Strata-Presents the End of the World

Let me first start out by saying that I wasn't a Strata fan until I began to hear tracks from this record. I had always kind of written them off before as a band that was trying to ride on Dredg's coattails, since they're friends and all, and that they couldn't write good songs. However, this record absolutely changed my mind.

This entire album is amazing, and sounds gorgeous. It is laced with lush amounts of echoey, reverb-soaked guitars and vocals, and the bass and drums sound impeccable. Eric Vitorino's vocals are incredible. I am in awe of how high the man's voice can get. He actually does sound like a female on a few of the songs, like "Daylight in the City" for example. The songwriting is very strong. Each song has its own unique feel, as an album should. The standout songs are "Cocaine (We're All Going to Hell)," "Coma Therapy," "Night Falls (The Weight of it All)," and "Stay Young." "Cocaine" is a very dancey song that has an excellent chorus. "Coma Therapy" is very spacey and ambient. "Night Falls" is actually fairly heavy, and has one of the best choruses on the record. "Stay Young" is just the best song on the record. It is all of these elements listed above combined. It is just a powerful piece of songwriting. You almost can't help but nod your head to it's rising 3/4 riff, and when it gets heavy in the middle, the effect is perfect.

A couple of downfalls: 8 out of the 12 songs start with some sort of guitar intro, usually picking one note with a ton of reverb and echo on it. Usually a nice touch, but they could have thought of more unique and imaginative ways to begin songs. The two instrumentals, "The Brothers" and "Natoma Alley" are strange, and almost don't fit on the record with their hip-hop-esque drums and loops. Just a bit distracting from the rest of the album. The final track "Daylight in the City" is actually pretty weak. It's a slow piano ballad that just doesn't really go anywhere, and seems to be a spotlight for Victorino's voice.

Overall, Presents the End of the World is a very strong record. It is both powerful and soft, heavy and light, and definitely worth checking out. I'd give it an 8 out of 10.