Blacklisted - Heavier Than Heaven, Lonelier Than God
The Albums still in the mail... so I'll edit it when I get the artwork. The cover looks amazing though.
Pretty much proving (again) why they've been a hype band almost all their existence. This album is the logical progression from their 'Peace On Earth War On Stage' Ep. It's an aggressive punch in the face but still has heaps of groove and that unique Blacklisted quality that doesn't have to use punk rifts in fast bits and metal riffs when they want to be heavy.
Its got more aural space than the Ep, more aggression, more sluge, and plenty of fast bits left over. They've a bassist who knows what he's doing, guitarists who know when not to play, and a hardcore drummer whose ability doesn't rely solely on playing fast or unique rolls.
The vocals follow on from the Ep, more of that Metalica kinda ranting with a twist - eg: 'Wish' The guy still sounds haunted, angry and desperate. But, like every other release his placement is spot on. The lyrics, while thematically staying personal and anguished, reveal scars of hard upbringing and a violent mind. Theres still an identity crises going on, and the honesty is still raw.
'theres nothing you can do to wash away the past, they'll just laugh and laugh when you ask: 'will it always be like this'
Heavier than Heaven, Lonelier than God is a big step away from the past and I guess cements (for now) the direction they are taking, its still the same band as The Beat Goes On, but they're not flying under anyones wings anymore.
My favorite lyrics at this stage are:
'I feel hopeless, when I just wish I could feel a little less'
'we don't need jesus to please us, its not as comforting as you'd like to guess'
'we need to talk, just means we have nothing to fight for'
My Gripe: I'm tired of paying for hardcore songs twice. So in my opinion Memory Lane and Cannonized don't belong on the album, but without them it would the album a bit thin.
Definitely pick it up. Theres a good reason why people love this band so much. 4/5
http://www.myspace.com/blacklisted
Thu Apr 24, 2008
The Albums still in the mail... so I'll edit it when I get the artwork. The cover looks amazing though.
Pretty much proving (again) why they've been a hype band almost all their existence. This album is the logical progression from their 'Peace On Earth War On Stage' Ep. It's an aggressive punch in the face but still has heaps of groove and that unique Blacklisted quality that doesn't have to use punk rifts in fast bits and metal riffs when they want to be heavy.
Its got more aural space than the Ep, more aggression, more sluge, and plenty of fast bits left over. They've a bassist who knows what he's doing, guitarists who know when not to play, and a hardcore drummer whose ability doesn't rely solely on playing fast or unique rolls.
The vocals follow on from the Ep, more of that Metalica kinda ranting with a twist - eg: 'Wish' The guy still sounds haunted, angry and desperate. But, like every other release his placement is spot on. The lyrics, while thematically staying personal and anguished, reveal scars of hard upbringing and a violent mind. Theres still an identity crises going on, and the honesty is still raw.
'theres nothing you can do to wash away the past, they'll just laugh and laugh when you ask: 'will it always be like this'
Heavier than Heaven, Lonelier than God is a big step away from the past and I guess cements (for now) the direction they are taking, its still the same band as The Beat Goes On, but they're not flying under anyones wings anymore.
My favorite lyrics at this stage are:
'I feel hopeless, when I just wish I could feel a little less'
'we don't need jesus to please us, its not as comforting as you'd like to guess'
'we need to talk, just means we have nothing to fight for'
My Gripe: I'm tired of paying for hardcore songs twice. So in my opinion Memory Lane and Cannonized don't belong on the album, but without them it would the album a bit thin.
Definitely pick it up. Theres a good reason why people love this band so much. 4/5
http://www.myspace.com/blacklisted
Thu Apr 24, 2008