This, A Day To Remember’s third studio album, and second with Victory Records, ‘Homesick’ is made up of the same intense, venue-filling characteristics as other albums, but on a larger, and more confident scale. The five-piece pop-punk/hardcore Floridians, formed in 2003, appear to be fully aware of the success of other bands within the alternative music scene, causing them to grasp to their genres considerably.
In terms of content, hardcore riffs, aggressive drumming and catchy pop-punk choruses, make this album perfect for lively, and inevitably sweaty gigs, with every single song having a chorus that kicks you in the face! The opening song, and first to be released as a single, ‘The Downfall of Us All’ is the perfect opening to any gig, with its haunting start. The song tells a story of what life is like for the band touring and playing endless shows, ‘I sold my soul to the open road...’, as well as it being a thank you to fans who have helped them on the ‘open road’ to success, ‘We signed 3, 4, 5 on the dotted lines...’. Track 2 is very conventional for the pop-punk genre, but it is the bulky guitar revving that retains the uniqueness of ‘Homesick.’
The third track begins is more or less the same fashion, with an apparent outburst from lead vocalist and frontman, Jeremy McKinnon, as well as guest vocals courtesy of Mike Hranica from The Devil Wears Prada. The jaunty, irresistible yet steady back beat that evolves into full on screamo by the second verse, ‘So run like hell, sleep with one eye open...’, which illustrates the band’s capabilities; skilfully jumping between styles. Particularly in this track, Alex Shelnutt’s drumming is phenomenal and truly drives the rest of the band, along with beautiful backing vocals and harmonies from Neil Westfall, who also plays rhythm guitar. It is remarkable in terms of the various sections, such as vocals, screaming, chants, drum, lead and bass guitar solos that it is composed of, that come together to create a really impressive track. A Day To Remember have also not underestimated the power of an exaggerated pause for dramatic effect, but even this, they have made their own by incorporating a cough.
However, as the album goes on, the format of each song remains the very similar, making the blended tracks slightly repetitive, which could potentially make the listener become accustomed to the organisation of each song. Yet individually, every track is engaging, so perhaps this is just A Day To Remember portraying their concrete blend of genres. ‘Have Faith In Me’ and ‘'NJ Legion Iced Tea' are distinct from many other songs on the album because of how tepidly they begin, providing a component of calm, with stunning vocals from McKinnon, to a record that can often be harsh on the ears. ‘Mr. Highway's Thinking About the End’ emerges with a polite guitar-driven melody with an intense interruption from drums and yet more screamo vocals, perfectly combined with a jaunty chorus and further outbursts of drumming skill. The track ends with a fadeout of, ‘Will we ever get what we deserve?’ which pieces together with ‘Have Faith In Me’.
‘Welcome to the Family’ encloses obvious influences from bands such as Four Years Strong and New Found Glory, one member of which produced ‘Homesick.’ A hardcore edge and the additional vocals from Vincent Bennett of the Acacia Strain (with whom they toured Australia in December 2009); provide necessary variety. The album’s title track curiously appears just over half way through the twelve track complication, but is well worth the listener’s patience. With its furious verses, followed by a tranquil and honest chorus based ‘Hey mom, I wrote you some soft songs...’. This song is perfect for single release because of its commercial uphold, despite the fact that it was controversially never officially released individually. However, it also displays the band’s excellent lyrical capabilities; to narrate inner emotions, as well as their hardcore genre, ‘I’m holding onto a fairytale.’
The next three songs are very similar to one another, but still retain the style and format A Day To Remember have utilised admirably throughout the album. But the final track is composed of the third set of guest vocals, courtesy of VersaEmerge’s Sierra Kusterbeck, whose vocal abilities are outstanding, and also unify with McKinnon almost faultlessly. Refreshing and stunning acoustic guitar brings the album to a gentle conclusion via poignant yet comforting crowd vocals.
Despite several variations in their line-up, there appears to be no necessity to adapt an unusually successful mix of rock and hardcore. Although their style is clear, A Day To Remember have clasped the generic features of pop-punk and hardcore, which not only makes the album repetitive at times, despite guest vocals, but also provides some conventionality. Gang vocals allow you to hear the band's stadium potential, with their 30 Seconds To Mars standard of band and fan unison. You'll be humming and chanting every song after just one listen. Thanks to the seamless blend of elements, every song is a killer ready to bring the house down.
The beauty of their wall of sound is that no one can quite place their finger on a genre. McKinnon once stated, ‘We’ve always played what we wanted to hear’, which is an adequate comment, as the band thrives on an every-growing number of fans worldwide, and are consequently, a welcomed member of the alternative family. Homesick is one of the best and most addictive albums you're ever likely to hear
5/5
No comments:
Post a Comment