Artist: Yellowcard
Album: Paper Walls
Label: Capitol Records
Purchase: InterPunk
Release Date: July 17th, 2007

Overall: 8.0
Music: 8.5
Lyrics: 7.0
Production: 7.5

Don’t call it a comeback… or maybe you can. With 2003’s smash hit Ocean Avenue catapulting Yellowcard into the mainstream culture. It’s follow up, last years Lights and Sounds, which fell upon deaf ears and eventually was chalked up as a commercial failure. This in turn subsequently took the band out of the spotlight and back to the drawing board. Not even 10 months after the release of Lights and Sounds Yellowcard headed back to the studio to begin writing their next record. What emerged from those sessions was the captivatingly titled Paper Walls, a narrative opus of raw emotion, hope, healing and self-discovery. The record showcases the group at their absolute best, with a thorough display of energy, passion and force on each song.

Artist:Saosin
Album: Saosin
Label: Capitol
Purchase: Smartpunk
Release Date: September 26, 2006

Overall: 8.5
Music: 9.5
Lyrics: 7.5
Production: 9.5

Saosin.

Many speak of it, most have heard it, but only a handful live it. For those who’ve been there from the start, the name alone invokes nearly half a decade of music subculture. From the quiet infiltration of Translating the Name, to the departure of Anthony Green and the ultimate ushering-in of Cove Reber, to the Capitol signing and leaked internet demos, until now, the self-titled full length on a major label.