Maps For Travelers

Is alternative rock coming back? Did it ever leave? Or has it always just sort of been there, popping its head up ever now and then? This question is posed because there has been a few bands of late that are throwing back to the early 00's when emotional rock ruled the world and to these bands credit, they are giving it a modern day spin, which almost makes it something….a new thing.

Maps For Travelers fit into this quite well, perhaps with a little more grit, certainly some heavier "screamo" sections (that could probably be let go of), which make the band seem like they are yet to define their sound on 'Change Your Name,' but there are plenty of moments worth paying attention to.

These guys understand their guitar tones and give plenty of homage to the Far/Deftones drone-like sound with bone crushing distortions that vary from crisp to sludgy. Opening track 'Good Life' is driven by these guitars with the vocals pushed and cutting through. The heavier moments of the record, such as the guttural 'Get A New Face' don't suit the band as much as their straight forward rock elements. This results in the album feeling a little disjointed, almost as if the scream sections have been placed in due to expectation rather than necessity.

This fence sitting needs to be squashed and a clear direction chosen, but this will no doubt come with time. The dynamics are intact, like atmospheric changes, which shift to walls of sound, namely at the end of 'Figures In White'. This also exhibits the vocal abilities of front man Zach Brotherton, who can switch to a sweet falsetto at any moment.

Thematically the album focuses inward, on the writer’s view of his relationships and the personal effects/tolls they take. It is easy to see some aggression being expelled along with the angry riffs, but melody is never completely ignored. Finding this balance, along with the song’s genre changes are all a challenge this band will need to face very soon - Kill Your Stereo.com

Is alternative rock coming back? Did it ever leave? Or has it always just sort of been there, popping its head up ever now and then? This question is posed because there has been a few bands of late that are throwing back to the early 00's when emotional rock ruled the world and to these bands credit, they are giving it a modern day spin, which almost makes it something….a new thing.

Maps For Travelers fit into this quite well, perhaps with a little more grit, certainly some heavier "screamo" sections (that could probably be let go of), which make the band seem like they are yet to define their sound on 'Change Your Name,' but there are plenty of moments worth paying attention to.

These guys understand their guitar tones and give plenty of homage to the Far/Deftones drone-like sound with bone crushing distortions that vary from crisp to sludgy. Opening track 'Good Life' is driven by these guitars with the vocals pushed and cutting through. The heavier moments of the record, such as the guttural 'Get A New Face' don't suit the band as much as their straight forward rock elements. This results in the album feeling a little disjointed, almost as if the scream sections have been placed in due to expectation rather than necessity.

This fence sitting needs to be squashed and a clear direction chosen, but this will no doubt come with time. The dynamics are intact, like atmospheric changes, which shift to walls of sound, namely at the end of 'Figures In White'. This also exhibits the vocal abilities of front man Zach Brotherton, who can switch to a sweet falsetto at any moment.

Thematically the album focuses inward, on the writer’s view of his relationships and the personal effects/tolls they take. It is easy to see some aggression being expelled along with the angry riffs, but melody is never completely ignored. Finding this balance, along with the song’s genre changes are all a challenge this band will need to face very soon - Kill Your Stereo.com

Even if you are completely ignorant of the current culture, just know that what is old is new again. What once was in is now all the rage. I’m seeing clothes that my parents wore in old pictures on clothes racks in expensive stores, as well as seeing that big hair and glasses are in again (seriously). So as it is in clothes, it is in music. The 90s are back, baby, and this reviewer couldn’t be happier. Before post-hardcore meant synthesizers and breakdowns, it meant listening to awesome music. Bands like Fugazi, Quicksand and Helmet are fantastic (stop and check them out if those names are foreign) and helped pioneer a genre and inspired bands for decades.

Enter in some new blood. Hailing from Kansas City, Maps for Travelers has traveled back from the future to create the best throwback post-hardcore in recent memory. Take a quick listen to Change Your Name and let it sink, and then note that this is a debut album.

