Strike Anywhere-Iron Front
Bridge 9
October 6, 2009

While listening to Iron Front, I can't help but thinking I'm in the middle of a horse race. The gallopping starts right off the bat with the snare drum intro and creshendod yell that opens the album ("Invisible Colony") and doesn't stop until the melodic victory lap of "Western Scale." Everything in between is a full on sprint energy and melody wise, with Thomas Barnett jockeying a wonderful vocal performance full of sing alongs (I sing along pretty much everytime he opens his mouth) and his signature somewhat graspy but very sincere howl. The band ponies up nicely as well, flawlessly pounding through fast tempos, breakdowns, slower tempos, mid tempos, all the while keeping everything interesting.

Putting this blue ribbon album together are the backing vocals. The gang vocals, whether they be the signature shouts that fans know and love, whoahs or backing duel melodic vocals, are key to the enjoyment of this album. This is what separates Strike Anywhere from most of their peers. They have an uncanny ability to add many layers to their music while not overdoing anything, and the background vocals are a prime example of this.

With the musicians being the thoroughbred horse and Barnett being the jockey that takes home the flowers and fame, its Bridge 9 that struck gold with this album. Strike Anywhere have been on some great labels in the past, but this is their best effort yet, and the "owner" has many benefits to start reaping with Iron Front.

Written by: RF
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