Senses Fail
Life Is Not a Waiting Room
Vagrant Records/Drive Thru Records
8/10

Don’t judge a book by its cover, yea? Maybe…but I’m definitely going to chime in about the overuse of gas mask imagery. Stop it. There, now we can discuss the tunes.

Now, I have never heard Senses Fail before, but to be honest, they sound exactly how I thought they would. Switching between the obligatory angst-screams that accompany blood-splatter band shirts and a slightly nasally singing style that, to be honest, I associate to 80% of Vagrant Records’ roster, Senses Fail fill all my expectations. Choppy guitar work and solid drumming are shown off a bit more than the bass player, who’s solid but feels left behind in the mix.

“Wolves at the Door” shows that the guitar solo is not a lost art. “Yellow Angels” shows that the band doesn’t always hide behind distortion to make music, although they do use it liberally throughout the album. But it also shows that the band missed out on a solid pun of “Yellow Snow Angels.” It’s a solid album, and even though it’s not my taste, I don’t hate it, which is saying a lot.

-Jonathan “The Emperor” Yost