Difficult as it's become to find positive attributes for describing most of the bands that exploit the increasingly crowded creatively incestuous and predictable world of melodic metalcore, there are still those rare occasions when really good songs and just the slightest hint of imagination can shake the vice-like grip of stagnation. Such is the case with Portland, OR's
It Prevails, who manage just the slightest bit of musical wiggle room via their songs' generally slower, mid-paced tempos, and not-so-heavy guitar attack, but generate far more significant aftershocks with the quality of their melodies and riffs. None of the music on their first album,
The Inspiration, smacks of revolution (not even close, really), but infectious album highlights like "The Distance," "Change Today," "An Anomaly," and the title cut, deliver instant sonic gratification with their textured guitar layers building hooks as high as Heaven. The band's lyrics still need plenty of work, covering typical post-emo terrain almost entirely throughout the CD, despite their mostly hardcore-inspired growls and screams (clean vocals emerging, at last, for portions of "At Least understand"). But, then again, with two short instrumentals among these ten tracks, there's also an unusual sense of economy and self-editing (or maybe just a plain shortage of material) at work here that feels somewhat refreshing in this age of excess. Here's hoping that the young members of
It Prevails (all reportedly under 21-years-old as of this recording) carry on building on their initial promise, and struggling against the constraints of their
Inspiration in years to come. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia