Out of a quiet corner of Canberra, Australia, comes a voice that’s anything but quiet. Ben Rankin, a rising artist with a fierce heart and fearless pen, has unleashed a five-track emotional storm with his debut EP This Is More Than Enough, released on June 13, 2025. Written, recorded, and produced entirely by Ben during a solitary week in his home studio, the project is a visceral, genre-blurring expression of catharsis, pain, reflection, and raw honesty. From metal-inspired aggression to hushed vulnerability, this is an EP that doesn’t just introduce an artist—it introduces a soul on fire.
The title This Is More Than Enough feels almost ironic when you consider how much is packed into just five tracks. Each song stands as its own world, yet the collection flows like a confessional journal. There’s no filler, no fluff—just unfiltered emotion and musicianship honed in isolation. Rankin’s influences are worn on his sleeve, with sonic nods to the likes of Asking Alexandria and Avenged Sevenfold, but there’s something unmistakably personal about the way he shapes those heavy roots into something uniquely his own.
The opening track, “1984,” immediately sets the tone with a haunting blend of eerie electronics and aggressive instrumentation. It’s dystopian, disillusioned, and drenched in defiance. With lyrics that feel both timely and timeless, Ben tackles themes of surveillance, conformity, and inner rebellion with a sound that punches hard but thinks harder. It’s not just a musical homage to Orwell—it’s a challenge to modern complacency, delivered with searing vocals and razor-sharp guitar work.
From there, the EP launches into “All Is Well In Hell,” a title that’s as sarcastic as it is intense. Born from pure aggression, this track is a cathartic purge of fury and frustration. The guitars are guttural, the drums hit like a collapsing ceiling, and Ben’s vocal delivery is unrelenting. Yet beneath the ferocity lies a strangely poetic sense of clarity—this is pain as protest, fire as freedom. You don’t just hear the anger, you feel the necessity of it.
“The Bed We Made” shifts the tempo and mood without losing any of the emotional weight. A dark and introspective mid-tempo piece, the song explores the aftermath of broken trust, emotional fallout, and the ghosts of shared decisions. Ben’s lyrical honesty cuts deep, pulling the listener into the intimacy of regret and unresolved tension. The production is layered but never overdone, allowing the song to breathe and bleed in equal measure. It’s one of the EP’s most compelling moments—not because it shouts, but because it knows exactly when to whisper.
“Misery Loves Company” brings back the heavier edge with a hook that’s dangerously infectious. This track leans into the classic alt-metal playbook, but Rankin doesn’t rely on clichés. Instead, he reframes emotional isolation and toxic relationships through clever turns of phrase and dynamic arrangement. It’s the kind of song that demands to be played live—a crowd-chanting, headbanging anthem for anyone who’s ever felt swallowed by someone else’s darkness.
The EP closes with the stunning “Can You Stay Here?”—a stripped-back ballad that’s equal parts farewell and plea. It’s the moment where Ben’s versatility truly shines. With just a simple piano progression, sparse textures, and an aching vocal performance, he delivers a final emotional blow. The song’s beauty lies in its vulnerability; it’s the calm after the chaos, the gentle collapse after a storm of sound. It doesn’t just end the EP—it completes it.
What makes This Is More Than Enough truly powerful is its sincerity. This isn’t the work of a committee or a label-designed persona. It’s Ben Rankin alone in a room, with nothing but his instruments, his thoughts, and a relentless drive to turn isolation into art. He didn’t just write these songs—he lived them. The EP was mixed and programmed solely by Ben himself, with final mastering handled by Levi Russell in Queensland, giving the project a crisp finish without compromising its emotional grit.
In a music industry often dominated by overproduced facades and algorithm-driven content, Ben Rankin’s debut EP is a refreshing jolt of authenticity. It’s the kind of project that makes you want to know the artist, not just the music. The kind that reminds you why we listen to records alone at night, why we scream along to songs in our car, why we turn pain into playlists.
With This Is More Than Enough, Ben Rankin isn’t just stepping into the spotlight—he’s carving out his own space in it. And if this is only the beginning, it’s safe to say the world should be paying attention.
