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Artist: As Cities Burn
Album: Hell or High Water
Label: Tooth & Nail Records
Release Date: April 21, 2009
Review by: Michael Mayer III
Tracklisting:
- ‘84 Sheepdog
- Errand Rum
- Into the Sea
- Made Too Pretty
- Lady Blue
- Petty
- Daughter
- Pirate Blues
- Capo
Hell or High Water was probably the most hyped release of the first half of 2009 next to mewithoutYou’s new album. Both bands are hailed for their ability to experiment and push themselves lyrically and musically to new heights. The change from Son, I Loved You at Your Darkest to Come Now Sleep was so drastic it left a lot of people in a state of shock until they could grasp what they were hearing. Now that we have As Cities Burn’s third release, and possibly last, I can say this much: It’s not quite as powerful or of as high of quality as Come Now Sleep, which to me is a classic album near the top of my imaginary ‘all-time’ list.
The change from it’s predecessor isn’t the grand canyon as it was before but there is a difference. All of the atmospheric qualities and blues riffs that drifted into jams that were on Come Now Sleep are gone. The songs have a straightforward rock vibe with the occasional gang vocals and clapping sessions (even edited to sound glitchy in ‘Lady Blue’ for a cool effect) to progress the songs. It also needs to be said that Cody’s vocals have matured greatly. Sometimes you get so caught up in the music you don’t realize just how strong his voice is and how well he gets his emotions across to the listener.
The lyrics are also more cryptic than ever. I felt Come Now Sleep was more in your face but it seems that these on Hell or High Water require a bit more work to find a meaning and I bet if you asked ten different people you’d get ten different responses. And while there seems to be a nautical theme across a few of the songs you can’t say it’s a running concept for the whole album. Just like a few songs seem to speak of the impact of a person’s upbringing and our decisions (‘84 Sheepdog’, ‘Errand Rum’, ‘Lady Blue’).
The album really picks up steam midway through and doesn’t let up. I particularly love the schizophrenic nature of ‘Lady Blue’, where it changes pace about three or four different times and always for the better. And there are some great guitar riffs, like in ‘Petty’, that carry the song and brings back memories of their sophomore release. ‘Capo’ is a solid but interesting choice for a closer too. I’ll admit it took some getting used to since it’s unlike anything else on the album. It sounds… happy… and I like it! With the ooh, ooh’s, the interesting keyboard texture and fun chorus it has a 70’s feel to it that I can’t get out of my head.
Overall: I don’t include the bonus track ‘Gates’ in with this album since it wasn’t officially released as such. That’s a shame because it would actually have been the perfect closer and probably the best track. As it is, Hell or High Water feels a bit short and unfinished with only 9 tracks and none reaching the epic quality of ‘Timothy’ or ‘Contact’ (‘Pirate Blues’ gets close). I just favor the more blues-y nature where you didn’t know what would come next in the song or the album. Still, there’s some gems here that will likely get stuck in your head and the album is a must own piece of art. You will be challenged and you will be better off for it.
Gems of this album are: ‘Lady Blue’, ‘Petty’, ‘Daughter’, ‘Pirate Blues’
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| 03/19/2010 02:36 pm | News
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Good take on the album. I’m just confused at your rating. Mostly the review sounded like you didn’t like the album, then I saw your rating and was blown away. Just some creative criticisms.
I’m not a huge fan of the CD. But I will own it (mostly cuz it was Free for me) and enjoy it. I also have their discography, so I need to complete the collection. I just found that they are getting worse. But the creative aspect of the CD is appreciated. I also agree that this will be their last disc.
Good stuff.
I’m a little confused. You really didn’t say anything good about the album other than the fact the Cody’s voice has matured but you still gave it a 9/10
All three paragraphs (not including your intro paragraph) outlined the albums flaws.
Hmm, methinks a paragraph got lost in translation. I will have to find it and edit this. I think I was only negative when I talked about the lack of blues and atmosphere. I was positive with the lyrics and the vocals though. That missing paragraph is the killer.
Edit: I think I deleted the paragraph on accident but I got it back in there. Our rating description for a ‘9′ is ‘Must Buy’ and I think you can get that vibe from my review.
I will have to give it another couple listens, but after the first listen, the lyrics for most of the songs seemed rather repetitive.
don’t be confused, guys, MM3’s reviews go on a scale of 9.0-10.0 so this must be the worst album of the year :) haha jk
@luke, how do you get all the T&N stuff for free…
and I think this album is lazy. It is good because even at lazy these guys are pretty good, but its not going to make my endof year list
As I listen I do find myself a little let down… mostly because my hopes were SO high. ACB is probably my favorite band so after Come Now Sleep I had HIGH HOPES. Into the Sea is definitely my favorite track with Gates coming in at a close second.
