REVIEWS
There’s plenty of music released every single month, and with each Monthly Music Roundup article, we share some quick reviews of several releases from throughout the month that we personally enjoyed and want to cover. ALBUMS
Invent, Animate “Greyview” Invent, Animate have returned with their highly anticipated new record, “Greyview.” A large amount of the record shows the band’s metalcore roots, including “Brightwing” and “Eden,” which bring some really impressive guitar parts, “Reflection Room” and “Monarch,” both of which bring a lot of aggression right off the bat before powerful, emotional choruses, “Secret Sun,” which has a chorus like that as well, and the memorable closer “Nova.” In addition, the upbeat “Hollow Light” and “Shapeshifter” (which features Silent Planet’s Garrett Russell) show how the band mix some melodic elements in with their heavier sound. Amongst all the aggression on the record, there is a softer track (the relaxing interlude “Heaven, Alone”), and some moments on here also mix the softer vocals with some of their heavier elements. The beginning of the strong opener “Dark” (before energetic instrumentals and aggressive vocals kick in for the very heavy verses), “Cloud Cascade,” which begins with cleaner guitars and softer percussion before heavier verses, a powerful pre-chorus and a breakdown with some very impressive guitar work, and the very catchy “Halcyon” and “Fireside” both which have their aggressive moments, but also emphasize those memorable melodies and include softer and more ambient sections. “Greyview” is a really impressive and interesting record filled with plenty of powerful performances. Lizzy Farrall “Bruise” Just a few days ago, Lizzy Farrall dropped her debut full-length album, “Bruise.” The album contains a lot of fun and upbeat songs, including the opener “Addict,” which brings catchy instrumentals and a huge chorus with melodies that are equally as catchy, the really catchy, synth & piano driven “Knight Rider,” and “Yellow Paint,” which brings some powerful vocals that really stand out. “Balloon” shows some slight pop influences, while “Barbados” shows the more pop rock, alternative and indie side of Lizzy’s sound, and while “Games” starts off softer, it leads up to its huge anthemic chorus where harder guitars come in and the vocals give one of the most impressive and powerful performances on the album. However, the album has its softer moments as well such as the emotional “Gas Lighting,” which starts out with piano and softer percussion before a bigger chorus where the instrumentals really kick in, the more atmospheric and laid back “Not For A Six” with a very memorable chorus,, the synth-led “Love No More,” and “Okay,” which has some captivating vocals all throughout. “Bruise” is filled with many memorable performances, a variety of influences, and is a captivating record overall. Motives “Death Throes” Earlier in the month, Ohio based Motives dropped their debut LP, “Death Throes.” “Loathe” is one of the heaviest moments on the record, is one of many very energetic tracks, and the bass and drums do a great job at driving that energy. The other extremely energetic tracks found throughout the record show a mix of hardcore and melodic hardcore influences and display the mix of the more melodic and more aggressive elements found within the bands sound, such as “If The Accident Will,” which brings a captivating vocal performance with tons of emotion, “Reap And Sow,” with similarly raw and emotional vocals that deliver some pretty catchy melodies in the song’s verses and chorus, “Not For Nothing,” which has another very memorable chorus, and “Bloodlines,” a track that’s similar to “Not For Nothing” and that also brings some catchy instrumentation to the table. The remaining tracks on the album focus a bit more on the melodic hardcore aspects of the band’s sound, while still mixing in other influences and elements as well. “Burn Through Me” is much more melodic, with fantastic vocals and melodies building up to the song’s huge chorus, and some aggressive and harder hitting moments later on. This track and “Quiet Heart” are on the slower side, and “Quiet Heart” is another more melodic, yet still hard hitting track. Other tracks on this album are a bit more upbeat: the title track “Death Throes,” which brings powerful performances from start to finish, “Dead Weight,” which brings another very catchy chorus and a good mix of clean and unclean vocals, “Forfeit Promise,” another energetic one with some fantastic drumming and a breakdown that really shows the band’s more aggressive tendencies, and the strong closing track “Hell Outside Your