Reviews

Concert Review: Fireflight, Abandon, Seven Layer Soul Review by: Tyler Hess For more pictures, go here. Upon learning that my fiancé had scored us free tickets to this show, I was pretty stoked. Not because I am the biggest fan in the world, or even that I originally thought it was with Abandon Kansas, but because I love going to shows and I love not paying for stuff when I don’t have to. What I wasn’t completely stoked about was another concert at a church.… Continued →

Artist: Farewell Flight Album: Sound. Color. Motion. Label: Released Independently (but paid for by Mono Vs Stereo before they “folded”) Release Date: August 19, 2008 Reviewer: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Lullabye for Insomniacs 2. Widower 3. Over 4. Indianapolis 5. Phones 6. Sailors Mouth 7. Begin Again 8. America 9. Cruel 10. The Usual Vernacular 11. Slow A soft, clear tenor wades over rolling acoustic guitars as “Lullabye for Insomniacs” begins. As the tempo picks up, so do the complexity of the instrumentation and the details of the lyrics, which relate the depression and bleakness found in looking to alcohol as a way to cope with relationship problems and loneliness.… Continued →

Band: Becoming the Archetype Album: Dichotomy Label: Solid State Records Review by: Stephen M To begin, I would like to note that I do not claim to be an objective, professional music critic or anything of that sort. I am one who enjoys listening to music. Any reviews by me are merely my opinion on an album and are not intended to be taken as the product of a well-educated aficionado. I apologize for any out-of-hand generalizations or music prejudices. Any criticism and comments are welcome (and much needed).… Continued →

Artist: Army Of Me Album: Citizen Label: Doghouse America Release Date: April 7, 2007 Reviewer: Scott L Tracklist: 1. Perfect 2. Going Through Changes 3. Rise 4. Meet You At The Mouth 5. Still Believe In You 6. Thinking It Over 7. Better Run 8. How Long 9. Walking On 10. 2 Into 1 11. Saved Your Life 12. Back To Business I realize that this review is a little late out of the gate… but you gotta know about these guys. You just gotta. Right from the get-go you know that this Washington, D.C.… Continued →

Artist: Before Their Eyes Album: The Dawn of My Death Label: Rise Records Release Date: October 28, 2008 Reviewer: Scott L Tracklist: 1. Life Was All A Dream 2. Because 7 Ate 9 3. The Beast Within 4. So In Love 5. The Things We Stood Against 6. Dawn Of My Death 7. The Way We Operate 8. Their Throats Are Open Graves 9. New Kids In Town 10. The Me I Used To Be This was an album that I was looking forward to. I had stumbled across Before Their Eyes’ self-titled debut online but while it was good enough to draw me back periodically to listen to samples, it just didn’t have what was needed for me to actually throw down some cash for it.… Continued →

Artist: Jesse Sprinkle – Album: Surrounded By Lights Label: Blind Records Reviewed by: Tyler Hess I’m an idiot. You all knew this, but sometimes I forget, because I’m an idiot. I also forgot that I promised to tell you all about someone you probably kind of sort of know about anyway, one way or another, even if you didn’t know it. His resume is legit. Spending years behind the drum kits of bands like Poor Old Lu, Dead Poetic and Demon Hunter, Jesse Sprinkle has also now come out with a couple solo records, the latest being “Surrounded By Lights”.… Continued →

Artist: Berea Album: Empty Vessels (ep) Label: None Reviewer: Tyler Hess With a name like Berea (which one can only assume was taken from the Bereans mentioned in Acts, known for being faithful to checking Paul and Silas’ message against Scripture to make sure the gospel was true) and lyrics that make the writer sound like he’d just been through a semester or two at a seminary or Bible college (I’ve been there, this is from experience, not a knock or a diss), you’d expect maybe some Contemporary Christian Music or some nice acoustic congregational worship music.… Continued →

