There For Tomorrow

A Little Faster

Written by: BL on 29/07/2009 10:47:51

Sometimes a rock band just has that quality that makes them likable almost from the first listen. My first exposure to the Orlando, Florida based quartet was with their self titled EP released last year, which was a damn fine release. I also took note immediately of Maika Maile's fantastic voice being one of the highlights, both soaring and soothing at the same time, and their taste for energetic, catchy and accessible tunes. Given I was already feeling disappointed with regards to Madina Lake's new record released earlier this year, I was still certain that so long as There For Tomorrow stick to their game plan with the new full length I wouldn't be let down similarly.

And fortunately I was right on the money as this album is every bit as solid as their last EP. Maika's voice sounds as passionate and strong as ever, where his performances on "Wish You Away", "Backbone" and "Burn The Night Away" in particular are sparkling highlights of just what this guy is capable of. Not only that, but his lyrics are still clever and sing-a-long material as always:

"Tried out for size, to my surprise, I can't fit in anybody's arms,

No more disguise, cause I realize, I can't fit in anybody's arms,

Oh you, oh you left just in time."

Combine that with his superb delivery and the end result is something that's enjoyable from the get go. Looking deeper, the instrumental arrangements are thoughtfully constructed with delightful little guitar riffs over crunchy emo/alt-rock rhythm work, like the little nifty intro to "Backbone" or the extra bassy verse on the groovy "Deathbed". Borderline post-hardcore melodic guitars litter themselves throughout with a bright array of notes often proving memorable even after just a few listens.

For a rocking start the pace starts slowing mid-way through with some ballad-sy tracks, with "Just In Time", "I Can't Decide" and "Burn The Night Away" all appearing in the latter half of the album and one track apart from each other. While all excellent tracks on their own, my favourite out of the three being the infectious "Just In Time", the way the pace slows down slightly hurts the overall flow of the album in my opinion, and I would have preferred a reshuffling of the tracks to keep things more varied song to song. In a way I suppose this was due to the band trying to make a showcase both for their playful and their serious heartfelt side, albeit in a very obvious manner. "Stories" unforunately seems a tad less interesting than the other tracks, only really picking up in the last third of the song and is effectively the only real filler here (and only some of the song is, not all of it). These little niggling issues were honestly the only little holes I could pick out though and really don't detract much from the overall quality, such is how enjoyable this album is.

At the end of the day this is exactly what the new Madina Lake really should have been, but at least I have cause to move on now, as There For Tomorrow have bested "From Attics To Eden" in just about every conceivable way. It's stronger, its catchier, it has just as much mainstream as it does alternative appeal, while also convincing enough to sound honest and believable. And finally, in Maika they have one hell of a weapon in the form of a vocalist. MTVU Woodie Award for "Breakout Artist Of The Year" last year, and frankly it isn't hard to see why.

8

Download: Wish You Away, Backbone, Just In Time, Sore Winner
For the fans of: Madina Lake, The Sequence, lostprophets
Listen: Myspace

Release date 09.06.2009
Hopeless Records

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