ACT III: LIFE AND DEATH

I love this band, and this album. The way they can take easily digestible music and add an array of small intricacies to build a larger, more inspiring sound is one of the most intelligent writing styles I've ever heard in modern music today. The chord progressions, melodies and transitions are always so smooth and seem effortless for them to write, and they always manage to capture the mood and emotion they intend to create. They manage to keep all their songs diverse and individually identifiable to the listener, and yet every song contributes to the 'whole' of the album, giving it a bigger picture to look back on once your done listening.

I also love how the continuing story of this boy and his life-long conflicts is still holding my attention, which means it's very accessible and well-written. The deluxe edition of this album includes a booklet that contains art depicting Act II, which can clear things up in case you didn't pick up on the previous plot. However, in Act III, I question if it's about our main boy, 'The Dear Hunter.' I thought this album might be about him and his repeating conflicts with prostitutes (through the lyrics of He Said He Had a Story), or I also thought maybe this is a flashback and the person's eyes you are looking through is his father's (which would make the prostitute in the previously mentioned song The Dear Hunter's mother, Ms. Terri), which really expands the story to another level. Another song that led me to this interpretation is the track Father and it's containing lyrics. Nevertheless, it obviously takes place in a time of war, which I believe is WWI due to the song Mustard Gas, which was a infamous weapons during then.

Anyways, the album is much more full of theatrics, dynamics, drama, emotion and orchestration. This band has always managed to top themselves after each consecutive album, and I will always look forward to their future releases. And I will definitely say that the world needs much smarter musicians like The Dear Hunter.