Review Summary: “So come with me and lets find some meaning”
Unsure what genre to specify Long Island's This Good Robot under? So are they, and this serves to be the greatest strength, and shortcoming, of their first full length 'The Light is Taking Me to Pieces'. The album (produced by Tim Payne of Thursday fame) makes more than a few nods to the gentler side of post-hardcore and mixes in a soothing blend of alternative rock and pop influences. The band shows a skillful grasp of soaring choruses and idiosyncratic hooks, not dissimilar from The Venetia Fair or Set It Off.
The title track and album opener introduces the listener slowly with simple acoustic guitars before violently exploding into a dark and eerie jaunt. Many of the songs on the album follow a similar structure, the band proves to be adept at orchestrating changes of timing and mood, often with explosive results. The excellent 'Get that Money' and 'Call the Police' are riotous examples of this, building slowly yet steadily and concluding with wild finality. This tendency is not always flawless however. 'It Only Ends Once' begins as summer-vibe love ballad showcasing the bands' finest pop sensibilities but goes off course halfway through with far too many transitions and loses track before an unsatisfying conclusion.
The band are a talented group of musicians, each being given time to shine with well placed guitar or piano solos and excellent drum fills. The band is at its best when venturing into barely controlled rock-madness, interweaving their various parts with well-practiced ease. It would be remiss of me not to mention the fantastic Michael Ragosta on vocals. Ragosta sings with bravado and control many vocalists should be jealous of, and his range and variety propel the album through the rougher patches.
Fans familiar with the bands earlier releases will also notice a slightly disappointing trend. The album contains five previously released songs. While these songs are all excellent (including album highlight 'The Human I Am') it's disappointing to see over 1/3rd be re-used material. The band had the decency to re-record both 'Let's find some Meaning' and 'Call The Police' and make slight improvements on both. The quality of the newer material is not to be overlooked, and the album finishes with the boisterous 'Incident 824' a quality summation of the bands' style (though one of the final riffs sounds a bit too similar to U2's 'Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me').
Ultimately This Good Robot produced a promising first full-length release of bombastic energy and creativity. Such creative leanings occasionally lead to an awkward misstep where staying the course would have been a stronger option. A debut full-length of such quality bodes well for a talented group of musicians who doubtlessly have more stories to tell.
Recommended Tracks:
The Human I Am
Get That Money
Call The Police
