Alex Huang
Review: Liger Tea Party – “Sorry, We Aren’t Great”
Liger Tea Party – “Sorry, We Aren’t Great”
Released: June 23, 2013
Label: Unsigned
Purchase: Digital
Liger Tea Party is an unsigned band from Shanghai, China composed of clean vocalist/guitarist Dawson Chen, guitarist Charles Wang, drummer Edward Pan, and bassist/unclean vocalist Keith Yeo. The band just released their debut EP, Sorry, We Aren’t Great, but the members of the band have been in the Shanghai music scene for years in various different outfits. Sporting a sound that is hybrid of pop punk and hardcore (similar to A Day To Remember), Liger Tea Party has already rocked many venues around Shanghai, and their charismatic energy is familiar to their fans.
The EP itself is a current collection of their complete songs recorded at Dbstudios Shanghai. They possess a strong upbeat atmosphere that rivals veterans like All Time Low and The Wonder Years, with addictive crowd-pleasing chants. The unclean vocals are also, almost surprisingly, welcoming and a sublime addition to each song. Finally, their lyrics aren’t bad at all, definitely not reminiscent of some of the shallow writing present in certain contemporary artists, including some bands in the same relative genre. Our Editor-in-Chief, Harri Gibson, when asked about Liger Tea Party stated, “Damn, this band is a dream!”
The problem keeping Liger Tea Party‘s songs from being perfect in Sorry, We Aren’t Great seems to be the fusion of the vocals. In the EP, there are three voices who perform at different points, and while they are all unique individually, none of them appear to befit the songs’ instrumentals incredibly well. Similarly, in the EP Dawson’s clean vocals don’t mesh perfectly with Keith’s screams but that could be corrected easily and definitely isn’t evident in their live shows. The overall result is massive potential that screams to be better. The songs are incredibly good and very much worth a listen if you are into positive energy and gung-ho music. Stream the songs below and check out their Facebook page.
Standout Tracks: There’s only three, listen to them all!
7.5
Review: Sleeping With Sirens – Feel
Released: June 4, 2013
Label: Rise Records
Purchase: Digital | CD | Vinyl
Sleeping With Sirens‘ latest album, Feel, is the post-hardcore band’s first release since their incredibly successful acoustic EP If You Were A Movie, This Would Be Your Soundtrack last year. The album returns to the general band’s pop-hardcore style, although certain tracks do veer off to several special creative directions, especially the tracks containing collaborations.
Up to their standard, Sleeping With Sirens’ Feel is incredibly catchy and musically pleasing to the ear. There are the same powerful, high-pitched belts and the sanguine riffs found in the band’s earlier songs; if anything, the sound appears to be more advanced than before. The title and first track, Feel, as well as the subsequent tracks I’ll Take You There and Free Now, are especially catchy and memorable. Sleeping With Sirens also does wonders balancing between light and heavy sounds in the album; there seems to be no problems at all meshing sounds such as Satellite, Sorry, and Low with Déjà Vu, These Things I’ve Done and The Best There Ever Was. Overall, the sound of the album is satisfying and compelling.
Several tracks take a unique twist, most with surprisingly successful outcomes. Alone takes the cake with a feature from rapper Machine Gun Kelly—in the track, vocalist Kellin Quinn himself sings in a pseudo-rap style, creating a sublime and very unforgettable crossover between the two genres. Similarly, The Best There Ever Was features deathcore band Attila‘s frontman Fronz, and it utilizes his rapid-fire screaming to create a unexpectedly solid piece. And These Things I’ve Done includes incredibly gratifying electronic and hardcore sounds. Almost ironically, however, the album’s most highly anticipated collaboration with Memphis May Fire‘s Matty Mullins in Congratulations appears to be one of the weakest tracks and an example of two talented artists teaming up with mediocre results.
Compared to their earlier work, Feel appears to be an improvement and a bold attempt to distinguish themselves as the very best in post-hardcore. While individually several tracks may not be “love at first listen” and may require a few replays to fully enjoy it, holistically the album is diverse and powerful.