Band: Wrench In The Works Title: Lost Art Of Heaping Coal Label: Facedown Release Date: 08/19/08 Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Dust Over Time Test 02. Tonight Is War 03. Our Time 04. Brokenness 05. One Foot Out Of Hell 06. Pale Fire 07. Death Letter 08. Loaded Gun 09. Faith As A Virus 10. Lost Art Of Heaping Coal I first brought this band to your attention back in March ’06 and then reviewed their last album “Prodigal Transmission” in August ’06. The album got a fair rating but definitely had plenty of room for improvements.… Continued →

Band: The Rekoning Title: The Road Less Traveled Label: Strike First Release Date: 01/06/09 Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Intro 02. I Believe 03. Road Less Traveled 04. Take Me Away 05. Necessary Violence 06. Paved With Gold 07. Lifetime Away 08. Say What You Will 09. Home Again 10. Anchor 11. Prison Break 12. Constituents 13. Sheep’s Clothing 14. Ain’t Seen Nothing The Rekoning seemingly came out of nowhere to sign with Strike First. I would bet most people were unfamiliar with this 3 piece from Riverside, CA.… Continued →

Artist: Secret & Whisper Album: The Great White Whale Label: Tooth & Nail Records Buy It: Amazon/Amazon MP3 Reviewer: The Headless Horseman 1. Blonde Monster 2. You Are Familiar 3. Vanishings 4. XOXOXO 5. The Actress 6. Spider Besider 7. Looming Moon 8. Attacker 9. Anchors 10. Werewolves 11. Lovers 12. Great White Whale There once was a band. They managed to put out a first release (an admirable feat in its own right). They got some notice, turned some heads, and started to gain some momentum.… Continued →

Artist: Erika Soto Album: Wonderfully Made Label: None (released independently) Release Date: April 2, 2008 Reviewer: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Wonderfully 2. Streetlights & Roads 3. 1,000 Goodbyes 4. Sustained 5. Home 6. Worth If anyone from Sparrow Records (maybe even those working on SixStepRecords) reads this site, pay close attention to Erika Soto, as she could easily be your next worthwhile signee. Big words, I know, but I stand by them. Now let me tell you why. Because this Californian indie-folk singer-songwriter was able to work with low-budget production and still create lush soundscapes that smoothly blend an acoustic guitar base with layered strings of sweeping electric guitar riffs.… Continued →

Band: xDeathstarx Title: The Triumph Label: Facedown Release Date: 11/25/08 Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. Seven 02. Represent 03. Scars 04. Die To Remain 05. True Believer 06. Bullet 07. Suffocate Faster 08. Walk Away 09. The Triumph 10. Red Asphalt I have to start this off by saying xDeathstarx’s 2007 debut on Facedown, titled “We Are The Threat“, has been one of my favorite discs from the label in recent years. It’s been played on a regular basis since I received the disc.… Continued →

Band: Hope For The Dying Title: Hope For The Dying Label: Strike First Release Date: 11/25/08 Review By: JoshIVM Tracklisting: 01. City Of Corpses 02. A Beautiful Day For Vengeance 03. Into Darkness We Ride 04. Our Fallen Comrades 05. Where We Are Going We Don’t Need Roads 06. Would The Angels Say 07. In Loving Memory When I heard that the folks at Facedown were finally reviving the dormant Strike First Records I was excited to see what new talent they would pick up. The initial announcements were all familiar names and most of them positive for me.… Continued →

Artist: Yours for Mine Album: Dear Children Label: Blood & Ink Records Release Date: January 13, 2009 Reviewer: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. We Need You Here 2. Absence Is Elegance 3. My Tomorrow 4. The Angry End 5. Native Tongue 6. What Happened to Us? 7. Bling Crosby 8. Dear Children 9. Call Me Distant 10. The Instrumental Every time I hear that gurgly scream, I picture Jimbo, the tallest of the three school bullies on The Simpsons. With this in mind, seeing him screaming the words into a microphone, it makes listening to Yours for Mine different than other melodic metalcore bands.… Continued →

Artist: The Apprentice Album: The Apprentice Label: Future Destination Records Release Date: August 15, 2008 Reviewer: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Lessons in Letting Your Guard Down 2. Riverside 3. Disease 4. Gray Day in Louisville 5. Tracks 6. This Road 7. Lullaby 8. In the City 9. Adeline 10. Love Deferred This self-titled album, the forth release from The Apprentice on Future Destination Records, contains many things I expected and many things I didn’t. Most of the songs, such as “Disease,” are built on the mellow coffeeshop singer/songwriter sound that has been the constant foundation from The Apprentice from its beginning.… Continued →

