Moros Eros
Jealous Me Was Killed By Curiosity
Victory
They blew me away with their stellar debut, I Saw the Devil Last Night and Now the Sun Shines Bright, then disappointed me a bit with their tame live show. Now, less than a year after their sore thumb release on the normally harder-edged Victory Records label, they have redeemed themselves in my ears with a fantastic follow-up. The equally long-titled Jealous Me Was Killed By Curiosity bears the same dance punk attitude, Zach Tipton’s strained/screamed vocals and jagged guitar riffs as its predecessor, but with added maturation of a young band that has spent the last year on its first whirlwind tour (after tour after tour).
Also present is the theological battle that quietly weaves its way through Tipton’s lyrics – an interesting element considering that other members of the band are steadfast Christians and may have issues with lyrics like “I am not too safe in the presence of a crucifix/ in such a holy house, how could you be serious?/ behind closed doors the priests are just as secretive/ as every last human being on this cold dark earth” (from “Choices”).
Moros Eros are not for everyone. Their inability to be categorized has put them on some versatile tours, and so placed them in front of audiences that often stood dumbfounded at their sounds that were either not poppy or emo enough (when they opened for The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus), not weird enough (playing with The Blood Brothers), or not indie rock enough (the Sparta tour). This is a band that could very well create a classic album years down the line, and become one of those bands that indie freaks love to reference ( Modest Mouse, Minus the Bear).
The key songs here, and there are only nine to dig through, are “Quit, You’re Being Thoughtless,” “On My Side” and “Pride and Joy.”
Victory Records: http://www.victoryrecords.com
