Living With Lions – Make Your Mark

Before MySpace came around the best way to discover bands was to look at the bands you already love. You’d look at the band’s tour schedule and see who they’re playing with. Chances are that if they’re on the same bill together, they have something in common and you may like them. Now that ideology isn’t quite as prevalent, however its still there in the roots of it; only now MySpace makes it easier to check out the bands that you want to hear about.

That’s what I did when I found out that A Wilhelm Scream were coming back to Edmonton with a band I have never heard before. The band was BC’s Living With Lions and curiosity got the best of me so I headed to MySpace. It turned out they were releasing a new album that week and the full CD was streaming on the band’s site, I immediately loved it and have been listening to Make Your Mark since then (although now I listen to the CD instead of MySpace).

You see, the old ideology worked for me as Living With Lions‘ Make Your Mark sounds awfully similar to A Wilhelm Scream‘s Mute Print. Of course, there are distinct differences, but the similarities are still evident as they blast out eleven tracks of melodic hardcore madness. The guitar work is intricate and fast with a driving melody that gets your blood boiling and fists pumping. The vocals are walking the line between singing and screaming, teeming with passion and being supported by the right amount of background vocals that entice you to sing along. There’s equal amounts of pure adrenaline paired off with more emotional aspects with songs that tell stories about life as a touring punk band. The lyrics don’t have the americana tinge of The Gaslight Anthem but are still able to create a sense of comfort through simplicity and honesty. They are stories of friendships, punk ideals, adventures, wandering the streets and just hanging out doing nothing. Pair that with the passionate vocals that, as I said before, entice you to sing along and you’re set for a good time. In some ways it’s the same as Lifetime‘s Monday Morning Airport and that’s saying something.

This album may not see tons of repeat plays but it will see a fair amount of air time. There’s just something about it that keeps me coming back. Maybe it’s the merger of A Wilhelm Scream and Broadway Calls with a tinge of Lifetime or maybe it’s just the fact that it’s sincere, it’s fun, it’s energetic and it’s pure punk rock at its best. Either way, you can’t help but imagine the pure bliss that would happen as you scream along with them in a crowded basement or skate park somewhere…