Normally when you see a charging rhino, you wanna get out of the way. In the case of our blue and purple friend on the cover of this album, however, you will want to keep a safe but interested distance. Or at least I will. Fans of Eleventyseven, Cute Is What We Aim For, and Relient K will rush in close and give that rhino a hug, embracing the catchy pop-punk sound of Philmont, but for now it’s something I will admire from afar. Once my favorite genre, I lost interested when Hawk Nelson became the poster-boy, a band that started out without a lot of skill and later on just became boring.… Continued →

While this label’s name might not have made much sense at certain points over the past 20 years of Forefront Records existence, Abandon is the type of band that helps this company truly be at the forefront of today’s music. Long time readers of IVM know that I have a big problem with the majority of CCM out there, calling it boring, generic, behind-the-times, cheesy, too safe, narrowly-focused, etc. I’ve torn apart Building 429, had little to say about the mediocrity of Mainstay and Everyday Sunday, and been disappointed by even the great David Crowder Band, one of the most innovative worship artists of our day.… Continued →

Artist: My Epic Album: I Am Undone Label: Dreamt Music (Facedown Records imprint) Release Date: August 5, 2008 Reviewer: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. Prologue 2. The Oil Press 3. Lest We Die 4. The Lover and the Thief 5. Perelandra 6. You Know We All Love You 7. Our Little Girl 8. Men in Little Houses 9. Communion 10. You Became I 11. – 12. It’s at Times like This I Realize That Survival Is Not Enough. When I first started writing for Indie Vision Music, I loved a lot of crappy bands because they were all I knew.… Continued →

Tracklist: 1. Sweet Love 2. Esther 3. Still Beauty to Be Found 4. How Great Is Your Love 5. Free the Light When I heard I would be reviewing this EP, I was excited. I remembered liking their first album, Lamps, and an acoustic EP is almost always a good time. But then I realized that I hadn’t listened to their debut since I had reviewed it back in March. I had to look at my old files to see that I had given it a 7/10.… Continued →

Artist: Goodnight Caulfield Album: The Masquerade Label: None (released independently) Release Date: January 3, 2009 Review by: Eric Pettersson Tracklist: 1. All You’ve Got 2. C.S. Why 3. The Prowl 4. Blue Room 5. The Departure 6. Goin’ Nowhere Fast 7. You Don’t Love Me Anyone 8. Hearts 9. Far from Fiction 10. Angels in Disguise 11. Without a Sound 12. Sleepwalk It’s been a number of years now since the fall of emo. The music itself still exists under its new name, indie-rock, but the old word has become something to be avoided.… Continued →

Artist: Goodnight Caulfield Album: The Masquerade Reviewer: Tyler Hess This album reminds me of why we’re in the business. As much as I love bands that everyone else and their mama know about that tour around the world and are loved by millions, there is always that local scene (which through the internet isn’t totally local) where indie bands perform in their area as they grow a local fan base and expand. Through sites like this we help bands like Goodnight Caulfield get the word out about their music and get them attention from labels and such (hopefully).… Continued →

Artist: Jars of Clay Album: Closer EP Label: Gray Matters Buy It: eMusic or Amazon MP3 Reviewer: The Headless Horseman 1. Closer 2. Safe to Land 3. Love Song For A Savior (2008) 4. Flood (New Rain) 5. Prisoner of Hope “Thank you so much. You’re ready for the angry rock ‘n roll of Jars of Clay.” – Kevin Max I was lucky enough to see Jars of Clay live this summer. It was a great performance, with highlights like “Work,” “Frail,” “God Will Lift Up Your Head” and “Crazy Times.”… Continued →

