Glass Cloud - The Royal Thousand REVIEW

       Man, I'm on such a hipster roll today - first a plug of a band no one has heard about, now a review of an album by a fairly unknown band? I need to check my irony levels.
       Anyway, last Saturday I went to the Worcester, MA leg of the Scream it Like You Mean It 2012 tour. The concert, which featured headliners Attack Attack!, We Came as Romans, and the Acacia Strain, was a phenomenal experience that showed me that the punk and metalcore scene of the bay state isn't as tiny as I was led to believe. But while it's always fun to mosh out and go nuts to your favorite headlining bands, one of the best parts of any concerts are the lesser-known opening bands. While fewer people get excited about them, it's nevertheless an excuse to exercise your 'do I like this band?' muscle.
        In any case, I was incredibly excited for Hands Like Houses. The Canberra, Australia quartet  played first, and while their set was pitifully short, I may have been one of the few people singing along. It was still great to hear 'Antarctica' live and later even meet the band when they swung by the merch stand. Hands Like Houses are only on their second tour ever, and had grown some extremely strapping moustaches to celebrate it. They were great guys who weren't afraid to answer questions, and the ego that plagued other bands (Caleb Shomo of Attack Attack! flipped off fans that tried to get his attention) was completely absent.
        Nevertheless, it was the next band that stole the show. Virginia quartet Glass Cloud erupted onto the stage with the fury and energy that makes metalcore so fun. Compared to the Hands Like Houses set, which had been great fun, but no one had gotten excited about, Glass Cloud was opening pits up by their first song, and kept the intensity going resolutely for their entire set. Even though it was, again, too short, I was even more surprised to learn that their first album, The Royal Thousand, hadn't even been released. Luckily, they were selling advance copies at the merch stand and I was able to get my hands on one. When I got home, I gave the record a listen and was not let down.
        Fronted by ex-Of Mice and Men vocalist Jerry Roush, who combines his blistering screams with stylishly refreshing low vocals, and accompanied by the 8-string roar of guitarist Joshua Travis, Glass Cloud were a fun romp through chug-heavy metalcore with some of the most sickeningly enjoyable breakdowns I have heard this summer. Seriously. The end of 'She is Well and Nothing Can Be Ill' would have been spectacular if they had played it live. Combined with some of the fastest riffs I've heard on a metalcore album, and a relentless drum line, the sound of Glass Cloud can only really be described as 'badass'.
          Roush's cleans set the bridges up for the invariably awesome drop into both his unclean vocals and the rush that only a breakdown played on an 8-string can produce. During verses and choruses, Travis' guitar works screams in conjunction with Roush's voice, producing an awesome sound that is hard to find these days. The band manages to sound similar to Of Mice and Men without completely copying them in terms of the overall feel, but closer inspection yields a far different experience.
         While Glass Cloud keep the intensity and anger at an all-time high, it can get boring at times, and this is the one downside to The Royal Thousand - the heaviness begins to blur together. With the exception of the introductions of  'Memorandum' and 'If He Dies, He Dies', The Royal Thousand is an audible tour de force from start to finish which, while great at first, begins to grow stale by the end. This isn't helped by the fact that at times, the sound itself isn't very palatable - quite simply, it gets too heavy for its own good.
           Basically, everything begins to sound too distorted and dissonant. Thankfully, these breaks are few and far between, but they still happen, and it doesn't sound very good, quite simply. The breakdowns somehow manage to stay fresh, probably due to the liberties Travis takes with rhythm.
            All in all, Glass Cloud are fundamentally a band that sounds far better live. They're heavy as all hell, and a great way to purge anger when you're by yourself. The only thing is that they're probably best enjoyed sparingly - their lack of variety will invariably make what is overall a solid debut album stale. They're a good time if you're looking for some mindless fun, and I recommend checking them out.
             Listen to 'Falling In Style' here: 

Jamie's Elsewhere - A Hidden Gem

           

               Sleeper hits are nothing new to music, and rock in particular. Bands will release a record, but due to extraneous circumstances, they won’t gain mainstream attention for several years, until finally they explode into the consciousness of a community as everyone is suddenly taken aback and asks themselves ‘how the hell did we miss them?’ Now, usually this happens with a breakthrough album – no one knew who the hell the Used were until Lies for the Liars was released, and the same goes for the Devil Wears Prada with the release of With Roots Above and Branches Below, but it’s rare that an entire band passes under the radar and is only discovered two years after its last record is released.

