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at a loss - a falling away from i've taken a while reviewing this one, mainly as it's pretty hard what to make of these guys (i'll resist any associated comment on the band name here). "a falling away from" is a kind of catchy pop-punk, emo-metal, and weirder prog-rock mix, with some slight technical and jazzy overtones. this is the debut full length from the new york band, and certainly shows a fair amount of promise, as well as a good bunch of songs that are obviously pretty diverse. this diversity both works in their favour and against; it manages to deter the dreaded "generic" word somewhat and also keeps things interesting, but consequently this also introduces a bit of disjointedness into their sound, as a result of the genre jumblification. so unsuprisingly, this album can be hit and miss sometimes; the greater majority of tracks work fine - the poppy opener 'cut before the death scene' and the following urgency of 'in the aftermath' for example - but then there are some that don't so much, like the next track 'without a name'. as the album progresses, i feel myself warming more to the band; their potential really starts to show with the ambitious 'closing yours,' flaunting their more naturally progressive (and also heavier) side. as my enjoyment increases into the latter part of the cd, so do the occurence of catchy metal riffs sneaking in - see 'to this cross' and most obviously last track 'fighting stance' - and this is nothing but a good thing. one aspect that does stay fairly constant throughout is the vocals, which stay mainly on the sugary melodic side - consequently the most easily latched onto attribute of the band. the closest i can come to the band comparison wise, which still isn't that close, is gatsby's american dream, or perhaps staring back. in the end i'm definitely left in a positive frame of mind as to the band's future; there really is some quality tracks on here, and ideas are plentiful (and maybe more importantly, are good). these guys are definitely apt enough instrumentally, and should be able to iron out some of the inconsistent bumps in subsequent efforts. there's a big bunch of differing and contrasting influences going on here, and in this release at a loss come very close to putting it all together, and so it almost sounds amazing. i can't wait to see if they succeed completely on the next one. matt |