Artist: Jerome Madigan Album: Instructions for Deconstruction Reviewer: Tyler Hess A few years ago a funny thing happened: ska died.  I know, I know, some of you loved ska, its okay for you to be wrong, that really isn’t what I’m getting at here.  When ska disappeared from the scene, ska band members still had their instruments and still wanted to make music that people appreciated.  Some went on to other ventures, like how some OC Supertones went onto help form Demon Hunter, Five Iron Frenzy’s end led to Brave Saint Saturn and now apparently the former vocalist for indie ska band Nifty Tom Fifty has gone up to Nor Cal, become a worship pastor and come out with an appetizing worship album.… Continued →

Artist: Fellow Album: Fellow EP Reviewer: Tyler Hess Sometimes what you expect to happen is the very cause of the opposite action to occur.  In related news, I enjoy both making up my very own proverbs and listening to the same CD over and over again until I can actually find something more than the obvious in a band, at least when I have the time and opportunity.  At first glance, Fellow, an alternative rock band out of Visalia, California has incredibly similar vocals to Flyleaf (minus any kind of screaming), but with a different approach. … Continued →

Artist: Blood and Water Album: self-titled Reviewer: Tyler Hess It is always interesting when two seemingly drastically different genres of music are meshed together to form one harmonious piece of art.  It would be like watching a movie that mixes comedy, horror and romance all into one film experience.  Oh wait, they did that in the “Evil Dead Trilogy”.  That was an epic series of films.  I also have completely distracted you from my point.  Blood and Water have famously (not yet, they should be soon though, if I have my way) grafted in their reggae leanings with their pop punk stylings and morphed them into twelve songs of awesome.… Continued →

Artist: See You Soon Album: Don’t Give Up EP Buy It: Smartpunk or Amazon MP3 Review by the Headless Horseman. 1. Lights 2. Run Run Girl 3. Never Be The Same 4. Don’t Give Up 5. Fall In Love 6. Perfect 7. If You Want To There are two kinds of musicians: those who are like Flight of the Conchords, and those who aren’t. Explaining the meaning of this will be difficult, so allow me to illustrate. Rise Against are not like Flight of the Conchords.… Continued →

Artist: The Atlantic Manor Album: On The Wrong Side Of A Saturday Night Label: Do Too Records Reviewer: Tyler Hess Eight. Think about that number. This is the eighth record in eight years for this indie folk country artist that is probably most comparable to Neil Young, yet still hard to define into one simple genre. That is determination and consistency for any band, but especially for one that will probably never have much of an audience. This is definitely one of those things like Mountain Dew, you just have to have a taste for it or you’ll probably hate it.… Continued →

Artist: Backdrop Album: What’s Next? Released: Spring 2008 Reviewer: Tyler Hess Well look at what we have here, another band from Iowa, this time from Iowa City, as Backdrop comes full speed ahead with their alternative rock that they recorded and produced by themselves at home. That is about as indie as you get, so that alone pretty much makes them a good fit around these parts, at least, that is, if they are any good. Taking a simpler approach to music compared to a lot of the bands out there these days that break out with a hundred layers on every song and synthesizers that can get a bit overused, Backdrop’s “What’s Next” is a 3 piece band with catchy hooks matched up with nasally vocals and generally forgettable but workable guitar work and unnoticeable drums.… Continued →

Artist: You The Symphony Album: From Air To Arms Reviewer: Tyler Hess Never have I read so much about one band and understood so little about what they (or their management) are trying to say about themselves as I now have about You The Symphony. Yet, that takes absolutely nothing away from the enjoyable six track piece of rock music that they have provided on their “From Air to Arms” EP. What surprises me the most is their ability to have a cohesive sound on the record, yet I never feel like I’m listening to the same sound twice.… Continued →

Artist: The Almost Album: No Gift To Bring Label: Tooth and Nail Released: 11/24/2008 Reviewer: Tyler Hess I give up. You win, Aaron Gillespie. You can do anything you want to. The Almost, the brainchild of the backbone of the heart-pounding body that is Underoath has brought us yet another project to sink our teeth into, this time a mere appetizer of an acoustic EP displaying a new song, a Christmas song, a hymn and two new versions of old songs. No, this probably isn’t going to display the new direction that the almost will take whenever they come out with another full length later next year.… Continued →