With a few hitches along the way, including losing their management and booking agent, In The Grey have finally released their debut album Innocence is running out. With a solid fan base in position, thanks to two years of touring with the likes of Grinspoon and the Living End, this album should see their full potential realised and all they have worked for start to really pay off.
The title track is first up and has an unfeigned raw edge. A killer track that is reminiscent of old school Stone Temple Pilots, it has an incredibly honest touch to it and a notably present sense of confusion.
‘I could not see what you did.
I could not see that it’s dead.
Cause I just want to live.
It made you run away.’
First Time comes across as a little wishy-washy, however once you take the time to actually hear they lyrics, your whole perspective seems to alter. Start the Year, currently receiving national airplay on Triple J, is a short and sweet diamond in the rough. It has all the makings of a chart topper and I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before it reaches that level.
The Falling Sound is the first track that really rocks on the album. With some awesome guitar riffs at the start, it also explains why I dragged out my dusty air guitar for a bit of a play. Friends Are Enemies seemed a little off centre. Either I completely missed the point or it really was just about doing what you think is right or helping others, then being stabbed in the back. Lyrically it was nothing spectacular, musically, not bad at all.
See This World You Made is stunning and beautifully constructed. Simple yet highly effective lyrics, combined with an intense sound, I think this track will have a considerable impact on the response to the album as a whole. Guest vocals by Cog frontman Flynn Gower project an incredibly eerie mood, the likes of which I haven’t heard on any other track for a while. It flows nicely in to Intermission which is a beautiful one minute track that is, well, beautiful!
Make This Town Our Own and Jennar are both great tracks that, I’m not sure whether they were supposed to, but sounded very Smashing Pumpkins. I couldn’t help but both enjoy and be saddened by the undertones of saying goodbye and losing friends. I imagine it would be take a lot of courage to sing so openly they way they do, but it is a great tribute.
Silence The Silent sees them once again reverting back to more of a rock sound and is relatively intense. The lyrics especially
‘This is murder.
Does she live in the back of your mind.
So beautiful.
You’ll never know.’
The lost song is a bit of an epic, at over eight minutes, that pours emotion. The way I see it, lost song is another way of saying lost soul and clearly the emergence of logic between the first and last words is of major significance. It is an incredible track that really brings the entire album together.
In order to help promote their new release, limited edition initial copies also contain a live DVD component. This 20 minute glimpse into the band’s world is a great introduction to those who don’t know them so well, yet! With insightful comments on each other, we see a kind of deconstruction that really lets you know why they work together so well. Their process of producing and mixing is also touched on and we even see the effect that their own music has on themselves.
The more I listened to this album, the more it grew on me to the point where I was playing it on repeat. I think with a little faith in new music, most people who listen will eventually see where I’m coming from.
