Misconceptions are a bitch. The people who would get the most out of Breathe Carolina’s’ Hello Fascination, are the very same people who are probably going to write the band off as an The Secret Handshake/PlayRadioPlay! clone before they sit down and give it a fair shot. At first glance, this is just another batch of mid-tempo, overly sugary electro-pop to sate the hunger of high school girls in neon colored shirts for cute songs. But underneath the massive hooks and radio ready choruses is a hearty foundation of hardcore passion, smart lyrics, and social awareness. When your lead off track contains a record label diss reference and uses faith as a metaphor for dealing with the changes that come with life and time, that should be a pretty good indication your group has a deeper calling than TRL.

The musical side of Breathe Carolina has always been on equal footing with the vocal, and is augmented by the crisp production in all previous efforts by the band. What makes Hello Fascination work, and where it simultaneously is going to lose the band some of its more judgmental fans, is how much the band seems to have noticed this fact to. Most noticeably is the change in the way vocalist David Schmitt’ has apparently given up on straining to hit notes out of his upper range and instead focus on the lower octaves of his voice. He’s still working out the kinks and every now and then slips up and sounds a bit shaky, but it gives the parts that work a gravitas that helps pull off the more traditional rock structures.

Now, if you’re a long time fan of Breathe Carolina you’ll realize that the band did not use any sort of instruments, just vocals, background screams, and electro beats; what’s interesting is the band decided to take another approach this time around and use guitars, keyboards, & a bit of drumming on the record. Don’t be too surprised if you hear some gnarly guitar/drum work in a couple of the standout tracks.

Hello Fascination is by-far one of the best albums of the year – thus far; it is undeniably catchy, with choruses & hooks you’ll be singing & dancing along with; for weeks on end. I’ve stated this before and i’ll state it again; these guys have something special, give hello fascination a listen, I guarntee you’ll be hooked.

10/10

-Jesse

written by Jesse