Here is a Cali band that has been performing together since seventh grade as a cover band doing Led Zeppelin tunes, now that they have matured and are seniors in high school it’s only natural that they release an album. I suppose it doesn’t hurt if your lead singer is the daughter of a famous musician like Layla “Brooklyn” Allman is. The band has been through a few personnel changes over the years, hopefully this lineup will last.
From the opening guitar riff in "Dearest (I’m So Sorry)" to the closer "Live Is Evil Spelled Backwards". Picture Me Broken crashes onto the Screamo scene with their debut full-length release Wide Awake from Megaforce Records. Winning the MTV Video Music Awards in 2009 for Best Breakout Bay Area Artist and the Purevolume Top 20 Unsigned Bands of 2009. The song Dearest (I’m So Sorry) was one of the top downloaded songs on Rock Band Network. When I first read the band bio I anticipated your typical L.A. studio band and was pleasantly surprised from the first song to the last. They may only be high school seniors but their sound is mature beyond their years.
The ten songs that make up this release are fresh and don’t suffer from a band stuck repeating the same style. With titles like "Echoes of an Empire" and "Nerds and Cigarettes", and even an acoustic/synth number, "Forevermore" thrown in for good measure. Overall the album works with Aaron Hellman producing the first track and Andrew Murdock (Avenged Sevenfold) completing the final nine however, there is a noticeable difference in sound between the two and personally I believe they should have stuck with Hellman for the entire album as he really captures their sound and emotion.
The vocals of Brooklyn range from the soft and pleasant to the over the top guttural screams that take a little getting used to if you aren’t familiar with the genre, they do however pull it off with sheer raw emotion and of course talent. The chunky riffs cranked out by Nick Loiacono on lead guitar border on amazing, along with bassist Austin Dunn, drummer Connor Lung who fill out the bands sound along with Brooklyn’s synth and vocals. This band has the potential to have an impact and hopefully they will.
This album is recommended if you like – Paramour, Evanessence, Comadre
