iForward, Russia! - Life Processes
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Forward, Russia! :: Life Processes Mute Records Reviewed on Monday, July 21, 2008 by Ben Meredith More than any band I've heard of late, Forward, Russia! has successfully brought back the emo-rock sound of the late '90s (emo before people called it emo), and add their own beautiful twist to make them something unique. The opening track, Welcome to the Moment(The Rest of Your Life), jams out right away with intricately fused guitar, bass and drums...making a point that this is a powerful album. Something along the lines of Anatomy of a Ghost, the guitars are more distorted than your average emo rock band, but it fits perfectly here.
Tom Woodhead's vocals are something to be inspired by. Somewhere between a rock and a hard place...with coaching from Antony Hegarty. Not that their voxes are similar, but there is something completely original here, especially with the high falsetto notes he hits. This is shown perfectly on Spring is a Condition, where Woodhead's vocal chords do more damage than a trash disposal.
The instrumentation is done wonderfully...placing guitars back where they belong. They stray from power chords, only using them when necessary, and work toward harmonies and powerful, streaming notes. It is also no surprise the album was produced by Matt Bayles (Blood Brothers, Minus the Bear, Mastodon, Pearl Jam), because on tracks like Don't Reinvent What you Don't Understand the harmonies and beat structure are very similar to that of early Minus the Bear or other bands like Dilute.
Every album needs a New Years Project rock/love ballad, and Life Processes delivers on that note as well with the song Spanish Triangles. It makes you want to listen to Further Seems Forever's The Moon is Down, until you realize...
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