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Album Reviews
Now most of us know that Stavesacre isnt really "heavy" and by
no means falls under the brutal or even hXc category. But they
have such a deep history and roots in the early Christian hXc
that they can seldom be ignored. Many know that the Band's first
linup on the album friction was composes of all x-members of
Christian hxc bands. And when they first came out everyone was
buying it up like crazy. Cause if a band consists of members of
Crucified , Focused, and the Blamed then it has to be heavy
...right? Well not in this case. People found out that it wasn't
really a hXc band at all. The sound that came from Stavesacre was
really hard to put a proper label on. It wasn't emo (which too
many hXc bands have turn into), and it wasn't heavy enough to be
hXc. And also there was the fact that there was NO similarities
between Mark Salamon's vocals in the Crucified and his vocals in
Stavesacre. Now on their third album, Stavesacre has yet again a
new lineup. The only two members now in Stavesacre that are from
the first lineup is Mark, and Dirk Lemmenes.
The past two Stavesacre albums were as different from one another
as the third is from them. It seems the more time goes by the
more the music seems to have a maturity. Speakeasy is still an
album that is hard to put a finger on label-wise, but it seems to
totally throw away all the hXc labels we try to put on it. Now to
slop on a score of ten, tell you the album is great, and leave it
at that is probably not how I'm gonna convince you this album is
a ten. While this album has really brought out the mellow side of
Stavesacre, I think it's the best yet from those boys. There is
even moments of I might say poppy little parts in the mix but
everything is balanced. It seems this album is all about balance.
There is just a light hearted, laid back vibe that is really
prominent in this album. I am not a person that listens to much
emo or has many mellow albums, but this one is definitely one of
my favorite cd's. When I first got this cd, it never left the cd
player and when Im in a mellow mood there is nothing better to
give a spin. Now while I am constantly sayin this is a mellow cd,
Im not saying it is watered down. This album is FULL of passion
and emotion. there is really a maturity that comes from Mark's
vocals and you can tell he has been at for more than a few years.
The production is extremely well done, and the music is very
creative. Stavesacre still has something to offer that no one
has yet to do as good as they do. The tracks that stick out to
me are the songs Minute Man, Keep Waiting, and the highly
emotional songs Rivers Underneath, and Gold and Silver. This
album has moments where it is rockin and then it slows to a nice
slumber. There are moments of pain in the songs, and just as much
moments of joy. It seems this album pretty much couldn't be any
better than it is. This is Stavesacre at their best.
Now I have always been a big stickler on lyrics, this is where I
struggled on this album on whether I should give it a ten or not.
Openly the lyrics dont preach the gospel right out. But they are
heavily artistic. You have to read into them and figure out what
they mean to you. But in everything I see them pointing to God as
the answer to all the issues it deals with. here is the lyrics of
Gold and Silver, a very emotional ballad. This album plainly rocks
... even the brutal music fan can chill out with this one. It's a
work of art. Plain and simple.
~ Deadzine
I've been a big Stavesacre fan since they first put out "Friction."
Awesome songs like "Threshold", "Loader", and "At the Moment" are
still some of my favorite Stavesacre songs. "Absolutes" was a bit
different, but I still loved it. I can still remember the first day
I listened to it in the summer of 1997. Finally, two and a half
years later, "Speakeasy" enters into my CD player. This disc still
has the signature Stavesacre sound, but it seems to be a far cry
from the early days of "Friction." I can't really put my finger on
it though. It's way different, but extremely familiar. Anyways...I
absolutely love this CD. It takes longer to grab you than the other
two releases, but once it does, you get sucked in, and the ride is
quite delightful. They still have the heavy edge that they've always
had, they've just branched out a bit. Mark's vocals are still as
powerful as ever, and Dirk, Jeff, Ryan, and Sam do a magnificent
job of slamming out the tunes. Songs like "Minuteman" and "You Know
How It Is" rock hard, while songs like "Gold and Silver" and "Keep
Waiting" slow things down a tad. Speaking of "Gold and Silver", this
song is absolutely beautiful and the lyrics are extremely well done.
In fact, all the lyrics on this album are great. Be sure to check
them out on the Stavesacre website (www.stavesacre.com), even if you
don't buy the album. Songs like "Sundown Motel" and "Freefall" will
have you singing along hours after you've stopped playing this disc.
I don't really find any song that I dislike or that gets on my
nerves to where I hit the skip button. It just seems that Stavesacre
gets more mature and more consistent each time they release a new
album. "Speakeasy" is definitely my favorite album of the three so
far. Do yourself a favor and add this album to your collection. .
(Continue)
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