The Light And Hope For The Broken
The Light And Hope For The Broken
Hope For The Broken by. Convictions
Album Review
__________________________________________________________
And we're back! Time for another Music Review Blog. In this issue we have one of my most anticipated albums of the year. Hope For The Broken, by the Christian Post-Hardcore/Metalcore band Convictions from Fremont, OH. They have released two singles which I have extensively reviewed and will link to both of those down below. If you have already read those, or the previous concert blog, you will know that these guys have made record at becoming one of my top bands, if not my top band at the moment. Joining the like of Silent Planet, For Today, Fit For A King, Phinehas, and Memphis May Fire. An Elite crew of people to be among.
Like I said before, this album is one of my most anticipated of the year. We have albums coming from Fit For A King, Silent Planet, and Memphis May Fire. All of which do not have a name and release date yet. But we do know that today is the single release of "Tower Of Pain" off of FFAK's upcoming album. I will have my review up for that tomorrow. We also have Earth Groans and Beartooth working on new stuff as well. So be on the lookout for all of that coming later on this year. And of course I will have my reviews for all of those when they are released. But how am I able to have my review for this album up on release day you ask? That is because when I was at their show back on the 20th of May I saw that they were selling advanced copies of the album, and I bought one. That is another issue to discuss in a future blog post. Buying physical copies of cd's in the digital age.
Back to the album. The stands true to the name. With all songs having a hopeful message to them. Even if their words aren't a direct to you spelling of their hopeful message. Like "Deceptive Heart". Read my review of that track listed below. Overall I will say that my favorite song off the album is "Deceptive Heart". Which is unusual for me to have my favorite be one of the singles. Because normally the heavier songs or the ones with the most lyrical impact aren't released as singles. Most of the time. But this album is an exception for me. And with that being said. Let's do a brief rundown of each track before I give my conclusion on the rest of the albums content.
__________________________________________________________
1.) Exodus, The Rest Of Us - This one is is a purely faith based one. Deceived by the devil and now your true sinful desires are known by you, not just by God anymore. You can now feel guilty for them. And you know that you cannot suffice on your own, you must truly submit to the will of God, and let it be done. "Oh Lord, now let your will begin!". And this song blends directly into the next track.
2.) Deceptive Heart - Read My review of this track that speaks of the stress distance can put on your relationships. Both intimate, and spiritual. "L-O-V-E! This is going to be the death of me! L-O-V-E! You will always be my agony!"
3.) Voices (They Want Me Dead) - Paranoia and fear set in. Leaving you searching for an end to their degrading ways. Read my review of this track for my full thoughts and lyrical breakdown."(You're not good enough, you'll never be enough) Well, I've had enough so shut up! Blegh!"
4.) Divided - You get a sense that this song is a battle cry. The devil, who is seeking to bring you down is sitting on his throne and watching as you fight diligently against all of his attacks. Pitting you against your own family, friends, and allies. Too afraid to face you himself because he knows he cannot win in a one-on-one battle. And you have the Lord to remind you that you will win. He is always there. You just need to say the word, and he will bring back to the beginning where everything was fixed. "Bring us back to where we started! Back to where we fixed the broken-hearted!"
5.) We Are Violence - Oppressed by whatever is keeping you down. Doesn't matter what it is. This is a song about acknowledging and confronting the oppressive things in your life. Taking back what they/it thought that they/could take from you. Standing up and saying "You have created the violence in us. We will rise and no longer be slaves!" is a phrase that comes to mind. And it ends with a positive message of Ephesians 4:31 in the footnote reminding you that actual violence is not the ultimate answer. "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice."
6.) Feel Alive - I feel a deep personal pain in the writing of this track. It paints the image of a person who has lost their parents. People that were the closest and meant the most to the narrator. In this song the narrator is trying to suppress that pain, and bring back to life the dead they feel inside. Sleepless nights haunt them. And they want to turn to drugs to help the sleep. But their parent's deaths have left them unable to get high enough to numb the pain. Possibly their parents passed from drug use. It's not too clear to me. But that seems like a real possibility. "Did it make you feel alive, every time you took a line?"
