Hail the Sun :" Divine Inner Tension"

 I guess Coheed & Cambria is to blame for emo going into a progressive direction. Somewhere along the way the bands got stalled out on anthemic choruses. This California band is guilty as charged of all the above and more. Donovan Melero started off as the drummer and now he, sings in an adolescent tenor that is the white teen take on Michael Jackson. Melero does scream at times. The opening track is more interesting than the second song which finds them trying to milk the same teat . The guitar could stand to be more forward in the mix. There is lots of razzle dazzle in terms of guitar runs , when they need more solid riffs to add some weight to the androgynous melodies flying over them.

I was barely aware of "Chunker" it was a rehashing of the elements heard on the first two song. Given the guitar tone on "60 Minute Session Blocks" they also want to be Mars Volta, as those elements collide with the fairy swords of the Coheed's more epic feel. "Maladapted" has some moments of Myspace metal that are outnumbered by the emo anthems. "The Story Writes Itself" is yet another return to the same formula, with a few embellishments of guitar that do not stray from the two bands they draw most of their influence from. "I Saw You Hanging " high lights some of the reason  I am already done with this album and wanting to listen to something else, but powering through it for the purpose of this review. There are some blogs / publications I write for that only assign albums you think you are going to like to the writers, which I feel does not offer the best perspective, since it becomes preaching to the choir. 

"Tithe" is an example of how screaming does not equate heavy. The big radio friendly choruses are all too happy for much weight to be gained in the momentum the songs attempt to build. "Feeble Words" and "Little Song" might as well be the same song. There is a passage of two here and there that ebbs down, but nothing on this album is that original. The last song musters a little more grit but I was worn out by then. I will give this album a 6, due to the fact the hit points that sound like they could be onto something, and execute what they are trying to do, it's just I have heard this done better already and it's too hopeful for me sonically.