Emotionalpunk.com
Media Review
Music Quality: 8.5
Production: 9.0
Originality: 7.5
Tracklisting
2. They're Not Horses, They're Unicorns
3. Duality
4. Carry On
5. I and I
6. Choice Hops and Bottled Self Esteem
7. Head On A Plate
8. Dear Your Holiness
9. Landing Feet First
10. Thankfully
11. Rite Of Passage
12. (Pop)Ular SciencE
Bayside have had a tumultuous couple of years. After their Victory Records debut, Sirens and Condolences, they lost their rhythm section and were forced to start pretty much back at square one. After coming out on top with two superior players and the truly amazing self-titled sophomore record to boot, the band suffered another troubling hit. A major automobile accident last October took the life of drummer John Holorhan and sidelined bassist Nick Ghanbarian for a few months.
Now, back and stronger than ever, the adversity that the band faced has only made them better people and, from how their latest effort, The Walking Wounded, came out, better musicians.
Kicking off with the rather awkward title track, it sounds as though nothing has really changed for the band. But at the first chorus the whole band cuts out to reveal lead vocalist Anthony Raneri singing behind an ensemble of horns and clarinets. It is small differences like these that really take this band to the next level throughout this album.
Bayside never really needed to reinvent the wheel for this disc. They had a formula that was working very well for them on their previous two efforts. Though they didn’t stray too much from this sound, they did small things that really helped the record sound like a more evolved version of Bayside.
The single from this disc, “Duality,” is probably the most poppy track on the album and seems ready for radio airplay.
But probably the most exciting and enjoyable track on the album is the horribly titled but very well written, “They are not horses, they are Unicorns.” This is probably the best song Bayside has ever written. Laid back, syncopated drums and guitars create a powerful backdrop for Raneri’s beautiful yet caustic lyrics.
“You're pulling out your teeth and I'm the Novocain you pump in your cheek,” muses Raneri in the opening seconds of the song. His voice is powerful and is wrought with emotion.
The real star of this disc is Raneri. As the only original member of the band, Raneri was forced to become the main lyricist of the band after former bassist and lyricist Andrew Elderbaum left the band in the wake of Sirens. Their last effort was Raneri’s first attempt at being the primary songwriter and his lyrics often came off as hokey. But it seems as though he has finally come into his own with this album. Both lyrically and vocally, he is head and shoulders above where he was two years ago.
This is really Bayside’s coming out party; although I thought the same thing about their last album. This band should really do some big things with this record. But if for some reason they are still only headlining small tours in a year, it won’t be because of a lack of talent.