By Jaime Burnet
The Reason sits contentedly in limbo between growling death metal and upbeat punk rock. As long as they aren’t the tired balladeers Hoobastank, any combination of music genres is welcome, even if this blend of desperate vocals and painful screams becomes more and more prevalent in the music scene. Along with corn and peaches, the five gentlemen comprising The Reason grew out of southern Ontario, to deliver the confusing Ravenna.
“Reclaiming the Throne” begins with dark ambiance before transforming into an intense screaming frenzy, reminiscent of the intimidating growls of Kitty’s Morgan Lander. “The Joke and the Gentleman” sounds more like something on Much Music along with the likes of Simple Plan and Good Charlotte, but this isn’t meant as a bad thing. The Reason just needs to blend these two styles to avoid fans from wondering if Ravenna is a two-band split effort. They accomplished this on “A Timeless Classic” and “150,” so clearly they can combine their distinctive talents into powerful songs. If they had employed this skill throughout the album, Ravenna would be a more unified and powerful representation of the band’s musical capabilities. Still Ravenna’s several solid songs provide ample reason to expect great things in this Canadian band’s future.