The Getaway Plan – Other Voices, Other Rooms

There is no secret to the Get­away Plan for­mula. Their brand of post-hardcore is one lis­ten­ers have seen and heard many times before– Saosin, Armor for Sleep, Funeral for a Friend– all musi­cally sim­i­lar to Mel­bourne, Australia’s lat­est flex­ing their artis­tic mus­cle. Yet, as you lis­ten to the band’s full-length debut Other Voices, Other Rooms, there is a dis­tinct qual­ity that sep­a­rates them from their coun­ter­parts. It’s an intan­gi­ble qual­ity, one that can’t really be described by hyper­bole, lav­ish praise, and/or writ­er­s­peak, but unfor­tu­nately, aside from actu­ally lis­ten­ing to the record, it’s the only way to say how good it is. Yes, it’s post-hardcore, and yes, it sounds a lit­tle pol­ished, but unlike other local fare (Kiss­chasy, The Hot Lies to name a few), The Get­away Plan have urgency and musi­cal chops by the bag load.

The band’s sin­gles– “Street­light” and “Where The City Meets the Sea”- are your req­ui­site, big cho­rus, chunky gui­tar type songs, and will eas­ily grab casual lis­ten­ers into the fray. How­ever, it is when the band digs a lit­tle deeper into their emo­tional pock­ets that they truly find their sym­me­try. The album’s best is the mid-tempo, soar­ing melan­choly of “New Med­i­cine (Stay With Me)”; a lovelorn ode to, from what we can see/hear, the faith in fight­ing sick­ness. Then there is the more lit­eral tale of love in “A Lover’s Com­plaint,” backed by solid melodies, and vocal­ist Matthew Wright’s tow­er­ing voice, the song is the pin­na­cle of the band’s efforts; pow­er­ful, mov­ing, yet not overly sen­ti­men­tal and/or naïve.

Whether it is delv­ing into piano-oriented com­po­si­tion (“Red Flag”), or elec­tronic land­scapes (“Trans­mis­sion”), The Get­away Plan are more than capa­ble of pulling in ele­ments of other gen­res into their own. It makes for an enthralling lis­ten, and are the facets of the album that keep it from becom­ing stale and/or over­done. Only a few years into their musi­cal careers, and these dandy gen­tle­men have more going for them than most will in an entire life­time. Stamp Other Voices, Other Rooms as essen­tial listening.

(Boomtown Records)

New artist preview: Search/Rescue

Featuring members of now defunct bands Acceptance and Gatsby’s American Dream, Seattle’s Search/Rescue come soaring through the musical skies with their piano-driven indie rock made for perfect summers and breezy autumns.

I’ve just started listening to the band’s debut full length, The Compound, and I have to say I’m quickly impressed by their hopeful melancholy- the kind of songs that seem to fit multiple seasons. If you like Coldplay or Keane, but aren’t too thrilled by their rather stagnant and drab nature, then maybe Search/Rescue is what

I Killed the Prom Queen detail final tour

As we previously suggested, defunct metalcore band I Killed the Prom Queen will indeed tour one last time before sailing off into the sunset. It’s no fizzle either— they’ve invited some big names to come down and share the stage for their final trek, including UK scenecore favorites Bring Me the Horizon, local fare The Red Shore, and The Ghost Inside for the run.

I Killed the Prom Queen will be reuniting the band along with an old friend, vocalist Michael Crafter, for the final line up. The May/June dates kick off on the 22nd and will hit a bunch of Australian cities before culminating in a pair of shows in Brisbane. You can check out the tour dates, along with

Review: The Getaway Plan – Other Voices, Other Rooms

There is no secret to the Getaway Plan formula. Their brand of post-hardcore is one listeners have seen and heard many times before- Saosin, Armor for Sleep, Funeral for a Friend- all musically similar to Melbourne, Australia’s latest flexing their artistic muscle. Yet, as you listen to the band’s full-length debut Other Voices, Other Rooms, there is a distinct quality that separates them from their counterparts. It’s an intangible quality, one that can’t really be described by hyperbole, lavish praise, and/or writerspeak, but unfortunately, aside from actually listening to the record, it’s the only way to say how good it is. Yes, it’s post-hardcore, and yes, it sounds a little polished, but unlike other local fare (Kisschasy, The Hot Lies to name a few), The Getaway Plan have urgency and musical chops by the bag load.

The band’s singles- “Streetlight” and “Where The City Meets the Sea”- are your requisite, big chorus, chunky guitar type songs, and will easily grab casual listeners into the fray. However, it is when the band digs a little deeper into their emotional pockets that they truly find their symmetry. The album’s best is the mid-tempo, soaring melancholy of “New Medicine (Stay With Me)”; a lovelorn ode to, from what we can see/hear, the faith in fighting sickness. Then there is the more literal tale of love in “A Lover’s Complaint,” backed by solid melodies, and vocalist Matthew Wright’s towering voice, the song is the pinnacle of the band’s efforts; powerful, moving, yet not overly sentimental and/or naïve.

Whether it is delving into piano-oriented composition (“Red Flag”), or electronic landscapes (“Transmission”), The Getaway Plan are more than capable of pulling in elements of other genres into their own. It makes for an enthralling listen, and are the facets of the album that keep it from becoming stale and/or overdone. Only a few years into their musical careers, and these dandy gentlemen have more going for them than most will in an entire lifetime. Stamp Other Voices, Other Rooms as essential listening.

Other Voices, Other Rooms is available now via Boomtown.

Audio stream:
“New Medicine (Stay With Me)”
[audio:http://www.soundthesirens.com/radio/soundthesirens.com_thegetawayplan-newmedicinestaywithme.mp3%5D

Stream Idiot Pilot’s “Cruel World Enterprise”

Washington electronic/rock pair Idiot Pilot will feature on this year’s Taste of Chaos tour with the likes of Atreyu and Bullet For My Valentine. The band released the record Wolves last year and are still out promoting the record. For those who haven’t heard their wares, here is a streaming cut from the album, the track “Cruel World Enterprise.”

Not bad, especially if you’re searching for a link between rock’s quieter moments and electronic music’s less twitchy subjects. Not as remotely irritating as Muse or Placebo. Stream it below

Trailer watch: Iron Man (2)

Bruce Wayne too morbid? Clark Kent too nerdy? Well, meet Tony Stark; billionaire playboy weapons designer, all-around jerk, and now, superhero badass. Those other guys can move over because the new trailer for the upcoming Iron Man movie has hit the web and holy God is it awesome.

It you needed a superhero movie trailer to give you both action/adventure, as well as an intriguing and interesting back story, that this summer’s Iron Man will do you justice. The previous trailer merely