Set it Straight is a band that truly deserves notoriety. Unfortunately, they really haven't gotten much attention outside of the Westcoast, which is both a shock and a shame. Last year the band released their debut full-length, My Favorite Words, an extremely promising LP, as well as a split EP with the now defunct Where Eagles Dare. On both of those releases the band demonstrated that they had a knack for writing fast melodic hardcore that you could tap your foot too as well as sing along to.
One year later Set it Straight is back with a new album and things really haven't changed. For Live Your Heart and Never Follow the members of Set it Straight have honed their songwriting skills and assembled another well-written and focused slab of melodic hardcore. There is one notable difference though; this time around the music has a lot more punch to it. The guitars are a lot crisper, giving the songs a much fuller sound and the drums hit hard as hell. The album isn't overburdened with breakdowns, but when they are used, they sound awesome - my favorites being found on "Callouses" and "Percent." The vocals of Harry Petty fit the music quite well - his style is a somewhat reminiscent of Mr. Anthony Civorelli. Throughout the album, Petty gets help from guitarist Curt Baer as well as some guest spots from Eli Horner of Killing the Dream and John Eightclip of Allegiance, among others. Their contributions provide a nice contrast to Petty's vocals and give the album a little extra zest to break up any monotony.
On the lyrical front, Set it Straight focus in on topics such as straightedge, betrayal, self-confidence, and following ones dreams. While these topics are frequently covered within the genre, it is cool to see that the words to these songs come from different members of the band, not just the vocalist. In addition, the lyrics are written and arranged in a manner that doesn't make it feel like you're reading a first graders story report.
Throughout the layout of Live Your Heart and Never Follow are numerous drawings by a handful of different artists. They all seem to follow that typical old school hardcore tattoo aesthetic in style and coloring. These paintings are the perfect accompaniment to the album, especially the front cover by Baer that is adorned with a sea of X'ed up hands pointing fingers towards the sky as what appears to be blood rains down.
If Live Your Heart and Never Follow doesn't reach you - musically and/or lyrically - then there is definitely something wrong with you. The music and the message of the album are among the cream of the crop when it comes to today's hardcore scene. If you've yet to give Set it Straight a listen, then now is the time to go out and purchase this album.