                Such is the case with Sacramento post-hardcore outfit Jamie’s Elsewhere. Debuting in 2005, the band released its last LP in 2010, with They Said a Storm Was Coming, and proceeded to fall completely off the post-hardcore consciousness until earlier this year, when they released an acoustic EP entitled Reimagined. Amazingly enough, despite praise from Alternate Press, this too failed to establish a mainstream foothold.  Through a mixture of internet music discussion boards, Pandora, and other media, Jamie’s Elsewhere finally made their entrance this past summer, and still remain on the more obscure side of post-hardcore today. Perhaps it’s because of their departure from Rise Records last year, when they suddenly became an unsigned band which, to the average audiophile, made them fairly interesting. On the other hand, it could be because of their fluctuating lineup, which has changed almost as much as Woe Is Me since their inception.

                For me, this is completely shocking. Jamie’s Elsewhere as a band pack so much potential and uniqueness into only two albums that I’m surprised they didn’t start climbing the ladders sooner. Combining a mixture of subtle, atmospheric synthwork, soaring vocals, and some phenomenal riffwork, their 2008 album Guidebook for Sinners Turned Saints took post-hardcore staples, such as high vocals, breakdowns, and screams, and made them infinitely more interesting. At around the same time Silverstein released the unimpressive Arrivals and Departures, Jamie’s Elsewhere were packing a punch with their own take on a genre that was continuously evolving.  

                Energetic, emotional, and ear-catching, Guidebook experiments with all of post-hardcore’s hackneyed tropes and, for the most part, succeeds. Instead of a chug-chug breakdown in ‘I Didn’t Mean To Interrupt’, we get a catchy lick interspersed between the open chords. Riffs aren’t just combinations of bar chords, but incorporate melodies, and blend with the synthwork seamlessly. Guidebook knows how to handle unclean vocals, and uses them sparingly, instead giving frontman Aaron Pauley’s fantastic vocals the spot they deserve.

                Soft breaks are nothing new in post-hardcore, but Jamie’s Elsewhere use a synth-heavy background for their ballads, as exemplified in ‘The Saint, The Sword, and the Savior’, or ‘The Prodigal’ with minimal interference from the bass and the drums. Guitars play a muted role, sinking into the atmosphere of each song and making a profoundly ambient experience that’s as soothing as it is fun, mostly because it’s so different and unusual a jump from what’s before.

                This sense of innovation persists into They Said a Storm was Coming, but with the added bonus that Jamie’s Elsewhere’s lyrics have changed phenomenally for the better. That’s not to say that Guidebook’s lyrics were particularly awful, but at times they were a little stilted and unoriginal. ‘Play Me Something Country’ featured lyrics like ‘Watch me walk away./You’re falling deeper than you’ve been before’, which, while not awful, lack pizzazz. A Storm features masterpieces like The Lighthouse, which combine Jamie’s Elsewhere penchant for instrumental fun with great lyrics.

                However, it can’t be ignored that Jamie’s Elsewhere sound fundamentally similar to Chiodos. Perhaps it’s the weight given clean vocals, or the fact that breakdowns are riffs in and of themselves, but the comparisons are inevitable. This, in and of itself, is unavoidable – both are post-hardcore bands, but while it does subtract from the uniqueness of listening to Jamie’s Elsewhere, they nevertheless manage to make a name for themselves. It’s subtle, but the answer lies in the riffwork. Chiodos is relatively unimaginative in their guitar writing, relying instead on rhythm and Craig Owens’ distinctive falsetto. That’s fine, as it gives Chiodos their own particular sound, but Jamie’s Elsewhere’s use of melodies and riffwork make the instrumentals sound different enough to distinguish themselves.