Haha Tyler, now that we have a strict rating system that’s not the case anymore. Case in point, my favorite Christian band just got an 8 in my other review. :P
Kyle, exactly how I feel. Come Now Sleep was just so epic and awesome that this pales in comparison. If anyone else made this as a first CD it’d probably be more impressive. That just speaks volumes for ACB and CNS.
Hey Ian (One21 Music)–We are on T&N’s email list to receive free streams/downloads of their albums before release date.
Umm, are you sure you’re listening to the same album as the rest of us? I agree that a lot of the atmosphere found on “Come Now Sleep” is lacking on “Hell or High Water” but this album has WAY more “blues” than CNS. Listen to the chord progressions, listen to the guitar tone choice, listen to the dynamics, etc. It’s all very bluesy! When I listen to CNS the last thing I think of is the blues.
I think I read somewhere (it might’ve been here on IVM actually) that “Lady Blue” was actually meant to be 2 separate songs: “Lady Blue” and a song called “Round & Round.” This might explain the “schizophrenic” nature of which you speak.
Believe it or not – I actually can’t stand “Gates” and I’m glad that they didn’t include it on the actual physical release. The reason being is I feel that “Gates” is a poor representation of what As Cities Burn is NOW and that it portrays an entirely different band (ACB a la SILYAYD era). Does anyone else feel that T&N included “Gates” on the digital releases as a way to tide over the SILYAYD/CNS fanboy(s)? I certainly do and we all know that T&N tends to do things of this nature from time to time to bands that we love & respect. Remember when they forced the track “All of Me” onto Eager Sea’s/Watashi Wa’s – People Like People LP?
Yeah… me too.
I totally forgot to add this into my rant but here goes:
ALBUM OF THE YEAR.
I hear some of the blues elements on this CD but it’s not all over the place like it was on Come Now Sleep. I kinda figured ‘Lady Blue’ might’ve been meant as 2 different songs at one point with all the tracklist confusion but the way they have it is definitely the best way.
an 8, MM3? that is like a negative 10 for you! hahaha :)
i dont think the t/n guys are sending me stuff anymore, neither of the guys responded to my last request for download/streams :( lame sauce.
@Brandon, yea still working on the same treatment from Facedown, cant seem to catch Shannon..
Don’t take this wrong way – I’d love to know what “blues” elements you’re talking about on CNS because I just don’t hear it.
i think he means this, sean…
http://www.kkinteractive.com/webvideo/Blueslogo.jpg
@Tyler
Ahhhh…! The “light” just came on.
@MM3 (as Tyler so affectionately likes to call you)
Would you happen to be a musician of some sort?
@Ian. Ya man I’m on the same thing Brandon is. I guess we’re fortunate. Just don’t ask me to give anything out, that = trouble.
even with the revised review and the extra paragraph I just dont see how the review and the 9/10 rating go hand in hand.
I guess i’m just being picky. I love this CD… not as much as their previous releases but I still really like it. with that said I don’t think it’s fair to give this album a 9 out of 10
I guess ACB just can’t please everyone. I for one LOVE the new album!(and this is coming from a CNS fanboy) I definitely miss the CNS sound….but it just seemed logical that this was what they would turn into and the best thing is that ACB is not trying to please anybody. they’re just being true to themselves!
Jordan: That’s because despite the flaws of the album I still really love the album and think it’s a ‘Must Buy’ and one that should be in everyone’s collection. I just don’t think it’s the masterpiece that other people do.
Sean: You can’t tell me you don’t hear the blues elements in ‘Contact’ or the end of ‘Timothy’. I just love that atmospheric and laid back sound they having going on in that album that leads to some sweet jams at the end of the songs.
I wasnt imprest by this new cd and i dont like the new direction of the band eitha. On a related note, chek out a combo deal im selin, lol:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=140317342865
you said you favor the blues-y nature, but i think what you’re tasting is the jam-like flow of their past stuff. a lot of blues progressions and rhythms are set, you know what comes next and it’s rather predictable. the only blues on CNS was in the guitars, and both guitarists have a knack for playing in that way–especially cody, his songwriting straightforward rock’n'roll/bluesish style is extremely present on this new album. i love the change in style because i really feel that it’s what cody has wanted to do all along. they made the album they wanted to regardless of the past, and some people refuse to/simply cannot accept that.
as an example of the blues hints in CNS progressing towards this album, i’ll admit i shouted “YES!” when i heard the first few notes of petty. so good. probably my favorite track as of now.
I think so too Caleb. It’s the jamming and loose nature of CNS that I miss and loved the most. I’m all for artists changing of course but that doesn’t always mean I like the change over a previous style. For that reason I’ll always love Hell or High Water but it will never touch Come Now Sleep. But hey, as long as they are creating something they enjoy playing that’s all that matters for them.
