Life In Your Way - Kingdoms
Rating
RIYL
August Burns RedHundredth
Misery Signals
Release Date
10/25/2011
Label
Self ReleasedTracklist
The Kingdom of Man01. Forever
02. Blind in Retrospect
03. Growth in Passion
04. Forsaken Me
The Kingdom of Darkness
05. Ruler of the Air
06. Take Notes
07. Swarm
08. Buried Idols
The Kingdom of God
09. Induction
10. Who I Am
11. Like a River
12. The Healer
13. The Ascension
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It’s official: Life in Your Way are back, and it’s like they never left. After Waking Giants topped 2007’s end of the year charts, the band, melodic hardcore giants in their own right, went on an indefinite hiatus and left a gaping hole in their wake. So it’s no wonder that in April when the band announced that they would be not only reuniting, but self-releasing a three-EP collection called Kingdoms via Kickstarter, fans were falling over themselves to donate to the worthy cause. Life in Your Way ended up meeting their goal of $12,500 in just 3 days, eventually raising roughly double their goal, and after a long summer, Kingdoms finally dropped on Tuesday. Kickstarter backers already have their copies (it’s beautiful), and the three EPs can be bought together any time. What’s more remarkable is that thanks to their Kickstarter campaign that eschewed a traditional label release, Life in Your Way are giving away their new EPs in staggered releases. Those who don’t want to spend the money (or pirate), will be able to download The Kingdom of Man from Come and Live, proving that you don’t have to be Radiohead to give your music away and not end up destitute.
The big question is, of course, did the fans get what they paid (or didn’t pay) for? While it’s been four years since their last official release, Life in Your Way haven’t lost a step. In fact, Kingdoms is easily the most musically diverse effort the band has produced; but not in the gimmicky, intensely separate sense that holds back Thrice’s The Alchemy Index or The Dear Hunter’s The Color Spectrum for many listeners. The three EPs: The Kingdom of Man, The Kingdom of Darkness, and The Kingdom of God, though each is a unique musical beast, have the distinct feel of being one coherent Life in Your Way release and not just an experiment in form. This of course invites us to question, then, why even split the thirteen songs into separate EPs when they’d fit on one album, as neither The Alchemy Index or The Color Spectrum would. It’s probably an interesting discussion too, but I think launching into a discussion of The Kingdom of Man will probably be a more rewarding use of everyone’s time.
The Kingdom of Man careens out of the gate with Josh Kellam at the reigns, his undeniably unique screams breaking the silence of four years, “Forever! The concept is heavy, the truth about it so hard to grasp. This place, my will, words, decisions are here and now, but I will never hold onto forever!” Despite the heavier leanings of “Forever,” the band’s signature melody isn’t lost on “Blind in Retrospect” or “Growth in Passion.” Both songs have choruses so infectious they should be quarantined. Musically, The Kingdom of Man is, fittingly, the middle ground between The Kingdom of Darkness and The Kingdom of God. But the greatest difference between the three EPs isn’t musical—it’s actually the lyrical content and, to a lesser extent, the tone. The Kingdom of Man is rife with proclamations of strength and resolution in the face of weakness, though many lyrics are inquisitive, “Bound by the things we’ve done, is there hope for change? This love it cannot be contained, I see growth in passion, I have passion for change.” However, the final track of the EP, “Forsaken Me,” is riddled with doubt, “Will you speak to me? Is there more? There must be more...” The song darkens considerably and draws to a close with Kellam shouting, “Purpose, drive me on! Overthrow! Purpose, drive me on! Purpose, renew...” A perfect musical and thematic segue into The Kingdom of Darkness.
“Darkness!” it begins, “I thought I knew who I was.” On the second EP of Kingdoms the melodious leads the band are known for take a backseat to oppressive heaviness and a series of East Coast-rattling breakdowns, just as the lyrics which were once teeming with hope now speak of struggle and pain. Kellam screams, “Darkness will... Steal! Kill! Destroy!” and, on “Swarm,” he compares the swarming darkness to a plague of locusts that “will eat your flesh, drink your blood, and crush your humanity!” Despite the musical tone change, The Kingdom of Darkness stagnates. “Ruler of the Air” manages to set itself apart, and “Take Notes” breaks off a few promising guitar riffs, but “Swarm” and “Buried Idols” end up blending together, until the latter track comes to a full rest and is injected with a heavy dose of groove, but in direct contrast to the previous, well-executed musical and thematic transition, “Buried Idols” limply fades into silence.
The Kingdom of God begins with “Induction,” a minute-long monologue, cataloging all the various and sundry, even salacious, individuals who are welcome in God’s kingdom, the message being, quite simply, “The Kingdom of God is for everyone.” There’s an acute attention to alliteration and repetition, good rhetorical devices, but the writing ultimately feels haphazard and ham-fisted. Though, if nothing else, it’s passionate and real.
