Posted: September 1st, 2008
Contributed By: Nick

	Purchase @ Amazon.com Release Date: May 27, 2008 via Megaforce Records
	The Underwater is: Dan Thomas (Vocals) Leo Nessinger Jr. (Guitar) Jeff Davlan (Bass) Pat Besecker (Drums)

Overview: The Underwater first started swimming in 2001, turning their hometown of York, Pennsylvania into the lillypad from which their musical career leaped forth. The band morphed from tadpole to frog in a jiff, as 2002 brought not only a tour alongside the likes of Unearth and Underoath, but the recording of ‘Bleed Like Me‘, their rookie effort. The record dropped in the U.S. in the early part of 2003, hitting European soil soon after. ‘Bleed Like Me‘ sold quite impressively, earning The Underwater prestigious touring opportunities that included slots with Nickelback and a string of overseas headline treks. In 2005, The Underwater unveiled their second EP entitled ‘Lungs‘, yet another hot seller and buzz booster for the band. Shows with acclaimed national acts became commonplace, as did time in the studio with famed producer David Bendeth (Breaking Benjamin, Paramore). Having previously helped the band record a handful of tunes, Bendeth, along with accomplices Warren Riker, Marshall Deasy, and Ted Jensen, helped The Underwater piece together their first LP. Megaforce Records got behind the product, proclaiming ‘Forces‘ as The Underwater’s shiny new opus.

The Good: Do you remember those capsule looking things that you put in a bowl of water and in a matter of days magically grow into a spongy dinosaur? That used to be my favorite underwater activity, but now ‘Forces‘ has taken over that role with a vengeance. “Dying Every Day” springs The Underwater into action, hustling and bustling its way through a manic 4 minutes. The song’s bread and butter lies in its staccato guitar patterns, but is anchored by pinpoint drumwork and imbued further thanks to the heaps of melody from Dan Thomas’ unique and towering voice. Deep and mysterious, “Maybe Love” is a starry, moonlit trance, secretly enveloping you with the catchiness of its majestic lyrics. The menacing bass grumble catalyzes the punchy “Red White and Blue”, although not nearly as much as Thomas’ delivery does. With such a muscular composition, I’m impressed at how vocally led this song is, its fluidity derived from the co-dependency. “Render” awakens with a virile surge from guitarists Matt Holmes and Leo Nessinger Jr., before the duo expose their feminine sides with silky acoustic overlapping; the duality of the guitars feeds “Render” a healthy diet of stimulating dynamics and colorful texturing. Casper the Ghost would shit his pants listening to the ethereal spookiness steaming from “Let Go”, a track buoyed by a pulsating groove that gradually progresses and opens up. Passionate with just the right touch of sappiness is the campaign slogan of “Losing Me”, where tranquil dark overtones react with its musicianship to inject an even greater feeling of desperation into a song of tremendous longing. “Bring Me You” is the perfect pick-me-up to follow “Losing Me”, like a lighthearted and nostalgic summer breeze; the song brings to mind “Today” by the Smashing Pumpkins, and fans of Weezer will enjoy its Rivers Cuomo-inspired charm. The vocal champion and lyrical king of ‘Forces‘ arrive here back-to-back, as the lively, alert “Breathing” and the sentimentality of the grungy jive “Where Love Should Lie” pay testament respectively. The Underwater’s final immersion is the soft and tender kiss “Redemption”. The track’s epic sound is attributed to its ambient core and electivity, as the 3:07 mark is grazed by the gentle chords of a sitar (or perhaps a steel pedal guitar, or the like); no more than 30 ticks later, the entire band chimes in for a sonic and zealous curtain call, rocketing ‘Forces‘ into the depths with the propulsive force of a torpedo, yet with the gracefulness of a swan.

The Bad: ‘Forces‘ gives itself concrete boots on a few occasions. Skip over song five, the aptly titled “Fallen One”, and you won’t be missing out on anything spectacular. Much of ‘Forces‘ is simply re-worked material from the ‘Lungs’ EP, and although the new incarnations sound more thorough, their pace, delivery, and structure are all relatively equal to that of their predecessors. I realize revamping older works for newer releases is a part of life, but the part of the equation that sucks for ‘Forces‘ is the approach The Underwater took in doing so. If you observe only the songs that are first timers for the band, ‘Forces‘ sounds borderline intrepid; paste the tweaked oldies back on, and ‘Forces‘ becomes more timid than before. Call me Yoda, but if the band had only taken a risk or three in re-recording a chunk of the back catalogue, then this LP would truly capture “the force” of The Underwater. One final jab comes in regards to the scale of Dan Thomas’ voice. The man can unquestionably sing, leveling off at a higher note than usual and nailing peak notes with poise. Thomas might be able to get his voice on the top of the mountain, but he remains stuck up there, never really getting sullen or moody in his approach.

Bottomline: First off, I wanted to note that I believe The Underwater’s bassist Jeff Davlan is the former bass player for City Sleeps, so if you’ve been wondering where he ended up you got your answer. Speaking of City Sleeps, fans of said group will eat up The Underwater’s ‘Forces‘, throwing their own brand of emotionally-charged, heartfelt rock your way. Although ‘Forces‘ might not enrapture your senses as much as ‘Not an Angel’, there is still plenty of good cheer present to please you.

Rating: 7 out of 10