The Meltdown 97

New music from Flyleaf and Further Seems Forever. Plus tracks from Emery and mewithoutYou.

Flyleaf - New Horizons

Announcing that Lacey Sturm was leaving Flyleaf right before the release of the band's third full-length, New Horizons, really brings a different perspective to the album name and title track. It brings an interesting perspective to listening to the album.

New Horizons might be a new chapter for Flyleaf but fans of the bands won't be disappointed with Sturm's final outing. While there are more melodic elements on New Horizons, the album is still all Flyleaf. Fire Fire has a great riff that brings the album in softly before exploding into the chorus. New Horizons was a perfect lead single. A great melody and catchy hook keep the track light and fresh, perfect for radio play. Lyrically New Horizons is about a fresh perspective and hope. No matter how bad life seems, there's always some better to come. And it's a reminder that lyrically is where Flyleaf could really miss Lacey. Her hope and faith, always coming through in every song she wrote, was the real draw and appeal of the band and is going to be a hard to replace her honesty.

There are some great ballads (Cage on the Ground, Great Love, Saving Grace) and some really nice hard hitting tracks (Call You Out, Green Hearts) that really make New Horizons a balanced record. It's a great way to close this chapter of Flyleaf. Lacey will be missed for sure but it's good to hear her voice one last time.

The Meltdown 96

New music from Further Seems Forever, Tourniquet, The Wedding, Lecrae, and Anberlin.

Further Seems Forever - Penny Black

I've been excited about a lot of reunions but Further Seems Forever might be my favorite. Hearing New Year's Project made me an instant fan. When the band released The Moon is Down, I loved it and I am one of the few lucky people who got the see FSF with Chris before he split. The band was never the same for me after he left. Jason was fine and I really liked Hide Nothing but nothing they released post The Moon is Down had quite the same impact for me.

Penny Black is 100% Further Seems Forever. I knew the album would be good after hearing So Cold but the song didn't have that classic FSF feel. But fans should fear not. Penny Black doesn't sound anything like Dashboard Confessional (who I honestly, also love). This is Further Seems Forever.

So Cold is a great opening track to the record and a great re-introduction to FSF with Chris on vocals. Rescue Trained is a great track that should put anyone's fears to rest. While I don't get the subtle, but always present, autotune on Carrabba's vocals, it doesn't hurt the song. Way Down and Kings Canyon have an aggression in Carrabba's vocals that I've never heard.

Lyrically Penny Black is about relationships but Carrabba's metaphors hide deeper meanings like they did on The Moon is Down. There's a complication to the lyrics that Dashboard Confessional is often times missing.

Penny Black is the follow-up to The Moon is Down that Further Seems Forever fans never really got. I know a lot of people loved Jason Gleason and thought he fit FSF better as a vocalist but I always loved The Moon is Down. And hearing Chris Carrabba back on lead vocals feels right.

Anberlin - Vital

Anberlin makes good records. Period. While I've not always gushed over everything the band has put out, there's no denying that the boys in Anberlin knowhow to write a great song.

While the band's last two albums might not have been fans favorites, they both showcased a polished and more mature side of Anberlin.

Vital finds a way to capture the raw rock attitude of the first three albums without giving up the polished sound. Self-Starter packs a punch with a solid groove driving the song. Little Tyrants is a more straight forward four on the floor rock and roll song. Each of the two opening tracks delivers an energy that Dark Is The Way was missing. Other Side is more electronic than anything Anberlin has done in the past. The chorus rings full and rocking but the electronics are what grab my attention. It's has a feel almost similar to some of vocalist's Stephen Christian's side project, Anchor and Braille. Someone Anyone is the gem of the album. The driving synth line melody and the catchy as all get out hook make this track unforgettable. Intentions is another groove and synth heavy track.

