InMe - Herald Moth

Album Review by Lauren Mayberry | 31 Jul 2009
Album title: Herald Moth
Artist: InMe
Label: Graphite Records
Release date: 31 Aug

Having existed for some 13 years and counting, InMe’s fourth full length follows on from Daydream Anonymous, the Essex quartet's most critically acclaimed effort to date. Opening track You Won’t Hear From Me Again presents the expected emo drum syncopation and Bullet For My Valentine guitars. Belief Revival has some uncomfortable high octane warbling but the chorus is saved by more forceful voice work. Throughout, there are riffs in spades - so, InMe haven’t gone ‘soft’- Nova Armada exemplifies the en masse rock vs solo choice, pedals grunting to produce a ‘darker and more epic sound’.

These songs, comfortably short, tend to blend. Whether or not this is ultimately a different sound for InMe is unclear, although hardcore fans may be able to ferret out from the mix the recent addition of a second guitarist. Strings are dotted about, perhaps to reinforce how heartfelt this all is, the lyrical content clearly detailing adversity faced by vocalist Dave McPherson in recent years.

However, this is all ultimately Kerrang-friendly. Herald Moth is a fair but hardly innovative effort. So many bands who sounded like this ten years ago have long since fallen by the wayside or developed ideas considerably different to remain more serious contenders.

Playing ABC2, Glasgow on 21 Sep.

http://www.inmeofficial.co.uk