genres: melodic hardcore
Nothing clicked the first time I listened to the singles released ahead of this album. I didn’t HATE it, but melodic hardcore is a tough sell for me unless there’s some twist. And (especially in the early tracks) Meadows’ plays things pretty much up the middle, sounding a lot like Defeater with raw guitars and yells, with perhaps a pinch more atmosphere. I did not add this album to my release calendar, nor did Spotify add it to my weekly new release suggestions. But I thought the final album art was cool and wanted to get a better look. And then I saw Kevin Klein of Valleyheart (one of my favorite bands, and very different from what I assumed of Meadows) was featured. So I figured I’d listen to that song. And since it’s the last song on what’s apparently a concept album, might as well listen to a few others for context.
That was a good call. Musically, there’s nothing revolutionary about this album, and there’s enough melodic hardcore here that if you hate the genre, you won’t like this album at all. But it’s also just diverse enough to never get boring and brings some cool things to the table that make it stand out from genre staples. (Though if you love melodic hardcore, the fact it’s worth being in conversations with those staples also makes it a valuable listen right now by itself). There’s something of the old metalcore band Life In Your Way in the alternating major/minor chord riffs that give an ambiguity to the musical emotion of many tracks in the best way possible. “The Depths” even aims at this era directly, with contrasting rhythmic punk and emo portions. Other tracks like “The Dove”, “The Answer” (the best song on the album in my opinion) or “The Beginning, The End” take a much more ethereal approach, comparable with mid-career Being As An Ocean, and this sound is perfect balancing aggression, emotion, and contemplative post-rock.
Melodic hardcore as a genre is filled with many lyrical geniuses. Defeater, Touche Amore, La Dispute are maybe the biggest names in the genre, and all excel at telling poignant narratives. More than any other heavy style, bands that want to play this style of music have a very high bar to clear. Once again, Meadows manages to exceed my expectations. Looking at the track list, I expected a retelling of the biblical Flood/Noah narrative. Normally I love a good story album, but again – tough genre, and that wouldn’t be enough to get me that excited. But that expectation is only partially true. Meadows’ does indeed use that story as the structure, but the real narrative at play is how the failings of modern humans are just as flawed as those of Noah’s time which warranted a global flood. It doesn’t beat you over the head with that comparison either, assuming listeners digging into the arc are smart enough to draw some connections on their own.
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