A Band in Hope

The Matches | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 18, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Epitaph
• ASIN: B0012IWHQE
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #210,789 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars different, but decent, April 25, 2008

By 

Betty C. (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Band in Hope (Audio CD)

This CD is a bit different than what I expected; I had only listened to the first two tracks before deciding to just buy the whole thing, and guess what? The rest of the CD varies quite a bit from the first two tracks. Not that it's bad, it's just a different sound. For example, "Darkness Rising", "Clouds Crash", and "Proctor Rd" are much more subdued than the other tracks--they're a little slower, softer, and less in your face--and I feel that they're missing something. My favorites are "AM Tilts", "Their City", "Wake the Sun", and "Yankee in a Chip Shop". If you're a diehard fan of this band, then you'll want to add this to your collection, but if you're just looking for some good tunes, listen to some previews first and download the ones that suit your taste individually.

4.0 out of 5 stars near-great, but let me say something..., October 16, 2008

By 

ClydeNut - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Band in Hope (Audio CD)

don't get me wrong, I really enjoy this album, but there's one flaw that just tends to bug me sometimes.

With Decomposer, The Matches showed that radical creativity is just a natural thing for them; they're naturally weird and different. And that's what attracted me to them.

The thing with this album is, often times it seems like The Matches are trying harder and harder to be weird and different, instead of just letting the radical creativity come to them.
Alot of songs on this album reach near-operatic status, but none of this are really bad things, in fact I like it sometimes.

5.0 out of 5 stars THE most innovative modern "alt-rock" band, July 21, 2008

By 

Danny S (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Band in Hope (Audio CD)

My has this band come a long way in such a short time. I remember seeing them as "The Locals" at a local venue iMusicast just a few years ago, playing mostly pop/punk/ska. Now here they are as, in my opinion, one of the most innovative modern "pop/punk" (for lack of a better word) group. Their real genre is not pop/punk or alternative or what they typically have been classified. This album shows a true artistic, experimental, psychedelic side that Shawn Harris himself best coined it as "Schizophrenic."

I hear a lot of moaning and groaning from the "E von dahl.." fans, but the fact is, if you are musically educated, you would know this blows their debut album out of the water. You may hear that Yankee in a Chip Shop, or Point Me Toward the Morning are the highlight tracks. But the REAL gems on this CD are From 24C, Proctor Rd, and Darkness Rising, the ones that have been typically classified as "not listener friendly." I really hope that the Matches don't listen to the close-minded, not-so-musically educated critics and lose this creativity that they are showing in this album. Other highlights that branch out and yet are closer to their old style are AM Tilts, Future Tense, and Between Halloweens.

So as this CD may at first sound too different, or too out there, give it a few tries and apprectiate the originality of the music and the near-genius lyrics. This is one of my favorite albums of all time.

Just check out the title "A Band in Hope". Is it really? Or maybe Abandon Hope? Think about it, this band will make you think.