Defeater Empty Days and Sleepless Nights |
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 | Tracklist:
Disc 1:
1. Warm Blood Rush
2. Dear Father
3. Waves Crash, Clouds Roll
4. Empty Glass
5. No Kind of Home
6. White Knuckles
7. Cemetery Walls
8. Quiet the Longing
9. At Peace
10. White Oak Doors
Disc 2:
11. But Breathing
12. Brothers
13. I Don't Mind
14. Headstone
| Ranking: #89 for 2011 | |
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On 288 Lists
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| Summary: Defeater's latest is a more than enjoyable addition to their discography, even if it doesn't quite come together like it should |
Modern hardcore as a whole is going through a kind of rebirth at the moment. After indulging in the excesses of the Myspace age, it is once again trying to find its soul. Luckily for fans of the genre, the bands that followed in the footsteps of turn of the millennium groups like Eighteen Visions and their hair metal sins of fashion and indulgence are now dying a slow death, and a new crop of talented bands that are just as concerned about progressing the genre as they are about staying true to their roots has emerged. Out of all of the bands spearheading this new generation of hardcore, Defeater have firmly positioned themselves at the top with their debut Travels and follow up EP Lost Ground, both of which follow a unique story telling slant based on in depth character studies.
It seemed that as soon as the final notes from Lost Ground rang out in many a hardcore kid's stereo, the anticipation for another Defeater album began to build, and when the band decided to release the Dear Father teaser EP that anticipation reached a fever pitch. But now with a new Defeater album firmly in our grasps, how does Empty Days and Sleepless Nights fare when put up against their near flawless back catalog? Empty Days and Sleepless Nights is at its heart very much in tune with the catharsis that brought us Travels, taking the raw energy and honest emotion of bands like Modern Life Is War, to whom Defeater owe a large chunk of their sound, and melding it with a superb sense of storytelling hardly found in the genre. Unfortunately, for the first time in their career, it seems as though there is something missing. The formula used on Empty Days and Sleepless Nights is the same blueprint as used on their previous albums, and where Travels thrived off of its unpredictable nature, the same bobs and weaves don't have the same effect because we've heard them all before. It almost makes every build up seem anticlimactic given that you can see what lies ahead in just over the horizon.
The only real surprise on Empty Days and Sleepless Nights is Defeater's choice to expand on the moment of acoustic brilliance that was the latter half of “Prophet in Plain Clothes” from Travels into four tracks of jangly, low key folk songs. Unfortunately these songs come off as more as an afterthought when compared to the first disc of the release. Furthermore, even though vocalist Derek Archambault tries to be another Rocky Votolato or Conor Oberst, it becomes apparent rather quickly that, despite his best efforts, he is neither Rocky Votolato or Conor Oberst.
Empty Days and Sleepless Nights is a more than solid release, but the pieces never end up coming together quite like they should. One listen to either Lost Ground or Travels shows that Defeater are more than capable of pulling it off, but this time ambition seems to have gotten the best of them.
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| Recent reviews by this author | | | |
Album Rating: 3.5
agree that the acoustic tracks sound almost exactly like rocky votolato songs, i'm pretty indifferent about them.
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gtfo...
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prepare your anus for the fucking of a lifetime
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okay this has a ridiculous amount of fives (5's) for an album that hasn't even been released yet
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
lol
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groups like Eighteen Visions and their hair metal sins of fashion and indulgence
eighteen visions ruled. good review even though I don't agree on the rating.
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Review is well written but noooooooooo. This album really is worthy of the 5.0 rating, even after repeated listens.
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How dare you...how dare you...how dare you...this ain't no kind of ...
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let the masturbation commence, everyone
OH GOD THIS ALBUM IS SO AMAZING FUCKKKKK
| | | Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off
18v was good on Vanity but they basically survived on image. that's what i was implying. also listen to their self titled album and try to defend them. you cant.
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Also, I dont give a fuck about this being your golden calf.
| | | Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off
=( so angry lub u 2 bby
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
does not sound enough like bob dylan to be trying to sound like conor oberst...i think he sounds a lot like rivers cuomo (pinkerton) on headstone...
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i herd these guys r liek atreyu but with worse guitars
Digging: Marina and The Diamonds - Electra Heart
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OH GOD THIS ALBUM IS SO AMAZING FUCKKKKK
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
I CAME
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it becomes apparent rather quickly that, despite his best efforts, that
i expected this review to be massive : (
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
i dont get the album builds to predictable climaxes/tricks argument...if anything this album seems to be about anti-climax and i don't just mean white oak doors, though that's a rime example...like the intro to At piece...predictable would be to explode after the expected opening but they wait one more measure, completely catching the listener off guard...plus if Quiet the Longing was a one track single it would still merit a 4 album rating...
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i don't understand why people are having problems with the acoustic tracks tbh. Brothers is one of the better songs from this album and as a whole all four of them add some needed background info for those who are interested in the concept of Travels/Empty Days.
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i don't get the love for quiet the longing i mean its a great song but its not like the second coming of jesus or anything
thats empty glass
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