What stands out immediately on Change Your Name is the diversity of sound on the album. No two songs sound strikingly similar, yet they all have a connection: Zach Brotherton’s emotive vocals. His voice shares similarities with Dustin Kensrue and Adam Lazzara, except it may have a hair more edge. Take the difference between the one-two punch of “Matter of Time” and “Get a New Face”, for example. The former features a borderline croon and showcases how melodically the sounds of Maps for Travelers can be, while the latter is the banger of the group, where Zach’s harsh vocals prove quite effective, though not as effective as that nifty guitar lick.

The highlight of the album is next, creating a thrilling trifecta of tunes. “Swoon” will make lovers of old-school post-hardcore swoon the way every woman over 18 (and many straight men) do over Ryan Gosling. The songwriting is dynamic, allowing the passion from the song take over the listener. Unfortunately, the last half of the album finds some less than stellar songs sneaking in; however, it’s hard to fault a young band for not writing a near-perfect debut. As it stands, Change Your Name is a fantastic start for a throwback genre in need of some fresh blood. Maybe it is a bit retro, but, ultimately, what is good is always good. Thankfully for fans of solid music, Maps for Travelers is very good.

--Nick Senior - Decoy Music

Even if you are completely ignorant of the current culture, just know that what is old is new again. What once was in is now all the rage. I’m seeing clothes that my parents wore in old pictures on clothes racks in expensive stores, as well as seeing that big hair and glasses are in again (seriously). So as it is in clothes, it is in music. The 90s are back, baby, and this reviewer couldn’t be happier. Before post-hardcore meant synthesizers and breakdowns, it meant listening to awesome music. Bands like Fugazi, Quicksand and Helmet are fantastic (stop and check them out if those names are foreign) and helped pioneer a genre and inspired bands for decades.

Enter in some new blood. Hailing from Kansas City, Maps for Travelers has traveled back from the future to create the best throwback post-hardcore in recent memory. Take a quick listen to Change Your Name and let it sink, and then note that this is a debut album.

What stands out immediately on Change Your Name is the diversity of sound on the album. No two songs sound strikingly similar, yet they all have a connection: Zach Brotherton’s emotive vocals. His voice shares similarities with Dustin Kensrue and Adam Lazzara, except it may have a hair more edge. Take the difference between the one-two punch of “Matter of Time” and “Get a New Face”, for example. The former features a borderline croon and showcases how melodically the sounds of Maps for Travelers can be, while the latter is the banger of the group, where Zach’s harsh vocals prove quite effective, though not as effective as that nifty guitar lick.

The highlight of the album is next, creating a thrilling trifecta of tunes. “Swoon” will make lovers of old-school post-hardcore swoon the way every woman over 18 (and many straight men) do over Ryan Gosling. The songwriting is dynamic, allowing the passion from the song take over the listener. Unfortunately, the last half of the album finds some less than stellar songs sneaking in; however, it’s hard to fault a young band for not writing a near-perfect debut. As it stands, Change Your Name is a fantastic start for a throwback genre in need of some fresh blood. Maybe it is a bit retro, but, ultimately, what is good is always good. Thankfully for fans of solid music, Maps for Travelers is very good.

