Apparently ignoring the golden rule that all punk-pop/emo bands must sing with an American twang whether they hail from New Jersey or Newcastle, Kerrang! favorites
Twin Atlantic are perhaps the genre's only act to sing in a Scottish accent so strong it makes
Billy Connolly sound like an upper-class RP-speaking toff. Unfortunately, lead singer Sam McTrusty's authentic Highlands tones are the only remarkable aspect of the quartet's second album,
Free, which by resolutely adhering to the brooding verse/super-sized chorus of the angst-rock formula, fails to differentiate itself from the plethora of similar outfits they've recently opened for. Fellow Scots
Biffy Clyro may be the most obvious comparison, but although there is a potential X-Factor winner's single-in-waiting (the cello-led acoustic ballad "Crash Land"), the follow-up to mini-album
Vivarium has more in common with their transatlantic touring buddies such as
My Chemical Romance (the shouty lead single "Edit Me"),
Taking Back Sunday (the angular post-hardcore of "The Ghost of Eddie"), and
Angels and Airwaves (the anthemic call-to-arms of the title track). Whether it's the influence of producer
Gil Norton (
the Pixies,
Foo Fighters) or the arena rock bands they've been supporting,
Free is an entirely different beast from its predecessor, which contrarily appears to rally against the over-earnest and contrived tendencies of their faux-American counterparts. It's only when they go against the grain, as on the slow-burning instrumental "Serious Underground Dance Vibes," the bluesy, '70s-influenced "Dreamember," and the aforementioned "Crash Land," that the band recaptures some of their early unaffected potential. You can't blame
Twin Atlantic for wanting a piece of the globe-conquering emo pop pie, but even though they possess a unique vocal weapon,
Free is just too derivative to have the impact the band appear to shoot for. ~ Jon O'Brien