Review Summary: While there is certainly room for improvement, 'Your World On Fire proves to be a refreshing listen from perhaps the "breakout band" of 2009.
For such a new band In Fear and Faith have generated a substantial amount of hype via touring as well as their EP 'Voyage', released in December '07. I certainly was a fan of the elements they introduced in this EP, but I wasn't quite convinced that they were really 'antichrists' or able to 'melt face'- comments I've read on various message boards and youtube videos. I wanted to see a more polished effort. And so we have 'Your World On Fire'.
In Fear and Faith consists of six members:
Clean Vocals: Scott Barnes
Screams: Cody Anderson
Guitar/Piano: Ramin Niroomand
Guitar: Noah Slifka
Bass/Samples: Tyler McElhaney
Drums: Mehdi Niroomand
Vocals:
The vocals are superb. They manage to nearly seamlessly integrate screaming and clean vocals in a way few bands can. Anderson's screams are impassioned and hectic while Barnes has made a very favorable impact. In their EP Telle's vocals were quite flimsy. In this record however Barnes picks up the slack, surprising me and I'm sure many others with his abilties. It remains to be seen whether or not he'll be able outdo Aaron Gillespie but this is a fine first step.
Drums:
Another improvement from the EP. They still have a 'massive' feel but are tightened up; they sound very satisfying. Niroomand keeps up extremely catchy rhythms that compliment the other elements nicely.
Guitars:
Though generally nothing spectacular they do come up with some solid riffs and melodies. This isn't to say the guitar work isn't good; it's very good. The other elements overshadow it for me however.
Lyrics:
There doesn't seem to be a prevailing theme to the lyrics. Some are personal, some are about racism, some are about pirates.
You better hide your daughters cuz we're on our way home
So much to gain and nothing to lose
this life is ours but we'll take yours too
Sadly they don't keep the pirate theme going. 'The Taste of Regret' is about their former singer's stay in prison and his second chance at life. 'Strength in Numbers' is a ballad against "haters":
"I am who I am, is that so hard? /To realize that we are who we are..."
The lyrics are heartfelt albeit fairly simple.
Keys:
One last thing to note is their usage of keys, an element which aroused me in their first EP and continues to arouse me. Songs like "Taste of Regret", "Live Love Die", and "Relapse Collapse" are given a spice few bands in the genre seem to try. In the end they give the album a great melodic that distinguishes them a bit.
Download these:
~"Pirates the Sequel"
~"Your World On Fire"
~"The Road to Hell is Paved With Good Intentions"
