Grasping at a Lead Balloon is the debut EP from Illinois alt-rock duo By Design. Band members Kristin Vrona and Brandon Krantz describe their first release as a combination of “heavy hitters and somber pieces.” Such influential bands like A Perfect Circle, Chevelle and the Deftones can be heard on the harder edged songs, while Audioslave and R.E.M. are heard on the more solemn tunes. The duo have been writing music together for about a year and recording on and off for more than that. The two hope to recruit a drummer and bass player soon, so they can play full band shows out on the road. But for now on Grasping at a Lead Balloon, they had additional help on a few songs by Paul Lambert and Josh Wheeler.
“Welcome Home” opens the five-song EP beginning with a tasty, thick bass line and meaty guitar riffs. The music is loud and heavy and the singing style is quite haunting, but at times it was hard to decipher what was being sung because I thought the instruments overpowered the singing. The lines “thrown in the fire / thus we choke / fear the hand / around your throat” was especially chilling. “Wake Again” was not as heavy; it had more of that alt-rock somber feel. Lyrically, the message is equally solemn as the song ends — “you look in the mirror / horrified by what you see / then you turn to the bottle / stumble back to your bed / and you’re prepared / to never wake again.” “Boiling Point” is a venture into darkness. Krantz sings first and then Vrona joining him on “madness clings to me / like a stale disease.” Both the lyrics and the heavy, distorted guitar riffs have an intense and anguished nature to them, no doubt – this heavier rock metal style By Design taps into reminds me a little of Evanescence. The next song “Tic Tac” has a bouncier, lighter flare to it with a catchy bass line to start things off. But when the “sample” part to the song states the words “when you’re dealing with the terrorists, you have to take out their families” I thought…yeah, maybe not so light on the lyrics. This part and afterwards, where Vrona starts singing “come child, your voice is strong…” as the guitar riffs get darker and the tempo changes, reminded me for a brief moment of something from Tony Iommi’s Sabbath playbook. Oh yes, and for those who like rage filled scream-singing, the ending should please you. The ending song aptly titled “End Game” is perhaps the mellowest song on the EP. Vrona’s voice is better audibly here, so you can really hear the beautiful tone to her natural instrument. The guitar solo is well done and sounds great using whatever effect pedal the band used. The choice to have extra back up singing alongside Vrona was an interesting and effective choice as well. Lyrically, the tune seems to be about a painful relationship that got worse. By Design plays a great mix of the dark, rock metal with lighter alt-rock numbers giving their ‘lead balloon’ debut a lot of lift into whatever is next on their agenda.
2 Comments
Kevin
7/27/2018 05:00:39 pm
Love the album. Agreed on the vocals for the first song, everything else is great.
Reply
Rithvi
7/28/2018 09:27:58 pm
Definitely reminds me of Evanesscence, but more modern. I'll listen to the whole album!
Reply
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Critique/insightWe are dedicated to informing the public about the different types of independent music that is available for your listening pleasure as well as giving the artist a professional critique from a seasoned music geek. We critique a wide variety of niche genres like experimental, IDM, electronic, ambient, shoegaze and much more.
Are you one of our faithful visitors who enjoys our website? Like us on Facebook
Archives
May 2024
|