36 Crazyfists - The Tide And Its Takers

There are some unique things about 36 Crazyfists, like their unusual band name (taken from a Jackie Chan movie) and the fact they hail from Alaska, which isn't known to be a music hotbed. Their sound isn't as unique, blending the melodies and breakdowns of metalcore. For their fourth CD, the band is on a new record label, Ferret Music.

The Tide And Its Takers finds 36 Crazyfists exploring more of their melodic side. There's still plenty of aggression, loud guitars and breakdowns, but the band's sound is maturing. There's a lot of melody, catchy hooks and accessible choruses. The songwriting is good, and the band mixes things up pretty well and doesn't stick strictly to the metalcore blueprint.

Vocally Brock Lindow mixes screams and melodic singing. There's a decent amount of screaming vocals, but not as many as previous albums. His melodic singing is decent, and he also does some aggressive vocals that are somewhere in between singing and screaming. Candace Kucsulain from Walls Of Jericho also makes a guest appearance.

I have a feeling The Tide And Its Takers may be polarizing with the increased accessibility and melody, but 36 Crazyfists' core sound is still intact, and it's their most diverse and well-rounded release to date.

(released May 27, 2008 on Ferret Music)