Despite the lack of transition out of The Kingdom of Darkness, the lyrics that begin The Kingdom of God proper speak of progress and salvation, “This, is who I am! ...Now called a son, I’ve been set free from the slavery of sin. And when I fall, I stand in the face of darkness and I say: This, is who I am!” Musically, The Kingdom of God might be the closest in spirit to Waking Giants. On this EP the band pays a great deal of attention to anthemic, almost hymnal sung sections, the first of which comes right on the heels of the limp fade-out that ended the last EP. “Who I Am” builds itself into a chorus of gangs proclaiming, “This is who I am, all I’ve been and who I’ve become. This is who I am, who I am, I’m a son!” To say that The Kingdom of God is the most spirit-filled and uplifting EP on Kingdoms would be an understatement.
But don’t think that The Kingdom of God is a round of “Kumbayah” around a campfire. “Like a River” brings back the heaviness in a big way, and despite the clean chorus and massive gang chant, the band drops a breakdown the kingdom of darkness can probably feel as Kellam shouts, “Flowing, like water! Streams, of living water! Putting! Out! Deadly! Fires!” “The Healer” follows, and it may just be my favorite track. On top of the great leads and nimble drum work, the lyrics exude a power even the most secular can appreciate, “By His stripes we are healed, by His spirit we can heal the sick, raise the dead, and cleanse lepers, cast out demons. With a confessing tongue and a mustard seed, we can move the earth!” The song is mostly sung, but the ending is of epic proportions, combining cleans, gangs, and screams into a swirling surge of warmth.
Kingdoms closes with “The Ascension.” Kellam sits the song out, and lilting cleans and waves of picked, delayed guitar take over. This final song is once again full of questions, as in “Forsaken Me,” but instead of falling into despair, this time, the song ends with, “And when we call upon Your holy name, hell can’t stand against the power in us,” and an optimistic, instrumental drift that carries Kingdoms to a close. It is a poignant, transformative final line to an ambitious release. While I think a few songs could’ve benefitted from some further development, despite its short writing cycle, Kingdoms feels like a complete and unified release. There’s real passion and heart behind the lyrics, and the music exudes drive and progression. In Kingdoms, Life in Your Way have released their most intensely spiritual album yet, but they have backed up their message with instrumentation so tight and developed that it doesn’t feel like just a Christian album. It feels like a passionate and literate melodic hardcore album with a much broader appeal. Life in Your Way are back, with a message, and a purpose, and won’t be denied.
--Zach Roth
Comments
Minnesota
Consider me highly impressed by this album. I was not expecting a lot and didn't think it could live up to Waking Giants (which it doesn't, but it gets damn close) but what I heard was actually pretty stellar.
Find me EVERYWHERE:
Baton Rouge
Hey, Zach, don't call The Alchemy Index gimmicky...I'll cut you.
Boobs
http://thenicsperiment.blogspot.com/
Charlotte, NC
love, love, love it!
"There must be more to this"
follow me, like me:
Fishers, Indiana
haha. No regrets! I had a line in there originally that backtracked that comment a bit. I don't consider my use of "gimmicky" as derogatory. I love both The Alchemy Index and The Color Spectrum.
Like I said, the big difference here is that Thrice and TDH produced splintered experimentations of their respective sounds that weren't necessarily reflective of the source material, whereas LIYW created three separate EPs that can cohere and don't feel like experimentations. This is a false comparison in some ways, because we're looking at bands with different purposes-- it's more of an observation.
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Baton Rouge
Yeah, in all seriousness, good stuff and good review. Haven't had the chance to give it more than two listens, but I have definitely been enjoying it, and I'm looking forward to listening more.
Boobs
http://thenicsperiment.blogspot.com/
Fishers, Indiana
You're right, but I think they did a great job of musically distancing themselves from Waking Giants while still keeping true to their roots. That album was not gonna be easy to follow.
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Baton Rouge
Yeah, I got you. These EP's are definitely cohesive in a different sense, and I dig that the main difference is lyrical tone. I've just been wanting to tell someone I would cut them, and this seemed like a good chance. I guess I'll cut someone else.
Boobs
http://thenicsperiment.blogspot.com/
Mustard seed! Thanks, sounds better than mustard scene. Great disc, and I'm Jesus-impaired.
I'm going to have to give these guys a listen.
Fishers, Indiana
Mustard hipsters only use French's Yellow. Brown deli-style is so pretentious.
And yeah, I'm an unabashed atheist, but I dig what they've done. It's classy and passionate, and celebrates their faith without being hokey or looking to convert.
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Fishers, Indiana
Nah, I can't think of a better scenario in which to cut someone than over a Thrice diss.
Top Albums: 2011 | 2010 | 2009 || Tumblr | Twitter
Claremont, CA
this album is utterly fantastic, and truly inspirational and powerful from a Christian perspective...i've only listened once, but loved every second of it.
Great review, duder.
Reno, NV
Kingdom of Darkness is my favorite of the three. Its good stuff, not close to being in my top ten or even 20 for the year, but good. Like Zach said it doesn't come across as too preachy or hokey, which I can respect from a Christian band. And if I did believe in God, after hearing Induction, I might think twice about wanting to make it into the Kindgom of God as it doesn't sound like a very nice place.
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