In 2013, singer Josh Kincheloe began using his voice as a creative outlet, soon being joined by ex-Beartooth drummer, Brandon Mullins, to form Glasslands. In September of 2016, Glasslands released their first full featured album, Pariah. For those of you who are new to this band, you can expect a strong melodic hardcore sound, mixed with clean and screaming vocals, and strong drumming beats. Let's take a musical stroll through their engaging first album, Pariah.

The album starts off with "Birth," a soothing melodic/electronic intro into their first song, "Back and Forth." You can tell right off the bat that Glasslands has a spiritual connection in their lyrics throughout their album, having themes within their songs pertaining to God being a leader, love, and the heart yearning to be fixed. Perhaps their most popular song is their third on the album, "Fame" featuring Ryan Kirby of Fit For A King. Here, singer Kincheloe pairs with Kirby in a harsh screaming contest to sine this dark and heavy song. "Fame" is all about fame and fortune, and how in the end, we're all the same under God, "This is where we make our stand / We're all the same / We're all the same California stars and fame, we're all the same / We're all the same."

Progressing further into the album reveals more great lyrics and smooth harmonies. "Deadman" speaks of someone who feels they have strayed too far from God. "Hold me as you wanna / Cause I'm already a deadman / I'm dead without you / Without you / I am Pariah and I can't come back home / You are the fear, love / you're the weight of my sins." These types of sad and engaging lyrics resonate throughout the album. A great addition to many of their songs are the long held bellowing notes from Kincheloe, accompanied by synthetic echoes in the background.

Although there are great songs on this album, they suffer from the problem of being too similar to each other. It seems that the general formula for the album is to have a soft, clean vocal build up to the exploding chorus. "Demons" stands out from this the most, but still has far too similar guitar riffs. I found myself skipping to another song on the album and skipping to the middle to find that it sounds exactly like that song before it. This particular issue is what makes a band stand out from other post-hardcore bands.

Looking at the album as a whole, Glasslands achieves a great musical accomplishment. Using strong melodies and creative electric guitar, it manages to catch your ear for the first few songs. As you progress into the album, the songs begin to meld into each other, which takes away from the creativity. I can't wait to hear more from Glasslands, and to see where they go from here. Perhaps acquiring an individual guitarist and bass player would help to make each song stand out. If there's one thing Pariah leaves you with, it will be the lyrics, "Take a look at your life / Leave the empty, set yourself free / You are more than the scars on your heart / So step away and become who you're born to be / Set yourself free."