You know the sound of promise when you hear it; the X-Factor of making a successful band that can never be quite appropriated, aptly described or firmly identified. And it gives you that buzz. The Panic Division are The Militia Group’s latest hope to be ‘The Next Big Thing’ and, to be honest, they have potential. Straight out of San Antonio, Texas, their sound of ‘dark pop’ combines with a synthy rock sound and swirling, building vocals that are actually reminiscent of many a charting band. That’s probably the best I can describe the majority of this CD, but the way it fuses layered vocals over Van Halen-like guitar/synth mixes just creates an aura of electronic joy.
The only issue I have with this record, though, is that the vocals are never quite ‘up front’. By that I mean they’re always backgrounded, slightly lo-fi and preoccupied with building a gradually increasing wall of sound. I’d like a little more variation in there as at the moment it’s just a tiny bit too high on the ‘wishy washy’ scale. Having said that, what is done is done very, very well not withstanding the fact that some of the vocals themselves would not be out of place on an early 90s boyband record. Take That take note.
Title track ‘Versus’ could well be coming to a club near you soon. It has the greatest potential for singalong moments and I just love its piano-led chorus which is then shredded by some strongly produced guitar sounds. Other tracks that impress are ‘Sweet Devotion’, which sounds what The Juliana Theory would sound like if they grew some balls.
It’s obvious that the band are no stranger to hard work having secured several releases under their belt before finding shelter in The Militia Group’s stable. They’re going to need it, as the number of synthy, keyboard-driven pop-rock songs that are hitting the airwaves is increasing exponentially at the moment, and they’re going to need to stand out. This release will certainly give them a good start though, and if they can spice things up a little and play a little less safe, I can definitely see them making a significant impact upon proceedings with the shockwaves reverberating far outside of Texas.
www.thepanicdivision.com
The Militia Group
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