Alot of bands these days get tossed around and made out to be something their not. Speaking mostly for the supposed 'emo' genre for modern times, it is a crime against music. No other words for it. People misunderstanding a band's category can spell instant death for the group themselves. Whilst it should not be such a big deal, nor matter as much as it does in present terms class is everything. So taking all this nonsense into consideration, what bands do you hear about being the gods of this screaming progression of power chords and tortured vocals? Well, amongst the Taking Back Sunday and UnderOATH there lays something much greater, and that is Thursday. You cannot deny the obvious influence they had on modern music. This influence being very recent as to beginning only six years prior to their latest release, is still unforgettable. Although I am not a fan at all, likely the farthest from it, I look upon this band with the utmost respect. Its very easy to take Thursday in mild doses for listeners such as myself, the casual kind; they're not a singles band as much as they are a solid one though. Not the kind of music that you hear on your local radio station and decide to download because it had you humming the chorus all the way home. Thursday are very much a favorite kind of band. The sort of group that claims much volume on your wall and in your CD case. Are they for everyone? Of course not. I've heard on several occasions opinions stating that this was the only Thursday record people could stand even listeneing to. On others, I've experienced fanboys consistently rave about
just how good they really are to me. Nothing will change my mind on this band, its been enough...listened to enough to form a decision. While they may seem like it at times, Thursday are really not a grower band. The music sort of hits you right then and there, and your ears make up their own minds about it. They could be described as such but only so at very rare times. Everybody is different, but the majority should agree. Thursday's 2002 release
Full Collapse is an excellent example of what the band is, and what they're not. Both at once. Pertaining to the statement before,
Full Collapse...
Does not grow on you.
Again it may seem that way to a superfan, but its love or hate. For the most part this album is listenable, but as a group the members really fall short of what you'd expect to be a grower. Some of the tracks can equal the worst music you've ever had the displeasure to experience, and others can be much like the coming of the messiah. Its amazing really, how a band can sound so similar on all of their songs and have them be completely different. Important aspect right there, alot of this band's music resembles just that of an artist with paint; say, two paintings using copy color schemes are formed into totally different concepts, but still share the color, therefore still sharing a detail. Quite an important one, at that. Thursday's music is the same: to me, take black as a color (which is personal preference, whatever reminds you of their specific sound) and create two opposite pictures in your mind, using only black (or your color). Seem the same in a way, don't they? Its called a format. Thursday are
very formulaic. They use their music as a chemical and create a dreary, dank atmosphere blasting angsty sad-themed music to go along with it, and this music has a distinct sleepy feel to it that makes you want to just sit and listen. Then drift off and rest. Sounds kind of out there, doesn't it? Well this is in fact a formula. I can prove this by describing just how all of the songs on this record incorperate the same exact one into all of their chords.
Interacting with eachother, the band members are fluent in the language of their own music. I'd personally give this a name, such as 'generalization'. Thursday are like humans in general, they play what they know and avoid what they misunderstand. Nothing groundbreaking about that statement, how many times have you yourself described a band to fit that? In fact, Thursday was one of the first bands to do this
(speaking in terms of modern music only). Gaining so many followers in group form, the band likely felt alienated if they strayed from what they had created. I would too, can't blame them. But time comes when you need to experiment, and Thursday probably has not come to that realization as of yet. Certainly not on this record, which was indefinetly a higher form of their music and much more enjoyable then their freshman and sophmore efforts, and still managed to sound like them, painting with the same colors.
The songs on the album are interlaced with a shining sense of gloom, like the caged bird that sings. Their singer has an attitude about his voice that suggests he trys to escape (telling the story within the notes, nothing personal with the band themselves) from the conforming instrumentation. This attempt at jailbreak apparently goes on for hours, and hours, and...hours...
Speaking figuratively, relating to minutes. Or however many minutes there are on the album. Whatever that is, the main point here is that
Full Collapse is likely the Napoleon of generic drivel, self-crowned, crusading on a boring, brown ship is all. The record literally goes absolutely nowhere, and never manages to escape from that cage they seem to be in from the beginning. I have always been open to different types of rock, but I doubt many desire to listen to the same song over tenfold. It doesn't make logical sense, but then really, what good music does? This is good music, I can say that, but it is not very smart, at all. Thursday are not geniuses, Thursday don't know how to explore and Thursday appeal to a one-sided argument.
Still there is a redeeming side to all this. The band's music is majorly drawn on by alot of today's acts, so if you lack much of Thursday's work but can safely claim to like what modern day metalcore/screamo/general rock is, then it would be a heinous sin to not check with this stuff. Get familiar with it, and decide if its right for you. What I did with Thursday was just that, and whilst resulting in such a fiery anger against them I still can put it under my belt say I can listen to one of today's most popular bands. And thats always good.
Thursday incorperate the best of what modern bands try to accomplish, and make it into a compilation that is
Full Collapse. Argueably their finest work (defenitely in my opinion), FC contains the best of the best of what your looking for, technically. You may not enjoy it but its impossible to deny the perfection of the instrumental flow between the vocals and instruments. At the same time though, this is what brings the album down, being a clear sign that Thursday do not experiment. If you want something new I'd evacuate the premisis immediately. But I doubt it highly if your actually reading
this of all reviews anyway, so check out these songs as soon as possible:
Standing On The Edge of Summer
Paris In Flames
Cross Out The Eyes
Yes, those three together sum up the meaning and feel of the album quite well. Your not going to notice much difference in the other tracks though, but still its important to realize the stand-outs.
Thursday's
Full Collapse is what modern mainstream should sound like. Perhaps it already does but not as much, as this band anyway. They are the embodiment of hardcore in the present and cannot be overlooked. Despite my fiery distaste for the band, I think their music is generic as much as it is influential and interesting. While I did not enjoy going through this record musically, still, pondering thoughts passed my mind as I did. Formidably building a wall of sound, Thursday blocks together their albums. It seems much like the kind of music that would result in prior writing, not a jam or anything of that sort. I doubt bands like this jam anyway, but what I mean by that is if they had rehearsed and found something other than a catchy riff or a tearing vocal rip for their songs. As said before it is very formula-based music, and should not be expected to be post-hardcore's Radiohead. Whilst that is a bit of a contradiction, they still can be at the same time. For example, how Radiohead influence greatly all of the bands that sound remotely like them (just how Pink Floyd influenced them), Thursday does the same with "post-hardcore." Taking into consideration the entire list of their genre's cliche's they put together an astounding work, that is not as enthralling as it should be. I'm not going to go off on a generic rant and say that Thursday most defenitely have a whole load of 'potential' and fail to incorperate it to their music properly. The band doesn't really contain that much to begin with, and they're already a very seasoned group as it is. Thursday are a band to listen to on the bus, in the back of class, and much on headphones. Their a headphone band, and can become very,
very personal to their fans. Not something you'll sit in your car blasting out the windows. They're incapable of doing that anyway, with this record. Its not loud. More like soothing, thought provoking and dreamy. In a very exhausted way, as if the band were growing tired of spending so much time in the studio.
And these guys are...
Vocals: Geoff Rickley
Guitars: Tom Keeley
Guitars: Steve Pedulla
Bass: Tim Payne
Drums: Tucker Rule
Synth/Keyboard: Andrew Everding
