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Revis
Places For Breathing


5.0
classic

Review

by Morning_view USER (1 Reviews)
January 14th, 2005 | 13 replies


Release Date: 2003 | Tracklist


The quintet-formerly known as Orco-regularly played packed clubs in the band's hometown of Carbondale, Illinois. Instead of feeling satisfied with local acclaim, Revis decided to trade regional success and the familiar comforts of home to share a single bedroom in Los Angeles while they pursued their dream.

" The move was a jarring experience," recalls Justin Holman, Revis front man. "We knew moving to L.A. meant that we would be starting over, but it didn't really sink in until we went from playing for screaming fans to playing for the bartender. That experience bruised our egos for a little while, but in the end it made us stronger by forcing us to take a long hard look at our music."
The young band-ages 19 to 22-weathered growing pains as Revis revisited several of its older songs and expanded their sound to include subtle atmospheric touches. "Back home we were on top and there was nothing to challenge us," says guitarist Robert Davis. "Being broke and crammed into a small room became the motivating factor for us to start writing news songs like our lives depended on it."

Revis builds upon their rock roots-driving rhythms, powerful vocals and memorable choruses-by adding spaced-out atmospherics and moody textures into the mix. Pensive lyrics and mournful chord structures give Places for Breathing an introspective feel, says bassist Bob Thiemann. "Some songs sound like they were written by someone who was sitting on their roof drinking a bottle of wine and thinking about what they've been through in their life. Its almost like someone standing at a crossroads trying to figure out which way to go."





Im a fan of 5 man bands - 2 guitars, bass, drums, and lead vocalist. Revis fits into this category, (and another alternative rock band you should check out - Greenwheel) and the sound that Revis produces is generally very good. The guitars are fresh, clean, and driving; the bass and drums are reliable in keeping rhythm; and lead singer Justin Holman has a powerful deeper range voice. But, the rating of this album is based on the band's ability to put this together in each song, so here are short reviews of Revis' songs from "places for breathing" -

1. Caught in the Rain (9/10)- Perhaps the song you heard on MTV2 or FUSE. This may be the best of the album's songs - all of the band's elements are driving till the end. Justin's deeper range voice is showcased in this song, and overall, this song just feels good.

2. Your Wall (8/10)- Opens with darker/gothic sound... This carries over to the rest of the song. Very nice instrumental work throughout. But, the weakpoint of the song is Justin's singing. He sings well, but the lyrics don't synch as well (i.e., they're weak alongside the instruments) as they could in various parts of the song. Still, this is one of the best songs for the album.

3. Spin (9/10)- Again, I'm all for the instruments. The lyrics are very nice ("you're the hand that spins my revolver around when you push me away", "in the arms of devotion, will you never find your place?") The bridge features some funky fresh guitar play, too. Justin displays some major energy when he yells "gun!" in the bridge. And the end caps off the song, with some well-interlaced lyrics between the last lines of the refrain.


4. Seven (8.5/10)- Features a nice midtempo acoustic guitar throughout the song. The lyrics are fine, and Justin's voice is great for most of the song. But, in the part of the refrain "I hope you come up to heaven right now," Justin uses full energy each time he sings it, when ideally he could save it for the last refrain. Still, a great song! can't complain about the guitars, either ^_^

5. Straight Jacket Labels (8.5/10)- The title grabs you, and Revis backs it up. The instruments are fine, Justin's vocal performance is very good, but the lyrics sometimes suggest generic alternative rock.... Also features some nice guitar segments... I believe Revis uses textural electronics to produce some of these neat guitar effects.

6. Living Rooms (6/10)- Tsk, tsk.... This could have been an excellent, emotional, driving mid-album single.... Instead, we get a song that's plainly too short, could use better refrain development (i guess its a refrain, its used only like 2.5 times...). The song just doesn't meet its potential... When Justin sings "Go inside, I'm comin' through~" there is a great deal of energy, and it appeals right to your intuition. The song is under 3 minutes, and the limited timeframe hampers the song too much. When I heard the opening acoustic sequence, I thought I would really like the song...