                Bottom line, it amazes me that Jamie’s Elsewhere have flown under the radar for so long. They’re a talented band that should deserve to be so much more popular – a gem amidst the chug-chug mess that Rise Records has become. Unafraid to mix acoustic love ballads with heartbroken screams, it’s this pioneering spirit that should be getting them even further, but inexplicably is keeping them in obscurity. Give them a listen and buy their album. You won’t regret it.

                 Listen to 'the Lighthouse' here:

And Now a Rant about Jack White

        Jack. White. Say the name and people around the world start salivating. The words 'best guitarist of the year' spring to their lips and the entire community has a collective intake of breath. One by one, music magazines have given his new album Blunderbuss a thumbs-up - Pitchfork, AP, Rolling Stones...no one can seem to find a grievous fault with the ex-guitarist of husband-and-wife duo The White Stripes. White is by no means a newcomer to fame - he was featured alongside the legendary Jimmy Page in 'It Might Get Loud', and his career with ex-wife Meg White in The White Stripes only came after his role in now-famous bands like the Raconteurs and the Dead Weather. White is currently touring in support of Blunderbuss, and will probably continue for the rest of the summer.
         Now, by no means am I qualified to talk about the genre White classifies himself as - namely alternative rock - as, if that's not evident enough, I am a die hard metalhead raised on Led Zep and in the throes of Born of Osiris' new record (look for a summary on Monday). So when someone like Jack White appears, and is suddenly heralded as an icon of modern rock, this sparks my interest. So, on my friend's insistence, and borrowing his copy of Blunderbuss, I decided to give the album a listen to.
          I had dabbled briefly in the White Stripes a few years ago, and been moderately unimpressed with their sound. The band's sound was minimalist, and extremely simplistic. They lacked energy and the ability to write fun riffs, relying completely on catchy rhythm. While this was appealing to some, I found the White Stripes, with the exception of one song (I believe it was 'Blue Orchid'), to be remarkably and utterly 'meh', as I eloquently put it at the time.
          So it was with this idea that I entered Blunderbuss. Considering White's lack of imagination as part of TWS, I expected Blunderbuss to be more of the same. And...it wasn't really. It was even worse.
           The album is an anemic romp through blues-y riffs that would make any decent blues guitarist shake their head. White's few forays into 'heaviness' (Apparently distortion is a dirty word) feature little to no innovation - three bar chords? We're looking at a visionary here - and he resolutely refuses to change melody for the most part. Blunderbuss has the feel of a garage rock band gone awfully wrong - like Pavement if you sucked all the fun out of it. Repetition is the name of the game. Blunderbuss was, quite simply, a chore to get through. 'Sixteen Saltines' is remotely catchy, but in the same way a song you'd hear on the radio is - the beat is so simplistic that it's impossible to forget. Riffs are seven quarter notes that repeat continuously at their most complex. What a visionary we have here.
           And over everything is his annoying falsetto. I listen to a fair amount of post-hardcore, which features high vocals as a staple, so I'm fairly used to high male voices, but White's voice is just grating. It feels like he's stinging my ears when he sings, and he barks things out annoyingly when he doesn't.
           But let's not forget the staple of any guitarist - solos. White's pathetic fifteen-second licks (they aren't even solos) are playable by a ten-year old who can't reach the lowest strings. It's completely inoffensive and completely untechnical. Like any alternative rock musician, the focus is understandably on lyrics and vocals, and I'd be fine with that, but White calls himself a guitarist. There is so many things wrong with that because, foremostly, you elevate yourself to a new ring of judgement.
            Suddenly, you're not in the same arena as The Black Keys or Deathcab for Cutie, you're going up against virtuosos like Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, and Eric Clapton. And that's where White gets curbstomped. White's innocuous little riffs and licks start being matched by the unmitigated ridiculousness of Paul Gilbert and Yngwie Malmsteen. Listen to anything on Blunderbuss and then listen to Vai's 'Bad Horsie' and you'll see. His self-designation as a 'guitarist' makes him a complete poser, and ultimately he's the Adam Levine of guitarists - a prettyboy who makes palatable music and gets so much attention because of that. There's no technical prowess or ability beyond a jock sitting on a quad with a $20 guitar.
            But, for a moment, let's pretend White is an actual guitarist. Let's pretend that some of the tracks on Blunderbuss actually feature his guitarwork in a prominent way. Let's look at the gear White uses, since that's always interesting.
             White uses Gretsch guitars and a 1968 Telecaster (Source: http://www.uberproaudio.com/who-plays-what/118-jack-whites-guitar-gear-rig-and-equipment). Where do I even begin.
               Let's ignore that he has his pedals custom painted. Gretsch guitars, for the uninitiated, are the Rolls Royce of guitars. They're expensive as all hell, look pretty, but otherwise are completely indistinguishable, and in some cases worse, than the staples of the guitar world - a Gretsch plays about as well as a solid Gibson SG or Fender American Standard. So right away, we see White has an eye for the name.
                And now onto the Telecaster. Telecasters have one pickup. Seriously? For someone whose instrumentals are supposed to be a selling point, that's a lot of variety you've got there, buddy. What, was a Stratocaster too 'mainstream' for you? Good lord.
                 Looking back, I really should not be surprised. Easy-to-listen music will be popular no matter when, but if Jack White is an eminent guitarist, then I'm The Edge. He's not 'edgy', he's not even remotely talented, and I can't begin to fathom why he's getting all this press. He deserves congratulations for turning high school sound into a career, and for being a decent songwriter, but in all things actually musical, he lacks prowess, appealing to the ignorant and the easily amused. I'll let Dave Mustaine convey my thoughts in abbreviated form below:

