Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

I write this post with a somewhat heavy heart...

It came to my attention, sometime ago, that one my all-time favorite bands launched their farewell tour and will be releasing a new album.  That band is Thrice.

Thrice at the House of Blues

Thrice started way back in the late 1990s as a kind of heavier punk style band.  Personally, I didn't catch on to them until they released Artist In The Ambulance, their 3rd album.  Since that point, I have watched as this band transformed themselves time and again from an aggressive "rip-your-face-off" style to a more theological/etherial style that I came to fall in love with.  Vheissu was that transformational album in my opinion.  It had the right blend of aggression and etherial-ness that has trademarked Thrice's more recent music. In honor of that, I have been listening to Vheissu a lot lately.

Enough nostalgia... as stated above, Thrice will be releasing their last album, Anthology, on October 30th. The farewell tour is already underway. Be sure to visit thrice.net for all the details on the shows and album info.

This is not the last we will hear from Dustin Kensrue, however, he is talking about plans to release a worship album.  This would follow his folk project that he released 2-3 years ago.  I can't wait to hear the result.

Also on the breakup list is Underoath.  They have decided to hang things up, and will be releasing more information on a final tour sometime this week.

*******NEW MUSIC*******

Now that I've depressed everyone with the news above, allow me to make up for it with a little taste of things to come. 

Return to Life Cover

War Of Ages has released a new album entitled, Return to Life. For those who may not know much about the band, I would check them out.  They aren't the hardest thing I've ever heard, but certainly not light on the metal scale.  They have a nice blend of rock/metal that serves as a bridge between something like RED and something like Impending Doom.  My personal opinion and probably only downfall to the album was the need for more of a bottom end.  There are moments in the tracks that a nice bass blast would take it to the next level... but I was left hanging.

Self-Titled Cover

What didn't leave me hanging was the new stuff from Texas in July.  They are currently streaming their new self-titled album.  You can check that out here.  I like what I hear when it comes to the quality of music and aggression.  My one critique would come with the sonic profile of the album as a whole.  After listening to the whole thing, the songs all start to sound the same until track 6 or 7.  I've heard of bands having a signature sound, but that's taking it a little too far guys. 

*******UPCOMING NEWS*******

Coming up in future posts, I have interviews with local bands in the Philly area, as well as new stuff from As I Lay Dying and...wait for it..... THE DEFTONES!!!!  Stay tuned...