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Mason Hill – Against The Wall

Florian Buechting Media Review No Comments

Mason Hill - Against The Wall

Mason Hill - Against The Wall
3.9

Rating

 3.9/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Great powerful rock sound
  • A lot of talent
  • More versatile second half of the album

Flyctory.com Cons

  • Some monotony in the first half of the album

Some things take some time to get really good. If you think about Scotland and about something already having a twelve year old history, you might rather go for the distilleries up North there. However, there are also Mason Hill, a rock band, who release their debut album more than twelve years after two of the founding members met and decided to do music together. They album name is Against The Wall. The twelve songs will be released on 5th March 2021.

 

Mason Hill – About The Artists

Mason Hill are a Scottish rock band from Glasgow. The first steps of the band range back to 2008, when Scott Taylor and James Bird met and decided to do music together. Mason Hill as a band formed in 2013. They have five members. Apart from Taylor (vocals) and Bird (lead guitar), there are Marc Montgomery (guitar), Matthew Ward (bass) and Craig McFetridge on the drums. In December 2015, the band released their self-titled debut EP. From that moment on, the band grew steadily and had some really  impressive shows as support acts of major bands. Not too surprisingly, the band is thought to be one of the future big names of UK rock music.

 

Mason Hill – Against The Wall – Track by Track

The twelve track album lasts 47 minutes.

1. Reborn

Even though Reborn comes with few lyrics, it is rather an intro track, which seemlessly connects to the the second track, No Regret.

2. No Regret

I close my eyes, hold my breath
Life has let me know
I should go, this is how it ends
Not your fault, let’s not pretent
Time to sign your life away
No regret for an extra day

The first “real” song in the album already comes with a lot of power. The song reminds me of early 2000’s rock. Cool sound with powerful guitars and a very catching voice.

3. Against the Wall

Against The Wall is the first song on the album which has so far been selected as a single. While the verses are slower and more quiet than the ones at No Regret, the tune of the chorus in this one feels very similar to the predeceasing track. Which also means it is a nice piece of rock music.

4. Broken Son

Broken Son has the right elements to be a sucessful song during a life performance. Indeed, songs like the fourth track on the album have a big potential to cheer up the crowds – not just in Scotland.

5. DNA

DNA is another powerful rock track – great to sing along and party with the five guys on stage. What I struggle a bit with is only that the verses of the first five songs each have very different characteristics – but the chorusses so far are comparably close. This makes the album a bit of monotonous.

6. Who We Are

Just having claimed a bit of boredom while listening to the album, Who We Are is definitely the song I needed now to be back with a smile. The song (partially even having acoustic sounds) is a lovely power ballad, which shows a very different kind of Mason Hill music. The song is much more than the soundtrack to the pee break at the next King Tuts Wah Wah Hut show.

7. Find My Way

Find My Way comes much darker. The way the Way-ay-ay is sung in the chorus will definitely be part of a big party for many songs. Let’s sing along to the chorus at home already.

8. Hold On

xxx

9. Out of Reach

Out of Reach is rather mid-tempo. The song is one of the best tracks of the album to me. Very clear and good-to-listen-to chorus with powerful guitars in the background. It is by the way the second-longest one on the album.

10. We Pray

We Pray starts with powerful guitar riffs, who give a straight, powerful rhythm. However, after that intro, the song is altering and feels too similar to the track on the first half of the album. Many electric sounds in here as well. Not my favorite, even thought it started that promising.

11. Where I Belong

The five and a half minute chucker-out song is an epic power ballad, which finally illustrates all the talent of the band. Great listen and the best song of the album.

12. Reborn (Reprise)

The album starts with an intro and it closes with that outro reprise. Just a 90 second music fade out before we start again listening to Against The Wall.

 

Mason Hill – Against The Wall – Spotify

Here is the album on Spotify:

 

Mason Hill – Against The Wall – My View

I really struggle to find a fair rating for Mason Hill’s debut album here. There is no doubt that the five guys from Glasgow are a great band. The album illustrates their talent – and I feel they are even much more of a treat on stage than in the studio.However, there is a feeling of monotony in me, especially during the first half of the album. The songs are not that close, but it sometimes feels that the band melodically used the same chorus for different verses. Thus, I rate Against The Wall maybe a bit lower than you might have expected. Fans, of course, will love this collection of ten tracks (plus intro/outro) anyway.

 

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