                 Now, if you'll excuse me, I have music by musicians to listen to.
              

Countdown to Warped - We Are the In Crowd

               

              New York’s young pop-punk outfit We Are the In Crowd are due to play at Warped Tour this year following a run in 2010. Amidst a lineup with bands like Born of Osiris, After the Burial, and Chelsea Grin, it’s obvious WATIC represent the lighter side of the Warped lineup. With female frontman (frontwoman?) Tay Jardine, and a healthy dose of synthpop and major-heavy riffs, they and bands like All Time Low will probably give the lineup some much-needed variety.

                Again, I decided to check out WATIC after Jardine graced the cover of July’s AP alongside Sleeping with Sirens’ Kellen Quinn and Pierce the Veil’s Vic Fuestes. While less of an obsession than SWS’ frontman, WATIC have nevertheless maintained a popular following in circles with bands such as the Ataris, 30 Seconds to Mars, and Paramore.

                Surprisingly enough, the band has a fairly small discography, consisting of one EP (Guarenteed to Disagree) and a studio album Best Intentions. I tore into the band expecting another generic Sum 41 knockoff, but what I found was a vastly different, but nevertheless fun experience. At their core, WATIC are a pop punk band. You can’t expect too much out of them, and they don’t brand themselves as something they blatantly aren’t (*cough* Fucked Up *cough*). Lyrics are suitably innocuous, few liberties are taken with instrumentals, but nevertheless WATIC are a fun, fun band.

                The thing about pop-punk is that you can go into it without expecting much, and because WATIC are so inexperienced, almost anything is forgiveable. True, they sound moderately generic, but it’s fun music that’s not meant to be taken seriously. Sappy love ballads abound, and there isn’t an overarching theme that many other bands busy themselves with, but it’s fairly obvious that the bandmembers are having a lot of fun writing and performing their music.

