From Autumn to Ashes - Holding a Wolf by the Ears

[Drew Beringer]

From Autumn To Ashes – Holding A Wolf By The Ears
Release Date: April 10, 2007
Record Label: Vagrant (http://www.vagrant.com)

The other day I was blasting Holding A Wolf By The Ears, From Autumn To Ashes’ latest album, when one of my friends stopped by my room to ask me what I was listening to. After I told him who it was, a look of confusion crept across his face as he asked; “They’re still a band?” Well, with all the drama that had occurred inside From Autumn To Ashes camp over the past few years, it’s hard to believe they’re still a band.

Ben Perri was the front man of the band on their first three albums, meshing his deep screams with drummer Fran Mark’s frantic pitch. But in 2005, before the release of the disastrous Abandon Your Friends, Perri literally did what the title suggests, separating himself from his band mates, as he developed a lack of passion in his work and failed to deliver lyrics for the album, leaving Mark to rush out some lyrics. The tension of that recording experience could somewhat explain why Abandon was so horrid, but with Perri out of the band now and Mark assuming the front man role, FATA has released their best album to date, hoping it’ll be the album that’ll resurrect their career.

Produced by Brian McTernan, all twelve tracks on Holding A Wolf By The Ears are fast and in your face, never giving you a chance to catch your breath. Mark is three times the front man Perri was, as his mixture of frantic screams and high wailing create a nice counterbalance throughout the album. Musically, they’ve progressed from previous albums, as FATA as opted out of using the typical chug-chug breakdowns of the past and instead rely on brutally assaulting your ears with pummeling drumming from Mark and sick riffs from guitarist Brian Deneeve. The album opener “Deth Kult Social Club” and “On The Offensive” are very aggressive, while “Daylight Slaving” features a furious breakdown. “Sensory Deprivation Adventure” recalls the gloomy state of mind Mark had during the past few years. Vocally, Mark screams like a he is on his way to the asylum, giving an energy and passion that had been severely lacking while Perri was in the band.

Beginning to the noise of something being cranked up, “Underpass Tutorial” grabs you by the throat and never lets go, as Deneeve and bassist Josh Newton are unforgiving with his guitar work. The first single (which also happens to be the album’s closer), “Pioneers,” is a riveting rocker, with a guitar riff that needles into your membrane as Mark urgently sings the final lyrics of the album. While the lyrics on the album aren’t the most poetic or deepest of lyrics, Mark writes about all the crap he and the band has been through, and most importantly the lyrics aren’t cliché-ridden and cringe worthy.

The most impressive aspect of Holding A Wolf By The Ears is how well FATA blends melody with aggression. The flow of the album is very consistent, largely due to the fact that FATA never slows down any of the tracks. What the album suffers from, though, is the fact that some of the songs tend to run together, but while the lack of diversity is evident, it doesn’t necessarily take away from the overall enjoyment of the listening experience.

The majority of us know that From Autumn To Ashes are not recreating the wheel with this release. But in a scene over saturated with Myspace flavors of the week, Holding A Wolf By The Ears breathes new energy in a stagnant genre. Forget what you know about From Autumn To Ashes, as they’ve released the most surprising album of 2007.

Track Listing:
1. Deth Kult Social Club
2. On the Offensive
3. Recounts and Recollections
4. Daylight Slaving
5. Delusions of Grandeur
6. Sensory Deprivation Adventure
7. Everything I Need
8. Underpass Tutorial
9. Love It or Left It
10. Travel
11. A Goat in Sheep's Rosary
12. Pioneers
Produced by: Brian McTernan

From Autumn To Ashes are:
Fran Mark – vocals/drums
Brian Deneeve – guitars
Josh Newton – bass

Official Website ( http://www.vagrant.com/artist/index/17); Official Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/fromautumntoashes)

[Blake Solomon]

i really enjoy this release (surprisingly). Good review

[Jason Tate]

Not a fan of the band -- but good review.

[Broken Parachute]

Good review, Drew.

[Mitch]

Good review, good album.

[Mattx]

That's a really good review and I agree with your sentiments completely.

Like many i'd written FATA off after their disastrous previous two albums and was actually almost as surprised as your friend when I found out they were still together and putting out a fourth album. But when it came down to listening to this I was pretty amazed at how they've managed to turn it around.

I was equally a bit worried and surprised to hear that the drummer who previously did the relatively "whiny" melodic vocals was taking over as front man but he has actually done a superb job.

I'd even go as far as to agree with you that this is the best FATA album to date. I'm sure there will be people that prefer the heavier Too Bad You're Beautiful from back in the day but I definitely think this is every bit as good just in a different style.


I'd definitely suggest that everyone that had written this band off give this a try as you will be surprised one way or another and chances are it will be in a good way.

One thing i'm curious about Drew is that your score seems a tad low? At least compared to the Haste The Day review I just read which actually ranks their worst effort to date above this...

