Sound the Alarm – S/T EP / 2006 Rock Ridge / 6 Tracks / http://www.soundthealarmmusic.com / http://www.rockridgemusic.com / Reviewed 12 February 2006

The band starts off in a tremendously emotive vein of instrumental rock that subsides only a slight bit when the vocals kick in on “Fools and Thieves”. What really will strike listeners first is the interesting arrangements that Sound the Alarm create in tying their listeners down. There are at one time two conflicting elements in Sound the Alarm’s music; first off, there is an insistence by the vocals that is moderated by a much more sedate, meandering instrumentation created by the rest of the band. One cannot disentangle the two threads in Sound the Alarm’s music, and this is perhaps what will draw listeners in the most.

So many things happen during “Fools and Thieves” that individuals will find something to snag onto; Sound the Alarm has hit it big on just the first track of the disc. In a sense, what happens on a song like “Fools and Thieves” is the equivalent to the earth-shaking sound crafted by Senses Fail on their first EP; individuals just know that the band is going to be the next big right after the disc starts. Tying together Taking Back Sunday, Brookside, and The Starting Line into a coherent package, Sound the Alarm add their own special sauce into the mixture of their influences and posture themselves as the next Big Mac of emo bands.

The band takes a much more intense tack with the second track on this EP, “Suffocating to Stay Alive”; what is the largest contribution to the band’s overall sound here has to be an electronic sound that really is pushed forth by a multiple layering of the vocals and a very inorganic (but not bad) arrangement on the breakdown on the track. Adding a dreamy sound to points of “Cutting Deep”, Sound the Alarm increase the fury in which they kick back into the chorus. The dichotomous sound of the band during this track is only expanded when disparate elements (such as a very Ataris-like sound that goes against the brash sound that is present through much of the rest of the track) come into view. Besides having a style that everyone will love, what really will impress potential listeners is the sheer amount of styles that the band masters during the EP. What has to be the band’s next big hit is “Prove Them Wrong”, a track that will woo listeners through a very Blink-like style and an instrumental arrangement that will bounce through listeners’ heads for months to come. Keep an eye on these kids.

Top Track: Prove Them Wrong

Rating: 6.5/10

[JMcQ]