We get things started with "Awakening", a gritty, hard rocking melodic thrill ride that greets us with the terrific vocal abilities of frontman Ryan Key who offers us a introspective view of the album's emotions and what we can expect to hear on the rest of the album as well. "Surface of the Sun" is a blasting, non stop go getter that sees the band aiming for a more harder sound this time around, but still retain elements of their initial sound displayed on their earlier work that have made them one of the most beloved groups within their genre. My favorite track off the album is "Always Summer", a much more toned down track than the previous two, but still retains some elements from the prior tracks on this album and blends it in to create a balanced track that best represents the band's individual and unique talents, including Sean Mackin's terrific violin solos that have become the band's trademark and the unique identifier among their fanbase. "Sleep in the Snow" is another terrific rocker, with absolutely terrific drumwork from Longineu Parsons who has contributed a great deal to the band's melodic thunderpower and their capabilities as musicians put on proud display right here.
Part two of the album kicks off with "A Vicious Kind" an intense, hard edged tune that sees the band relying on more intricate instrumentation and an intense and focused outlook that showcase the band's evolution from their debut album to where they are right now. "Telescope" features guest appearances from Alex Gaskarth of All Time Low, Taylor Jardine of We Are The In Crowd, and Cassadee Pope of Hey Monday who form an all star team of sorts that is a true ensemble piece that gives us a different musical texture this time around with the collaborators joining together in unison and harmony for a creative and well thought out track brought forth here. We start to usher in the album's end with "Ten", a beautiful and introspective acoustic number that shows off a different side of Ryan with his downtempo vocals adding an intimate and up close and personal connection with the band that can't be duplicated anywhere else. The disc ultimately concludes with the title track, an on point and intense rocker that fully represents and portrays the real Yellowcard sound that has gradually evolved from their first album and this track represents that said evolution and how far they've come together as a band and how they've grown together as individuals as well. When I first heard Ocean Avenue, I was about to start my freshman year of college and I was flatout in awe of the band's crisp and intense sound and was amazed with the band's introduction of a violin which initially didn't make sense to me, but totally works for the band's type of music and just speaks to mind of the band's unique and individual talents that are best to be experienced live, as I did last year at the House of Blues in Boston where they co-headlined with All Time Low, and it was a coming of age concert for me in the sense that it showcased all of the music that best represents who I am as a person and why I go out to concerts on a regular basis.
To sum it all up, Yellowcard have delivered one of the top albums of 2012 so far with a driven and focused cohesive musical effort that shows the continued evolution of the band and all of the individual musical elements that make them unique and stand out prominently from all the other musical acts gathered in attendance out there today. Buy this album now, highly recommended!
Album Score: 4.5/5
Track Listing:
- Awakening
- Surface of the Sun
- Always Summer
- Here I Am Alive
- Sleep in the Snow
- A Vicious Kind
- Telescope
- Rivertown Blues
- Ten
- Southern Air
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