[Rich Duncan]

Well written review Drew! I pretty much lost interest with this band around their second album, but the newer songs I listened to weren't too bad.

[jdlcmco]

thanks for the review......i love this band, and this cd is great !!

[valoo]

great cd, has anyone been able to find the lyrics online?

[Bury Your Head]

No i havent seen them online.

i guess you have to buy the cd:-)

but anyways i loved all their albums but this one is just plain good. i hope sales wise they do at least decent the guys deserve it.



too bad scott webber hasnt reviewed this. id like to see how low he would rate the album

[Bury Your Head]

Not a fan of the band -- but good review.

you didnt think the album was at least decent? especially for the genre they are pigenholed into?


for some reason travel has been stuck in my head for a whole plane ride to buffalo

[Tom Good]

I don't really like this band, but the review is well written and I agree with a lot of your points. I never could get into them though.

[angelusdomini]

Blah, I went to get this CD last night and they didn't have it.

I'm going searching again after work.

[SLADE775]

I agree with most of what you said, dr00bie.

I'd put lasting power a little lower though.

[reav]

the last paragraph is the best/worst joke ever told.

[Dan Sando]

This is the FATA that I remember...Francis

[Dan Sando]

This is the FATA that I remember...Francis should have taken over the lead vocal duties a while ago. Great record

[xiscarykidsix]

so now they're only a 3 piece?

[...generic...]

Okay drew...maybe i'll check it out. Mostly because Brian McTernan can make a piece of shit dropping into a toilet sound like audio ecstasy. If it's in any way how Poison the Well has developed then there is a good possibility I will like it. Good review.

[applesareyummy]

Great cd, ive always liked Francis vocals

[Drew Beringer]

so now they're only a 3 piece?

Only those 3 worked on the album, they are now a five piece, they've recently added a second guitarist and drummer.

[FOBlover]

so now they're only a 3 piece?

They are a 5 piece. Same as before. I love this album. I think this was a good review. I like Pioneers a lot.

[easye]

This cd, in my opinion, does not have lasting value and doesn't grab my attention. A lot of the songs run together with the same riffs and structure in almost every song. Also, the musicianship isn't that great either, it's nothing special at all. I will say that some of the songs like "Love It or Left It" are pretty good. The guitar work in "Pioneers" is pretty boring. I liked The Fiction We Live a lot better than this.

[Mase714]

great review, fucking awesome cd.

[Chris Fallon]

Nice review, Drewbers. I'm a pretty big fan of this disc, and I think it's an in-your-face record that provides a lot of heavy aggression and also a lot of melody. A vast improvement over their last effort, for sure.

And yo, PM me when you can since I'm having trouble reaching you.

[turbonium]

not a fan of any of their old music but this album is solid. the first track is always stuck in my head because of the rhythm.

[Sam Kaufman]

Abandon Your Friends was a great album...you are mistaken.

[The Database]

Was Abandon Your Friends that awful? I liked Too Bad Your Beautiful, and this new album is really good. $7.99 at Best Buy too!

[michaeljennings]

I don't think this review gives this album enough credit.

[angelusdomini]

Was Abandon Your Friends that awful? I liked Too Bad Your Beautiful, and this new album is really good. $7.99 at Best Buy too!

woah, really? Thats where I'm going after work then. haha

And I really liked Abandon Your Friends

[The Database]

woah, really? Thats where I'm going after work then. haha

And I really liked Abandon Your Friends
Yeppp. They had a TON of albums for $7.99 I was surprised.

[astaticvendetta]

a very good cd.

[jaimej]

Good review Drewb!

[_kate]

"The majority of us know that From Autumn To Ashes are not recreating the wheel with this release. But in a scene over saturated with Myspace flavors of the week, Holding A Wolf By The Ears breathes new energy in a stagnant genre."


that is gloriously written.

[_kate]

great cd, has anyone been able to find the lyrics online?

http://www.songmeanings.net/artist.php?aid=6713

[nungaray]

Such a great cd. Even though the production doesnt seem to be consistant but that really doesnt matter because this cd is just plain good. Who would of thunk that a heavy band doesnt have any solo's. (thats a good thing) Buy this album. Best album to come out this year...until circa

[xjohnx]

I'd kinda written FATA off after the most annoying lyric ever written in a metal/hardcore bands history "see the empty space next to the yellow bumblebee, that may be the perfect place to park my broken down ten speed..." HARDCORE!!! but this new album is a step above admittedly i am probably of the minority in sayin that i will miss Ben's vocal approach but when i played this album for my friends who "wont listen to that emo metalcore stuff.." they nodded along and agreed it was good..... well till they found out who it was when they said it was just as bad as ever. which is the point i am trying to make i think this album may be too little too late to pull a band who deserved better into any higher realm simply because of their past recorded endevours.

[deadjean]

This is definitely a step up from their previous work. Abandon Your Friends was horrible. There were one or two decent songs, but overall I couldn't stand that album. I wasn't even thinking about buying the new one, but I heard it on myspace and I can't believe how good it is. Not stunning, but much better then anything they have done recently.

