I remember when I first heard this band I was sort of let down because in my opinion there's no excuse to call your band Desperate Measures unless you're gonna sound like the Leeway record of the same name (sue me, I love metal), and these cats play straight up old school hardcore instead. But fuck it, they're good, so I can deal with it. You know the drill, straight shouting vocals, moderately fast chord progressions with some slower breakdowns (but no metal here, boys and girls), a few scarce hints of melody, and so on. It's a little redundant, which is fine, my only problem is that few of the songs are all that memorable. Only a handful of the tracks top two minutes, but somehow I'm still left feeling like it needs more. "Moving On" is definitely a keeper thanks to a distinct breakdown, and closer "More Than Ever" definitely sticks with you, but beyond that there's not enough variety or force to grab my attention that often. The production is also a little raw, there's room for improvement. It's not that bad, but they need more tonality in there. The bass has its own space here and there, but not consistently, and everything feels like there's a lot of midrange, and despite not being muddy, it's not clear enough either. There's actually a lot of audible pick noise during some of the guitar parts, which is sort of rare. It just needs more of a punch. The layout's chock full of live photos complete with typical hardcore action, looking not at all unlike an early Youth of Today record in many cases. Lyrically this is pretty standard hardcore fare as well, dealing with taking control and making it through rough times, a few sort of "stabbed in the back" types of things... you know the drill. The lyrics aren't bad, though. The content's a little longer than average for this style and I've definitely seen worse. I definitely like this band and look forward to hearing more from them in the future, but this particular record doesn't hit me that hard. Diehard fans of this style of hardcore should appreciate this more than I, though.
[Youngblood]
Running time - 17:54, Tracks: 10
[Notable tracks: Never Enough Time, Moving On, More Than Ever]
Youngblood Records - http://www.youngblood-records.com
