Blinded Black – Under The Sunrise

Unless you’re from St. Louis, the chances that you’ve heard of Blinded Black are slim; but the band wants to change all of that. With a newly signed contract to SideCho Records and a newly recorded eleven track album, Blinded Black are prepared to take a step outside of the Missouri boundaries; and Under The Sunrise will let them do just that.

While not necessarily the most innovative or creative sound, Blinded Black are able to do something that many bands fail at: they can keep your interest. Presenting a sound reminiscent of the likes of Senses Fail and Hidden In Plain View, Under The Sunrise is an impressive and consistent release. The vocals are strong; with singing vocals that are a little less nasally than Buddy Nielson and screaming vocals that sound similar to their St. Louis brethren in Story Of The Year the band is able to create a deep contrast in sound without become cheesy or overbearing. It’s only really on Time Is All We Got that the vocals falter as they go for a lower, more melodic and poppy sound instead of the harsher emo sing/scream style that they seem to have nearly perfected on the remaining ten tracks.

Even though the vocals are able to keep the album afloat, it is the unusual addition of a keyboard that really makes Under The Sunrise so interesting and complete. Taking melodies from pop-punk kings Motion City Soundtrack, the band is able to somehow fit in distorted keys throughout the album. It is this little addition that helps them break away from the mold of the emo/screamo band and really stand out – and it works, because other than that, Under The Sunrise is your pretty basic emo album with super slick production and solid breakdowns.

Lyrically, they follow the vein of Nielsen and Senses Fail too, with darker imagery and songs about depression,love and relationship. They aren’t written quite as good, but written in such a way that the listener can easily connect to it and feel the emotion behind them.

Really, Blinded Black are on the right course to break into the mainstream. It’s a solid emo album with a tinge of keyboard added for extra measure; and whatever they lack in creativeness, they make up for in pure cohesiveness. It flows, it’s entertaining and is a complete album from front to back. If they had released it five years ago, it would’ve sent them spiraling into fame and onto the top of the scene. With it being released now, the band will have to work that much harder to be heard – but they will be heard, because the album deserves to be.

And yeah, Senses Fail fans will love it.