Every once in awhile, a record comes along that changes your outlook on what good music should sound like. The record provides a unique sound that redefines...

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Every once in awhile, a record comes along that changes your outlook on what good music should sound like. The record provides a unique sound that redefines and expands on your musical tastes. The Mars Volta accomplished this for me and many other people last year, and this year Scatter the Ashes have done the same. By providing a highly ambient, atmospheric, reverb filled progressive rock mix with a touch of punk, Scatter the Ashes have proved themselves to be an impressive new band that deserves the attention of those seeking some musical enlightenment.

Vocalist Daryl Stamps gives The Mars Volta a run for their money with his higher than usual vocal pitch similarities. Normally vocalists who try this technique end up failing miserably and sounding atrocious to pretty much every living thing with a pulse. Surprisingly, Scatter the Ashes pull it off, and they do it rather well. Daryl's voice really fits the music, and only furthers the areas explored by the creativity of the band. His screams add an extra hint of darkness that will win over those who normally aren't into prog rock. Lyrically, this band puts most punk bands to shame, and doesn't necessarily contain the anarchistic viewpoints of typical punk. If you like the Mars Volta and Brazil, you'll instantly enjoy Scatter the Ashes.

Some noticeable influences of STA's punk/prog rock style include the Ramones, the Cure, The Mars Volta, Rush and Radiohead. Epitaph picked up STA to diversify their lineup based on this sound and looked to provide something more than just another stereotypical punk band. It looks like Epitaph made a good choice, since this band has massive potential just waiting to be unleashed based on what can be heard in this album.

Just about every track screams with innovation, but the standout tracks of the album I enjoy the most are "In the Company of Wolves", and "Christine Daae". The first is thoughtful, melodic, and catchy enough to draw in a music enthusiast as well as the common mainstream (musically challenged) that have no concept of music outside of what is played on MTV. The latter is a powerful and aggressive piece made especially for us metal/punk fans who live and breathe off heavy music.

Given the diversity of the music, Scatter the Ashes can accumulate a tremendous and diversified fan base. If their material can satisfy a metalhead like me, it can win over many others as well. This very much could be the best surprise release of the year, and the answer to those seeking something different for a change. The Mars Volta still graces my CD player constantly, as will this album for many months to come.

RIYL:

The Mars Volta
Cave In
Placebo
Dredg
The Cure

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If you've been paying attention lately, you'll have noticed that Epitaph has been going through some changes. They've controversially signed rap artists...

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If you've been paying attention lately, you'll have noticed that Epitaph has been going through some changes. They've controversially signed rap artists Sage Francis and Atmosphere, took a chance with Tim Armstrong's outing in punk/hip-hop, Transplants, and plan to release an album by renowned hardcore metal band Converge. So, naturally, they sign something that the scene may not be ready for---Nashville, Tennessee's Scatter The Ashes. If there was a band that could dispel the idea that Nashville is all about country music, it's Scatter the Ashes.

To sum up Scatter the Ashes' debut, "Devout/The Modern Hymn," in a word---this album is intense. As easy as it is to lump the band into the generic and stupidly sounding category of screamo, it would have been just as easy for them to take that route and fill an album with basic sounding songs that have nothing new to bring us. But, "screamo" barely scratches the surface of how far they've gone to break away from the norm. This album combines so many styles of music that it borders on obscene. If you put Rites of Spring, Fugazi and Joy Division in a blender, the product would only yield the closing song, Hour Benediction. The entire album swirls with different styles and innovative ways of bridging each song, taking careful consideration of every pause and breakdown. Daryl Stamps delivers his anti-NRA anthem, White Actress, so furiously that Charlton Heston himself would be quaking in his boots. Each line is conveyed like musical dynamite and each song is so intertwined with the songs surrounding it that the album is best taken in as a whole and not just as a selection of songs.

"Devout/The Modern Hymn" is truly something that we've never heard before and as hard as some bands try to win the title of uniqueness, Scatter the Ashes is one that finally hits a home run. Pay attention to this band, because they could very well change the face of rock music as we know it. For a debut album, "Devout/The Modern Hymn" is amazing, but if they develop as musicians after this album, their sophomore effort is likely to be a thing of legendary proportions.

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