EndSerenading
06/16/09, 09:13 PM
Beloved - Failure On
Record Label: Solid State
Release Date: June 24, 2003
So here we are, my first review. My inspiration for writing this review was simply the lack of reviews for a band that simply has not gotten enough attention over the years. In 2003, Beloved already had one self-released album and a critically acclaimed five-song album entitled The Running EP (re-released through Solid State Records) in their discography. They were touring the entire country, had a huge home state following, and were poised to stumble upon something great; that something came in the summer of 2003.
Having entered the studio with producer “GGGarth”(From Autumn To Ashes, Rage Against the Machine, Haste the Day), the band emerged with the perfect summer record during the summer between my senior year in high school and freshman year in college – one of the most carefree times a kid can have. The album release was preceded by the release of two “singles,” “Aimless Endeavor” and “Death to Traitors” via Solid State's website as well as the original MP3.com. These two songs serve as perfect examples of the spectrum of musical moods and emotions that Beloved was capable of; “Aimless Endeavor” is a song driven by melody and clean vocal, interlaced with catchy guitar and vocal hooks, while “Death to Traitors,” although still containing a lot of melody, also contains some of the heaviest parts the band ever wrote.
The album starts off perfectly on the first track “Failure On My Lips” with a snare roll leading into a great upbeat song that has it all: catchy vocal hooks, urgent drumming, pummeling guitars, and powerful, passionate screaming all rolled into one. More importantly, they carry all this through while managing to have their own unique/fresh sound (disclaimer here to note once again that this record came out 6 years ago). They keep this up throughout the entire album, every song fitting perfectly into its spot on the album. They masterfully manage to keep a consistent sound on the record while still assigning each song its own personality; some songs are meant to be heavier while others are meant to be sing alongs, while still others are both rolled into one.
One of the high notes on the album worth noting is the quality of the clean vocals. Today it seems that the majority of the bands that incorporate singing and screaming together have clean vocals that are either very nasal and high pitched, highly doctored up and pitch corrected in the studio, or both. Beloved's Joshua Moore, however, had a classic rock frontman voice. He had good range, passion, and a very enjoyable tone all without relying on any in-studio doctoring to help his cause. It didn't hurt that he could duplicate everything live, to a tee either, all while having all the stage presence you'd ever want in your lead vocalist/guitar player.
That brings us to guitar. Beloved rightfully utilized a three-guitar assault live with one guitar player providing the majority of the rhythm guitars, another providing the leads and harmonizations, and Josh contributing extra guitar work to boost the rhythm section or add to the mood of the lead. It was carefully crafted, and one of the few three-guitar bands I have seen who really utilized it correctly. The bass on the disc is nothing special; it serves its purpose but does nothing to stand out, but that works very well on this album.
The drums on this record are still some of the best produced drums I have ever heard (second to Deftones – White Pony), providing all the groove when needed behind the rock parts and pushing the heavy parts to the urgency they require. Drummer Joe Musten also serves up all the powerful screaming vocals on this album.
Overall, this is still one of my favorite albums ever; amazing production, catchy guitar work, great vocal delivery in both singing and screaming, and a passion that I see missing in so many bands today. If you like upbeat rock/melodic hardcore and you haven't checked this out before, I suggest you pick up this album immediately.
Unfortunately, the band broke up in 2005, with the different band members wanting to move in different directions musically and in life: Joe (drums,vocals), Matt (guitar), Johnny (bass) went on to form the hardcore band Advent (Solid State), Josh has gone on to solo singer/songwriter material, and Dusty has gone on to play with The Almost. The split was both unfortunate and ironic because, although they each had passion for different styles of music that led to their breakup, it was exactly this pull from several different styles that kept them different and interesting during their tenure.
All we are left with are the few albums that Beloved put together during their time as a band. As they said it best in their own song “Watching the Lines Blur,”
“if we live in hearts we leave behind
then we will never die”
Despite their breakup, this album lives on via constant play in my listening rotation six years later.
