Vocal cover of I the Mighty’s “The Dreamer”. Hope you dig it.

Vocal cover of the chorus from My Ticket Home’s new song “A New Breed.”

This is more what I want in my band’s new song, so stay tuned for that is you dig this.

PS: Not my song, obviously, but I’m not stealing it either.

A clean vocal cover of Emery’s “Piggy Bank Lies”.

PS: This song isn’t mine, but I’m expressing myself under the First Amendment. Let’s keep the internet the way it is.

Around a year ago I took a trip to a local flea market, inside this massive warehouse, for the day. Around 4 PM, my friend and I were extremely tired from walking and were just wandering like zombies until we could get picked up. I had my iPod in my pocket and decided to take it out to make the experience a little bit better. I wanted to listen to something I never had before, something I had recently gotten on there. About a week before that, another friend gave me a CD called Son of the Mourning by a metalcore band I’ve never heard of before. So I put that on, and the title track blew me away.

Enter Oh, Sleeper from Fort Worth, Texas. They are one of the most underrated bands you will find in the metalcore genre, but I don’t think they will be for long with Children of Fire. This album takes everything from Son of the Mourning and puts it on a pedestal on top of a thin tower of Jenga pieces. That is then surrounded by fire, death spikes, and everything you love constantly falling to its death. And Oh, Sleeper decided to blow that pedestal as if it were a candle on a birthday cake. For those who don’t understand this metaphor, Children of Fire is an epic masterpiece.

The album starts off “Endseekers”, which is a prologue to what you should expect from this album. The guitars in this album have improved beyond comprehension and Shane Blay’s singing has grown in maturity. The album rides on a heavy, in your face train ride until “The Conscience Speaks”. Following that point, some heaviness is traded for more melody. This combination of heavy and melodic guitars is quite the sound, seen perfectly in “Claws of A God”, and continues on until the album’s conclusion.

There is a lot of excellent, anger-filled lyricism featured in this album, which enhance the concept the band is trying to convey. Lyrics like “Make him beg for his life!” and “Make my grave or animate my veins!” bring you into the story full throttle. The album’s most somber moment lies in “Hush Yael”, which is based on an terrorist attack on an unsuspecting family that took place in Israel on April 22nd, 1979. It is quite the song to send chills down your spine and move you emotionally.

Oh, Sleeper has crafted an album with a new level of depth, both musically and lyrically, for the genre. They have turned into modern storytellers with this continuation from the story from Son of the Mourning, a feat I imagined to be impossible. On top of that they have crafted an album of impressive technicality and originality at such level unseen until now. It’s albums like this that make my job as a reviewer difficult, but in the end it is beyond worth it. This is my favorite album of theirs, and will make the “Album of the Year” decision very interesting.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10
RIYL: Son of the Mourning, Inhale Exhale, August Burns Red
Length: 36:44
Track Listing:

01. Endseekers 
02. Shed Your Soul 
03. The Marriage Of Steel And Skin
04. Hush Yael 
05. The Conscience Speaks
06. Dealers Of Fame 
07. Means To Believe
08. In The Wake Of Pigs 
09. Claws Of A God 
10. The Family Ruin 
11. Chewing The Stitch 
12. Children Of Fire 

We Came As Romans has grown into quite the well-known band. They released a 4-track EP called “Dreams” on their own and suddenly they were signed by Equal Vision Records. Their first album was great by combining strong screams, good high-pitched singing, and lyrics promoting positive attitude and brotherhood. Between 2009 and now, WCAR has toured like crazy and yet still found enough time to record the single “To Move On Is To Grow” last summer. Their second album, Understanding What We’ve Grown to Be, strives to take the messages from the first album and add an emphasis on life’s struggles and growing up. Overall, how does it stack up to their first endeavor? 

Let me be the first to say that We Came As Romans knows how to write some catchy and yet heavy songs. However, I don’t think they have grown as musicians. That doesn’t mean that they sound exactly the same as before, because they don’t. But when I listened to UWWGTB, the only difference I noticed was the lyrical progress. I know that every song is different, but Joshua Moore is the only one taking steps in the direction of progression.

