Hear The Sirens

Rebel Hearts Lost

Written by: PP on 17/02/2009 13:28:02

"Sometimes with the best of us the only difference is we get back UP UP UP / fall down with the best of us, the only difference is that we get UP" . Those are the opening lyrics of the Hear The Sirens debut album "Rebel Hearts Lost", shouted passionately with heart and soul, thus acting as the perfect fight back words for when you've just taken a metaphorical beating in one way or another. The song is "To New Beginnings..." and it lasts for just under a minute and a half before it continues directly into a high-octane punk rock energy punch in the form of "...And A Humble Tomorrow", recalling the fastest material from Strike Anywhere and Crime In Stereo, just with harsher production. The genre is of course politically charged/socially critical melodic hardcore / punk rock, and as is typical to the genre, the music is played with the sort of passion and conviction that emo/screamo bands can only dream of.

Their vocalist has the same rough, melody-filled howl as Strike Anywhere's Thomas Barnett, who is among the best vocalists in punk rock, so no complaints there. This type of unproduced voice is perfect for creating a working contrast between the raw and the catchy, as is seen in the fusion of hardcore punk instrumentals and somewhat poppy choruses that still have loads of edge on them to keep things interesting. "Dead End Response" is a good example where you'll be singing along to the chorus in one moment, and a few seconds later you'll be leading the circle pit while screaming "AND WHEN YOU HEAR THE SIRENS...!" from the top of your lungs. When an album has that effect on you, it's doing it's job right. Almost every song on the record relies on the punk rock drumbeat, high-energy three-chord guitars and the vocalist's throaty yell, but since most songs combine the catchy with the harsh seamlessly and get you moving, it doesn't really matter. Basically, when you're in for a dose of Strike anywhere-type melodic hardcore, you go to Hear The Sirens knowing that you'll get an album's worth of just that and nothing else.

There are some exceptions, though, such as the acoustic anthem "Thank You David!" in the vein of The Wonder Years' "Racing Trains", except way catchier. I've found myself singing just the chorus part "And it's biiittteeeersweeeeet" around my apartment randomly for days now. There are plenty of moments where that one came from, too, consider "Don't Threaten Me With A Good Time"'s repeated gang-shouted ending for instance: "fuck them, lets keep singing... our favorite songs", which also portrays the message of Hear The Sirens nicely. "Rebel Hearts Lost" is all about the merger of high-energy circle pits and the great singalongs, and if you're at all into that, purchasing their record should be next on your list of things to do. I foresee some great things in the future for these guys once they get just a tiny-weeny bit more production to their sound.

7

Download: To New Beginnings..., Thank You David, Don't Threaten Me With A Good Time
For the fans of: Strike Anywhere, Crime In Stereo
Listen: Myspace

Release date 27.01.2009
Silly Girl Records

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