Glassjaw

Glassjaw possesses all the hallmarks of fellow Long Island post-hardcore/emo outfits like Silent Majority, the Movielife, and Errortype: 11: speedy punk tempos, a cocksure singer, and tangy guitar hooks that are like Coney Island confections (we know they're probably bad for us, but damn, are they irresistible!). Glassjaw's Ross Robinson-produced debut, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence, proved that the band had plenty of other stylistic nuances to offer. Its latest offering makes it clear that this might not be such a good thing.

On Worship and Tribute, Glassjaw seems hell-bent on cramming as many musical ideas as possible into each song. Shimmering emo guitar lines often clash with rugged riffs and white-hot guitar noise, while singer Daryl Palumbo puts on a tribute to multiple personality disorder, shifting from lethargic murmuring to operatic crooning and straight into overwrought screaming fits, all in the space of 30 seconds. Even when Glassjaw goes the pop-punk route ("Radio Cambodia"), the bouncy, playful rhythm is offset by a squall of divergent feedback. In the hands of more discerning musicians, this complex approach might yield fantastic results, but with Glassjaw, simpler probably would be better.