Burnthe8Track open their album with a great tight pop arrangement that is full-steam ahead. "In Full Return" is pure power punk with lead singer Derek Kun relying on his vocal ability instead of screaming each lyric. The rhythm section also is quite sturdy thanks to drummer Sam Osland and bassist Mike Goreski. If you think of
the Cure on high-speed dubbing, you would get the gist of this song. Groups like
Hoobastank are also discerned on the gem "The Hourglass Breaks," although the structure of the song is more in keeping with
Jimmy Eat World. There's a certain sense of joy and abandonment on the song as they open things up somewhat with the guitars and vocals. The aggressive leanings of "Two Worlds Apart" is a great follow-up as they capture this energy and bottle it around a sweet and passionate emo-esque chorus. Only with "The Ocean" and its opening verse do the band sound like they are going through the motions, but the chorus more than atones for this brief miscue. Teeming with intensity from start to finish, songs such as "Buried Beneath Us" jump out at the listener, despite this one having more of a funky
Red Hot Chili Peppers nuance to it. Here they save some of their best performances, though, with a soaring and searing bundle of guitars. One quasi-"breather" though is "The Voices," which comes off more like a
Billy Talent B-side. However, the band's determination to blow the listener away with a powerful four/four tempo makes the album so darn enjoyable and pleasing. This is indicative on the ear candy offered up on "For Every Action." The winding and choppy "Colours Bleed" doesn't work as well, though. But it's quickly forgotten thanks to the snarling and polished angst of "My Own Flag." The sleeper of the record is the last track, a somber tune called "The Last Descent," which again has slight traces of
the Cure in it. ~ Jason MacNeil