Standout Tracks: “Alone”, “Feel”, “I’ll Take You There”, “Sorry”, “Satellites”
8.0
Track listing:
01. Feel
02. Here We Go
03. Free Now
04. Alone (feat. Machine Gun Kelly)
05. I’ll Take You There (feat. Shayley Bourget of Dayshell)
06. The Best There Ever Was (feat. Fronz of Attila)
07. Low
08. Congratulations (feat. Matty Mullins of Memphis May Fire)
09. Déjà Vu
10. These Things I’ve Done
11. Sorry
12. Satellites
Interview: Harmful If Swallowed
Hey! First, let’s get formalities out of the way: could you guys introduce yourselves and your band?
Sure! We are Greg Martin (Guitar/vocals) Josh Loren (percussion), Carlos Nieto III (Bass/Backing vocals), Brian Martinez (Rhythm guitar) and our band is called Harmful if Swallowed.
Awesome! First, let’s talk about your impressive history. You guys were featured in tons of MTV shows. How does it feel to have gone through such amazing experiences?
It’s been surreal. To be watching an episode of Fantasy Factory or Nitro Circus and to hear our music come up in a random scene is the best feeling in the world! We have many of those episodes recorded for posterity.
You guys also toured with the likes of Green Day, Weezer, KoRn, and Bad Religion, big names in the music industry for sure. How have these unique experiences contributed to your growth as a band?
It has humbled us and made us appreciative of every opportunity we get to play in front of people. It has also given us a crash course in getting along with each other and taught us to always be prepared for the unexpected…Valuable lessons for any band.
Do you guys have any additional plans to tour anywhere outside of the United States?
We’ve been in talks with bands to do a mini west coast tour, maybe further down the line we might venture out of the states depending on if we hook up with the right booking agent.
Your EP, Allergy, was just recently released. It definitely sounds different than your previous work. How do you feel about the evolution of the sound of Harmful If Swallowed? Do you like the direction it’s going?
We’re so stoked about this EP! It has been a long time coming and by far our best sound to date. Allergy is the next step in our musical evolution!
You guys recorded Allergy with the help of Sunset Lodge Recording’s owner Chris Rakestraw and Grammy-winning producer Matt Hyde. How was that?
It was an amazing experience working with Chris and Matt. To be around that level of talent and workmanship was awe inspiring. We learned a lot from them. We had a lot of help from others in the music industry as well. Carlos’ old high school friend Oliver Charles, drummer for Gogol Bordello, lent our drummer Josh, some of his drum equipment, which upped our game immensely. Mr. Tio Banks, keyboardist from Duran Duran stopped in during our recording to lay down some sweet synth tracks!
Any favorite tracks on the EP, or just in your discography in general?
Each member has their favorite song or songs but over all we feel that our strongest songs are Sabrina, Allergy and Hateful.
What hobbies do you guys have? Besides, of course, making kickass songs and rocking out in front of your fans.
Greg DJs in his spare time, Carlos is a professional fine artist, Brian is a graphic designer and Josh loves astronomy.
How is the music scene in LA? Where does it thrive and where is it lacking?
Like anything else, you have to put the work into it in order to enjoy the fruits of your labor. That being said, the music scene out here in LA seems to thrive when it happens organically and for the love of the music and not for the money.
Any cool stories to tell about anything you guys have went through in the past few years?
We are a fiercely DIY (Do It Yourself) band so laying the groundwork for bigger and better opportunities are what we strive for. The people in the music industry that we’ve met and the connections that we’ve made with them have been amazing! Watching doors open via our own hard work is the best feeling ever!
Great! Last question. Favorite ice cream flavor?
That’s a tough one, it teeters between plain vanilla and Rocky Road!
Thanks to Harmful If Swallowed for the interview! You can purchase a digital copy of Allergy via iTunes or Amazon.
Listen: Pyramid Zen – “The Satwa Tape”
The band has just released their debut mixtape titled The Satwa Tape, which features Goth Money Record’s Black Kray and LVX, and Metro Zu’s Lofty 305. Grab a free download of their album on their Bandcamp or stream it below!
