This record was definitely an unexpected surprise of the heavy variety. Generally, most of what Tooth & Nail releases slides by my radar without so much as a blip of recognition. Many of their bands seem like carbon copies of other, more successful bands [or even each other], and rarely do any of them put out an album that's really worth listening to more than once. Major label refugees Project 86, however, have beat those odds and put out Songs To Burn Your Bridges By, a hard-hitting 14-track affair that I'm having trouble removing from my stereo.

Project 86's sound staddles a number of lines. They have the intensity of Sick Of It All or Snapcase [who they also share a number of vocal attributes with]. The music behind those fiercely barked vocals though follows the path of Quicksand, and even venturing into Deftones territory at times. This puts the band into an interesting musical spot - they can either write hardcore songs or radio-geared songs and have either type come out rather well. Over the course of this album, they do both, and succeed in each instance.

The album's opening barrage of "The Spy Hunter" and "Oblivion" pound the listener into submission, with aggressive guitar lines and yelled choruses that are so abrasive they're catchy. The album then shifts gears with "A Shadow On Me," a song that could very easily end up on some "Extreme Rock" show on M2 or FUSE, with the main vocalist's barks shifted to the background, allowing the guitarist [who has a rather strong singing voice] take over. A comparison could be made to a band like Trust Company, although this is much better.

This is how the majority of the album plays out. There will be a few really intense, riff-driven songs, and then a more melodic, hook-driven song. The best part is, none of them are that bad. The only real fault to this album is that at 14 tracks and 50 minutes, the disc tends to run a little long. Cutting even one song would have helped the album's energy be more consistent throughout.

All in all, this is a pleasant surprise and a definite winner from the Tooth & Nail camp, and worth your attention.

MP3s
The Spy Hunter
A Shadow On Me
Oblivion [clip]

Stream six songs here