The story behind the making of Demons the sophomore effort from Liars Academy is the tale of thousands of bands. On the verge of breaking up with each member doing their own thing the band decides to give it one last shot to see if there is anything left. The result of that one last shot is Demons their best work to date and quite possibly one of the strongest releases this year.
Demons really took me by surprise. I had heard "Microtron" on an Equal Vision Compilation and thought it was catchy but it was not much different from Liars Academy's previous material. Then Demons finally came in the mail and that changed everything for me. This was a new band but they still maintained elements that older fans would still appreciate.
"Dying As Fast As I Can" is a straight ahead rock anthem with the raspy vocals of Ryan Shelkett as he sings, "I'm burning up like a cigarette fading away with a bottle of whiskey I throw in some pills to round things out." "Action Adventure's" gritty guitar work is reminiscent of early Foo Fighters just a bit dirtier while "The Ghost Of Baltimore" is a wonderful mid tempo rock song with a gigantic hook and tight vocal harmonies on the chorus. "The Accountant" almost sounds out of place at first listen with the vocal effects on the verse and the danceable drum parts until the chorus kicks in.
The second half of Demons begins with a simple heart felt acoustic ballad "Breathing" that barely runs two and a half minutes, and is painfully hopeful as Shelkett sings, "Is there something more that I am missing, looking over my shoulder I'm feeling." The title track is quite possibly Liars Academy at their heaviest with accessible distorted guitar parts over Shelkett screaming, "Look out this town look out it burns!" Things begin to change a bit with the xylophone tinged "People are Games" that employs mostly clean guitar parts, a driving bass line, and keys and xylophone as the backdrop. "Come On Danger" is another big step for Liars Academy in both sound and vocal harmonies and is a very strong track. "More Than Ready" features an organ and picking guitar parts that sounds like The Gin Blossoms or Toad The Wet Sprocket while the closing track "Washing Machine" finds Liars Academy returning to form.
Demons does not break any new ground and will unfortunately probably go unnoticed by many. There is no gimmick here, just an honest look at life. Liars Academy has mixed elements of early alternative rock; independent rock and a new found passion for a record full of genuine anthems. This is a fantastic record that should be on the top ten list for many.
3.5/4
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