You Call Yourselves Soldiers EP, ‘Transparencies’, reveals a very tight and talented band which falls squarely in the hardcore spectrum of alternative rock. Formed in 2007, the band has recorded sporadically a few songs with Transparencies being the most recent and largest collection. Comprised of Charlie Berger – Vocals, Ryan LaFlamme – Guitar, Tye Thomas – Guitar, Leland Predon – Bass, and Jameson Bevington – Drums, YCYS shows an incredible maturity for artists who have been performing together for a relatively short period of time.

YCYS do an excellent job of incorporating traditional hardcore elements often associated with ‘math rock’ – fast, tight beats, polyphonic rhythms, scathing guitar and intense energy. However, the band isn’t only bluster and screams: amidst the hard songs there is still a strong melody and attention to detail as well as mellow vocals. All in all this is an impressive mix of sounds which is both intricate and forceful.

It would be easy for YCYS to belt out a set of short songs with the hope of radio play or catching the attention of quick listening online surfers. But this band has guts – Transparencies’ centrepiece is Soft Hands, which clocks in at over 7 minutes. The song starts gently but slowly unravels into a maze of sounds which highlight the breadth of the band’s musical abilities. Immediately after, YCYS shifts into White Pant Suit, which features tight, staccato guitar lines which boil over into heavy guitar a la BoySetsFire. 1500 Haiku Per Second demonstrates how tight and technical the band can be but without losing the emotional impact that hardcore often engenders. A Failed Attempt at Sensitivity captures the band at perhaps its most raucous, with hints of Serj Tankian and his hardcore band, System of a Down. In fact, Berger’s vocals come close to Tankian in both timbre and energy (though without the wild falsettos).

Lyrically the band treads in the cryptic waters of personal relationships - there are hints of conflict and despair, and real moments of loss and disappointment.  "White Pant Suit" nicely illustrates this:

Taking chances, taking tolls,
Filling lies and filling holes,
Changing locks, swallowed keys,
Seize the opportunities.

A promise I’ll keep, sealed in air,
A tattered fabric, that won’t  tear,
A promise I’ll keep, sealed in air,
A tattered fabric, that won’t  tear,

The balance of the songs leave us with this same sense of desperate concern, all open to your own intense interpretation, which is nicely matched by the fury in the music.

YCYS has put out a fine collection of hardcore songs which shows that the genre can thrive in a world where ‘indie pop’ is the often the easy way out for a band. I look forward to hearing what they can do with a full length.   The band tells me they have been working on some new songs, using this month and next to finish two of them.  (See below for a link to a sampling: the tracks extend the same style, but it sounds like the band's sound is expanding in tone and melody - sounds great).  They're hoping to put together another EP, along with a video performance of the new tracks.  Keyboards will become a feature now, with singer Charlie Berger taking up double duty.

Drummer Jameson Bevington has an acoustic duo side project called The Bright Skies.  Guitarist Ryan LaFlamme will be joining them at a set January 19th at the Free Times Cafe in Toronto.

In the meantime, you can download Transparencies for free here.   The band has also just put out a short sampling of its two new tracks.