Review: We’re All Broken “Campaign Moving Slow” CD

Here's some fairly good emo/post-hardcore with a blend of heavy and rhythmic influences as well as ringing melodic chords, clean passages, slightly noisier textures, a few subtly metallic runs, a little bit of flat out rock, and of course vocals that shift from singing to screaming (with a major emphasis on singing, thankfully). Something about the singing style takes some getting used to, I don't really know what it is... it's not whiny in the least, and it's got a good level of energy to it, but it still took me a good five to 10 minutes to decide that I can live with the vocals. There's room for improvement, but the constant shifts between riffs and vocal patterns in the awesome "Ambrosia" certainly helps win me over. Despite a few faster picking patterns where the guitar chords become more textural than anything, this is a definitely a band that never abandons melody, and that works in their favor. But don't expect the poppy, ultra catchy kind of thing, because while there are definitely memorable bright spots, there are also significantly darker tracks like "Long Pause/Short Pause" that pull along at a slower pace using more emotive vocals and instrumentation (a few acoustic guitars and subtle drones towards the end, for instance). And "The Red Carpet Welcome" is a really odd track that mixes some excellent panned acoustic riffs with percussion effects that seem to blend live and programmed drumming, coming off as surprisingly complex in its own right. Which brings to mind the point that there's actually a ton of layered interaction between instruments here, which is certainly one of the band's strengths. There are definitely a few weak spots, more so a little bland than anything, and that contributes to a bit of an issue with the running time hitting 50 minutes, as there are a couple of songs that could stand to be dropped to make the record quicker and more focused (or, if not dropped, shortened - a few pass five minutes and certainly need not). And at times certain songs like "Vomit on the Boardwalk" wander too much, hitting on some great moments but boiling down to being somewhat irritating. The recording is good, though. It needs a little work, and the band would experience some added power were the edges polished up, but this sounds quite alright. The tones are thick and heavy, which I often find to be quite beneficial to melodic bands of this nature, and the mix is pretty clear as well. I think that some of the low-end in the mix needs brightening up, and the vocals could use a more balanced recording to allow them to slide into the music better, but aside from minimal touchups I think they're on the right track. The bass presence is definitely solid, and the guitar tones are totally cool as well. The layout on this one's great. The cover art doesn't hint at it all that much, though the painting is pretty interesting, but inside things get a bit darker and busier, with lots of dirty typewriter text effects, collaged imagery, manipulated photos and paintings that have strange textures, etc. I think it would've been wise to carry the full effects of that treatment out onto the covers and the text for the tracklist, as that would make things look even stronger and more engaging. The lyrics are strangely abstract so at times you get the idea that they're about relationships or other such explorations, but nothing's ever all that direct or concrete, and the unusual approach pays off as a result. I'm fighting over my final call for this one. At its best this is a great disc with a lot of memorable facets and creative writing tactics that make for an interesting listen. And then at the same time, while never bad, there's an unfortunate prevalence of mildly boring compositional fare as well. And I'm not sure which of the two overtakes... A part of me wants to give it a 7/10, but I don't think I can quite muster it. Damn, damn close... but not quite there. I look forward to hearing more from this band, though. Definitely. The first two songs are totally killer, if they can maintain that level they'll be all set.