Listen: Ray Toro – “Isn’t That Something”
Watch: Sleeping With Sirens – “Alone”
Stream: Nations Afire – “Pick Up the Pieces”
“Pick Up The Pieces is a song written about the domestic violence in our communities, in our neighborhood, in our homes,” says Nik Hill in Artist Direct’s press release. “It is an isolating experience and the lyrics are meant to empower and shine a light on this issue, to prove that we cannot be broken by these things, by our pasts and more importantly to say something now, help each other get out of these violent surroundings. Turning victims into heroes, and giving voices to those too afraid to speak up.”
The album is scheduled for release on July 2nd via the Hermosa Beach indie label Hardline Entertainment and is available for pre-order here. Pre-ordering the album enrolls you in a special raffle event, hosted by the band, in which one lucky winner will receive a custom Nations Afire guitar in their “Pre-Sale Contest.” Be sure not to miss I Am An Army, Nine Lives, and the title track The Ghosts We Will Become, three songs previously released that are also part of their impending full-length. Also be sure subscribe to their Twitter, Instagram, Myspace, and Youtube channel!
Review: In Fear and Faith – “Self-Titled”
In Fear and Faith – Self-Titled
Released: 16th October 2012
Label: Rise Records
Purchase: CD | Digital
In Fear and Faith’s self-titled album is the first full-length to surface from the band since Imperial in summer of 2010. In between, In Fear and Faith released a symphony-based EP, Symphonies, utilizing a combination of woodwinds, brass, choir, and screaming, among other devices, to create a unique sound. In Fear and Faith is a return to the band’s true roots as metalcore, though it retains many of their distinctive elements they have picked up, as well as introducing new ones.
Like In Fear and Faith’s other albums, the lyrics of the self-titled album revolve around a single theme: mankind’s self-created apocalypse. The intro number opens with sounds of gunfire and helicopters, setting the mien of the entire album, which takes place after the world has been destroyed. The lyrics as a whole leave something to be desired, feeling a little weak in originality and employing several cliché phrases such as “I can’t last without the ones that left me/I regret the times I couldn’t see” in Last Man Stranded and “If I fall asleep, please don’t let me dream/I keep on wishing that I’ll forget those awful things I’ve seen” in Dream Catcher. However, there still are several standalone notable lines that will leave strong, positive impressions on the listener (“I’m just a sliver of the system that feeds on broken men;” “Now my lungs are filled with a creeping dose of bitter disgust for the world I used to trust”), although these pop up less often. The interesting personification of Earth in You Had Your Chance is also refreshing and a good attempt to separate the band’s lyrics from that of others in the metalcore genre.
Musically, In Fear and Faith is exceptional. Singer Scott Barnes displays an incredibly powerful voice that feels more confident than that in the songs of the band’s previous albums. Furthermore, while the band continues to encompass their unique blend of symphonic elements (seen in the ending of Self Fulfilling Prophecy as well as other tracks), other pieces experiment with electronic sounds in auto-tune and melody. The metal and screaming are not lacking in the album either; in fact, Look What You Made Me Do is one of In Fear and Faith’s heaviest tracks, and the breakdowns in some of the songs, such as A Creeping Dose and A Silent Drum, are satisfying. The album’s eighth track, Enigmatic, is actually entirely piano (played by the band’s keyboardist, Ramin Niroomand, an expert in the self-proclaimed “pianocore”) and symphony, its eerie tunes somewhat reminiscent and yet contrasting to the band’s original sound.
Since the release of this album, In Fear and Faith has been relatively silent regarding new work. So, if you’re looking for a relatively idiosyncratic band in an otherwise invariable genre, be sure to check this album out and listen to a few of their interesting tracks. It is, holistically, a symbol of their incredible talent and growth as a band.
Standout Tracks: “Look What You Made Me Do”, “A Creeping Dose”, “Self Fulfilling Prophecy”, “The Calm Before Reform”
8.0
Track listing:
1. Intro
2. The Calm Before Reform [ft. Dave Stephens of We Came As Romans]
3. A Silent Drum
4. Look What You Made Me Do
5. Soul Survivor
6. A Creeping Dose
7. It All Comes Out (On The Way Down)
8. Enigmatic
9. Dream Catcher
10. You Had Your Chance
11. Last Man Stranded
12. Self Fulfilling Prophecy
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