Emery - The Weak's End
Label: Tooth and Nail Records
Style: Screamo, Alternative, Emo
Released: 2004
My Grade: 4 stars
AMG: 2.5
Sounds like: Underoath, Nora, From Autumn to Ashes



The Weak’s End is one of my favorite albums… now. This is one of those albums that grows on you. I bought the CD expecting to like Emery. I loved Walls, the first single off the album, and had heard only good things about the band. But when I picked up the album, I found that the rest of it was a little different than the single. This isn’t a bad thing, it just kinda threw me off, I didn’t listen to it for a few days, and kinda left disappointed. Boy was I missing out. About a week later I dusted it off and popped it back in with a more open mind and was blown away. The album is great, and really isn’t that different than the single, I just had a bad preconception of their sound in my head. The more I listen to it, the more I hear, and the more I like.

The CD opens with “Walls”, a song that goes from harsh screams to soft singing quickly and relatively seamlessly. This kinda sets up the mood for the rest of the album. Emery’s music is abrasive and lucid at the same time. There is a fair share of harmonies, dreamy guitar parts, jazzy interludes, and emo crooning, right alongside chugging rhythm guitars, double bass pedals, and screaming. Each song seems to be crafted carefully to change moods with the lyrics, and make sure you’re paying attention. I especially like the way the guitars interplay with the vocal lines on songs like “The Ponytail Parades”. The standouts on this album are “Walls”, “The Ponytail Parades”, “Fractions”, and “Under Serious Attack”.

So in conclusion, I really like this album a lot, and if you don’t at first I’d give it a few more spins to let it grown on you. If you’re looking for hardcore, this isn’t it (I’m a big fan of melody). If you’re looking for emo, this isn’t exactly that either. Emery offers Screamo at its best that isn’t too poppy like Story of the Year, and isn’t too inaccessible like some may think Coheed and Cambria are. The lyrics and the music are deep, but not too deep that you can’t stay with them. It’s a good balance without making sacrifices.

Reviewed by: Michael