I am the Door - Frequency

In the car to Lincoln I decided to bring along a few new CD’s to review to pass the time and one of the most attractive looking was I am the door’s new album, ‘frequency’. 90 miles an hour down a motorway is possibly not the best way to listen to this one as it certainly isn’t driving music (see papa roach - infest or fony - circles but then I like the heavy stuff) but it’s a new way for me so lets give it a go.

I am the door come from Bristol and are signed to Sugar shack records . This is their first full length album and is released October 16th 2006.

Lets start with my most important concern with any band, the vocals.

Justin Percival is definitely different from your average new trend vocalist, unfortunately it’s not in an appealing way. The majority of the time it sounds like he’s voice is breaking, jumping through the high pitched notes at the same sounding like he’s about to cry. This is especially prominent in ‘Why we disappear’. He can sing, and this is a style adopted by others but it’s not especially appealing (to me at least) . The whining element to the vocals could perhaps be sorted with a better post-mix of the tracks as they seem a little to loud.

The music otherwise is quite interesting, elements of incubus appear in Where do you want to be? for example, and do so without being a rip off. Sometimes small outbursts of Glassjaw like delivery of vocals (never a bad thing) appear out of nowhere. All in all there is very little depth and is essentially what it is, an album from a band that have a lot of work yet to do.

Keep an eye on them, there is the potential, it’s just not there right now.

Track list 1. Why we disappeared 2. What do you want to be? 3. Shine Through 4. Does it mean something? 5. Tomorrow Belongs to Us 6. Good to cry 7. You are 8. Something Beautiful 9 .Make yourself strong