LI SHOWDOWN DOES NOT HOST AUDIO OR VIDEO FILES OF ANY TYPE. CURRENT HOSTS INCLUDE BADONGO, DAILYMOTION, DEPOSITFILES, GOOGLE, MEDIAFIRE, MEGAUPLOAD, MEGAVIDEO, MYSPACE, RAPIDSHARE, SENDSPACE, VEOH, VIMEO AND YOUTUBE.
PLEASE DIRECT COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT ISSUES TO THE COMPANIES THAT HOST THESE FILES. ALL POSTINGS ARE FOR PROMOTIONAL AND PREVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. ALL THE CONTENT DOWNLOADED FROM LI SHOWDOWN SHOULD BE DELETED WITHIN 24 HOURS.
LI SHOWDOWN AND ITS AFFILIATES ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR CONTENT LINKED OR REFERRED TO ON THIS SITE, OR FOR USER FAILURE TO DELETE DOWNLOADED CONTENT WITHIN 24 HOURS.Filed under: HOME, NEWS, Reviews | Tags: 84 Sheepdog, As Cities Burn, Capo, Errand Rum, Hell or High Water, Indie Rock, Into the Sea, Pirate Blues
There are two different paths a band can take in the course of their lifespan. The first, and much more common, is for a band to find success with a specific sound, and then essentially stay true to that sound. The second is to reinvent and constantly expand on what they find success with, pushing the envelope a little further each time. For the Louisiana indie rock quartet As Cities Burn, they follow the latter path, and the result of that change is their 2009 Tooth and Nail effort, Hell or High Water.
As Cities Burn started out as a post-hardcore band and released the album, Son, I Loved You At Your Darkest, an album that featured screaming as the primary vocal delivery style and was received extremely well by both fans and critics. However, in 2006 the band saw the departure of their lead vocalist TJ Bonnette, and guitarist Cody Bonnette, who also provided the clean vocals on the bands debut, took over as the front man. As a result, the bands sound drastically changed and this was evident in their 2007 release, Come Now, Sleep, which was by no means a bad album, but felt like it had a lot of good ideas that were never fully developed. HOHW is what the band was going for on Come Now Sleep, and the end result is a very respectable indie rock album.
The album starts out with “84 Sheepdog” and “Errand Rum,” two songs that hit hard and set the tone for the album, but the third track on the album, “Into the Sea”, is a personal favorite, with Bonnette wailing “Go throw yourself into the sea” perfectly complimented by the anguish filled guitar riff provided by lead guitarist Chris Lott. The album truly hits its stride with the song “Petty”, which channels Matchbox 20 in a song that seems destined to take over alternative rock radio everywhere. The penultimate track, “Pirate Blues”, prominently features the drumming of Aaron Lunsford, which had taken a backseat in some of the other tracks but really shines here. The second half of this song is the best part of the album, as this is the only point on the album where the band is truly ‘rocking.’ The electronic laden album closer “Capo” draws heavily from Minus the Bear, right down to the vocal delivery style by Bonnette, and is the most interesting track on the album.
This album has its fair share of great songs, but a few underwhelming ones as well, earning it a B-. Throughout the album however, we can see the maturity of the band, with the subtle electronic elements and synth sprinkled in to accentuate the tracks rather then dominate them. Songs like “Pirate Blues” and “Capo” show what this band is capable of and the potential they have, and this release seems like the prequel to a truly classic album. Head over to their myspace to check out the previously mentioned Pirate Blues and Into the Sea, and see what the hype is all about.
-Mike Greenbaum
Leave a Comment so far
Leave a comment
