Sporting a much more harsh guitar and drum-heavy mix, the third release of Switzerland's
Favez is uniformly strong, though not necessarily as impressive as their sophomore outing. Gone is the
Radiohead-derived sound that made up A Long Sad Ride on the Line, as lead vocalist Chris Wicky's soft croon has turned more expressive and passionate as the band moves closer to falling under the banner of emo. Still, it's debatable as to whether this sound actually carries as much emotional weight as their previous work. Ultimately, the ten tracks run a little thick, with few songs breaking from the pack. An exception, the lonely solo piano of "The Grey Room" probably conjures as much tension as all the guitars and drums combined. No doubt, with
Gentlemen Start Your Engines Favez has moved another step closer to finding their own sound, and one can hardly penalize them for that. ~ Matt Fink