Innocent is the first ballad of the record and is a nice change of pace before Desires cranks things back up to 11. Type-Three is a more typical Anberlin ballad (more acoustic driven). Orpheum and Modern Age in very different ways continue the Killers-esque vibe that most the record has. God, Drugs, & Sex ends the record on an interesting note. Super spacey, the track features guest vocals from Christie DuPree and is as epic as Anberlin has ever gotten... Yet the track isn't epic in most conventional ways. 

Vital is both a return to form and something completely different for Anberlin. Maybe not the band's best record to date but without a doubt their most interesting and diverse. A great record start to finish. 

The Meltdown 95

New music from Anberlin, Propaganda, The Wedding, Lecrae, Wolves At The Gate, and more.

Onward To Olympas - Indicator

Thirds times the charm or three strikes and you're out?

That's the question I asked going into Onward to Olympas' third full-legnth. The band's previous two efforts fell flat and while I thought there was improvement on The War Within Us, I've still been waiting for something more or different from OTO.

Indicator is more miss than hit. In fact, I think it's mostly a miss. The hardcore/metal elements of Indicator are on point and it's some of the best music OTO has delivered to date. But what is lost on me are the clean vocals and how they are arranged.

Strange Forest kicks the album off on a really stellar note but then the album takes a weird turn in arrangement and the clean vocals sound out of place. Wolf's Jaw again hits hard and the clean vocals seem less out of place and odd but it's still so commonplace that it doesn't leave any impression. The transitions on each song between that parts are rough and when it's accomplished successfully (Division) it's just an ok moment.

Indicator also plays short and it actually hurts the album. While, the songs get lost on me, it's a decent background soundtrack and when it's over I'm shocked at short it is.

Onward To Olympas continues to be a band I don't get or appreciate.

Inhale Exhale - Movement

What I loved about Inhale Exhale's previous two albums (I Swear and Bury Me Alive) was the band's ability to be different from the norm. Still all metalcore but there was that intangibility about Inhale Exhale that separated them from the pack. While their peers got more recognition, Inhale Exhale seemed to hold themselves to a higher standard of creativity and musicianship.

Movement though.... Movement is missing something.

For starters, John LaRussa's riffs and writing seems different. The guitar riffs were always interesting and an integral part of the sound that made Inhale Exhale a standout. And while there are some killer riffs and interesting riffs on Movement, they're not out front in the mix and the driving force to the songs. 

The other thing is the arrangement on a couple of tracks. Aesthetics kicks off the record but it sounds clunky. Like the band isn't all playing the same song on the intro. The same is true for parts of Party Drama, where I just feel like someone has gone off on a tangent and isn't keeping in line with the rest of the band. 

Having said all that, it's not a bad record. Inhale Exhale still brings their own original twist to the metalcore genre and have put out by far the best record on Red Cord Records. 

If you're looking for a different spin on metalcore, Movement is the record to check out. But as a long time Inhale Exhale fan, the record falls a little flat for me. 

Propaganda - Excellent

 Christian Hip Hop has never been more relevant and accessible. Lecrae and Trip Lee are making hip-hop that is as good, if not better than anything you'll here on the radio. And Humble Beast is taking care of the experimental and underground side.

Propaganda states in the opening track that he's heavily influenced by folk music and has found creative freedom in poetry and that combo isn't always present but it gives you a good idea of what Propaganda is going to deliver. After a solid opening spoken word piece, the title track kicks in. It's a simple beat with no hook but the rhymes are strong. Redefine Cutter brings in the hook with a bluesy flair. Precious Puritans is a strong, hard hitting spoken word piece with tons of meaning. The accompaniment is a simple drum track and a cello which makes more a great underscoring. Lofty features Joel from Ascend the Hill and has a great worship quality.

Beautiful Eulogy's production is perfect and it has a similar vibe to Satellite Kite but more of a straight hip-hop record. Excellent is just that, Excellent.

You can download Excellent for free at http://humblebeast.com/downloads/excellent-download/

The Meltdown 94

New music from Showbread, The Wedding, Audio Adrenaline, Onward to Olympas and more.