Melodic Hardcore; Dead Poetic; Classic Case; Poison the Well; Life In Your Way; Advent
http://www.myspace.com/beloved
For their current projects see:
http://www.myspace.com/joshuamoore ; http://www.myspace.com/thealmost ; http://www.myspace.com/adventnc
Record Label: Solid State
Release Date: June 24, 2003
So here we are, my first review. My inspiration for writing this review was simply the lack of reviews for a band that simply has not gotten enough attention over the years. In 2003, Beloved already had one self-released album and a critically acclaimed five-song album entitled The Running EP (re-released through Solid State Records) in their discography. They were touring the entire country, had a huge home state following, and were poised to stumble upon something great; that something came in the summer of 2003.
Having entered the studio with producer “GGGarth”(From Autumn To Ashes, Rage Against the Machine, Haste the Day), the band emerged with the perfect summer record during the summer between my senior year in high school and freshman year in college – one of the most carefree times a kid can have. The album release was preceded by the release of two “singles,” “Aimless Endeavor” and “Death to Traitors” via Solid State's website as well as the original MP3.com. These two songs serve as perfect examples of the spectrum of musical moods and emotions that Beloved was capable of; “Aimless Endeavor” is a song driven by melody and clean vocal, interlaced with catchy guitar and vocal hooks, while “Death to Traitors,” although still containing a lot of melody, also contains some of the heaviest parts the band ever wrote.
The album starts off perfectly on the first track “Failure On My Lips” with a snare roll leading into a great upbeat song that has it all: catchy vocal hooks, urgent drumming, pummeling guitars, and powerful, passionate screaming all rolled into one. More importantly, they carry all this through while managing to have their own unique/fresh sound (disclaimer here to note once again that this record came out 6 years ago). They keep this up throughout the entire album, every song fitting perfectly into its spot on the album. They masterfully manage to keep a consistent sound on the record while still assigning each song its own personality; some songs are meant to be heavier while others are meant to be sing alongs, while still others are both rolled into one.
One of the high notes on the album worth noting is the quality of the clean vocals. Today it seems that the majority of the bands that incorporate singing and screaming together have clean vocals that are either very nasal and high pitched, highly doctored up and pitch corrected in the studio, or both. Beloved's Joshua Moore, however, had a classic rock frontman voice. He had good range, passion, and a very enjoyable tone all without relying on any in-studio doctoring to help his cause. It didn't hurt that he could duplicate everything live, to a tee either, all while having all the stage presence you'd ever want in your lead vocalist/guitar player.
That brings us to guitar. Beloved rightfully utilized a three-guitar assault live with one guitar player providing the majority of the rhythm guitars, another providing the leads and harmonizations, and Josh contributing extra guitar work to boost the rhythm section or add to the mood of the lead. It was carefully crafted, and one of the few three-guitar bands I have seen who really utilized it correctly. The bass on the disc is nothing special; it serves its purpose but does nothing to stand out, but that works very well on this album.
The drums on this record are still some of the best produced drums I have ever heard (second to Deftones – White Pony), providing all the groove when needed behind the rock parts and pushing the heavy parts to the urgency they require. Drummer Joe Musten also serves up all the powerful screaming vocals on this album.
Overall, this is still one of my favorite albums ever; amazing production, catchy guitar work, great vocal delivery in both singing and screaming, and a passion that I see missing in so many bands today. If you like upbeat rock/melodic hardcore and you haven't checked this out before, I suggest you pick up this album immediately.
Unfortunately, the band broke up in 2005, with the different band members wanting to move in different directions musically and in life: Joe (drums,vocals), Matt (guitar), Johnny (bass) went on to form the hardcore band Advent (Solid State), Josh has gone on to solo singer/songwriter material, and Dusty has gone on to play with The Almost. The split was both unfortunate and ironic because, although they each had passion for different styles of music that led to their breakup, it was exactly this pull from several different styles that kept them different and interesting during their tenure.
All we are left with are the few albums that Beloved put together during their time as a band. As they said it best in their own song “Watching the Lines Blur,”
“if we live in hearts we leave behind
then we will never die”
Despite their breakup, this album lives on via constant play in my listening rotation six years later.
Melodic Hardcore; Dead Poetic; Classic Case; Poison the Well; Life In Your Way; Advent
http://www.myspace.com/beloved
For their current projects see:
http://www.myspace.com/joshuamoore ; http://www.myspace.com/thealmost ; http://www.myspace.com/adventnc