I can’t believe nobody has mentioned Made Too Pretty yet, it’s easily the best song on this album, at least lyrically.
I don’t think there is a song on this album I don’t like. My least favorite is probably Daughter simply because it’s not really very memorable. I like a couple of the lines (She has a name But I don’t have to know Cause all I’m after Is all she has to show. and some others) but overall it just didn’t stick with me. Petty is really growing on me a lot, especially when Cody sings “if all the world’s a stage than it’s not mine”
This is definitely my favorite album of the year so far
Best album I’ve purchased this year. Closely followed by the new Manchester Orchestra record. Unfortunately they are the only two CDs I’ve bought so far this year though!!
@Caleb – thanks for the explaining what I seem to fail at communicating over the intrawebz.
CNS =’s Jam-like elements
HoHH2O =’s Bluesy
ACB has in a variety of interviews stated that Cody & Chris love the lazy dissonant solos of Neil Young & The Beatles (also apparent in their choice of covering “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” live.
“HoHH2O”
wow, that’s a winner…
house of heroes are selling water?
i’m really glad Sean got everything straight about the blues, thank goodness. If you picked up the new HM there is a (very, very) tiny interview/article of As Cities in there where Cody says that:
“I was tired of writing songs that had so many parts and changes. I just like listening to music that has a groove and makes you bob your head. And I wanted to play guitar less.”
and he also commented on the ‘ultimate hopes’ for ACB:
“The dreams is to never break up, eventually start to suck more and more, and fade away.”
and that, my friends, is just an awesome thing to say.
That’s last part is interesting and kind of funny since a lot of bands do that, haha. I wonder if we will ever get any official word on what their status is.
Hell or High Water let me down at first… but the more I jam it.. the more I realize this is like Orcarina of Time.. and then it’s next realease, Majoras Mask. It really had to grow on me.. but you really do begin to appreciate BOTH albums for what they are (haha just like OOT and MM, which are Zelda titles btw for those who are lost right now).
I’m so glad that I can put CNS or HoHW in my cd player and go, “hmm…both good albums.. which am I in the mood for?” Because they will give you completely different feels..
At first listen I was drawn to, “Into The Sea” because the guitar progression and drums are fond memories of CNS.. very similar. Because of this though, this song almost seems out of place on this album.
My Hell or High Water favorites -so far- are, “Lady Blue” and “Petty”… but all ACB fans know.. our favorite songs from them change as we keep listening. There is something to appreciate in each song, something unique. And I love Tyler Orr (http://www.myspace.com/firststreetstudiomusic) because he did a beautiful job in producing them to help bring this out. Anyway, Those are my favorites about after 15-20 listens through.. its funny though, track 9 “Capo”, haha that one gets stuck in your head too.
More blues on High or High Water? You better believe it.. Sean’s first review above impressed me. I agree almost completely with his assessment. It’s very awesome to hear what other people have to think.. thanks to everyone for sharing. Hopefully the band will still be around to make another album…
Also I forgot to add this… I noticed a small possible connection between “Daughter” and “Petty”. Cody uses the word.. “Overgrown” almost like its a person in the song Petty.. “Your gonna shed your pride, Overgrown.” And then in the song Daughter he uses the same word “Overgrown” when he says,
“Oooh we don’t
Nooh we don’t
we don’t know how we got here,
the way is overgrown.”
I guess if this was the case.. Overgrown would probably not be a person but maybe he is referencing the same thing? I just can’t see someone using a word like that in two different songs unintentionally. It’s not exactly an extremely common word..
What do all of you think? Don’t just read the lyrics.. listen to the songs while reading the lyrics and you might get the same feel. Maybe? Maybe not.. haha idk. I’m interested in others opinions.
I think that the record as a whole may be a concept album, particularly the 2 tracks you mentioned, but also how the record tends to bring up the theme of water, and being “Thrown into the sea”. Basically, the album is about water baptism, which symbolizes beginning your new life in Christ, and the other consequence, hell. I really think this theme is important for many people today in our society to learn, even Christians.
As this is the first time I ever heard ACB, I’m just obsessed with this album. I went through and listened to the first two albums – they don’t even compare. They’re very mediocre.
This new one though – just unbelievable!
Just listen to “Made Too Pretty”! Gosh! Every song is a gem!
Please, Tim, you can love this record all you want and that’s fine for it is your opinion, but please don’t call “Come Now, Sleep” a mediocre album. As you said none of ACB’s album is the same and each one is a gem in it’s own genre and terms. I do love “Come Now, Sleep” much more than “Hell Or High Water” because i take more emotion from it, but that doesn’t make me say that Hell is mediocre.