Band: Two Tongues
Album: Two Tongues
Genre: Rock
Label: Vagrant

Track Listing:
1. Crawl
2. If I Could Make You Do Things
3. Dead Lizard
4. Interlude
5. Tremors
6. Silly Groove
7. Don’t You Want To Come Home
8. Wowee Zowee
9. Come On
10. Alice
11. Try Not To Save Me
12. Back Against The Wall
13. Even If You Don’t

I’ll admit, this was a tough review to create as there hasn’t really been anything like this release before now. Two scene heavyweights, coming together with one member each from their respected bands to create an original group and songs is simply unheard [but desired by many I’m sure]. Add to this that Chris of Saves The Day is Max of Say Anything’s idol and it’s every music fan’s dream come true. Two Tongues has been something music fans have been anxiously awaiting for months and now it has arrived and I for one, couldn’t really be happier.

Kicking things off in high gear with, “Crawl,” Two Tongues shows us very quickly that though this is a side project – it is taken very, very seriously. Chugging guitars, pounding drums, and the best duel of vocals since Tell All Your Friends, things are just what everyone had hoped they would be. The next few tracks showcase a similar sound, but more relaxed. Obviously, with such a release, things needed to start off big in order to prove their worth. “If I Could Make You Do Things,” is gorgeous in structure and lyrics, but I felt like, “Dead Lizard,” slipped a bit too far out of each person’s comfort zone overall. This is a problem we find a few times on the album: Too many ideas or attempts to try out things that don’t work out well. Though, the entire thing is experimentation, so really, what can you say?

the album is at it’s best when the vocals are split equally or as close as possible. When either Chris or Max leads it just feels out of place. This is a coming together, so be together! An example of this done wonderfully is the addictive, “Come On,” which mixes element of STD and Say Anything so beautifully that one can only hope either band’s next release sounds this great. There’s also some dynamic slow pieces such as, “Try Not To Save Me,” which may bleed emo like lyrics, but there’s something so entrancing about it that one can’t deny the track no matter how hard you try. This all then leads up to the closer, “Even If You Don’t,” which begins almost like a Green Day track, but then throws it back to early 90’s pop punk in all its glory. A perfect nightcap on an album that barely trips, if at all.

In the end, Two Tongues, in my opinion, is a roaring success. There was no way to know what would come of this collaboration, especially in regards to all new material, but it is excellent. Sure, there are some slips and dull moments, but as a whole, I don’t think we could have expected anything more than what we were given. Thank you Max and Chris [and your cohorts], you’ve struck a new well of possibilities in music and come back with pure gold.

*Written By: James Shotwell*
Grade: 8.5/10 

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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