Search - Higher :: Histrionics

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pancake_repairman | gfjdhgfjhgj | 06/19/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is the band that should be getting the attention Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, and Hawthorne Heights and the like are being showered with. This is one of the very few modern commercial power-pop emo bands that display a sense of timeless songcraft that transcends the trendyness of their genre niche. With that said though, less than half of the album really does manage to rise above typical genre fodder, but in those moments when it does you know something special is happening. This is a band to watch for sure.



Diaries: It almost had me at first, but by the one minute point it was boring me. This is a dull rigidly commercial song without any distinctive hook, riff, melody, or chord progression. 6/10.

Histrionics: Awesome. The synth beats, harmonic guitar jangle, and undeniable vocal hook. It's so short though, you need to listen to it three times in a row. 10/10.

Rock My Body: Blahness. 6/10.

Prepare For Something Else: Great song. 8/10.

In The Set: Has some organic guitaryness, really reminds me of Four Year Strong's old ep, albeit much more slick. The chorus is just mindless filler. It's not much of a song. 6/10.

Gone With The Guillotine: Another mindless powerchord and octave-chord chorus. Worst song yet. Reminds me of Brand New somehow. 5/10.

Case Closed: Great song. 9/10.

Lo: The synths add something. The chorus is ok. 7/10.

Darkside: Pointless 30 second instrumental. 6/10.

Valentine's Delay: Starts out very ATDI/Secession Movement/Controlling The Famous. That part I'll pass on. It gets good later though. Then duller again on the chorus. So it's 1 good part to 2 blah parts, that's not a good ratio. 7/10.

From The Window To The Wall: Awesome. 10/10.

Circle Of Death: Great song. Killer vocal harmonies. 9/10.

Kalamist: Rigidly conventional commercial overproduced gloss-rock-drone blahness. The worst vocal performance on the album. 5/10.

Pace Yourself: Nice jangly harmonic guitar, but the production is suffocatingly sterile, and the vocals are a bit overwrought. Tone down the vocals by half and record it more organically and I could really dig it. The vocoder at the end is pretty sweet, hardly trendy or emo, just weird and kewl, they should do more stuff like that. 6/10.



Hopefully their next album will work in a bit more electronic stuff. As generic as the majority of this album is, this band is creative and worth watching. Despite being largely disappointed with this record I will be hanging to hear what they do next."

I wouldn't call it pop-punk...

A. Stoltz | illlinois | 01/31/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"the debut full-length from the higher is a very promising album with a fresh sound. a lot of people say it sounds "pop-punk" but i wouldn't...i would say it's just a emo-rock album with lyrics that have something to say. i really liked their pop-punk ep "star is dead" and i put this debut on a pedestal, if you will, and i definitely wasn't let down. i know these guys will see recognition eventually but maybe it will be with their next full-length. overall, a very good debut from a very young band out of las vegas. my favorite song would have to be "valentine's delay". the closest comparison i could think of at the moment would probably be saves the day minus their geek rock sound. check these guys out."

Dont Be Stupid, read this!

Gabe "The Great" | TEXAS | 06/02/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ive listened to many great albums, especially albums of this nature. Only an idiot would classify this under any category! This is Genuine warm-hearted music. Vocals that savor that peice of your soul that tells you, "I've been there before" stinging your every move throughout the day. This is the kind of album that has something significant in every song that stands out from the others. The Rhythms are warm and have very strong direction. No song on this album should go unheard. I strongly recommend this album if you like The Starting Line, with The Early November kind of Rhythms, or if your just looking for a great album dont let this one go. Like they say 90% of good music goes unheard, dont let this one be one of the 9/10. This album has won a place in my cd case. Believe me thats an honor enough. Buy This Album!"