leaveawhisper
11/12/09, 10:08 PM
Since October - This Is My Heart
Record Label: Tooth & Nail Records
Release Date: May 27, 2008
According to Since October frontman Ben Graham, This Is My Heart is a very fitting name for the band’s first full-length album. Hailing from Bradenton, Florida, he and his bandmates constructed the record, as he described it, to reflect “truth” and “real-life stories.” Having been promised something deeply personal, I was a little less than wowed by what I heard.
Since October, while inarguably capable musicians, do little to distinguish themselves from the many already established bands of the hard rock genre, which is probably my biggest complaint about This Is My Heart. Following an instrumental opener, “My Heart” assaults you with the type of powerful guitar riffs and heavy drumming that persists throughout the album. Graham certainly does not lack vocal talent, yet I couldn’t help noticing a similarity in certain spots between his voice and that of Red’s Michael Barnes and, in other spots, Adam Gontier of Three Days Grace. In fact, there was a moment or two at the beginning of “Disaster” when I actually wondered if I was somehow hearing “(I Hate) Everything About You” instead. Don’t get me wrong. I like Red and Three Days Grace, and I like the several other bands that Since October strongly remind me of, but the fact that there are several is disappointing. I was hoping for something a little more original.
Despite their difficulty in creating a sound that is uniquely them, Since October do get a few things right with their first album. They manage to successfully deliver a ballad or two, which with some harder rock bands has a tendency to appear out of place and pretentious. The instrumentation and melody of “In This Moment” are beautiful, but the band manages to retain some of its edge in the arrangement of the chorus and the earnestness of Graham’s singing. “Waiting” which, unlike the rest of the album, relies on acoustic guitar, highlights the band from a different angle. This song is probably the most easily accessible of those on the album, although not the strongest. That distinction falls to the tracks “My Heart,” “World to Me,” and “Everything,” which are solid, hard-hitting and the most memorable of those that appear on the album. Graham proves on multiple occasions, although too few in my opinion, that he can deliver impressive screams. Luke Graham (guitarist), Josh Johnson (bassist), and Audie Grantham (drummer) play their respective instruments very well, a fact that makes all of the songs on This Is My Heart easy to enjoy despite their shortcomings.
Lyrically, Since October’s album is pretty generic. Themes of guilt and of needing/not wanting to move on from failed relationships are present throughout, as might be suggested by track titles like “Guilty” and “Waiting.” Very little of what is contained in these tracks, however, hasn’t been said before. The average listener would have no trouble relating to the sentiments expressed, but they would also find next to nothing that really inspires. There aren’t even any songs on the album that really stand out as the exception. Only lines here and there in the middle of the underwhelming might be considered striking, like the last line of the chorus in “World to Me”—“when the laughter fades your tears know my name.” “Part of Me,” the album’s closing track, includes the lines “It’s not what you think, a little more than you know/ I’m constantly reminded of the things I’ll never be,” and in “Everything,” Graham sings “I’ve done everything to live inside your world, but you’ve done everything to break me down, shut me out, say you will.” These lines are some of the most expressive that the album had to offer. The rest is basic, which I suppose, if we’re looking for the positive, makes it more universal.
Overall, This Is My Heart is a good album. Not phenomenal, but good. It probably hasn’t made a lasting impression on me, but it isn’t one that I’d hesitate to pick up and listen to again. I also wouldn’t hesitate to check out one of the band’s shows, as they admit to having a higher aptitude for live performance than for recording. It’s evident that Since October have a great deal of potential, and I plan on keeping an eye on them in the future.
Three Days Grace; Red; Framing Hanley; Breaking Benjamin; Trapt
http://www.myspace.com/sinceoctober
Record Label: Tooth & Nail Records
Release Date: May 27, 2008
According to Since October frontman Ben Graham, This Is My Heart is a very fitting name for the band’s first full-length album. Hailing from Bradenton, Florida, he and his bandmates constructed the record, as he described it, to reflect “truth” and “real-life stories.” Having been promised something deeply personal, I was a little less than wowed by what I heard.
Since October, while inarguably capable musicians, do little to distinguish themselves from the many already established bands of the hard rock genre, which is probably my biggest complaint about This Is My Heart. Following an instrumental opener, “My Heart” assaults you with the type of powerful guitar riffs and heavy drumming that persists throughout the album. Graham certainly does not lack vocal talent, yet I couldn’t help noticing a similarity in certain spots between his voice and that of Red’s Michael Barnes and, in other spots, Adam Gontier of Three Days Grace. In fact, there was a moment or two at the beginning of “Disaster” when I actually wondered if I was somehow hearing “(I Hate) Everything About You” instead. Don’t get me wrong. I like Red and Three Days Grace, and I like the several other bands that Since October strongly remind me of, but the fact that there are several is disappointing. I was hoping for something a little more original.
Despite their difficulty in creating a sound that is uniquely them, Since October do get a few things right with their first album. They manage to successfully deliver a ballad or two, which with some harder rock bands has a tendency to appear out of place and pretentious. The instrumentation and melody of “In This Moment” are beautiful, but the band manages to retain some of its edge in the arrangement of the chorus and the earnestness of Graham’s singing. “Waiting” which, unlike the rest of the album, relies on acoustic guitar, highlights the band from a different angle. This song is probably the most easily accessible of those on the album, although not the strongest. That distinction falls to the tracks “My Heart,” “World to Me,” and “Everything,” which are solid, hard-hitting and the most memorable of those that appear on the album. Graham proves on multiple occasions, although too few in my opinion, that he can deliver impressive screams. Luke Graham (guitarist), Josh Johnson (bassist), and Audie Grantham (drummer) play their respective instruments very well, a fact that makes all of the songs on This Is My Heart easy to enjoy despite their shortcomings.
Lyrically, Since October’s album is pretty generic. Themes of guilt and of needing/not wanting to move on from failed relationships are present throughout, as might be suggested by track titles like “Guilty” and “Waiting.” Very little of what is contained in these tracks, however, hasn’t been said before. The average listener would have no trouble relating to the sentiments expressed, but they would also find next to nothing that really inspires. There aren’t even any songs on the album that really stand out as the exception. Only lines here and there in the middle of the underwhelming might be considered striking, like the last line of the chorus in “World to Me”—“when the laughter fades your tears know my name.” “Part of Me,” the album’s closing track, includes the lines “It’s not what you think, a little more than you know/ I’m constantly reminded of the things I’ll never be,” and in “Everything,” Graham sings “I’ve done everything to live inside your world, but you’ve done everything to break me down, shut me out, say you will.” These lines are some of the most expressive that the album had to offer. The rest is basic, which I suppose, if we’re looking for the positive, makes it more universal.
Overall, This Is My Heart is a good album. Not phenomenal, but good. It probably hasn’t made a lasting impression on me, but it isn’t one that I’d hesitate to pick up and listen to again. I also wouldn’t hesitate to check out one of the band’s shows, as they admit to having a higher aptitude for live performance than for recording. It’s evident that Since October have a great deal of potential, and I plan on keeping an eye on them in the future.
Three Days Grace; Red; Framing Hanley; Breaking Benjamin; Trapt
http://www.myspace.com/sinceoctober