A torrent of crashing drums signals my introduction to buzz band Story Of The Year. The Hero Will Drown opens the album in heavy metal mode complete with blood vessel-busting vocals from the leadman. There’s a tangible melody and I sensed a distinctly Metallica ambience to the song.

Not a bad start then and it’s followed by Until The Day I Die which is in the same vein. Anthem Of Our Dying Day slows the pace and lets the melody and lyrics shine through. The song has strong pop sensibilities, nice changes of pace, telling crescendos, and can be slotted comfortably into the ‘epic’ category.

It’s not until track five, Dive Right In, that a more dramatic change in pace and mood appears. There’s an orchestral string opening, a deeply expressive vocal and another strong melody in a song that is undoubtedly one of the album’s highlights. Swallow The Knife slows pace even further, until the middle-eight when drums begin to dominate before the song slows again and dies.

The album is beautifully produced, while the band presents as the more accessible pop-tinged face of heavy metal. And it’s a formula that seems to have worked in the States where the band is selling records like hot cakes. The problem for me is the songs sound very similar, albeit it with subtle pace changes, and the band lacks that true originality or distinction – certainly on record – to put it into a class of its own. Perhaps when I see the band perform live my view will change. PAGE AVENUE is a good but not great album from a new band that certainly hints at possessing the skills to go much further.

3.5/5