Sleep Bellum Sonno- Judge Us By How We Lived Our Lives Not By How We Made Our Living (Mon, 19 Oct 2009 Posted at 08:00:00 AM)
Sleep Bellum Sonno- Judge Us By How We Lived Our Lives Not By How We Made Our Living (Self-Released)
Concept records historically seem to be hit or miss. For every life changing concept disc like 'Zen Arcade' there are handfuls of efforts that fall short of being anything but mediocre. New York's Sleep Bellum Sonno's 2nd effort is a concept album that makes it mark a lot closer to 'Zen Arcade' than mediocrity, churning out nearly an hours worth of captivating and compelling fiction over layered, moody, guitar driven tracks.
Telling a story about a husband/father leaving his wife and two sons behind through the eyes of twelve different characters, 'Judge Us By How We Lived..' is understandably an intense, cathartic and detailed listen. As the songs pass they take on different perspectives of the story from each character, sometimes being somewhat autobiographical accounts from the band, though in the end still rooted in fiction after being pieced together from different lives.
Musically this is just as intense as it is lyrically, as the band builds layers upon layers of songs of angular post-hardcore that blend noise and melody is a way that leaves the listener enthralled and unsure of what to expect with each passing song. Pushing and pulling between delicate and brash, the band seemingly is on the cusp of exploding at any given moment but are just as likely to retreat into hushed meandering as they are to light the fuse, making for a dynamic, compelling listen.
Though the disc is one long story- often referencing other characters from previous songs- the songs hold their own without having to be part of the disc in its entirety. Moving away from the usual 'Long Island Sound', these New Yorkers are playing brooding, emotive and raw post-hardcore. Amazingly, this was recorded live but you'd never know it from listening to the disc; the sound here is of studio level, the musicianship kept together so well.
For fans of: Fugazi, Sparta, At The Drive- In, La Dispute, mewithoutYou