7.) False Witness - Sinking into the depths of the ones oppressing. Judgment filling your heart with their hatefulness and torment. You call out to god to lift up from the depths of their grasp. You're tired of it all, and now you're unafraid to call out their false witnessing. And bring light to those who seek to defame the name of God. "We can't stand for this any longer! Live life stronger! Preserve His honor! Self-destructive state of mind! Lord, pull me out! Erase the doubt!"
8.) The Storm Will Pass (Ft. Chris Roetter of LMTF) - Like the title says. The storm will pass. This song speaks about the feeling of being broken. Longing for the redemption, and rest that the Lord provides. The lyrical play between the two vocalists goes on this back and forth tangent of acknowledging that there is hope and the storm will pass. But you just don't see the end of it coming anytime soon. So you think that the world might be better off if you weren't there to darken it. It also goes to mention that they footnote two verses for this song. One from the Old Testament, and one form the New. The OT verse is Psalm 69:18 "Come near me and redeem me! Because of my enemies, rescue me!", a call out by the Psalmist for the Lord to bring his presence near to him. The NT verse is Philemon 1:25 "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.". These verses add to the theme of the album as a whole. And I am living for IT!
9.) Reckless - A song that I relate to the most on this album. That is all I will say. If you are reading this, Mike, Josh, John, and Zach. Well done! Thank You! "I failed my family, and returned a mockery! A constant disappointment! I let you down! I always let you down!"
10.) To Sleep Is To Feel (Ft. JT Woodruff of Hawthorne Heights) - There is a verse quoted at the end of this song. Matthew 11:28, " Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. " It sums up the song very well. But I feel as if it could be stated at the beginning as well. This song is about the restless night that you have thinking about what you could've done differently. Weary from thinking of all the things that you most likely had no control over. In your bouts of restlessness the Lord is there to offer you the rest you need.
11.) Reverie - A delightful, and soft, 1:20s long instrumental interlude that leads you to the final two songs on this dynamic and powerful album
12.) Never Wanted It This Way - Another seemingly relationship driven driven song. Speaking about living with the ghost of her memory. Haunting the dreams. Trying to make her stay. Living as a lighthouse that has no ship to guide home. Being put through so much and receiving so little. "I'm better off on my own. I won't take you back after everything we've been through. I won't take you back! This time, I'm walking away from you!"
13.) Hope For The Broken - A song speaking of true brokenness. Things get better and then worse. But you still hold on hope to the better things coming back. A fitting song that completes the theme of the album as it stands to be a light and the hope for the broken. And that when it all falls to pieces, the Lord will be there to put you back together again. "Even when I feel my furthest, in the darkness, I will still worship! Give a voice to the unspoken! Lord, you are the hope for the broken!"
__________________________________________________________
As a whole this album is amazing! Mikes vocals are passionate and powerful. But his high screams can get a little screechy at times. Almost like nails on a chalkboard. I thought that it might have been isolated to just the second and third tracks. But it continues in a few more songs. If he continues to do them in future tracks I have no doubt that they will become another powerful tool in his arsenal of vocal tricks. Can't wait to see what he does, or doesn't do with them. But I hope he keeps them and refines them. I liked the element they brought in. Just need to make sure my ears don't bleed next time
The instrumentals provided by Zach on drums, Josh on guitar, and John on bass/backing vocals are amazing! They bring about that wonderful post hardcore sound that these guys are known for. All the while fusing some metalcore influences. John's backing vocals provide some clean inferences in to the in your face screams and tie things together in the most post-hardcore way. In the future I would like to see more of this from them. Perhaps, making the hardcore elements a little heavier. Because, while I don't personally get down in the pit, I enjoy watching the action that happens during the breakdowns.
The song that is my favorite is stated above as "Deceptive Heart". I love the overall message of it, and its secondary message. You have a classic tale of a relationship that has been put through the stress of being long distance. Also the travels have put a strain on your relationship with God. And you turn to other things/people to fill what you lack. Read my full review of this linked below. There is one song that is a little underwhelming, given its title. That song is "We Are Violence". The lyrics follow its theme but the instrumentals were not what I was expecting. A great song, but not that violence inducing instrumentals that I was looking for.
