AMG Review of Year You Were Born

Stephen Cramer
All Music Guide

Moviola's sophomore effort came out a year after the original release of Frantic, yet the band grew by leaps and bounds during the year in between. The result is an album that is more seamlessly orchestrated and deliberate. While Frantic was truly frantic, The Year You Were Born has mostly hits, with very few misses. The disc begins with "1970" and lyrics that point towards the album's title. The second song, "Payday", has the jangley components of Moviola's previous efforts, but without the chaos. "Wisdom Tooth" is probably the prettiest of the bunch, complete with distorted vocals, plus restrained and thoughtful instrumentation. "What's the Point" is possibly the most playful song of the batch, with interplaying vocals, and a cool pace on guitar and drums. The ninth track, "Drumulator" is an instrumental, almost-dance track that seems distinctly out of place. "She Took The Bus" is also a bit different from the routine Moviola song-approach. It's long and droney, with spoken lyrics, creating a gloomy feeling different from the usual frolicking mood the band usually generates. The band returns to its classic sound with most of the remaining songs. "Consequence" and "Catastrophe" both eloquently mix the band's inventive instrumentation and Jake Housh's passionate vocals. The next to last song, "Drumulater", complements with its predecessor, "Drumulator". Instead of ending the disc with more crashing guitars, the band decided to end it with the sublime "Xtian". This disc invigorated Moviola, and led to a wider audienece, outside of their hometown of Columbus, Ohio.