Review Summary: We're past the point of adding another guitarist here....
Perennial medio-core band Inhale Exhale is pretty much known for their stubborn refusal to experiment, dabble, or in any way progress “their” sound. Characterized by thick, beefy guitar production, negligible bass and drumming all backing up some pretty decent vocals, their formula is as well-known as the formula for water. Does
Movement finally have the band try something,
anything different this time around? The short answer is no, and while they fortunately haven’t regressed in any one area, this re-re-release unfortunately creates a powerful illusion they have.
Movement is the worst kind of guitarist’s album, in that it swallows up much of the record (except the off putting kick-pedal drum) with its chunky, heavily produced sound. The sole guitarist John LaRussa is one of two redeeming qualities about this record (and band at this point). He has a knack for writing riffs but along with those riffs are just more riffs slapped together with seemingly little thought. Normally a song will have a riff for the verses, a riff for the chorus, and a riff for the eventual breakdown with nothing of substance for transitions. The guitar writing itself is shallow and serves as little more than giving a faux-heavy tone to the album with no meaning behind it. Going along with the tired music writing are some more clichés that at this point leave the listener scratching their aching heads. Things like the anthem portions in “Party Drama”, the extremely high gain used on the guitars at too many points, to the superfluous use of breakdowns,
Movement is not unlike the coelacanth, a living fossil, rife with things other bands of their ilk and age have stopped doing years ago.
The other redeeming feature of the album is the vocalist Ryland Raus who has all the raw talent one would need to be considered great but has proved time and again with his reused vocal melodies and all-around average song and lyric writing that he’ll never be considered more than pretty good. He and the band do exhibit flashes of interesting writing on more than one occasion, particularly on the intros to “Low” and the album closer “Under Sheet Stained in Blood” but soon enough LaRussa goes back to chewing up the low end of his fret board and Raus will sing and scream with the same range and variety as the previous song and that is the most frustrating thing of all.
Despite this, I find it hard pressed to call this record bad. It’s dreadfully average. Nothing veterans of the genre haven’t heard done and done better ten times over. Newcomers to the band or metalcore in general can find a lot to like about
Movement. It’s a fast, aggressive and some would find fun record. This is all it is however and unless they learn some new tricks, their stagnation will just turn into decay.
