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Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Artist of the Day: Gatherer

It was a strange moment this year when I turned 19.  I realized that I was just as old as, if not older than, some of my favorite bands when they were releasing genre-defining albums.  Now the same age as Milo Aukerman when he went to college and introduced hardcore to juvenility, I can no longer relate to Jesse Lacey as he croons, “I want to stay 18 forever.”  Point being, people my age are more than capable of making good music, as demonstrated by Gatherer, a friend of a friend’s band hailing from New Jersey.  Though the band members are only a few years older than I am, Gatherer’s debut EP, Postcards, is as professional and tactful as any melodic hardcore release that you will hear nowadays. 

Consisting of just four tracks that combine for a total of seven minutes playtime, the EP is concise but spares no aggression, as each track reeks with fervor.  The listener is bombarded with melodic elements of post-hardcore along with rapid punk beats and a beautifully urgent vocal delivery.   Nostalgic, heart-on-sleeve lyrics bring acts like American Nightmare and Touché Amoré to mind.  Take “Wedding Bells,” the all too effective album opener, for example, which features lyrics such as, “Driving home from your nine to five, I hope you reminisce the front seats and sounds that made you feel alive.  Is this all that I have left?”  “Jones Beach,” the EP’s highlight, is another track that will tug at the heartstrings of now-grown-up punks yearning for their glory days.  Every aspect of the EP is executed with meticulous detail and unbridled emotion and, overall, Postcards makes for a brief but cathartic journey that forecasts a bright future for Gatherer. 

Check the EP out HERE (Name Your Price)
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