Acres : "the Host"

UK-based Acres is another band that blurs the lines of pop, nu-metal, and metalcore. The vocals steer things in the direction of a more mainstream 30 Seconds to Mars. This album is produced in such a way that blends industrial sound into the smack of the drums, making them more of a stomp at times. They are not as poppy as say Bring Me the Horizon, as the hardcore tinged angrier vocals that counterbalance the softer pop vocals, anchor them in a more confrontational sound. Not as soulful as, say, Issues, they tend to lean slightly in the djenty manner in which their sound was once rooted. However, the first two songs just kind of run together, so there is a uniformity to their sound despite the dynamics. 

If Linkin Park were devoid of the hip-hop influence and more into angsty pop-punk, the result would not be unlike "Staring at the Sun". The verses follow the formula of giving the vocals room to breathe. It sounds good, but also sounds like a hundred now faceless bands from the late 90s. The harder breakdown at the end only confirms their Myspace Metal lineage. "Take My Last Breath" is driven by a more electronic beat. The vocals are slickly produced, but not quite to the Sleep Token level. If it seems like there are lots of bands being named for comparison, well, that is what their sound invokes.

"Built to Bleed" leans more into their hard-core, but it's produced in a very electronic fashion, rather than the organic roots of the genres. Lyrically, it sounds like they get their feeling hurt a great deal, and half the time they are the culprit, being their own worst enemy. This guy has a pretty decent singing voice, but the emotional tension he adds steers them in a Linkin Park direction. "Your Goodbye" finds the more pop punk tendencies wrestling with their emo execution as they fight for the hooks. This song is perhaps the most derivative. "Steal the Light" has some interesting production choices and highlights the wasted potential of the vocals; it might be one of the album's best songs.

"Welcome to the Family" finds them once again trying to convince me of their dedication to the core part of the genre, but since I normally listen to bands like Harms Way and Full of Hell, I am not easily fooled in this regard. The last song is their self-proclaimed poppiest song., which I think is something they need to expand upon as it is more believable. Perhaps it's their ability to sell this that makes it the album's best song despite being more of a ballad. Overall, I will give this album an 8.5, not something I am going to be listening to on a regular basis, but they are good at what they do and there is an audience for this that will go for it, so they made the album they wanted. 

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