I've always been a sucker for side-projects, and Year One is no exception. Featuring members/ex-members of As I Lay Dying, Maylene & The Sons of Disaster and This Endearing, the band is currently unsigned, with a four song "demo" release on iTunes (I use quotes because there's nothing demo about it).This band sees Josh Gilbert (AILD bass player/clean singer) stepping into the spotlight to front a band, and his strained vocals are great. While most three-guitar bands end up sounding muddy, these guys manage to stay out of eachother's way and create some good, quality rock in the vein of Alexisonfire or Saosin. Former-Maylene drummer Lee Turner powers through each song and gives the group a strong backbone to rely on.
It's certainly more alternative than what these musicians normally release, striking in the vein of Saosin and Alexisonfire more often than AILD or Maylene. Even still, the band should appeal to fans of many different genres. "Ambition" and "Chemicals" will be favorites of fans from the members' original bands; "Motions" and "Holding On" both have Modern Rock chart potential; even teenie-boppers have something to listen to, thanks to their cover of Miley Cyrus' "See You Again."
Check out the tracks below, and visit the band's links. They deserve your attention.
"Holding On"
"Motions"
YEAR ONE: MYSPACE
YEAR ONE: MERCH
