Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sparta are 3/5 of At The Drive-In. I'll go ahead and say it, cause it's the first thing you'll hear about them anyway. But it shouldn't be...
I went to Best Buy the other day (partly as a last resort, partly for kicks..) to look for an album I knew they wouldn't carry (the new one from Norma Jean if anyone wants to know), and saw Sparta's Wiretap Scars sitting on the rack for a mere $6.99. I remembered that I had downloaded two of their mp3's (and quite liked them), I picked up the CD and headed out the door. I love this record. It is one of the most satisfying purchases I've made in many moons. And at $6.99 (at Best Buy and Wal-Mart) and $5.99 (Target), even YOU can afford to pick it up.
"Wake Up! Can you hear me?!" The first words uttered on the album smack you right in the face. After a catchy, Brendan Canty-esque percussion intro on Cut Your Ribbon, Jim Ward lays into you with his screaming/singing vocals. The record starts out with a bang and just gets better. Cut Your Ribbon has intensity and energy, woven between the melodic bits, the awesome guitar and bass parts, and the accusatory screams of, "How can you sleep at night?!" An amazing song, and a great opener for the album.
Air is a little more melodic than the first track, but still fast and intense, with a chorus that's perfect for singing and finger-pointing along to. Hehe. Mye slows down a little. The interesting guitar work combined with rolling percussion and the once again great vocals make it one of the better tracks on the record.
Collapse is truly one of the most beautiful and musically moving songs I've ever heard. When this track came on the first time around, I sat there with my mouth open. I played it over and over. I didn't want to listen to the rest of the record for fear that it simply couldn't be as good as this song. The music itself isn't all that different from most of the other emo/indie-type bands you'd come across (it might remind you of Sunny Day Real Estate or Denison Marrs), although there are some nice keyboard and strings parts in the song. But really, it was the vocals that grabbed me by the face. Wow. My favorite point on Wiretap Scars is when he sings, "... the records turn, you'll never learn." Buy the record just for that. It's worth it. This song is melodic, intense, and emotional. It is too awesome to miss.
Sana Cosm is a catchy song, with a poppier melody than most of the other ones on this release, but with the same hard-hitting shouted vocals on the chorus. Cataract and Echodyne Harmonic slow it back down again, and alternate between clean and distorted (beautiful) guitar work, with some nice piano parts on Echodyne. The other songs on the record are moderate-tempo and melodic, with creatively-used guitar effects, and ridiculously good drums. The vocals continue to be amazing throughout.
I suppose that it's inevitable for similarities to be drawn to At The Drive-In, but I can hear other influences in Sparta's brand of rock as well. Fugazi, Milemarker, Jimmy Eat World, and (if unintentionally) Denison Marrs, among others. I think Sparta are especially reminiscent of Jimmy Eat World at times, but I won't hesitate to say their music is much better than J.E.W. Sparta are more sophisticated, musically and lyrically, as well as having a much more ... filling?... satisfying?... substantial?... sound. Basically, this album will appease the emo kids and the hardcore/punk kids. It's got enough of the soaring guitars and melodic parts for the emo kids, but isn't whiny or wimpy at all. Hardcore and punk influences are evident throughout the record, and the vocals and lyrics are intense and urgent enough to make anyone pay attention.
Buy this record, ok? Then clutch your heart and scream along.
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