Album Review: The Almost - 'Fear Inside Our Bones'

It's been a long time between drinks for Florida's The Almost. After they finished touring on the back of 2009's 'Monster Monster', they became relatively quiet, aside from the odd whisper of a new album “coming soon” since mid 2011. After a long wait, which included the album release being push back mere days before the expected release, 2013 has seen the release of their latest album, 'Fear Inside Our Bones.'

From the opening notes of 'Ghost,' the difference in sound quality from previous releases is incredibly obvious, with the band having tried out analog recording for this album, a decision, which has aided their decision in a very big way. The new recording style has given the band a far darker, grittier, and more intense sound than they've had on previous records, and it only serves to do good for them.

The album has some very strong moments on it. Opening track 'Ghost' is a fantastic starting point, with an uplifting chorus that is bound to be well received by fans of the band, with songs such as 'I'm Down' and title track 'Fear Inside Our Bones' featuring similarly uplifting phrases, with vocalist Aaron Gillespie injecting more personality and genuine emotion into any one song than many singers would throughout their entire career. However, the strongest point of the album is found in 'The Florida Sun,' a song that sees the band expanding and experimenting with different soundscapes, and a more stripped back sound, with some very cool and interesting rhythmic sounds going on in the background.

Towards the middle of the album, however, the material starts to become a little less engaging for a few songs. 'Never Be Like You,' 'Come On,' and 'Fight Song,' while all being decent songs in their own right, just don't seem to bring anything new or anything particularly exciting to the table. They evoke plenty of emotion, and bring plenty of great imagery to your mind, but it's all been done before, and thus these songs could quite easily at times, become a chore for listeners of the album.

All that said, the album takes off again for the last four tracks, 'I Won't Let Go,' 'So What,' 'Love Is Coming Down,' and 'Lonely Boy.' These tracks all feature some pretty interesting stuff, with lead guitarist Dusty Redmon taking something of a back seat, while still bringing some pretty great sounds out in the background. However, one can't talk about these tracks without focusing on the work of the rhythm section, particularly bassist Jon Thompson, who makes his debut recoding with the group on this album. The songs 'So What,' and 'Love Is Coming Down' both feature fantastic work on the bassline, both driving and carrying the song at certain points, proving to fans that he is not only a worthy addition to the band, but a strong improvement to the lineup as well.

When everything is said and done, 'Fear Inside Our Bones' is a pretty great album. Aside from the brief dip in the middle, it's a very well done record. One can only hope that this won't be the last we hear from The Almost, and that they'll continue to provide things even bigger and better in the future.