With the stunning success of Wake The Dead hanging over the band, COMEBACK KID not only faced the challenges of raised expectations coming into Broadcasting…, but had to manage a changing of rank with former singer Scott Wade’s quiet exit. Fortunately, the lead vocal transition from Wade to guitarist Andrew Neufeld might just be the smoothest hand-off of frontman duties to ever occur among high-profile hardcore bands. Neufeld’s style is nearly identical to that of Wade while harboring a raspier, if not slightly more nasal tone that occasionally brings to mind LINKIN’ PARK’s Chester Bennington (… but not quite in the vein of pulling a ‘NO WARNING’). However you describe it, Neufeld’s ability to make Broadcasting… continuous with Wake The Dead, and Turn It Around will be remembered as a pivotal moment in the band’s existence. Musically, Broadcasting… impresses by removing a few lazy habits from the band’s arsenal. Notably absent are the fun, but trite two-step dance parts that permeated Wake The Dead. COMEBACK KID’s penchant for quaking breakdowns and gigantic gang vocals (a ‘choir’ that runs some 18 people strong) is met with far more subtlety and nuance this time around. Similar to the way that Sweden’s long-running dazzlers RAISED FIST take to the mat with their fierce bludgeoning of beats and chords, COMEBACK KID have spread out their endless stream of energy and lyrical thoughtfulness over multifaceted song structures and gear-shifting tempo changes. From the ‘raining down from the mountain’ feel of the opener, “Defeated,” to the ‘smash through the walls’ tension that glazes “In Case of Fire,” Broadcasting… is beautifully high-strung. The first 30 seconds of the closer “In/Tuition” barrels out of my speakers like a wild dog finding a raw, untouched piece of steak in the woods. Bands on their third full-length rarely muster this kind of hunger in their sound and verbal firepower, but Broadcasting… is release that constantly lives in the realm of extra-credit. The Blasting Room’s Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore do an impeccable job of capturing the forcefulness of hardcore music while maintaining an attention to detail in COMEBACK KID’s songwriting, particularly in the crafty guitarwork. Neufeld and guitarist Jeremy Hiebert provide a full plate of face rippling guitar riffs and the recording style really puts that element right up in your grill. In February of 2005, Victory Records was already hailing the just-released Wake The Dead as the best hardcore album of the year. As it stands now in February of 2007, the label is strangely quiet of such proclamations, and yet this newfound sense of humbleness seems striking out of place. “Best release” discussions or not, Broadcasting… is another notch in the belt by a band that’s solidly becoming one of the benchmarks of its time.

Victory

www.victoryrecords.com