Moving Mountains - Waves

The availability of 'emo' music has become somewhat less mainstream of late. The majority of the mid-noughties' biggest purveyors of eyeliner and angsty pop-rock have long since ditched their journals in favour of splitting up (Fall Out Boy), comic-book pop-punk (My Chemical Romance) and band member musical chairs (Panic! at the Disco). Whilst Kerrang! and other such specialist outlets will continue to give them center stage, the days of music channels being bothered by glam-rock revivalists are long gone, and the scenesters have taken over. But enough pondering over my mid-teens. Moving Mountains are a New York-based foursome with a collection of TV soundtrack appearances and an even longer list of tour company; most recently supporting the North American tour of a little band by the name of Biffy Clyro.

Their second album, Waves sees the band aiming to fulfill their mission statement:

an evolving aesthetic undercurrent and a belief that a band can create an experiential vision that goes beyond music

Quite a big ask for a sophomore album.


Opener 'My Life Is Like a Chase Dream (And I'm Still Having Chase Dreams)' immediately places intrusive echoes and a nagging sense of ominosity against heavy post-rock riffs; Gregory Dunn roars in that half-earnest, half-silly Jared Leto sense of seriousness, over what is essentially a pretty conventional album opener for a post-rock band - not bad, but not going to stay long in memory. 'Where Two Bodies Lie' makes use of some slightly catchier riffs and a less sanctimonious vocal; Nicholas Pizzolato's drums breakdown around the halfway mark, and the sky-punching chorus at the third minute (complete with chiming bells) are probably its greatest redemptions. "You can't feel it any more or anything at all, stop breathing" a husky Dunn commands in 'Tired Tiger', a track almost designed for mental breakdowns in heavy rain, or something of the sort, with its persistent crashing.

A nice rhythm and more ambitious scope gives 'The Cascade' my "favourite song of the album" accolade (it's highly sought-after, you know), indulging us with cutesy tunes and a progrock approach that's exciting, if a little irregular at times. Various serious assertions are made in 'Once Rendering' ("I will never forget you some way, somehow") that verge on the wrong side of that barrier between touching and nauseating. The strings are nice, though. The first approach of screaming is seen in 'Always Only For Me' that has never particularly been an appealing trait to me. The drums are nice, though.

There's a sense that if they were slightly more mainstream and liable to put out singles to entice the 14 year old NME readers, 'Alleviate' would be that track. Direct and hasty, it has a rhythm that virtually every post-rock band has knocked out at one point in their careers (it reminds me a little of Sugar We're Goin' Down). It's again by no means bad, just not something I look for. At least 'Parts In Different Places' summons a little more in the way of distinctive vocals. 'Furnace Woods' is probably the most noticeable track on account of its twanging hooks and soft moans that give a little nod to AFI (Sing the Sorrow era (ie. good era)). The record closes a little abruptly then with 'Full Circle' that puts Dunn back in the husky-whispers-of-life-lessons mode that just irks me. A stop-start rhythm pretty ably describes the process of the album to the listener - a not always well-executed but well-intended attempt at stirring you.


At the end of the day I don't think I was ever going to be truly moved by the record given my minimal tolerance for the genre - and on that note feel free to dismiss me for not knowing a post-rock classic when I'm given one - but to me it just begs the question: does the world need another Lostprophets? Granted, nothing here is as instantly hateable as Ian Watkins' "let's engage with blog comments in petty namecalling wars" stance, but there's a repetition and lack of anything new or groundbreaking on Waves to pique my interest. There are some pleasant glimpses but they're rare.

Rating: 5/10
Highlights: Furnace Woods, Tired Tiger, Parts in Different Places, Where Two Bodies Lie
Avoid: Once Rendering, Alleviate, My Life Is Like A Chase Dream
Artwork Watch: Nondescript brown mess with lines, splashes and scratches. Yawn.