Album Details

• Artist: As Tall As Lions
• Album: You Can't Take It With You
• Label: Triple Crown
• Year of Release: 2009
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: digitalbath on 2010-01-10

Long Island locals,  As Tall as Lions, have brought forth another stellar album.  On August 18th, 2009, they released You Can't Take It With You. Certainly a sound for sore ears, ATAL has done it again.  I had very few expectations of this album, having heard very little of their material beforehand, but this release has set the bar rather high for their next release and the upcoming live shows.

Overall, the album has a much heavier electronic influence than their previous releases.  This is prevalent in songs such as "You Can't Take it With You" and "The Narrows."  Even songs without electronic instrumentation are heavily driven by intricate drumming and powerful bass licks.  The bass in most of the album has even more presence than the guitar, which is an instance you rarely hear within music of this genre.  Still, with all it has to offer, You Can't Take It With You lacks a strong finish.  I feel that the end of the album is a bit too slow.  As Tall As Lions have a tendency of making great music that can put you at ease without putting you to sleep, but the latter portion of their latest release leans more towards putting you to sleep.  However, even despite this minor set back, the album is worth a listen.  Dan Nigro's vocals are still as strong as ever, resembling Anthony Green (Circa Survive) or Casey Crescenzo (The Dear Hunter) with enough high vibrato and harmony to give your goosebumps, goosebumps.

If you're looking to listen to something a bit more downtempo than your average album without sacrificing all the intricacies and technicality you've grown to know and love in an As Tall as Lions record, this album is definitely worth picking up.  I'd especially suggest getting your hands on the deluxe edition, which features a few extra songs that are truly worth your while.  Go grab this album, crank up the bass, and enjoy! 

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