                And in the long run, that makes them sound fundamentally different. Artists who take themselves too seriously come off as either too pretentious, annoying, or both – which is obviously something you want to avoid. If you’re letting loose and just making some music, of course it’s not going to sound particularly good, but WATIC are all right with remaining a relaxing alternative to a lot of other punk derivatives out there. In a genre severely lacking chill music, bands like WATIC are the closest we can get, and that’s why they’re a band I’m looking forward to seeing on this Warped Tour.

The Word Alive - Life Cycles REVIEW

               

             Earlier this week, Fearless Records’ The Word Alive released their second studio album, Life Cycles amidst a flurry of new releases that spilled over from late June. As the summer heats up, and large scale tours start moving, TWA finds itself in a precarious position – with so much new material, if their new album fails to distinguish itself, it risks being blasted into obscurity once the hype of the first few days of release have passed. TWA’s decision to play on the far smaller All Stars Tour, as opposed to well-known festivals such as Warped or Uproar, certainly won’t help them. So, how exactly does Life Cycles fare in the suddenly competitive metalcore scene?

                Quite well, actually. The mistakes the band made on their 2009 EP Empire are long gone, and while the release of Abandon All Ships’ Infamous earlier this week may have left a bad taste in my mouth with regards to electrocore, Life Cycles manages to keep things fresh and exciting. This may very well be because the synthwork and wobbles TWA use are incredibly subtle – they are used almost exclusively for atmospheric effects and rhythm. The focus remains (as it should) on the riffage of Zack Hansen and Tony Pizzuti, with the electronic elements almost vanishing into the background in a supporting role, adding a bit of flavor to each song.

                Which, to be completely honest, the record does need. As with most metalcore, TWA rides a thin line between innovation and repetition, but sways towards the latter in some cases. It is, without a doubt, a chug-heavy album, favoring breakdowns and distorted verses, but not everything repeats. Some of Hansen’s riffs actually become surprisingly technical, and while this is unfortunately seldomly used, the few times it occurs, it heightens the urgency and aggression of the song (take the intro riff on ‘Live a Lie’, for example) before the invariable scream comes in and furthers the overall energy.

                Just as well, there is no set-in-stone vocal style – certain songs are unclean-heavy, others focus on clean singing. Telle Smith’s bellicose roar is matched by his emotional singing, creating a difference that keeps you on your toes. This is aided by the fact that the instrumentals will often change to match this difference, reserving the chug for screams and switching to more emotional riffs and louder synthwork for the clean portions. It’s this variety within each song that protects the record from repetitiveness. Breakdowns are used a bit too often, but ultimately, because the instrumentals are so varied, things stay fun. It's this sort of contrast that makes music sound good, a technique bands like Abandon All Ships took completely too far and ultimately produced a mediocre record.

                Lyrically, the album preserves TWA’s main theme of ‘family first’, but tackles other ideas such as feeling alone, and lacking motivation. Interestingly enough, ‘For Your Health’ is a salute to standing up for your beliefs, which, for the longest time, has been The Devil Wears Prada’s signature theme.  The track ‘Hidden Lakes’ is Telle’s salute to his late grandfather – who must have been a pretty awesome grandpa if he would have enjoyed TWA’s sound for that song. The lyrics aren’t exemplary, but they’re passable and forgivable when the instrumentals are hammering at your ears. There’s an overwhelming feeling of anger and futility that comes through in many of the songs that will definitely appeal to the ‘core’ side of ‘metalcore’.

                But TWA’s biggest change is a complete, occasional switch to a softer sound. The introduction to the last song ‘Astral Plane’ reflects this, as it couples synth-heavy instrumentals with whispered vocals reminiscent of 30 Seconds to Mars, almost. Of course, this only lasts a few seconds, but it does show that TWA are willing to step outside their comfort zone. While it’s almost routine for a new record to have an instrumental break near the end of the record at this point, TWA still shows that there’s still a lot that can be done to make sure this doesn’t get stale.

