Saosin
In Search of Solid Ground

The departure of a singer, especially if they represent the heart of the band, always coincides with a moment of uncertainty and stagnation for a band, which finds itself having to find a worthy replacement on the run who can be well integrated within the family and well received by fans.

The Saosin know something about this, as after releasing an EP that became a small phenomenon in the American alternative circuits, they had to face the departure of the old singer, who was worthily replaced by Cove Reber. With Reber, Saosin gave birth to a convincing debut, accompanied by a slice of old fans who continued and continue to miss the "old" Anthony Green (now with Circa Survive).

"In Search Of Solid Ground" is the worthy successor of the self-titled LP released in 2006. Too often shelved and subjected to an avalanche of often unjustified criticism, or motivated only by the fact that these new Saosin don't "rock" like the previous ones.

It's not appropriate here to discuss who is better or who is right and wrong, however, the current Saosin are a beautiful reality, who have managed to carve out their own space. Those who consider them dead years ago should make peace with this fact.

This second LP, despite the three years passed since the first, doesn't actually register any major upheaval, presenting solutions and structures already used in the previous album. In the end, given the good success of the previous one, there was no point in drastically changing that sound, which many have been captivated by.

Cove Reber is like that striker who scores thirty goals a season, ensuring performances and entertaining the fans, who every team would want to have. The already good performance in the self-titled album is doubled here, confirming itself on the same levels, managing to fully exploit various vocal registers, from a nearly whispered and very sweet tone to a higher and more powerful one. It's not easy to compare Saosin plainly to other bands, both for the choice to use a perpetually clean vocal style, focusing more on atmospheres that are sometimes expansive and dreamy, sometimes suspenseful and restless without resorting to fake screams, almost remotely recalling the more emotional and less nervous Thursday.

It's not worth analyzing the songs one by one in detail, as they are all very similar. The peaks are immediately reached by the first tracks on the list, with the magnificent "Deep Down" the best piece followed closely by the good single "Changing", "On My Own" which ends with an interesting lysergic coda, and "Why Can't You See" suspended between dreamy atmospheres and electric bursts. Noteworthy is "I Keep My Secret Safe", contained in a previous EP and here brought back for a curious back-and-forth between clean and screaming, the only moment Reber ventures into this vocal technique.

In the second part of the album, still worth noting is the anthemic "The Worst Of Me" and the punk energy of "Is This Real" (the "Sleepers" of the CD). More subdued moments are found in "It's All Over Now" and in the final suite "Fireflies (Light Messengers)". Listen to the bonus track of the Japanese version "You're never noticed me".

This is a work that could have also pushed further, perhaps aiming for greater heterogeneity, despite a heavy homogeneity in the content.

Overall, however, we are faced with a not too predictable product that will find its way into the ears of the most varied listeners.