Dreamer is the fifth full-length release from Haste the Day, a band on the primarily Christian metalcore label Solid State Records. This is their second release with new vocalist Stephen Keech. Dreamer was released on October 14, 2008.
Being a fan of Haste the Day from the near beginning (Burning Bridges was where I picked them up), I was not sure whether or not the band would be ready to do something a little different this time around, especially considering the change in vocalists. Turns out that they decided to stick with the same old thing, adding a new cliché metalcore flavor to the mix. That is by far the largest downfall of the album. The songwriting sounds exactly like every other metalcore band out there these days (with very few exceptions).
Where they go right with the direction they took with Dreamer is the fact that it was executed PERFECTLY. They nailed down the sound to perfection, and it is all perfectly balanced. The album could have been moved around from song to song (the order of the track on the album is a bit strange), but each song sounds great. The new vocalist has the perfect voice for Christian Metalcore, and in my eyes is an improvement from Jimmy Ryan (don’t worry, Jimmy, you’re still great). I want to make special note of Devin Chaulk’s drumming on this album, though. Devin, that shit is TIGHT my friend. Crisp, clear, pounding, etc. Everything you could want in a drum sound for an album is right here (yeah, yeah, argue personal preference all you want).
Being the fact that it is a Christian Metalcore band, putting out a Christian Metalcore album, there is nothing more to be said. It is what it is – like most every other album in that category. At least that did it well, and did it right. It’s not a crappy hack job, and you can at least differentiate the sound from the mediocrity that is metalcore these days. A great listen, but nothing groundbreaking.
Track Picks: “68″, “Porcelain”, and “Haunting”
Overall score: 6.5 out of 10 devil horns
On a passing note, does anyone else think that the opening track sounds eerily like something from As I Lay Dying’s newest album, An Ocean Between Us? Creepy…
Posted in CD reviews, Metalcore Tagged: 68, an adult tree, And Adult Tree, as i lay dying, autumn, babylon, Brennan Chaulk, burning bridges, christian, devin chaulk, dreamer, haste the day, haunting, invoke reform, jimmy ryan, labyrinth, labyrynth, mad men, metalcore, Mike Murphy, porcelain, pressure the hinges, solid state, sons of the fallen nation, stephen keech, when everything falls
