Review Summary: Written almost as a diary
Crushed under the weight of the world,
“You hope that it's the end, tomorrow it starts again,
and it's impossible to be strong.” Despondence radiates as the author remarks,
“The burden is upon my shoulders. It's on my shoulders.”
Survival Is For Cowards reads like an assortment of diary entries, written in those times everyone wishes to forget. From the first perspective, it reflects upon the quality of existence found in the darkest corners of life. Intensely relatable moments populate every second of this record, manifested in a poetic halfway point between spoken and sung. This is acutely obvious on ‘For Apples’ as a timeless dilemma is posed.
“Late at night lately,
it seems like you need me.
But just maybe that's my hope speaking clearly.
It would be nice to be a necessity.
But just someone you see
before you sleep is good enough for me.”
The temptation born of love to settle for merely being there, and not to reach for something more perfect. This is an almost ubiquitous experience and any person who has experienced it knows the hopelessness it can create.
Many musicians try to tap into these types of experiences in their work, but on Survival Is For Cowards it’s almost unique. The lyrics are personal to the extent that it’s almost harrowing to hear them. They are so vulnerable in places that it seems as if they were taken from a diary entry with no regard for the audiences they would reach. That’s something special.
Complementing this are relatively intense instrumentals straddling the cross-section between post-hardcore and emo. A subdued aggression lies beneath the surface of the record, with accenting screams used to punctuate the climaxes. The way the guitar and bass interact allows a great dynamic to build, with airy soft passages building into heavier sections that still largely embody the subdued nature I referred to earlier. At its heaviest point, Survival Is For Cowards could be seen to be straining against this somewhat however. Songs such as ‘What I Built Last Night’ break out further than much of the other material, transcending this subdued paradigm. I enjoy this within the album, as it seems to tie into the struggle contained in the lyrical content. As the lyricist struggles with life, the music struggles against the atmosphere it has created, producing some rough edges that allow the character of the band to shine through.
Content wise the guitar is very melodic in parts, punctuating the emotional content of the vocals with a similar tone of guitar work. The bass is inventive and interesting throughout, popping up with many great self-contained riffs that stick out among the flow of the songs.
Ultimately, this album has taken up a special place in my heart. I found it in a bargain-bin at one of my local record stores and was instantly interested based on the name. From the first time I heard it I’ve thought it was quite special, and I think when I look back on the last few months of my life – this is the music that will be the soundtrack to it. I’ve always found that to be one of the best things about music; that I can track my life by a path of amazing albums that instantly bring back a certain time. Adding this to that list is a privilege.
