BRAVE – the calm | the storm

Brave’s new album, the calm | the storm, is the first new album from the band in a decade. This eclectic, ten track collection of mostly Progressive Melodic Rock oriented tracks is candy for the ears in terms of production and texture, but lacks the conviction and passion that makes an album truly great. The lyric themes are, perhaps, too familiar, to the point where it simply becomes uninteresting to listen to because the stories are so typical. That being said, the calm | the storm is a great sounding album from a technical standpoint and the album features elements from enough styles that almost no music fan would be unable to find something that they enjoy.

The opening and heavier track “I Will Wait” kicks things off nicely and ties in well with the band’s previous effort in 2008, Monuments. From there, the album winds its way through Melodic Rock, Progressive, and even Folk offerings. Vocalist Michelle Schrotz ties the songs together nicely, giving us a focused yet emotional performance throughout. The hardest strike against this release might be that it sounds a bit as if this album was a catchall for songs that simply wouldn’t fit into the band member’s other projects. The eclectic nature of this collection is refreshing but also startling and even annoying at times. In a time when there are so many bands crowding the scene, Brave might have to move in a more focused and confident direction if they want to distinguish themselves from their peers. At the very least, this is an enjoyable album to listen to, even if it doesn’t move the audience emotional, as the band may have intended.