And that is going to do it for this review! If you enjoyed this please consider subscribing by email so that you received one every time that I publish a new blog post. Please share this with your friends, I have just been approved to place ads on my blog page and so the more that you visit, the more that i know that you 1.) Love this blog, and 2.) that Google will see the traffic and I will be able to see an increase in AdSense revenue. Moving me closer to becoming a full time blogger/writer. Speaking of becoming a full-time blogger/writer. You can also head on over to my Patreon page where for a low monthly subscription cost you can receive all kinds of good perks! Including reading my blog posts a day or more earlier than when I post them on here! Don't forget to follow me on Twitter, FaceBook, and Instagram for more fun content, and updates on the blog page. And I will see you tomorrow, with another blog post reviewing FFAK's latest single!
__________________________________________________________
Links-N-Stuff
__________________________________________________________
1.) Exodus, The Rest Of Us - This one is is a purely faith based one. Deceived by the devil and now your true sinful desires are known by you, not just by God anymore. You can now feel guilty for them. And you know that you cannot suffice on your own, you must truly submit to the will of God, and let it be done. "Oh Lord, now let your will begin!". And this song blends directly into the next track.
2.) Deceptive Heart - Read My review of this track that speaks of the stress distance can put on your relationships. Both intimate, and spiritual. "L-O-V-E! This is going to be the death of me! L-O-V-E! You will always be my agony!"
3.) Voices (They Want Me Dead) - Paranoia and fear set in. Leaving you searching for an end to their degrading ways. Read my review of this track for my full thoughts and lyrical breakdown."(You're not good enough, you'll never be enough) Well, I've had enough so shut up! Blegh!"
4.) Divided - You get a sense that this song is a battle cry. The devil, who is seeking to bring you down is sitting on his throne and watching as you fight diligently against all of his attacks. Pitting you against your own family, friends, and allies. Too afraid to face you himself because he knows he cannot win in a one-on-one battle. And you have the Lord to remind you that you will win. He is always there. You just need to say the word, and he will bring back to the beginning where everything was fixed. "Bring us back to where we started! Back to where we fixed the broken-hearted!"
5.) We Are Violence - Oppressed by whatever is keeping you down. Doesn't matter what it is. This is a song about acknowledging and confronting the oppressive things in your life. Taking back what they/it thought that they/could take from you. Standing up and saying "You have created the violence in us. We will rise and no longer be slaves!" is a phrase that comes to mind. And it ends with a positive message of Ephesians 4:31 in the footnote reminding you that actual violence is not the ultimate answer. "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice."
6.) Feel Alive - I feel a deep personal pain in the writing of this track. It paints the image of a person who has lost their parents. People that were the closest and meant the most to the narrator. In this song the narrator is trying to suppress that pain, and bring back to life the dead they feel inside. Sleepless nights haunt them. And they want to turn to drugs to help the sleep. But their parent's deaths have left them unable to get high enough to numb the pain. Possibly their parents passed from drug use. It's not too clear to me. But that seems like a real possibility. "Did it make you feel alive, every time you took a line?"
7.) False Witness - Sinking into the depths of the ones oppressing. Judgment filling your heart with their hatefulness and torment. You call out to god to lift up from the depths of their grasp. You're tired of it all, and now you're unafraid to call out their false witnessing. And bring light to those who seek to defame the name of God. "We can't stand for this any longer! Live life stronger! Preserve His honor! Self-destructive state of mind! Lord, pull me out! Erase the doubt!"
8.) The Storm Will Pass (Ft. Chris Roetter of LMTF) - Like the title says. The storm will pass. This song speaks about the feeling of being broken. Longing for the redemption, and rest that the Lord provides. The lyrical play between the two vocalists goes on this back and forth tangent of acknowledging that there is hope and the storm will pass. But you just don't see the end of it coming anytime soon. So you think that the world might be better off if you weren't there to darken it. It also goes to mention that they footnote two verses for this song. One from the Old Testament, and one form the New. The OT verse is Psalm 69:18 "Come near me and redeem me! Because of my enemies, rescue me!", a call out by the Psalmist for the Lord to bring his presence near to him. The NT verse is Philemon 1:25 "May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.". These verses add to the theme of the album as a whole. And I am living for IT!
9.) Reckless - A song that I relate to the most on this album. That is all I will say. If you are reading this, Mike, Josh, John, and Zach. Well done! Thank You! "I failed my family, and returned a mockery! A constant disappointment! I let you down! I always let you down!"
10.) To Sleep Is To Feel (Ft. JT Woodruff of Hawthorne Heights) - There is a verse quoted at the end of this song. Matthew 11:28, " Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. " It sums up the song very well. But I feel as if it could be stated at the beginning as well. This song is about the restless night that you have thinking about what you could've done differently. Weary from thinking of all the things that you most likely had no control over. In your bouts of restlessness the Lord is there to offer you the rest you need.
11.) Reverie - A delightful, and soft, 1:20s long instrumental interlude that leads you to the final two songs on this dynamic and powerful album
12.) Never Wanted It This Way - Another seemingly relationship driven driven song. Speaking about living with the ghost of her memory. Haunting the dreams. Trying to make her stay. Living as a lighthouse that has no ship to guide home. Being put through so much and receiving so little. "I'm better off on my own. I won't take you back after everything we've been through. I won't take you back! This time, I'm walking away from you!"
13.) Hope For The Broken - A song speaking of true brokenness. Things get better and then worse. But you still hold on hope to the better things coming back. A fitting song that completes the theme of the album as it stands to be a light and the hope for the broken. And that when it all falls to pieces, the Lord will be there to put you back together again. "Even when I feel my furthest, in the darkness, I will still worship! Give a voice to the unspoken! Lord, you are the hope for the broken!"
__________________________________________________________
As a whole this album is amazing! Mikes vocals are passionate and powerful. But his high screams can get a little screechy at times. Almost like nails on a chalkboard. I thought that it might have been isolated to just the second and third tracks. But it continues in a few more songs. If he continues to do them in future tracks I have no doubt that they will become another powerful tool in his arsenal of vocal tricks. Can't wait to see what he does, or doesn't do with them. But I hope he keeps them and refines them. I liked the element they brought in. Just need to make sure my ears don't bleed next time
The instrumentals provided by Zach on drums, Josh on guitar, and John on bass/backing vocals are amazing! They bring about that wonderful post hardcore sound that these guys are known for. All the while fusing some metalcore influences. John's backing vocals provide some clean inferences in to the in your face screams and tie things together in the most post-hardcore way. In the future I would like to see more of this from them. Perhaps, making the hardcore elements a little heavier. Because, while I don't personally get down in the pit, I enjoy watching the action that happens during the breakdowns.
The song that is my favorite is stated above as "Deceptive Heart". I love the overall message of it, and its secondary message. You have a classic tale of a relationship that has been put through the stress of being long distance. Also the travels have put a strain on your relationship with God. And you turn to other things/people to fill what you lack. Read my full review of this linked below. There is one song that is a little underwhelming, given its title. That song is "We Are Violence". The lyrics follow its theme but the instrumentals were not what I was expecting. A great song, but not that violence inducing instrumentals that I was looking for.
And that is going to do it for this review! If you enjoyed this please consider subscribing by email so that you received one every time that I publish a new blog post. Please share this with your friends, I have just been approved to place ads on my blog page and so the more that you visit, the more that i know that you 1.) Love this blog, and 2.) that Google will see the traffic and I will be able to see an increase in AdSense revenue. Moving me closer to becoming a full time blogger/writer. Speaking of becoming a full-time blogger/writer. You can also head on over to my Patreon page where for a low monthly subscription cost you can receive all kinds of good perks! Including reading my blog posts a day or more earlier than when I post them on here! Don't forget to follow me on Twitter, FaceBook, and Instagram for more fun content, and updates on the blog page. And I will see you tomorrow, with another blog post reviewing FFAK's latest single!
__________________________________________________________
Links-N-Stuff
My Links---------------------------------------
FB: @CMPMNNR
Twitter:@CMPMNNR
Insta: CMPMNNR
Patreon: CMPMNNR
YT: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCF43bvnzDy8zkQsFEIXtwPA?
Comments
Post a Comment