Hot Cross - 2007 Risk Revival

Band : Hot Cross

Album : Risk Revival

Release Year : 2007

Genre : Post-Hardcore / Screamo

 

Tracklist:

1. Exits and Trails
2. Turncoat Revolution
3. Resent Resist Rebuild
4. Fire the Foundations
5. Cardiac Silence
6. Kill the Name
7. Silence Is Failure
8. Fatefully
9. Existence
10. Rejoinder
11. Finance Fuels the Sickness at Heart
12. Blame Truth
13. Scrape Wisdom

For most fans of Hot Cross and similar bands these lyrics have a strong, lingering power. Billy Werner, lead vocalist of Hot Cross and Saetia, is typically known for his caustic and intelligent lyrics, and he typically them with conviction and force. These lyrics are on "Fortune Teller," the first track on 2003's Cryonics, which until now, was Hot Cross' only LP, are pretty bombastic and this attitude does a good job of summing up the album as a whole. Hot Cross pushed the genre of hardcore, and more specifically emo, into a new frontier. This new territory included faster, more original guitar lines, cooler bass resolutions, and faster and more interesting drums, all while writing tight and catchy songs, which made Cryonics a singular and rare album, and is the main reason it's considered so highly now, almost four years later. During these four years between LPs, Hot Cross only released one EP, Fair Trades and Farewells, which seemed to push boundaries even further, with even more crazy contrapuntal guitar (see "Prepare / Repair" at 1:37 and "Better a Corspe Than a Nun" at about 0:33), odd time signatures, and shouted lyrics. And while these technical aspects were a great addition, I feel like while the ended started off on a really strong note, really ends up lagging on the final two tracks because of inferior songwriting and repetition.

Putting all of these pieces together, what is the end result? Risk Revival is a pretty great album. It doesn't have the musical or instrumental stunners that Cryonics did, and overall feels simpler, but Werner really stepped up his performance to make Risk Revival a visceral, strong album nonetheless. There's a youthful surge to its style that makes it immediately likable, but there's something lacking that makes repeated listens pale next to the completeness of Cryonics. If anything it's an excellent next step for Hot Cross who find ways to subtly redirect themselves, all while remaining godly in their genre. Hot Cross is still, after all these years, a punch in the face. Their music is quick, furious, and really satisfying.

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