Over two years ago I reviewed Elliott's last record and had the following to say: "This record is boring. Most of the songs are very quiet and subdued, and also too long. It seems like they're holding back with no final release, and creating a constant build with no reward. There are some perfect moments, but they either take too long to arrive or their stay is too brief." Sadly all of that still stands in regards to this album. As a huge fan of Falling Forward, I've always had high hopes for this band. But I've honestly never been able to get into them all that much. Every subsequent release seems to bore me more than the last, and none of it can hold a torch to Falling Forward. I know this is an entirely separate band that's trying to do entirely separate things... it just doesn't work for me. This time around they've gone through a few more lineup changes, and are experimenting even more with different sounds and instruments (bringing in guests on cello, viola, and violin in addition to working with some occasional keyboards) to create a laidback and smooth collection of songs that remind me more of a mix of U2 and Coldplay or something like that than anything you'd expect from Revelation Records... but the fact remains: This stuff is boring. Sure, it has some superb moments. And yeah, the recording is absolutely pristine. But in all seriousness, this record is a 50-minute snoozer. It's not that interesting, it's not all that emotionally moving (to me, I'm sure it is for the band members), and it drags on... especially the songs that run in excess of six or seven minutes. There are tons of clean guitars and lots of delay/sustained notes and things like that... it's really calm and low-key, and that's fine. I like stuff like that. But this... something about this is lacking. The layout is minimal but very nice. The artwork is all painted textures that perhaps represent crude cityscapes from afar or something, but the warm color palette is unusual. There's no text on the outside of the actual jewel case packaging, but the case has one of those slipsleeves around it with the same art, just showing the band name/album title and a tracklist. The cover of the booklet folds out to reveal more art, and then the lyrics appear in compact form on white pages in the center of the booklet. I'm not that big a fan of the lyrics just because they don't reach me at all: "Is your faith a bird in darkness? Broken glass. A moment's note. Flash of light strobes ages. End will lie?" I don't know what to say. I'm disappointed. I think this band is capable of far more. I always expect to like their records a lot more than I do, but they peaked with their debut. Just listen to "Safety Pin Explanation" from their first record and there you have it. That song is fucking brilliant and it's by far and wide the best song this band has ever written. I'd love to see them meet or exceed that level on a consistent basis, but... in my view it's not going to happen.
[Revelation]
Running time - 49:15, Tracks: 10
[Notable tracks: Land and Water, Bleed in Breathe Out]
Revelation Records - http://www.revelationrecords.com
