LABEL: TOOTH & NAIL RECORDS
RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 25, 2011

ings is my introduction to Tooth & Nail’s newest acquisition, I Am Empire. And it is what a great American rock & roll album is supposed to be. Lots of grinding guitars. Great vocals. Heaps of threatening to lose control, but keeping the energy reined in just enough to make the experience coherent and memorable. This is a band that one would expect to hear on the Vans Warped Tour. Even the album cover, a kid covered in mud holding a crown, communicates something about their rock sensibilities while also communicating something about their artistic nuance.

“Brain Damages” opens the album on a perfect melodic rock note. Establishing theme amidst crushing drums, wailing guitars, and layered vocals come the lyrics, “We are the sons and daughters of broken homes…” This is a great song to start the album off with and, to be honest. It had me a little worried. If you put all the good tracks at the front half of the album, the “back nine” tend to be nothing but fluff and filler. But, that couldn’t be less true of I Am Empire. Kings is relentless in its excellence.

“Heart Attack” careens every which way, despite controlled creativity. Austin Lyons steps up to the mic and belts out his best Eddie Van Halen, accompanied by strong background vocals from Joshua Case. Andrew Stanton’s guitar licks are also dense throughout.

“The Elevator” takes off at a breakneck pace and, if you’re not prepared for it, you’ll be a little blown away. Of course, being blown away isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The guitar solos are killer here.

“Take Me Away” and “It’s Not Fair” serve as the album’s requisite rock ballads that slows things down and closing out the project, respectively. I think Lyons’ vocals work a bit better on the rock numbers, but he’s not all that bad here either. These are definitely “lighter in the air” pieces.

The one consideration about Kings that might be a liability is that, after a few listens, the album might begin to sound like it all just blends together. Despite its overall credibility, the genre does suffer from “it’s all the same to me” syndrome. But, if you’re a fan of good, old-fashioned rock & roll, then I Am Empire is just the ticket.