Texas In July

One Reality

Written by: PP on 04/06/2011 02:17:40

Texas In July had a brief stint over at CI Records for their debut EP and full length, until their brand of atmospheric metalcore caught the attention of a much bigger label for their sophomore album, Equal Vision Records. You can tell why after just a couple of listens to "One Reality", yet another stepping stone in the continuous improvement this band has undergone since their somewhat mediocre and generic EP release, "Salt Of The Earth".

Armed with the roaring wall-of-sound production by Zeuss, the new album sees Texas In July expand their core sound into a more ambitious one, now featuring immerse soundscapes where tempo is slowed down to enable for atmosphere and cinematic effects to take over. Think bands like Life In Your Way, Farewell To Freeway and such, exemplified by a song like "Dreamer", which shifts between high-speed d-beat tempo to slower passages which allow their vocalist in the spotlight for his piercing, dominating screams. Though the opener to the record, "Magnolia", starts off somewhat disappointingly due to its overuse of the one-chord breakdown (think Emmure for a second), it fortunately develops into a more atmospheric piece as the song progresses. That's the story on many of the songs on the record, where generic breakdowns fade away in favour of a more fluid and dynamic sound.

Where the band are at their very best, however, is during the fast-paced sequences where their slick, hook-driven metalcore impresses with its technical flair but also with strong melody lines, all the while their lead singer projects himself on top of the sound with his thick roar. Here, the band recalls August Burns Red more than any other band, but without forgetting to add ambiance and lingering melody where necessary.

While "One Reality" may not be a groundbreaking release by any means given how closely it is inspired by the works of bands already mentioned in this review, it's still a solid piece of metalcore in a time where it's difficult to find anything that doesn't sound generic or beaten-to-death in the genre. While "Undoing Ruin" or "Frail Words Collapse" kind of classics are likely to never surface again in this style of music, "One Reality" is nonetheless a reminder that there's still life in the genre, even if the heartbeat is weaker than it used to be.

Download: Dreamer, Dying World
For the fans of: Life In Your Way, Walking With Strangers, Farewell To Freeway
Listen: Myspace

Release date 26.04.2011
Equal Vision Records

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