Arms for Elephants - Identities

Arms for Elephants

Identities
self-released; 2014

3.7 out of 5

By Eva Cantillo

Arms for Elephants is a four-piece band from Minnesota that gives its audiences fast, run-away melodies with soaring and striking lyrics. Their music could be classified as post-pop rock with a hard edge. The band emulates the sounds of popular bands like Circa Survive, Coheed and Cambria, and Brand New.

The opening track on Identities, the band’s latest four-song release is quite the fire starter. The striking and infectious chorus really makes this song quite interesting to listen to. “Fear not for I am with you, I will not be ashamed, I will not be disgraced,” the climbing nature of the vocals and the harmonization of the scratchy screaming really make this song uplifting and one to scream (or sing) at the top of your lungs. 

In contrast, the second song “Beloved,” has a softer and more contemplative persona to it and lets you dive into an emotional world of deep lyrics and hard-hitting guitar riffs. It starts off by inviting you into a deep world of dramatic drums and guitars and then reawakens you with seductive and soothing vocals. The song is a great one to sing along to and the breaks in between the swelling of riffs really lets you collect yourself before yet another wave of musical madness begins yet again. The lyrics become the main stay for the entire track and explode toward the end of the song with; “you are the lost and chosen beloved of the one true king, he will wash away your every stain.”

Identities is a very well-produced collection of songs and the sound within the album is of great quality. There is a great layering of instruments on every track and the vocals add yet another beautiful layer of sound for the listener to grasp. This is a perfect album for anyone into post-modern rock. Each track on the album has its own flavor that many into this genre will enjoy.

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