Grenadiers - Songs The Devil Taught Us

 

After hearing a song by this small time rock band from Adelaide on a compilation album, I decided to check this band out. I'm usually impatient with new rock bands but this band caught my attention. It might not be the most innovative album, drawing influences from bands like The Bronx (the lighter material anyways), but the guys definitely know how to write brilliant rock riffs and catchy songs. And they have beards as epic as Four Year Strong.

They use everything from melodic breaks, massive choruses and interchanging aggressive and melodic vocals which makes them stand out. Driving drums and well executed riffs shows the bands excellent musicianship, tracks like "Old Uncle Scratch" and "No One Listens" being good examples of this. Grenadiers are as good as any of Australia's bigger rock acts and are definitely an act to keep an eye on. 7.5/10

Best Songs: Old Uncle Scratch, Abandon Ship, No One Listens, Bad Hand.

Attack Attack! - Self Titled

After looking over their previous work which always had a mixed reception, Attack Attack! decided to try "step it up to new grounds" with a sophomore album. I could never take this band seriously but I found that "Someday Came Suddenly" could be fun to listen to. Now with an attempt at a "tougher sound", all you can do is laugh. The album is made up of a bunch of electro-pop sounding songs, a bunch of metalcore songs and a few combo songs. The metalcore songs sound like poorly done For The Fallen Dreams rip offs and the electro-pop songs sound like 3OH3! rip offs. I guess that was their attempt at expanding their fan base. The rest of the songs consist of cheesey keyboard sections, autotuned clean vocals and screams that sound like they've been digitally lowered.

A lot of the songs open with repetitive breakdowns, giving it a very tedious feel. There are some potentially alright songs like "Sexual Man Chocolate", one of the few occasions where the synth parts aren't over done. The highlight of the album for me was "Shut Your Mouth", one of the dance tracks. The sound was nothing new but at least it could be a little catchy. "AC-130" has potential but seems too full of attempts at incredibly heavy breakdowns. By the end of the album I just wanted it to end finding myself asking "Why the hell am I listening to this again?" every minute or two. The band has tried way too hard to impress everyone instead of trying to find a sound that works for them, which loses them any respect they had in the first place. Hopefully one day they can develop their sound and create something worth listening to but this album is just a confused mix of genres and poor musicianship. 2/10

Best Songs: N/A (That's up to you to decide, I can't enjoy any of these songs.)

Jack Johnson - To The Sea

 Not too much to say about his latest effort. It got the same sweet melodies and catchy lyrics accompanied by his soothing mellow voice. You can't really say he's gone on to try anything new with this album, not that he needs to in order to keep his fans loyal.

Some could argue it is disappointing that after such a long time his sound hasn't evolved, but I don't think too many people will argue. Sure this album is nothing too groundbreaking and life changing like some of his previous albums, but it is more Jack Johnson and the more, the merrier and I'm sure many, many people with agree. 7/10

Best Songs:  The Upsetter, To The Sea, Only The Ocean

Stick To Your Guns - The Hope Division

I had much doubt with the announcement of this album after finding "Comes From The Heart" so disappointing. I was skeptical about how this album would be and whether the band could pull off something that was close to their first album but still relatively new and refreshing. As soon as it kicks off, they're on the right track, utilising both the genius old school hardcore and metal sounds that were evident on "For What It's Worth" as well as using some aspects of the second album that weren't so awkward. This album is definitely a return to form, the band have put together well structured metalcore that has everything from groovy breakdowns to catchy as hell choruses and still manage to stand out from a lot of other bands, filling the niche in the repetitive metalcore scene. The biggest highlight of the album are the poetic and meaningful lyrics, one of the greatest assets of STYG. The band isn't doing anything incredibly unique but they have written songs that are interesting enough to keep your interest.

With excellent lyrics relating to an overall theme of hope (as the title implies), well executed and unique vocals as well as good driving metal riffs, this album is indeed full of energy and heart. The only criticism is that the album can be monotonous when you listen to it all in one sitting and the copious amount of philosophical speech quotes can also be tedious. Overall, it is a good album but if you've never been a fan of their previous stuff then this wont appeal to you any more than the other albums. 7.5/10

Best tracks: Amber, Where The Sun Never Sleeps, Faith In The Untamed.