With that all being said, the first half of the album is generally fast and symphonic, but most start slow. The instrumentals throughout the album sound fantastic, mostly due to having Joey Sturgis as producer once again. ”Cast the First Stone” was a standout track for the “dark” half of the album, it was the perfect length with great, catchy moments. By the time the “light” half of the album started with “Stay Inspired”, I had made a horrible realization. The “light” half was heavier than the “dark” half. I don’t know if that makes sense to any of you readers, but I’m still confused.

The second half of the album saved the overall release by far though. “Stay Inspired” and “Just Keep Breathing” kept me listening for more. Sadly the rest of the album seemed to repeat what came before. A short, purely heavy track would have fit in perfectly here, just to spice it up. Instead every song had a slightly heavy moment or two, then more singing from Pavone. By the end of the album I wanted to stop hearing his singing voice, and couldn’t stand to think how bad it must sound live.

Overall, this album is what we should expect from We Came As Romans. Their symphonic infused hardcore sound hasn’t changed, which isn’t a good or bad thing. There were no standout moments like the “We are nothing without brotherhood!” from their last album; moments where everyone listening is in awe because of the pure musicianship. Instead, We Came As Romans did the opposite of The Devil Wears Prada, who also has a September 13th release date, and didn’t strive to be a better band. However, if you enjoyed To Plant A Seed you will enjoy this album. I tried too hard to enjoy this album, and now I don’t see myself listening to it over the new The Devil Wears Prada or Oh, Sleeper albums anytime soon.

Rating: 7 out of 10
RIYL: Old The Devil Wears Prada, The Word Alive
Length: 47:34
Track Listing:

1. Mis//Understanding (ft. Josh Wells)
2. Everything As Planned
3. What I Wished I Never Had
4. Cast The First Stone
5. The Way That We Have Been
6. A War Inside
7. Stay Inspired
8. Just Keep Breathing
9. Views That Never Cease, to Keep Me from Myself
10. What My Heart Held
11. I Can’t Make Your Decisions for You
12. Understanding What We’ve Grown to Be

The Devil Wears Prada has risen in fame over the last few years, with albums Plagues and With Roots Above and Branches Below. When they released the Zombie EP last summer, they unleashed their musical transformations to the world. That 5-track EP was the perfect precursor for what Dead Throne offers; a complete aural assault, made possible by producer Adam Dutkiewicz.

As you may have noticed, the band dropped the goofy song titles with Zombie EP. This carries over into Dead Throne, as the band is obviously showing their more mature sound with a complete transformation. The songs are shorter as well, which compliment the heaviness of the album, making Dead Throne the heaviest release the band has done. It’s almost as if they want to take the listeners on a ride of their life, instead of just a ride. Prepare for one hell of a ride.

The album starts off with quite a buildup. Soon, Mike Hranica’s screams blare into your ears. The guitar work is impeccable, very heavy while remaining completely original. “Dead Throne” has a haunting vibe to it due to the utilization of orchestral instrumentals in the background. Quickly “Untidaled” fades in and the heavy gets a healthy dose of melodic guitars and catchy clean vocal work from Jeremy DePoyster.

“Mammoth” and “Vengeance” bring even more fantastic clean vocals into the picture, the latter having one of the most catchiest choruses I’ve heard in awhile. “R.I.T.”, the album’s second single, then comes on. This song goes back to the heavy instrumentals and brutal screams heard earlier in the album. At this point I’m loving the fact the The Devil Wears Prada can make something very heavy without chugging for 3 minutes straight. Their originality never ceases to amaze me.

“My Questions” slowly fades in with more orchestral work, another great chorus, and some great instrumentals. Next up is “Kansas”, which starts slow and calm. Eventually the guitars get heavier and Hranica’s interesting take on spoken word (heard in Zombie) returns, making for quite the instrumental track.

The eighth track, “Born to Lose”, brings the listener back into the normal realm of The Devil Wears Prada. Having heard this song before I wasn’t surprised like those I hadn’t, but I was still in awe by how amazingly the song fits into the description Hranica gave it two months ago. This song is a comprehensive preview for the entire album by showcasing everything the album offers into one solid track.

