Mayday Parade : Black Lines Part 2

On October 9, Florida’s own Mayday Parade released their newest record, Black

Lines. This album is unlike most of their others because it’s grittier and finds vocalist

Derek Sanders exploring his screams. Overall, this album is unlike any other in their catalog. The album signals a change in pace and tone with Sanders and company reaching for much darker and bigger songs. Throughout the album there is a grunge feel to it.

The opening song, "One Of Them Will Destory the Other," features Dan Lambton of Real Friends. This song has heavy guitars and screaming by both Derek Sanders and Dan Lambton. The catchy chorus is sure to get stuck in your head and be an easy thing for audiences to scream back. “It’s gonna come around any one of these days, I’ll just stay here in the meantime.” This song was a great choice as an opener because it sets the tone of the record and showing immediately from the first note of the guitars that it’s going to be different from the 2013 record, Monsters In The Closet. This song is personally one of my favorites because it is a great track and the contrast between their voices adds to the dynamic of the song.

In typical Mayday Parade fashion, several songs on Black Lines have long titles. The other single, “Keep In Mind, Transmogrification Is A New Technology” is less gritty but still has a different feel to it. This song has a much more Mayday feel to it with the soft instruments and the quiet crooning of Derek Sanders before getting louder. This song is a cute song about needing another person. “All we need is a place to be alone, just with you and with me...” This song could be about his wife or a former girlfriend, saying his desperation messed with the relationship. My favorite track on the record is “Hollow” which fits the feel of this record because it fits with the grunge/alternative vibe. The song opens with distorted guitars and pounding drums to help prove the point that the band has changed. Although because a lot of this record is different from what would be considered “usual” Mayday Parade, I argue that Mayday does not have a distinct sound anymore except for Derek Sanders’ voice.

The other killer track on this record is a song called “Let’s Be Honest.” This song is the biggest departure from the other Mayday Parade records because the song not only finds Derek Sanders exploring a scream of sorts and doing extremely well with it, but there is almost a chugging guitar that fits well with the screechy vocals. Most of the lyrics in this song don’t stray from the usual romanticism the band is known for, but it is presented in a different way from songs from albums such as A Lesson in Romantics. This is the kind of song to scream with the windows down. Overall this album is very different from anything they’ve done but I personally love it and can’t wait to see where this direction takes them.

This album could signal a whole new direction for Mayday Parade and I am very excited about it. Make sure to check them out on the Alternative Press Tour supporting their new record along with Real Friends, This Wildlife and As It Is.