[Vismund_Cygnus]

I never was a fan of this band even before...

...but after listening to a few tracks, I think I will buy this CD.

Great review!

[TheAtticusFinch]

I knew they'd pull it off with this album, it seems they lost alot of fans after Abandon Your Friends. Hopefully they'll get back on the charts now, they deserve it after going through all the mess with Ben leaving the band. Abandon Your Friends really wasnt as bad as it was made out to be, there were some pretty solid tracks on it (mainly the first and last ones).

oh and On The Offensive... totally blew me away when I picked the new cd up 2 days ago. Great song.

[proko85]

Awesome Ablum, horrible review. First of all you should make it evident that Abandon Your Friends wasnt a disaster because of the album, it was a disater because Ben didn't have any lyrics to bring to the table when it was time for him to record his vocals, plus it is still a great albumn because it offered a lot of diversity which i heard you bitching about before with their fourth-coming. Second, i think we all know that every band in the world writes songs about crap they have been through so there is no need for stating the obvious. And thirdly, the reason as to why this is such a great album, which doesn't need much diversity, is because it's all the raw emotion through Fran's experiences from the time of their third album leading up to now. But i guess kids have forgotten what that means these days, they love bands who scream just for the sake of screaming. Cut the deep lyrics bullshit and stop trying to define them as they once were and give them a chance as to how they are now.

[MicSkillz]

Ya so their old stuff sucked like i hated them.

Then my friend was like dude i got FATA new album and i told him he was gay.


But then i listend to it

and eh new singer is way better

[xii gsus iix]

alright if you wrote off this band after abandon your friends(and right fully so)
then give them a chance with this album. it is fast, hard, and amazing.
it might be as good as too bad your beautifull(which you need to get if you dont have it already)
and is better than the fiction we live which despite some people i thought was good but inconsistent.
get it if you like anything at all from this band before or if you like hard rock.

[rob shannon]

great cd, has anyone been able to find the lyrics online?

The Lyrics For Holding A Wolf By The Ears Are Inside The Album Cover.

[rob shannon]

Awesome Ablum, horrible review. First of all you should make it evident that Abandon Your Friends wasnt a disaster because of the album, it was a disater because Ben didn't have any lyrics to bring to the table when it was time for him to record his vocals, plus it is still a great albumn because it offered a lot of diversity which i heard you bitching about before with their fourth-coming. Second, i think we all know that every band in the world writes songs about crap they have been through so there is no need for stating the obvious. And thirdly, the reason as to why this is such a great album, which doesn't need much diversity, is because it's all the raw emotion through Fran's experiences from the time of their third album leading up to now. But i guess kids have forgotten what that means these days, they love bands who scream just for the sake of screaming. Cut the deep lyrics bullshit and stop trying to define them as they once were and give them a chance as to how they are now.


If you liked FATA before, you have to like them now. If you didn,t like them before, you owe it to yourself to listen to "Holding a Wolf by the Ears. This band is better than ever, and loaded with talent.

[rob shannon]

I'd kinda written FATA off after the most annoying lyric ever written in a metal/hardcore bands history "see the empty space next to the yellow bumblebee, that may be the perfect place to park my broken down ten speed..." HARDCORE!!! but this new album is a step above admittedly i am probably of the minority in sayin that i will miss Ben's vocal approach but when i played this album for my friends who "wont listen to that emo metalcore stuff.." they nodded along and agreed it was good..... well till they found out who it was when they said it was just as bad as ever. which is the point i am trying to make i think this album may be too little too late to pull a band who deserved better into any higher realm simply because of their past recorded endevours.


NEVER TOO LATE!

[SoldYourSoul]

This album is good. Many like it because it has more of an accessable sound, and just as many dislike it because it's so much softer than their previous albums. I'm in the middle, because I miss Ben's growls and metallic chugs, but at the same time, I appreciate the lyrics and melody in this album, which I think are a bit more poetic than past albums.

[Cheesus]

On the Offensive is such a great track. Good review, surprising album.

[12ave]

Maybie there not the greatest band by far and they reacently broke up:-( , FATA's masterpiece Holding A Wolf By The Hears is, for me the greatest album ever (got friends that agree), you should really pick it up cause its LONGLASTING (I Keep listening to it at least every 3 days) and EVERY SINGLE tracks are good, no filler at all. Its epic, every tracks are emotive and follow, the songs are like : Main Song - Pause - Agressive Version of the Main Song.
:-d
''When You Start To Hate The Sound Of Laughter, Its Time To Buys This Album''

[chelseaxsmilexD]

great cd, has anyone been able to find the lyrics online?
darklyrics.com

all albums by them... like a lot of the bands they have have all of their album's lyrics on that site, it's mostly reliable, wiht maybe a minor mistake every now and then, but it's FATA, they're not the most understandable band ever.

[chelseaxsmilexD]

NEVER TOO LATE!
it was for them, their breakup....