7. Reuse (8.5/10)- I love bands who advocate recycling. Revis lives up to its environmental responsibilities in Reuse.... Just kidding. Another song opening up with acoustic, but also features nicely added piano play. The lyrics and singing by Justin are pretty good; in the refrains, the songs sounds Nickelback-ish, and the end has an epic/grand quality about it. Very nice.

8. City Beneath (9/10)- Alright! Revis gets its ki/ chi/ spirit flowing again like in "caught in the rain". Has similarly pleasing qualities as from "caught in the rain". This song anchors the end of the album.

9. Everything After (6.5/10)- This song just doesn't rub you the right way. Justin's vocals are stretched thin, and the lyrics are generic and partially incoherent. Well that's enough about this one....

10. Places for Breathing (7.5/10)- Nice acoustic play alongside Justin's lyrics at the beginning work well. But the refrain, Justin should tone down his voice or something. Sounds like he's trying to reach too high in some parts.... That's very distracting in this song. But overall, the album's namesake isn't too bad. Especially the end, when Revis picks up the electric guitar again and Justin sings much, much better.



11. Look right through me (8/10)- It's listed at 6 minutes, but the first 2;15 only is song and music... then there is a pause, and about 30 seconds later, the music picks up again. The first 2:15 is very nice, with good song alongside the strumming of the acoustic. Sounds eerie in parts, with something like ghost wailings in the background... The last 3 minutes or so of instrumental is nice, very slow, soothing, with an occasional beat tossed in. Some may not like this track, but its a nice showcase of range of ability. ...

Excellent from start to finish. Kind of a neo-classic rock sound with a Radiohead / Coldplay vibe thrown in. For 19-22 years old their musicianship, lyrical depth and assured vocals are astounding. They need to develop and refine this distinct sound and continue down their own path to hit the 'big time' on the next album.
5/5


user ratings (73)
4
excellent
other reviews of this album
thejon93rd (5)
A marvelous debut that will become a treasure to anyone who newly discovers it....

riffariffic7 (5)
An underrated rock classic in every regard....



Comments:Add a Comment 
Zmev
January 23rd 2004


983 Comments


Good review, City Beneath and Caught in the Rain are great songs

Deftones_111
February 21st 2004


2 Comments


great cd.

cheesepuff
April 21st 2005


15 Comments


This album is tied to some of the best and worst memories of my life and quite frankly, I turn into an emo bitch every time I hear a song off of it, I loved it before, and still like it now.

grungeguy88
November 3rd 2006


788 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

These guys rock. Caught in the Rain is maybe the best 3rd wave post grunge song I've heard. These guys will get big if they progress.

|rdm|
February 25th 2007


5 Comments


good cd, has a few pretty nice tracks.

Captain North
May 20th 2008


6793 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

Love this CD. Seven deserved a 10/10 though. My all time favourite song (by anyone).

Acey
August 13th 2008


2578 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

Spin is the best song on here......followed by Caught in the Rain.....not a bad CD considering how short it is

TheImpervious
September 18th 2008


61 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

Weak review, Tbt's are almost always too boring to read all the way through. But it's your first, so I guess it's a trial by fire. Totally disagree with everything you had to say about Jusin's voice in places. His powerful performance (drawing parallels to Brandon Boyd but with more balls) is what makes this album more than just another piece of mainstream rock fodder.

ShatteredSoul
March 14th 2009


110 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

Catchy as hell. I enjoy the vocals as they are layed down very powerfully. It's a shame their road had to be so short.

NastyVJ
March 22nd 2010


17 Comments

Album Rating: 3.0

Not a bad effort. Thought the production was a little patchy but the songwriting showed great promise. Shame it all came to nothing in the end....

Captain North
June 16th 2010


6793 Comments

Album Rating: 4.5

They're coming back, fuck yes! I might write another review for this just to (hopefully) get them some attention in the lead up.

Cipieron
March 26th 2012


3508 Comments

Album Rating: 4.0

still love this album. has there been any word on when 'do we have to beg?' is coming out?

Kalopsia
October 27th 2017


3384 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

dang, hard nostalgia for these guys.

Caught in the Rain is still a monster jam



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