“Forever Decay” comes in and takes off as one of the fastest songs on the album. To counter this “Chicago” is much slower with clean guitars underneath Hranica’s powerful screams, with a more distorted guitar sound arriving in the middle of the song. “Constance” roars in next with the help of some guest vocals from Tim Lambesis of As I Lay Dying, helping to make an slightly different heavy track than the others on the album.

“Pretenders” and “Holdfast” are perfect fits for the last two tracks on an album. The former is heavy but begins to show the listener that the experience is nearing its end. Following that, the latter entices the listener with quite the melodic guitar work to kick-start the finale. “Holdfast” also holds my favorite chorus as DePoyster sings then shouts, “Save me for the water has come up to my neck. We will not be forgotten!”. 

The Devil Wears Prada has made a masterpiece in the form of Dead Throne, which will reign supreme as a flawless example of metalcore at its finest. This album is heavy at the core, but includes gentler additions so the whole thing doesn’t bash your skull in. In doing so, they have claimed their own throne at top of the genre with their original sound and undying devotion to release their best work. This album is one of the best of the year and will most likely remain so for the remainder of it.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10
RIYL: Metalcore
Length: 40:53
Track Listing: 

1. Dead Throne
2. Untidaled
3. Mammoth
4. Vengeance
5. R.I.T.
6. My Questions
7. Kansas
8. Born To Lose
9. Forever Decay
10. Chicago
11. Constance (ft. Tim Lambesis)
12. Pretenders
13. Holdfast

Thursday Fun Post!

Of Mice & Men - O.G. Loko (Warped Tour ‘11 Version)

For those who saw OM&M at Warped this year, you know that they used a particular sample right before the breakdown. This song is essentially the studio quality version of that, so enjoy!

Dream On, Dreamer is a post-hardcore/metalcore band from Melbourne, Australia. Their newest release is their first full-length album, as well as their first release to such a wide audience. In the beginning of June Rise Records signed them, which guaranteed Heartbound (produced by Cameron Mizell) a release in the United States, United Kingdom, and Europe. That signing made the band appear on my radar, and I picked up Heartbound when it released on August 9th.

The album starts off with the intro track “I” that flawlessly flows into the first full track “Yourself As Someone Else”. The screams took a couple listens to fully enjoy, but they are great. Their lead vocalist, Marcel Gadacz, focuses on a high-mid yell, but when he growls it’s quite the sound. And their clean vocalist is one hell of a singer. He doesn’t focus on singing as high as possible, but he focuses on really catchy melodies seen throughout the album.

As “Downfall” begins, you begin to realize what Dream On, Dreamer is trying to be. The only band I can really compare them to is The Amity Affliction, just with more focus on screams. Both bands have songs that will make you want to throw down in a pit when you hear it, and “Downfall” is no exception. When Gadacz screams “We are the living dead!” and the rest of the band shouts it, I can only imagine how that will get a crowd going.

The album continues on the note set by the first two tracks. The instrumentals are fantastic and the pace is near perfect. Notable songs that follow the trend of starting out on a blast are “Taking Chances, Breaking Free” and “To The Lost”, the latter featuring guest vocals from Matthew Wright of The Getaway Plan (whom coincidentally did guest vocals for The Amity Affliction’s album Severed Ties).

The last two tracks stand out in my mind. “Come Home True Love” starts off with a small dose of great guitar work as the song unwinds to what has become a sound standard at this point in the album. The final track “Lifestream” slows the album down to its end, featuring more great melodies from their clean vocalist and an eventual climax at the chorus, which lead to the end of album.

Overall this album is a great example of great production, musicianship, and general experience. For some, like myself, this album is near flawless. Others have taken the sound for granted and find less redeeming qualities in it. But after listening to this album I have updated my list of favorite hardcore bands from Australia, and Dream On, Dreamer has jumped to near the top of that list.

Rating: 9 out of 10
RIYL: The Amity Affliction, Australian hardcore 
Track Listing:

1. I
2. Yourself As Someone Else
3. Downfall
4. A Path of Its Own
5. For What You Believe In
6. Taking Chances, Breaking Free
7. Blinded
8. To The Lost
9. Come Home True Love
10. Lifestream