Review Summary: Gatsbys American dream is a band that many people have hear of or seen live, but have never listened to. The band has released 4 cds and 1 ep. Volcano, with its smart lyrics and good instrumentals is one of their strongest releases.
Gatbys American Dream has released several great albums in their career. One of these albums is Volcano, a record which covers a wide range of topics. These topics include literature, self doubt, video games, and the city of Pompeii. It is these lyrics and awesome instrumentals that make Volcano a must have record for any music fan.
1. Theatre- This song is the single off the record. It starts off with a catchy bass line, and then the vocals come in. The chorus builds off the verse, and carries itself over into a powerful bridge. The lyrics on this song deal with self doubt, and questioning ones fate. The instruments are all very solid, with the drums as a standout. Overall it is a very good opener to the record. 4/5
2. Pompeii- The song starts off fast with singing and all instruments going strong. The title pretty much tells you what the song is about, the city of Pompeii's destruction by the volcano. This song is very short, but changes dynamics and tempo several times, making it extremely enjoyable. 4.5/5
3. The Guilt Engine- This song slows things down a bit, but not a crazy amount. It starts off with the singer, guitar and piano, then the rest of the instruments blast in all at once. The song deals with sort of the same topic as theatre, questioning ones wrongs and self loathing. The band does a good job making catchy and interesting instrumentals for the slower song, without getting boring 4/5
4. A Mind of Metal and Wheels- The song starts off with awesome vocal harmonies. The tempo of this song isn't very fast, but it is still a very powerful song. This song is a hard one to decipher. I personally find the song to be based of the second Lord of the Rings Book. The title of the song is a quote by Treebeard directed at Saruman. My personal favorite thing about this song is the guitar parts during the bridge. They are pretty textured and blend very well. 4.5/5
5. Fable- Gatsbys Continues the literature trend with this song. It is based off of Lord of the Flies. Unlike the previous song, this one is pretty straightforward with its lyrics. There is a really catchy bass part throughout this song, but none of the other instruments stand out. However, the extreme catchiness and good lyrics of the song make up for the instrumentals. 4/5
6. The Giant's Drink- Yet another literature reference. This one comes from the book Ender's Game. The giant's drink is an obstacle Ender must overcome in a fantasy game he plays. The song has a really cool feel to it, with interesting guitar parts throughout it. Even though it has an Ender's reference in the title, I personally only see a vague relevance in the song. Still, the instruments of this song make it one of the albums strongest. 4.5/5
7. Shhhhhh! I'm Listening to Reason- The fastest song on the album. It starts off with a tight guitar riff and drums. Like Pompeii, this song changes speeds and time signatures several times. The lyrics deal with the bands disagreements with the music industry. The song maintains a high energy level until the end, when it turns into an Irish bar song/chant. It is a very unique and powerful song, easily one of the bests off the album. 5/5
8. Meet Me at the Tavern in Bowerstone- This song gets its title from the x-box game Fable. It is short, pretty fast paced song. The instruments are ok. I really don't know why this song is so short; maybe it is supposed to be a divider or something. 3.5/5
9. Your Only Escape- A much slower song in comparison to the previous song. The song's overall theme is temptation. The lyrics are very clever and moving. The instruments can get slightly boring, but still do a nice job. Like nearly every song the drums are awesome, their drummer rips it up on every track. This is a good song but not nearly as good as the first 7. 3.5/5
10. The Hunter- This song relates to the guilt engine, and theatre. It questions the heaven, hell, and the band's fate. Gatsbys tends to link several of their songs together with similar lyrics or ideas. The song has solid instrumentals, and even better lyrics. 4/5
11. Speaker for the Dead- This song shares its title with the second book in the Ender's Game series. I haven’t found a relation between the book and the song yet, but I'm sure there is one. This song deals with Pompeii again. It has hints of the song Fable in it, and it answers the song Pompeii. It starts with the volcanic eruption and ends with the aftermath of the eruption. It starts off very slow, but by the end it is arguably the most powerful song on the record. 5/5
12. Badlands- This song is a rerecording off of their previous ep. On the ep, it was done acoustic but now, it is performed electric. The song contains a bunch of metaphors for the record labels and the harm they do. The electric version has a nice little flair to it that the acoustic doesn't have. It is a very solid song. 4/5
13. The Loosing of the Shadow- The record ends with a very powerful song. This song is connected to Theatre, The Guilt Engine, and The Hunter. It is about one defending their beliefs in God/ the afterlife. It isn't a long song, but it is packed with energy. The instruments do a great job of blending. 5/5
I would recommend this album to anyone who likes rock music. It may take a while to get into, but it will be worth the wait. This album gives the listener smart lyrics, spectacular drums, textured guitar, and great but subtle basslines. It is these reasons that make this album so enjoyable.