Comeback Kid

Broadcasting

Written by: PP on 19/02/2007 17:20:35

After Scott Wade announced his departure from the melodic punk hardcore outfit Comeback Kid, their newly acquired legion of fans that subsequented the release of the fan-favorite "Wake The Dead" was worried, and even more so when guitarist Andrew Neufeld revealed no replacement was to be added, and he would take care of vocal duties from now on. But as the release date of "Broadcasting", their third studio album, is upon us, the fans will be able to stop holding their breath as Comeback Kid has pulled together a genre-stretching mammoth of an album, certainly their best to date both stylistically and musically.

It's scary how well Neufeld is able to emulate Wade's voice when he is put under the spotlight. The opening monster track "Defeated" is destructively powerful, it's the kind of power-hardcore anthem that will cause broken limbs at concerts, full of Hatebreed/Terror style fist-in-the-air anger-filled desperation delivered to you with more in-your-face power than on either of their previous albums. No wonder the credits of the album include up to eighteen people for the massive gang shouts present all across the album. The title track lowers the brutality meter and opens up more melodically layered guitars than on any Comeback Kid song to date. Just when you think that hook can't get more melodic it will, and before you know it a massive modern-hardcore style breakdown with distressing guitar tremblings blows you away.

Similar situations are scattered across the entire album. The guitars in "Industry Standards" are layered in the typical melodic hardcore way, with availing power chords creating a robust base for the melodic lead guitar to tickle the catchy-senses in the listener. This is of course coupled with infectious choruses and bigger gang shouts than you'll hear on any other album this year. "In Case Of Fire"'s technical proficiency and the vocal-style experimentation will immediately draw parallels to A Wilhelm Scream, although the latter would have to be in stereoids to overwhelm the listener as vigorously as Comeback Kid does.

What more is there to say than "Broadcasting" is one hell of an album? A useful aspect to note is that it might be the one hardcore album in recent years which might trick non-hardcore kids into becoming fans through its melodic mastery and understandable, albeit still raw energy-filled authoritative vocals. In other words, while it still has heavy and large enough breakdowns to attract the biggest Beecher and Ed Gein fans over for a listen, the Alexisonfire/Rise Against generation fans will also find their love in the versatile melodic riffing and the catchy choruses across the album. "Broadcasting" has something for everyone without sounding dumbed down for the masses, and thus it has solved one of the biggest dilemmas in the modern music industry: How to take a massive leap forward in songwriting and evolve as a band, without receiving calls for selling out and ignoring the needs of the scene where you originally came from. Simply superb.

8

Download: Broadcasting, In Case Of Fire, Defeated
For the fans of: Bane, Terror, A Wilhelm Scream, Modern Life Is War
Listen: Myspace

Release date 20.02.2007
Victory

Related Items | How we score?
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

Legal

© Copyright MMXXIV Rockfreaks.net.