Best of 2016 Playlist

March 19, 2016

Featured Band - Tonight Alive


The beginning of March saw the release of Tonight Alive's 3rd album, "Limitless". And in the past six months, it's been a whirlwind of singles, music videos, and tours leading up to the album. We've got them as our "Featured Band" for March. Hailing from Sydney, Australia the band have certainly made a worldwide mark. To buy their latest album, click this (link). And be sure to catch them on tour this month with Set It Off, The Ready Set, and SayWeCanFly. 

You can click any of these respective links to read our reviews of Tonight Alive's new album, and singles. "Limitless", "To Be Free", "Human Interaction", "How Does It Feel?", and "Drive". 

A band is nothing without its image. And while some bands forge their own by themselves, Tonight Alive got a bit of a leg up in that department. From the very beginning, TA drew comparisons to ParamoreIt's easy to understand why. The band are, in a way, the Australian version of Paramore. With their pop punk, alt. rock style, kick ass female lead singer, and high energy shows, 

But the band's differences from their American counterparts outweigh the similarities. Especially following the band's 3rd album. Tonight Alive experimented with electronics, synths, and high production for a more mainstream, rock sound. You can definitely hear the band's progression into a mature band. Though unfortunately some (okay most) of the new album falters, but that's expected. 

As the great Hanna Montana once said, "Nobody's perfect". Every band has an album that falls short of expectations. For TA, it was "Limitless". Which saw the band trying new things, but losing what made them such a standout in the first place. Trading in catchy hooks, punk influenced guitar riffs, and fast paced drum beats for over produced pop rock. 

The new album aside, TA is still one of the best bands in the industry. "Lonely Girl", "How Does It Feel?" and "The Edge" are arguably the band's strongest songs. You get all the intensity of punk rock, plus the alt. rock you might find in bands like Fall Out Boy or Jimmy Eat World. Only TA are much more engaging, and aren't total sellouts, *cough FOB cough* (fingers crossed they don't ever become sellouts). 

Half the experience is the album, the other half is the live performance. And boy does TA bring it for their concerts and tours. It's nearly impossible not to get chills watching Jenna McDougall on stage. Combining the spunk of Hayley William's, the confidence of Gwen Stefani, and just a little bit of the brash attitude one might find in Avril Lavigne. She holds the audiences attention, which in essence is the job of a frontman (in this case frontwoman).

For new listeners, we've managed to narrow down their long repertoire to these few songs: "Breaking and Entering", "Listening", "Amelia", "Complexes", "The Fire", "I Defy", and the acoustic version of "What Are You So Scared Of?"