A Shipwreck in the Sand

AMG Review of A Shipwreck in the Sand

Todd Sterling
All Music Guide

Canadian hardcore act Silverstein have a knack for creating music to scare your parents with. The five-piece continues to put the fear of God into moms and dads worldwide with A Shipwreck in the Sand. From the bone-crunching guitars of "A Great Fire," a spooky number of the highest order, to the emo angst of the disc-closing (and appropriately titled) "The End," Silverstein do not disappoint on their fourth full-length screamfest. The latter, a jangly number that swells and falls like the ocean, is a duet with Canadian synth queen Lights (Valerie Poxleitner). Equal parts Suicidal Tendencies and Motörhead, with the pop sensibilities of Dashboard Confessional, the Silverstein boys are a musically schizophrenic lot. One minute the bandmembers are grinding away at the core and screaming themselves hoarse, the next they're singing pretty (yes, actually singing). "I Knew I Couldn't Trust You," a pure emo-pop tune, is the perfect example of this -- vocalist Shane Told goes from hoarse to pretty in the blink of an eye. "I Am the Arsonist" is a brain-bashing track that hits you like a sucker punch to the back of the head. Blazing guitars and a thundering backbeat nearly drown out the vocals. The band plays like it's the end of the world.