Customer Reviews

Songs for the Living

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4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Embodyment used to make heavy metal and was very good at it. Through their record progression, they have refined that energy into what is now, in my opinion, their best cd. In the Narrow Scope of Things, they had such a clean-cut flow of energy through One Less Addiction and Winter Kiss. Now that has been turned up through EVERY song here. The vocals are easily discernable as well. In other words, it's something you will find yourself singing to. The technical guitar parts are still there but do not overwhelm the vocals as they tended to do in Embrace the Eternal and, to a certain degree, Hold Your Breath. The main theme of this cd is love. For those of you who listened to Narrow Scope of Things, this should be no suprise.

This album can be appreciated by punk, metal, and mostly emo fans. If you are expecting heavy metal, please look somewhere else. If you are searching for extremely powerful music that will leave you on a positive note, look no further.

Recommended if you like:
Emery, The Beautiful Mistake, Blindside, Dead Poetic, Tokyo Rose, Hopesfall, mewithoutYou, TwoThirtyEight, Noise Ratchet, Finch, Embraced, or Beloved.

The song descriptions are as follows:
1. Reaching Out: Immediately addictive with a quick pace. I like the lyrics "reaching out", "make a change", and "I'm on my way". The song only builds in intensity.
2. She's There: Slower song of the bunch but still heart wrenching ("she only visits for a second" and "I pray God will end this torture.")
3. Golden Rule: What a great, building, intro with a subdued microphone voice. "What comes around goes around" is the chorus for this one. It maintains the same pace as most of the songs.
4. Time: My second favourite song on the album and has such a great melody. "Finding out your made for me" is by far, my favourite line on the cd. It is such a love song in the words and has the music to back it up.
5. Who's to Blame: Slow song that sounds happy. I don't know what he's saying. Something about a bum throwing melons, I think. ha ha
6. Don't Go: My favourite! It has a great intro that includes that phrase "turn me up" (do it.) "You have my heart in your hands" and it has the intensity to prove it. I love the guitar work in this song. It will make you run after your love right away.
7. Segue Station: I think they promoted this one the most. It's the most forceful song of the bunch with good breakdowns.
8. It's Alright: Slow song that has an amazing chorus. I forget about that every time. I'm singing "hum-a-blah blah, blah blahbla (suddenly) Baby, I made it!"(and so on).
9. White Flag: Remake of the Dido song. Just kidding. Good fast song about treason. No, surrendering.
10. Jaywalk: This is probably the most addictive melody on the record. If your even the slightest bit creative, you will be adding your own lyrics in no time.

Anyone who has ever heard Embodyment's previous releases knows their capabilities. From brutal death metal ([1993-1996]), to a form of death/grind (Embrace the Eternal), to more musical, yet aggressive works (The Narrow Scope of Things, Hold Your Breath), Embodyment could do it all. So what happened here?

They simply sold out.

Gone are the expressive vocals of Sean. Suppressed are the punches and hooks of Andrew and Derrick. Boring is the once amazing drumming of Mark. And the bass -- it's there...somewhere.

Given this formula, the songs, themselves, are quite bland. They are not necessarily bad, but They lack personality, depth, and most of all, Embodyment. Yes, Embodyment are not present in Songs for the Living. Instead, the band playing here must be the soulless corpse of Embodyment after they changed labels to XS Records in pursuit of more money.

The positive aspects to be found here, however, are the last 3 or 4 songs where the band finally wake up and start to sound more like their former selves; too little, too late.

If you're accustomed to Embodyment at all, forget this. Not that this is an entirely bad album; it's just not Embodyment.

Yes, Embodyment has grown progressively "softer" and more "alternative" with each release, but the music has grown richer and I think more intensely gratifying. As a big fan of "Narrow Scope," I was INITIALLY put off by the sound of this album. As I have come to realize, this their BEST WORK EVER! Seriously. No, it's not metal-core,(I hope we've all gotten over that fact!) I still love my hard stuff (like ZAO!!!) but anyone who appreciates solid musicianship and Quality song-writing should love this album! In retrospect it seems that "HoldYourBreath" was just a bridge between NarrowScope and this album. The vocals are now perfected as far as I'm concerned with much more interesting melodies and sweet harmonies worked in there. The guitars sound great and blend together smoothly -- Trust Me: these guys have hit their pinnacle. I just hope it keeps going up from here. If you're a metal purest who will just complain that it's not hard enough, don't buy it. For EVERYONE else, don't be scared to try it!

Eventhough this CD is well written and performed, it's just not Embodyment quality. If you start with Embrace the Eternal and listen al the way through the afore mentioned title, you will find that the band has changed dramatically. This CD lacks the intensity and creativity of past Embodyment records. Sean's vocals are still great,and the band still has a knack for creativity, but it just seems like something is missing from the whole package. When I heard Embodyment was coming out with a new CD, I was so excited and couldn't wait to hear it, but when I finally got it, I was very disappointed.

WOW MAN OK I DONT KNOW WHO THIS BAND IS, I JUST HEARD THEY USED TO BE DEATH METAL AND NOW EMO, SOUNDS A LIL LIKE A UNDEROATH THEROY HUH? OK ANYWAYS..DO THIS..ITS CRAZY

LISTEN TO THE FIRST SONG SAMPLE FROM THE CD Embrace the Eternal

NOW COME BACK AND LISTEN TO THE FIRST SAMPLE OF THIS CD

YES, ITS THE SAME BAND

YES, IT A SELL OUT TO THE RADIO INDUSTRY