--Nick Senior - Decoy Music

In the past 10 years, many bands have attempted to emulate the original, actually talented, emo bands of the ’90s, often with very little success– normally ending up the butt of a joke about Hot Topic and sideways haircuts, but occasionally a band figures out how to bring that sound into the 21st century correctly. Combining that old school Brand New-esque sound with a solid post-hardcore twist, Maps for Travelers has released one of the few truly enjoyable and creative punk records of the year so far with their newest album, Change Your Name. Matching strained but clean vocals with sometimes downright anguished screaming, Change Your Name has managed to cross a number of punk subgenres smoothly and will appeal to a wide array of listeners.
Change Your Name opens with one of the strongest songs on the record, “Good Life,” which showcases the band’s ability to make some beautiful, if a little discordant, harmonies, and blend different vocal styles in a way that many bands are unable. Maps For Travelers also takes on slower, “punk ballad” styles that are completely reminiscent of early ’90s emo and pop punk with songs like “Swoon,” a change of pace that gives the record some variety. Change Your Name ends on a perfectly somber and droning note, with the track “They’re Learning Fast” that makes you immediately want to restart the record and take that time machine back to 1994 again.
Maps for Travelers cites Cave In, American Football and even Quicksand among their influences and fans of any of those groups will easily find a new record thrown into rotation with Change Your Name. More serious post-hardcore listeners, 12-year old kids fresh off a Warped Tour buzz, 35-year old sad dads missing the Get Up Kids days of yore, and even screamo fans with snakebites will find something that they like with this record. And these days that’s getting harder and harder for a band to achieve. It may not be the album of the year, but Change Your Name is definitely one of the more solid releases in 2013 and hopefully we can expect more of the same from them in the future. - Mxdwn.com

In the past 10 years, many bands have attempted to emulate the original, actually talented, emo bands of the ’90s, often with very little success– normally ending up the butt of a joke about Hot Topic and sideways haircuts, but occasionally a band figures out how to bring that sound into the 21st century correctly. Combining that old school Brand New-esque sound with a solid post-hardcore twist, Maps for Travelers has released one of the few truly enjoyable and creative punk records of the year so far with their newest album, Change Your Name. Matching strained but clean vocals with sometimes downright anguished screaming, Change Your Name has managed to cross a number of punk subgenres smoothly and will appeal to a wide array of listeners.
Change Your Name opens with one of the strongest songs on the record, “Good Life,” which showcases the band’s ability to make some beautiful, if a little discordant, harmonies, and blend different vocal styles in a way that many bands are unable. Maps For Travelers also takes on slower, “punk ballad” styles that are completely reminiscent of early ’90s emo and pop punk with songs like “Swoon,” a change of pace that gives the record some variety. Change Your Name ends on a perfectly somber and droning note, with the track “They’re Learning Fast” that makes you immediately want to restart the record and take that time machine back to 1994 again.
Maps for Travelers cites Cave In, American Football and even Quicksand among their influences and fans of any of those groups will easily find a new record thrown into rotation with Change Your Name. More serious post-hardcore listeners, 12-year old kids fresh off a Warped Tour buzz, 35-year old sad dads missing the Get Up Kids days of yore, and even screamo fans with snakebites will find something that they like with this record. And these days that’s getting harder and harder for a band to achieve. It may not be the album of the year, but Change Your Name is definitely one of the more solid releases in 2013 and hopefully we can expect more of the same from them in the future. - Mxdwn.com

Kansas City's Maps For Travelers have gained some well-deserved comparisons to Quicksand (they also name them as an influence), and it's an apt namedrop considering both bands share a knack for combining the heavy intensity of post-hardcore with the melodicism of alternative rock. Something like the screams in the intro of "Get a New Face" imply a hardcore/punk background, but the riffing in "Matter Of Time" comes ready to fill stadiums in a way Siamese Dream-era Billy Corgan would have been proud of. The band's debut album, Change Your Name, comes out via No Sleep Records this week (8/27), and you can now listen to a stream of the entire thing, which makes its premiere in this post. Check it out below. - Brooklyn Vegan

Kansas City's Maps For Travelers have gained some well-deserved comparisons to Quicksand (they also name them as an influence), and it's an apt namedrop considering both bands share a knack for combining the heavy intensity of post-hardcore with the melodicism of alternative rock. Something like the screams in the intro of "Get a New Face" imply a hardcore/punk background, but the riffing in "Matter Of Time" comes ready to fill stadiums in a way Siamese Dream-era Billy Corgan would have been proud of. The band's debut album, Change Your Name, comes out via No Sleep Records this week (8/27), and you can now listen to a stream of the entire thing, which makes its premiere in this post. Check it out below. - Brooklyn Vegan