Originally formed in 2004/05 in Vancouver BC, the band then
consisted of lead singer Jonny
Hetherington and guitarist Greg
Bradley as well as drummer Flavio
Cirillo, bassist Matt Rhode and
guitarist Chris Witoski. This line-up
recorded their first 12-track independent album in 2007, which showed every bit
of what the band would eventually become. The entire first half of the album
was re-recorded on Vices and Virtues,
so the first half of this review may get on the path of comparing both versions
of each song.
The album starts off with Get Through This, a song that would eventually become more better
known as Get Thru This on Vices. Even
in 2007 it was obvious that this would be an anthem for the band for many years
to come. Despite some obvious production differences, this original version of
the song is just as aggressive as it’s re-recording, and is one of those tunes
that even a first time listener will be singing along with by the time the song
gets to the last chorus. It’s difficult to say which of the two versions is
better.
For Vices, I called You
Don’t Know Me the most aggressive and heavy song on the album. This is
still very much the case for this album. Musically the song is a high-speed road
rager that hard rock fans anywhere would love. There is an obvious difference
in the singing however. This first time around, Jonny sang the song less aggressive, intermittently screaming his
brain out in the microphone, but maintaining a slightly more tamed voice
throughout the rest of the song. Though the re-recording is better than the original,
this version has 95% of the pieces that make the re-recording so good.
One of the finest moments on Vices is I Will Be There. On an album that isn’t afraid to show its lighter
side, that song is truly a standout track. Though this album doesn’t have as
much as a light side, it does have the original version of the track. Both
versions are very similar, save for a few production differences. One obvious
and unfortunate difference is the absence of the acoustic intro that the Vices
version had, clearly because it hadn’t been thought up yet on this original
version. Since this is the only true light-hearted song on the album, it has
much more of an impact on the album then its re-recorded version does on Vices,
competing with such songs as Sorry
and Best I Can.
Fits of
Clarity may not be familiar with just an avid fan of the band. The
re-recorded version of this song was released as a bonus track for Vices and
renamed Watching You Watching Me.
Musically the songs are practically identical, the only obvious difference is
the absence of the lyrics “Watching You Watching Me”, which was added in the re-recording.
The song is a beautiful attempt at trying something out of the norm for the
band. It is a slower paced song, not aggressive though it has its hard moments.
There is no better display on the album of the bands ability to write a song
with absolute excellence. The re-recoded version of the song is even better,
with its better production giving the band the capability of emphasizing the
dramatic moments of the song.
One memorable moment on Vices is the song Raining. It is the darkest sounding
song on the album and among the angriest tracks as well...not to mention having
Adam Gontier as a guest vocalist.
Well the songs original version, originally titled Inside It’s Raining, may not have had Adam’s familiar voice singing
along with Jonny, but that doesn’t take away from the songs sound. It’s
actually great to hear Jonny singing throughout the song, hearing him harmonize
with his own vocals and showing some true feeling behind the singing of the
song.
The last of the re-recorded songs is Completely. This song is probably the most well produced song on
the album. The music sounds nice and full with all instruments blazing and
Jonny’s voice being at fine form. Though the re-recording is better, this
version shows all to almost all of the elements that make the re-recording so
great.
So ends the first half of the album. The rest of the songs
are songs that can only be heard on this album which make them extra valuable.
The first of these songs is Do What You
Can. This song is every bit an alternative rock song, but not of the heavy Three Days Grace-ish kind, but more
like a Shinedown track. This song
does set the pace of what to expect from the rest of the songs on the album.
The song is not angry or aggressive; it’s rather nice to listen to. If you’re
looking for a good heavy track, this is not your song.
Crime starts off
in a creepy dark fashion. You almost don’t expect it to pick up the way it does
with its angry vengeful chorus. The bridge of the song is even more balls to
the wall. The song is very slow paced, very similar to Raining. Both songs are
equally as dark, but Crime takes the cake in terms of aggression.
Car Crash is a slow
and rather gloomy song. It shows early signs of how tremendously melodic Jonny’s
voice can be. The song maintains a slow and tamed sound, very unlike anything
on Vices which makes this a gem. The last minute of the song, however, takes a
complete u-turn, taking the opportunity to scream out one last yell of
redemption. Alone is just as slow
and gloomy. The song lyrics deal with that familiar topic of heart break, but
Jonny shows that, while he doesn’t really sing of lost love, when he does, he
sure knows how to write some incredible lyrics. This songs string section in
the bridge makes the song impressively stand out. Build a Wall continues the slow and gloomy sound for just one more
track. Unlike the previous two, however, this one is the catchiest one to sing
along with. It’s also the longest clocking in at 6:31, though the last minute
and a half or so is just feedback put through studio effects.
The album ends on an acoustic and sort of Christian note. Dog is my Copilot, (dog being God
spelled backwards) features nothing but Jonny and an acoustic guitar singing about
God. It is something very unexpected, especially since the band does not market
themselves in any way as Christian rock, but even Christian rock artists such
as Skillet and Red don’t show their faith on their sleeve as much as this song
does. This is certainly a unique moment that any fan of the band should hear.
The song makes good use of the acoustic guitar, not playing the song like a
folk song but more like a rock ballad. The song ends on an aggressive note,
with Jonny basically letting his voice go wild, a little too wild, while
singing the chorus one last time.
In the end, this independent release eventually propelled the
band to be discovered by Disturbed
guitarist Dan Donegan, which
resulted in Art of Dying touring
with Disturbed, and eventually getting signed to Donegan and Disturbed vocalist
David Draiman’s Intoxication records
and would see them record Vices and
Virtues, with only Jonny and Greg remaining as all three other members were
replaced. The band continues to rise in popularity and the future still shows
nothing but domination, and it all started with this simple 12 track debut independent
album that every fan should hear.
ALBUM HIGHLIGHT
“Build a Wall” – This choice was made
exclusively picking from the second half of the album. This would be the best
of those six songs to give its listener an idea of what the songs sound like.
Build a Wall has the slow and gloomy side that most of the second half has, but
has the catchiest chorus to sing along with, showing that the band does know
how to write a great song. It doesn’t properly sum up the album as a whole,
which is true. For a first time listener of the band in general, a song like Get Through This would be a more proper
fit, but for the first half of the album in general I’d recommend listening to Vices and Virtues.
FINAL RATING
7.5 (Out of 10)
Track List:
1.
|
Get Through
This
|
2:28
|
2.
|
You Don't Know
Me
|
3:10
|
3.
|
I Will Be There
|
3:41
|
4.
|
Fits Of
Clarity
|
4:13
|
5.
|
Inside It's
Raining
|
3:52
|
6.
|
Completely
|
3:15
|
7.
|
Do What You
Can
|
3:21
|
8.
|
Crime
|
4:39
|
9.
|
Car Crash
|
3:49
|
10.
|
Alone
|
3:45
|
11.
|
Build A Wall
|
6:30
|
12.
|
Dog Is My
Copilot
|
5:24
|
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