Band: Pillar
Title: The Reckoning
Label: Flicker Records
Release Date: 10/3/06
Review By: Josh IndieVision
Tracklisting:
01. Everything
02. Awake
03. When Tomorrow Comes
04. The Reckoning
05. Tragedy
06. Last Goodbye
07. Angel In Disguise
08. Elysian
09. Crossfire
10. Resolution
11. Sometimes
12. Wherever The Wind Blows
13. Chasing Shadows At Midnight
Members/Duties:
Rob Beckley: Vocals
Lester Estelle: Drums
Noah Henson: Guitar
Kalel: Bass
Pillar, one of Christian music’s premiere hard rock acts, is back with their fourth studio release “The Reckoning”. The album is certainly is a musical evolution for the band, who have seemed to shoot for straight-forward radio rock. In the two years forming this album, the band decidedly has dropped the rap-rock influences of previous efforts while they’ve maintained their distinct flavor of hook laden rock.
“Everything” is a heavy, thick, groove oriented rock track. A detuned, catchy riff leads the track through until the “Awake” shows off a Tool-ish vibe throughout the verses before building into a soaring and catchy chorus. It reveals the progress of this band over the years to continually improve on their songwriting abilities. The band reveals their softer side on “When Tomorrow Comes” and “Last Goodbye”. The latter leads in with a haunting melody to match the sad story it tells. Rob’s vocals really stand out in this tract as they are the main focus.
It took me a few listens to fully get into this release, but once I did I was able to enjoy it. I was a bit put off by the lighter feel of some of the songs but they’ll grow on you. The band have presented a good assortment of rock and plenty of variety to keep you interested throughout. The team of Travis Wyrick (producer) and David Bendeth (mixed) did a really great job capturing the thickness and intensity presented. No doubt this album will increase the band’s tally of #1 singles and definitely is worth a listen!
Standout Tracks: “The Reckoning”, “Tragedy”, “Crossfire”
Individual Ratings:
Lyrics: Topics: Giving up all of yourself to God (“Everything”), People in our lives who help watch over us (“Angel In Disguise”), Taking shots from multiple sides in life (“Crossfire”), Chasing after things that don’t exist or are beyond our reach (“Chasing Shadows At Midnight”)
Marketability: Certainly the strongest effort by the band! The band has built on each album, changing and growing, and becoming a staple of the Christian rock world. With “The Reckoning”, Pillar should make more waves and crossover even more into the general market. I think they’re one of the few bands who could follow P.O.D.’s tracks into one of rock music’s premiere acts. This album should be able to top the close to 250k that they sold with “Where Do We Go From Here?”.
Similar To: P.O.D., Hoobastank,
Website
Myspace
Purevolume
Flicker Records
Buy: Pillar Store
The album is also available in limited edition along with a DVD with 3 hours of footage at the link.