                Overall, though, this is a record that gets phenomenally better near the end. The first few tracks, up to ‘Hidden Lakes’ are decent romps through metalcore we’ve all heard before, but the end of the album is a complete moshpit. With the exception of the aforementioned ‘Astral Plane’, unclean vocals and distorted verses abound. Combined with aggressive lyrics and frenetic rhythm, it’s clear which songs TWA are playing live.

                To conclude, Life Cycles is a pretty good record. It’s a sizeable improvement on the staleness that was Empire, and only helps TWA by joining the ranks of 2010’s Deceiver. However, it faces the same problem its predecessor did – there simply isn’t enough variety. There is some, and it prevents listening to the record from becoming a chore, but not enough to merit much replayability. It’s catchy and fun, but overall slightly forgettable. Will I be listening to it for a bit? Probably, but it is by no means the summer’s best so far. TWA have improved, but there’s a long way to go.

                Listen to ‘Belong’ here:

                            

Shows I'm Going To This Summer

This is just going to be a concrete schedule for shows I'm going to this summer, along with location and ticket price.

Date                                Show                               Location                                             Price
7/7                        Scream It Like You Mean It     Palladium, Worcester                         ~$25
7/19                      Warped Tour                             Mansfield, MA                                   ~$50
8/4                        Rockstar Mayhem Festival      Comcast Center, Mansfield                 ~$70
8/17                      Trespass America Tour            House of Blues, Boston                      ~$40
8/25                      Silverstein                                Corona, Montreal                                ~$20

In the high unlikelihood that someone sees this and happens to be going to one of these, hit me up!

Abandon All Ships - Infamous REVIEW

                Today’s been a double feature with the Word Alive and Abandon All Ships releasing their new records Life Cycles and Infamous, respectively. Arizona’s The Word Alive, whose debut album Deceiver garnered large-scale praise across the metalcore scene, are currently taking part in the Warped Tour this year. While I’m incredibly excited for this new album – especially to hear how they've changed after their lackluster EP Empire -  today I’m going to focus on the underdog of the two – Toronto electrocore group Abandon All Ships. I’ll post a review of Life Cycles on Thursday.

                Electrocore – the fusion of metalcore and electronic music – is a relatively new beast to the field. While it does, regrettably, have roots in the embarrassing crabcore emergence of the early-to-mid-2000s (which garnered unfortunate public attention during Attack Attack!’s debut), many bands have since taken up electronic elements into their work, and transformed the style into a fairly popular, almost mainstream, trend in the metalcore and post-hardcore world.

                What makes it so popular? I’ll admit: I’m a stickler for rhythm, and have always had a soft spot for drum & bass. It looks like everyone else might, too, considering the number of hardcore bands that now include synthesizers and electronic elements. But the real kicker is that most people don’t view it as a sellout move – large-scale bands like the Devil Wears Prada and We Came as Romans have had a keyboardist with them since their inception, and are still regarded as high-profile figures in the metalcore scene. I think that, at its roots, it puts a refreshing spin on a style of music that has become repetitive and a little stale. It’s an easy way of adding energy to a song. This is good in two ways – bands that manage to keep an album interesting without electronic elements (August Burns Red, Every Time I Die, etc.) inherently become more fun to listen to, while bands that otherwise would lapse into obscurity get a second chance.

                But the real problem becomes this – what happens when your style becomes too dependent on electronic elements? When instead of using them as a supplement, you start using them as a staple? And the answer, quite simply, is Abandon All Ships. The band’s first release, 2010’s Geeving, was panned as a repetitive, mindless romp through music that was half dance floor beats, half hardcore screams. Sadly, this has translated poorly to Infamous’ release today, as Abandon All Ships stubbornly clings to their Geeving sound and refuses to rise above mediocrity.

