Review Summary: Icon For Hire returns after ditching their label and continue wearing their hearts on their sleeves.
After leaving Tooth & Nail, "Icon For Hire" decided to go independent and move forward without a label. Their 2 song "Now You Know" E.P. showed some promise with it's title track, but the satirical "Bam Bam Pop" left much to be desired. Luckily, "You Can't Kill Us" doesn't include any songs that are as cringe-worthy as Bam Bam Pop, and most of them are also better than "Now You Know." In order to fund this album, "Icon For Hire" started a Kickstarter account and got 2,492 fans to contribute a total of $127,200. The backers all got the songs earlier than everyone else, and received various other rewards depending in how much they contributed. Who needs a record label when you have that many dedicated fans?
Musically, "You Can't Kill Us" is much more electronically driven, with the song "Invincible" straying the furthest from the rock genre, although overall it still feels primarily like a rock album with songs like "Get Well II," "Demons," and "You Can't Kill Us." There aren't any guitar leads present, but they've never really been a guitar lead sort of band, so that's to be expected. The music is all catchy though, and always goes well with the vocals. If anyone has a problem with the musical element of this album, it's probably mostly because they don't care for the genre shift.
Lyrically, there are a lot of songs about depression. Obvious examples of this theme are "Supposed To Be," "Happy Hurts," "Under The Knife," and "Get Well II." The songs "You Were Wrong," "You Can't Kill Us," and "Invincible" are straight up empowerment anthems, with lyrics like "I refuse to let the darkness have the last say." Ariel writes all the lyrics for the album, and one thing I noticed is that (thank God) there's much less sarcasm in this album than usual. The lyrics are overall very sincere and straightforward, and it suits them much better than the dripping sarcasm of past songs such as "Bam Bam Pop" and "Sorry About Your Parents." Songs like "Pulse" seem to be specifically about leaving their record label because they felt restricted. "Stuck us in boxes, that's where you want us. Cardboard is boring, we brought our matches." One possible reason that they felt restricted is that they have always been signed to Christian record labels, and normally you're not allowed to cuss when you're signed to a Christian label. Since going independent, they dropped the "F" bomb in their E.P., and in "Under The Knife" they drop a s*** and a damn in the lyrics. It's also possible that the label was against them sounding less like a rock band, but it's much more likely that it's related to the lyrics. There's also the likely possibility that the band didn't feel like Tooth & Nail was being fair to them financially.
As far as criticisms, I would say that perhaps they dwell on the theme of being depressed and/or persecuted more than they need to. It would be cool if in their next album they could have a bigger diversity of lyrical themes. But, despite that, I love though how Ariel is rapping more in this album than she has in the past. She's got a real talent for it, and I was really hoping after their last album that she would be rapping more and more. Also, the song "The Magic" is possibly the best song that they've ever made. Ariel sings about trying to overcome depression a lot, and the lyrics "imagine the magic that might be under the madness" are a really smart way to convey the hope that there may be a light at the end of the tunnel for those who feel lost in the struggle. It's also a really catchy and musically diverse song in that it combines a ballad feel, great electronic effects, rapping, and a heavy rock chorus.
Overall, I highly recommend this album and would argue that it's their best album yet. It does a good job of developing their sound, and it's nice to see more sincerity and less sarcasm in their lyrics. Obviously, those who were hoping that they would go back to more of a straight rock sound may be dissatisfied, and some of Ariel's lyrics won't be for everyone. She wears her heart on her sleeve, and for some that will be mostly endearing, while others might think it's a bit much at times. Whatever one's feelings though, it looks like we can definately expect more music from "Icon For Hire" in the coming years; and with all the support they've received from fans, it's doubtful that they'll feel a need to sign to a new record label any time soon.
Recommended Tracks:
The Magic
You Were Wrong
Pulse
You Can't Kill Us