Door,” which brings just as much energy. Filled with many powerful moments all throughout, “Death Throes” is a great debut LP from Motives. EPs The Beautiful Mistake “You’re Not Broken, I Am” Following a long hiatus, The Beautiful Mistake have returned with their latest EP, “You’re Not Broken, I Am.” The opening track “Monument” is slower at first, but eventually becomes more upbeat, harder hitting, and brings some pretty good melodies throughout, as well as some heavier vocals and instrumentals during some of the bigger sections. Single “East Of Eden” brings quite a bit of aggression and energy right from the start during the intro and verses, really allowing both the instrumentals and vocals to shine, but the song has its melodic moments as well, and the melodies are pretty catchy. “Memento Mori” is pretty upbeat, with catchy instrumentation building up the intro and softer verses (which also have intriguing melodies), and a bigger chorus where the instrumentals hit harder and the vocals show a bit more. “Decades Away” is upbeat and catchy as well, and delivers a ton of energy, passionate instrumentals, and a good balance of sung and shouted vocals. The powerful closing track “Anger/Courage” begins on a softer and slower note, but shouted vocals and heavier instrumentals quickly come in and bring a lot of extra emotion to the track. “You’re Not Broken, I Am” brings a great mix of heavier and melodic moments and is a pretty impressive record. Bicycle Inn/Eleanor & The Pretty Things “Split” Earlier in the month, Bicycle Inn and Eleanor & The Pretty Things released a split EP. Bicycle Inn’s side of the split begins with “Ivy League Therapy,” which brings upbeat instrumentals and catchy melodies right off the bat. Shouted vocals come in later on in the track and show so much emotion, and the vocals and harder hitting instrumentals deliver passionate and impressive performances at the end of the song to conclude it on a very strong note. Their other song on the split is “Posture,” which is much slower and softer in comparison at first. Catchy drumbeats kick in shortly after that intro, bringing a lot more energy to the song before the vocals come in with a performance that really stands out. The song gets a lot more hard hitting as it leads up to its very memorable chorus, and there’s a great contrast between sections like that and the huge ending, and the softer sections of the song, such as the intro. Eleanor & The Pretty Things begin their side of the split with “Brothers,” which instantly delivers some hard hitting instrumentals and aggressive vocals, both of which bring a lot of emotion to the track. The song gets softer and more melodic before the bridge, which shows just as much emotion and aggression as the intro does. Their second song on the split, “Hanging From Your Neck,” closes out the whole release. It’s a bit more midtempo than the previous track, and while it is simple (for the most part), it still brings some memorable composition, and it becomes slightly more aggressive later on. Each of the two bands on this split brings something interesting with each song on their side of the release, and both of them bring emotional and powerful performances. Halflives “Resilience” Following a handful of singles and their album “Empty Rooms” in 2017, Haflives have released their debut EP, “Resilience.” Opening track “Rockstar Everyday” definitely shows off the more rock leaning side of the band’s sound, from the catchy riffs in the intro to the memorable pre-chorus and a huge chorus where the bass and percussion shine as they drive the upbeat rhythm. “Snake” is one of a couple of darker tracks, and one that embraces the pop and electronic influences in their sound. The bass, synths and softer vocals lead the verses, and the song builds up well from the pre-chorus to the chorus. The following track, “Time Bomb,” is a darker pop rock influenced track, and it brings some very catchy composition, especially the synths in the intro and the melodies in the verses. The song is on the more upbeat side, the percussion in the chorus really shows that energy, and the vocals in that chorus are really impressive. “One Bad Day” is a lot slower, and starts out on a softer note at first before the synths quickly kick in and the song leads up to its huge and very memorable chorus. The final track “Hard To Break” has a big chorus as well, allowing the vocals to shine and deliver catchy melodies the same way they do in the song’s intro. Halflives’ latest release provides a great blend of pop, rock, alternative, and many styles in between, and is a really solid EP.
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