June 10th, 2009 
James Shotwell 
Artist: Eyes Set To Kill
Album: The World Outside
Genre: Screamo/Popcore
Label: Break Silence
After two successful releases using nearl the same exact tracks [just a difference in distribution], Eyes Set Kill are back with their Sophomore effort, The World Outside. The band has gone on record [quite recently] saying this record was written with the intention to show growth, expansion, and most of all, that they’re not a Myspace phenomenon or screamo act anymore. Well, I’ll go as far too agree, but I don’t know if this was the right move to make.
“Heights,” the first track on the record, and the first debuted to fans, brings the heavy sound of ESTK at full force. The first impression you get is that the production value has risen considerably on this release, but with that said, I think the screamer, Brandon, sounds worse than on Reach. While the band has said this record was made to break them out of the dueling vocal laden screamo scene, this song is very by the numbers screamo. However, Alexia does add the right amount of heart to save the poorly done gutteral growls of Brandon.
Early on, and throughout, ESTK make it a habit to showcase their growth as musicians. Yes, there are a lot of chugs on the record and no, they don’t take a lot of skill, but the songs flow together perfectly and the sheer scale of each song is bigger and more musically realized. Unlike songs on the previous album, this one doesn’t have extended periods with repetition. Instead, the band has added a lot of crescendos, accents, and time/key changes throughout to keep you listening closely.
As You finally get more into the record, we get to see the sound the band was going for begin to be realized. “Deadly Weapons” has Brandon using his singing voice for one of the first noticeable times and it actually fits the music quite well. Alexia and he mesh quite well and I honestly wish there was more of it to be found. Though, the first song to truly grab me was actually, “The World Outside,” a ballad of sorts written by Alexia. This, along with “Come Home” are both deeply heartfelt numbers with vocals and music to match. This is the heart of the growth of the act on the album and it’s wonderful. I think the title track especially shows the group coming into their own identity.
Deeper into the record, we get the two track epic, “The Hollow” which takes a beautiful piano solo and transforms into a full blown rock track. The vocals still duel, but the instrumentation is far from the typical screamo scene and I think actually shows growth for the band overall. Following this, we have a get set of structurally mature tracks with, “Risen” and “Her Eyes Hold The Apocalypse.” However, even though the music is great, the duel vocals have worn out their initial welcome and the lyrics just don’t give us much reason to connect. I fell like the music is simply great rock, but lyrically, it’s just not there…yet.
Any band who got big from Myspace and has two ounces of intelligence knows they need to evolve to stay relevant in the music industry. For most of those acts however, there’s no way to do that and they fizzle out after a quick, money making burn. Eyes Set To Kill have the knowledge and desire to grow, but I don’t think it was implemented as well as they had hoped with The World Outside. the music has grown immensely, but the poorly done screaming and teen angst laden lyrics generally fail to impress. However, tracks like “The World Outside,” “The Hollow,” and, “Come Home” give hope for the future. A for effort, C for final product.
Score: 6.5/10
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Hey, make sure to get your facts right when writing a review it looks pretty unprofessional. If you take a moment to look on the Cd or on the myspace you’ll discover its not brandon singing on deadly weapons its Craig Mabbitt from escape the fate. Thanks.