Hyland - Weights & Measures

Which each new band and release from Tooth and Nail, my standards drop. At the moment when T&N signs a new band and they put out an album I hope that it's decent. If there's potentialfor the band to be awesome, I call it a win. A far cry from the days when every T&N release was a must own and found it's way into my collection.

Can I grade Tooth and Nail's 2011 releases so far?

I Am Empire - Kings: B
Hawk Nelson - Crazy Love: B
Aaron Gillespie - Anthem Song: B
Emery - We Do What We Want: A+
FM Static - My Brain Says Stop But My Heart Says Go: C-

See, mostly decent. One great record and one clunker. So I wasn't sure what to expect with Hyland. There was a lot of hype surrounding Weights & Measures but hype doesn't always equal a great record.

Hyland is your average pop rock band in the vain of Anberlin, Run Kid Run, and Jimmy Eat World. But Hyland isn't at the same level as the bands mentioned... Yet. Weights & Measures took a couple of listens for me to start to enjoy it but the third and fourth listen brought more enjoyent and I can hear potential for greatness.

The album opener, and first single, Jumping the Gun has all the makings for a nice poppy spring and summer hit but the chorus just isn't catchy or memorable enough to grab the listeners attention. Although right from the get go, I'm reminded of Anberlin's debut. The One That Got Away was so similar to Anberlin that it came as no surprise to find out that Stephen Christian from Anberlin lended his vocal talents to that song.

It's not until track four, Crying Out, that the recrd starts to take form. It's a nice track, that isn't a cookie cutter Anberlin song. Then comes the worshipful This Love is Free. Powerful lyrics without being uber cheesy, which can be hard to do with worship songs. Fireworks is the best song on the album. The song has the most energy of any track on the record. While it does remind me directly of Ready Fuels, the hook is catchy and different enough to be enjoyable on it's own. Heart to Life is another notable, standout track.

If I had to grade Hyland's debut, I'd give it a B. It's a decent record and there's tons of potential for this band going forward. I imagine this being one of T&N's new big sellers. It's worth a listen.