                This is largely fueled by Infamous’ more liberal take on the ‘electro’ part of ‘electrocore’ – synthwork is never even remotely subtle. There’s going to be a complete break in most songs – when all heaviness and guitar vanishes and we get Martin Broda’s autotuned whine melding with a beat that wouldn’t be out of place on a Pendulum album.  Screaming is more sparse, which is unfortunate because Angelo Aita has quite a nice scream. I’ve said before that contrast is an important part of music – it keeps the audience on their toes and makes listening interesting, but AAS has shown that, when taken to an extreme, even contrast turns sour. While Aita and Broda’s voices by themselves still have a nice difference tonally, there’s a lyrical jump between them.

                Part of the criticism leveled at Geeving was that the unclean portions were phenomenally angrier than the clean segments, which were cringeworthy in their sappiness.  Astonishingly enough, this has become even more of a problem in Infamous. My personal favorite contender for ‘worst line on the record’ is probably ‘If you don’t like us, fuck you’, on the second track, ‘Infamous’. Take what Broda is saying in half of Infamous’ songs, stick it on a Bruno Mars record, and they wouldn’t be out of place.  Lyrics in general are the band’s low point – they’re clumsily written and make me shake my head at their ridiculousness. Choruses, like in Geeving, are redundant and, worst of all, repeated in a few cases. When done carefully, contrast makes a song very enjoyable, but this is, quite simply, too much.  While it’s disappointing that things haven’t improved in that department, Infamous heightens the ridiculousness by attempting to use samples in a few of their songs.

 I’m going to say this once – it’s very hard to sample something tastefully, whether it’s a beat or part of a speech, and it’s even harder in metal offshoots. When it’s done well, it can send shivers down my spine. When it’s done poorly, it comes off as a sad attempt to be ‘deep’ or a cheap way to make a point. Infamous’ use of samples falls in the latter category as the quality of their lyrics prevents them from having any sort of meaning. But, quite possibly the silliest addition to the record is a cameo by Toronto rap duo A-Game on the title track, ‘Infamous’. The title track is by far the record’s worst, and since it’s so close to the start, discourages the listener from sticking with the record.  Again, the contrast is arresting, and A-Game’s presence in the song makes no sense and isn’t remotely enjoyable.

Burdened as the record is by their vocals, instrumentals remain all right. While it’s true that the guitar and drums are often sidelined to electronic elements, if you don’t mind a guitar-laden dance break, they aren’t that much of a problem. Riffs, in general, are average – the one saving feature of the entire record is, ironically enough, the last song ‘Brothers for Life’, which incorporates metalcore-y guitar work with Aita taking the lead. Of course, Broda has to have his clean break, but the majority of the song is unclean. That being said, it’s a rather generic song, and ends with a completely ridiculous sample.

The record does have an upswing – it’s rather abysmal at the start, but there’s some hope by the end. Soft, sad ballad ‘August’ is decent when you forget the fact that AAS is supposed to have some metal components, and ‘Made of Gold’ is an all right song worth a listen. The one saving grace of the band, the one thing that has improved, has been that the beats are far catchier. While this hardly saves the record, it does make it a little more bearable.

That being said, this was one of the first albums I’ve listened to that has been difficult to sit through. And I sat through Emmure. AAS needs to get over their egos and fundamentally change, or else they are doomed to not only stay mediocre, but get worse. As of right now, they are a key example of taking things too far, and need to tone everything down. There’s potential, but they’re not using it. If you’re looking for decent metalcore with electronic elements, your best bet is to stick with Woe Is Me, or give the incredibly underrated A Bullet For Pretty Boy a try. I'm even tempted to say Attack Attack! is better in some cases.

I’m seeing AAS this Saturday as part of the Scream It Like You Mean It! tour. Let’s hope they’re more fun live than they are in studio.

Listen to 'Brothers for Life' here: