Full Review: Paper Route – Absence

‘Absence’ is an album that begs to be turned up and felt rather than just merely “heard”. The crunchy guitars and layered percussion demand that you be swept away in the music with the vocals filling the final piece in a puzzle that fits intricately together. ‘Absence’ is a huge step for the band giving them a presence in the mainstream, which in my option is, where they should be.

Paper Route is able to stand on their own and shouldn’t be cast in other band’s shadows but they do possess similar qualities to other huge successes such as Athlete, Coldplay, Mute Math and (only vaguely, but still mentionable) The Killers. Mostly consisting of heart pounding beats which is still deeply rooted in rock ‘n roll, Paper Route makes little reference to the past with the exception of Aerosmith-esque familiarity in “Lovers’ Anthem”.

“Last Time” is a track which busts out a digital distortion/static of sorts during its bridge marking the bands overall direction. “Gutter” mirrors, or rather, exploits the thick encompassing distortion and rawness making it a signature sound. Often the electronic programing on the songs help the ‘daydream effect’ which creates a whirlwind of sound.

“Dance On Our Graves” is two distinctive songs, connected by the lyrics which describe being held captive by the flesh but still hoping for a better day. Echoed throughout the entire album but actually spoken in “Are We All Forgotten” the line “I still believe that change can happen, though it’s hard and it happens slowly” pretty much sums up what ‘Absence’ is about lyrically. The song which was redone for this album is still relevant since the band introduced it on an EP back in 2006 and fits strangely well in the current context.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 30th, 2009 at 9:14 pm and is filed under Full Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.