandable, particularly considering the era and musical landscape surrounding this release, but LOOK RIGHT PENNY should not be dismissed simply because those reference points exist. There are only so many completely unexplored directions left in rock music, and what matters more is whether a band can bring enough ability, energy, and personality to make the songs worthwhile.
LOOK RIGHT PENNY accomplish that more often than not on Sugar Lane.
What stands out most is the potential. Mariel has the voice. Cotee has the riffs. The band has a strong melodic foundation, and there are moments throughout this album where everything locks together exactly the way it should. Rather than hearing a band content to disappear inside an overcrowded genre, I hear musicians who already possess the pieces necessary to build something bigger.
Sugar Lane may still wear some of its influences openly, but it is also an entertaining, melodic, guitar-driven record with enough hooks and musicianship to warrant attention. If LOOK RIGHT PENNY can continue developing the chemistry heard here while pushing further toward an identity completely their own, there is plenty of reason to be interested in where they go next.
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