Heyday

The Honorary Title with The New Frontiers / Paper Rival / Mansions

Sunday, Aug 17, 2008 7:00 PM EDT
at North Star Bar
in Philadelphia, PA

While the Killers and the Bravery were racing to translate glitter into gold for their second albums -- trying to be Bruce or Bono and coming up a few lighter-flickering choruses shy of anthemic -- singer-songwriter Jarrod Gorbel was recasting his modest, wickedly worded indie-emo songs into something grander and far more successful. Gorbel's New York quartet, The Honorary Title, multiplies its sound by a thousand on Scream with mammoth drum fills, ringing guitar lines and echoing vocals. The group strikes U2-inspired chords on tracks like "Stay Away," tosses New Order riffage onto "Radiate" and looks to Elliott Smith's folk pop for "Along the Way" (Smith's longtime producer Rob Schnapf helmed the album). Gorbel may have lost some of his biting wit in Scream's glossy new sound and occasionally sappy sentiments, but he still has his strikingly gorgeous voice in his arsenal, which will probably always be the secret to slaying the sound-alikes.