BAND: FROM FIRST TO LAST
ALBUM: FROM FIRST TO LAST
PRODUCED BY: JOSH ABRAHAM
ENGINEERED BY: BRENDAN O’BRIEN
LABEL: SURETONE/UNIVERSAL
RELEASE DATE: MAY 3RD 2008

Their Bio Reads:
From First To Last are back with there self-titled Suretone Records debut, a defiant statement which stands as the bands most self-assured work to date. Guitarist Matt Good assumes vocal duties and his powerful delivery combines with the bands melodic strength and musical musicle to drive songs like “World’s Away” and “We All Turn To Dust”.

Produced by Josh Abraham (30 Seconds To Mars, Slayer and Velvet Revolver) and mixed by Brendan O’Brien (Rage Against The Machine, Stone Temple Pilots and Pearl Jam), From First To Last, elaborates on the bands existing punk musical aggression, with intricate song arrangements and melodic minded choruses. They have toured along side Fall Out Boy, Story of the Year, and the All-American Rejects.

Behind The Amps is proud to bring you a track by track review of From First To Last’s Self Titled album

Track 1: Two As One
First thing I noticed about the song, is the great musicianship, I really like the off time beat on the drums meshing with the chugging guitar. To me the song comes across as being about missed opportunity with a relationship, and wishing you could have changed something about it.

Track 2: The Other Side
This is a really blistering song, it just goes right for the throat and doesn’t let it up. This band really has a lot of power and it comes across with lyrics like “Swimming in a sea of green, nothing ever changes in this asshole scene”. Vocalist Matt Good really has some things to purge on this song, and he makes sure he does it.

Track 3: Worlds Away
A bit more of a mellower track, but not to say it still doesn’t have balls. There is a lot more of a melodic approach to the song as opposed to the first two tracks, with a little more harmony work. I think that drummer Derek Bloom really shines on this song, and drives the song home. I really like this song, and think it would fare well if it were released as a single

Track 4: We All Turn Back To Dust
This song has some really cool dynamics in it. You get taken from mellow/melodic moments, to some heavy riffs, and then some absolute brutal stuff.  But in saying that the band don’t let that stop the musicality, with some really awesome guitar/bass and drum work.

Track 5:  Medicinal Reality
A song to remind people to go for what they want in life, before it ends up passing you by. The guys really drive the message home and when you hear lyrics like “free from the womb with only a name, make something of yourself, before you’re made a slave, ‘cause life will not wait, the suns gonna rise anyway”, it makes you realise that we don’t have long in this life and we should make the most of it.

Track 6: A Perfect Mess
The bass of Matt Manning really drives this song, which is a song about a failed relationship, or really a relationship that never got off the ground. There is some really great haunting vocals on this one, with some cool effects that swim in and out. Again the band shows a lot of power on this song.

Track 7: Tick Tock Tomorrow
“Everything’s got to burn to get back to its purest state” the band says. Its hard to tell wether they want to be cleansed of there past or they are just unsure of what the future may hold. I can say one thing about there future, if they keep putting out music like this, with the right push, I can see a lot more coming from From First To Last

Track 8: Deliverance!
Deliverance! Is a song that conveys s few different emotions, with a funky style verse with jangling guitars, leading up into a full screaming chorus, and then out to a melodic bridge style section after the chorus. You really don’t know where its going to take you, and the way the song builds really keeps you guessing. I really enjoyed this song because of that.

Track 9: I Once Was Lost But Now Am Profound
A nice quick punk styled song with some furious drumming once again. Although the band pushes a lot of power, they still remain quite melodic with there vocals, and don’t push the scream-o vocals over the top like a lot of bands do. They use it as a way to get there message across and that’s really it.

Track 10: Be-Headed (Marathon Man)
This song remind me a lot of Panic At The Disco, and I think fans of Panic will really get into From First To Last, as they have a lot of catchy melodies and hooks, but still deliver the punches when they need to

Track 11: In Memorium In Advance
This is a really cool mellow acoustic styled song, and it is delivered with a lot of emotion. And it’s the perfect way to close this album, because its so different to the rest of the album, and really brings it to a close effectively with the words “Who Will Remember Me”.

From first to last will really appeal to people who are fans of bands like Panic at the Disco, Fall Out Boy, as well as a lot of heavier bands as well. The band shows differing styles from punk, to metal, to emo, to rock. So I think anyone who likes good driving music, should give From First To Last a listen

8/10

BAND MEMBERS
Matt Good: Vocals, Guitar
Travis Richter: Guitar, Vocals
Matt Manning: Bass, Vocals
Derek Bloom: Drums

LINKS:

http://www.fromfirsttolast.com

http://www.myspace.com/fftl