The Hurry and The Harm , the most recent offering from Canada’s City and Colour , otherwise known as Dallas Green , is a diverse twelve-track that still has many of the ballads we have come to know and love.
First track and album namesake ‘ The Hurry and the Harm ‘ demonstrates immediately City and Colour’s trademark lyricism and penchant for rhyme. It does diverge from earlier City and Colour work but this is not negative; instead a demonstration of growth and progression.
In an interview posted with the release of the album stream on triple j , Green indicates that many of the songs from the album were written around the time of the break-up of his other project, post-hardcore outfit Alexisonfire , and indicates a correlation between these events.
Indeed, I did find a correlation between ‘The Hurry and the Harm’, and the style of the clean vocals provided by Green in tracks by Alexisonfire. In this new album, he seems to be searching for something that fits between the new and the old.
These parallels become even more apparent in second track ‘ Harder Than Stone ‘. I noted one lyric “I was born and raised, to live beyond the heft and weight of a world undone”, which, when substituting the “I” for “we”, is a lyric identical to one in the chorus of well-known Alexisonfire song ‘ Born and Raised ‘.
Third song ‘ Of Space and Time ‘ was the first to be released from this new album, and one which I have reviewed earlier. A good choice of single, and a great representation of the album.
I found ‘ The Lonely Life ‘ and ‘ The Golden State ‘, written about California, to be a diversion in style again, and a highlight on the album. Additionally, seventh track ‘ Thirst ‘, and the second song to be released before the album was also a highlight, and reminded me greatly of the Alexisonfire sound.
‘ Paradise ‘, ‘ Commentators ‘, ‘ Ladies and Gentlemen ‘, and ‘ Death’s Song ‘, were all strong ballads that reminded me more of the early work of City and Colour, while ‘ Two Coins ‘ was a much more intense song with darker undertones and even a string element to the instrumentals.
I found the ninth track, ‘ Take Care ,’ to be the most emotional of all the songs on the album. Fans of City and Colour’s tear-jerkers will be happy with this release. There was a very ambient sound to these ballads, with reverb used effectively to create a more emotional sound.
Overall, I was very impressed with the latest offering from City and Colour. Not only does it provide a variety of songs that will satisfy long-time fans of City and Colour, but also those more familiar with Green’s post-hardcore background. It is certainly the most diverse album so far, and we can only hope that City and Colour brings his incredible live show our way sometime soon.
Purchase the album on iTunes here.
WORDS BY Alex Byrne
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