Silverstein

Rescue

Written by: TL on 01/05/2011 22:48:27

After breaking out and cementing their status with their two first albums "When Broken Is Easily Fixed" and "Discovering The Waterfront", way back in the early noughties, the Canadian quintet Silverstein have basically been the 'old reliable' for any and all fans of both emocore and the "if it ain't broken, don't fix it mantra". Although the latest of their four Victory Records albums, "A Shipwreck In The Sand", sized up their sound somewhat, and while their efforts have never been unenjoyable, critical voices are getting increasingly louder in asking how many records Silverstein can put out without showing any signs of progress.

At least one more, the answer seems to be, because despite having now left Victory for Hopeless Records, Silverstein's new album "Rescue", is pretty much an amalgamation of the sounds of their previous three albums. Retaining only the crisp sound quality of "A Shipwreck In The Sand", the new material is otherwise a step down from its conceptual epicism, moving back towards the straight forward rockers of "Discovering..." and "Arrivals & Departures".

If you're new to the band, that means they sound like archetypical emocore, mixing emo melodies and clean vocals, with punk rhythms, metal guitars and hardcore screams and growls. As both they and others have proved, it can be a potent cocktail, and for a number of songs on "Rescue", it still is, as can be heard in especially the opening trio "Medicate", "Sacrifice" and "Forget Your Heart" - the three of them thriving respectably via a cinematic climax, a kick ass main riff and a super catchy chorus.

As the album progresses however, it becomes harder to notice the refinements to the band's sound, and easier to slip into the thought that this is basically old wine in new bottles. "Intervention" and "Good Luck With Your Lives" are not bad tracks per se, but they're so typical for the band that your attention is bound to start slipping. Fortunately, "Texas Mickey" will awaken any listener come the brilliant guest vocals of Bayside's Anthony Raneri, whose contribution sounds much better than one would have imagined.

On the flipside however, the somewhat less reknowned Brendan Murphy of Counterparts does not manage to imbue the following track "The Artist" with similar memorability, and to all but those who prefer Silverstein at their most hardcore, it will likely slide the interest back down a notch. As for the remaining five songs, all of them have redeeming factors, and still none are really bad, yet they also do nothing to feel like anything but Silverstein on autopilot.

Overall, the above factors make "Rescue" a good solid release for the loyal Silverstein fan, who simply wants more material of the same kind that made them love the band. For many of us though, it is a record that, while certainly enjoyable, is making it increasingly difficult to ignore those that say that Silverstein's sound is heading nowhere. Surely, if they keep making records like this, critics will likely begin to shave off grades.. If they haven't already.

Download: Forget Your Heart, Medication, Sacrifice, Texas Mickey
For The Fans Of: Funeral For A Friend, Alesana, Story Of The Year
Listen: myspace.com/silverstein

Release Date 26.04.2011
Hopeless

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