Artist: Texas In July
Album: One Reality
Genre: Metal/Hardcore
Label: Equal Vision

There is a vast chasm between the realm of sheer musical talent, and actual songwriting ability that tends to elude most people; some of the best musicians in the world, in a technical sense, can’t write an interesting song to save their lives, or careers, for that matter. Their music turns into a self-fellating ego trip, showcasing the utmost of their musical talents; a “look at me!” sort of vibe, ignoring the conventional songwriting techniques in favor of making everyone aware of how awesome they are. A perfect example of this showcase of talent that falls short in a broader sense can be found in Texas In July’s debut album, I Am. From a musical standpoint, it was brilliant, especially considering the relatively young age of the band members, but dynamically, it fell short; it was lacking something intangible, something that can’t be quantified in the same way guitar sweeps can. It was missing a crucial element that would make it not only a technically amazing album, but a listenable album as well. The constant barrage of notes and fills turned the album into white noise, something that just settled into the background as the album passed the listener by.
 
Don’t get me wrong, as musicians, the band is incredibly talented, but in regards to their old album, I’d rather just listen to Adam Gray’s drumming alone for 45 minutes; everything at once just becomes an overload of sound. The band had endless potential from the get-go, but they were lacking a crucial element, preventing them from being the complete package. Which, of course, gave me high hopes for the latest album, One Reality, released on April 26th, through Equal Vision Records, they had a couple years, and countless tours under their belts, and of course, the aid of Equal Vision, all of which hopefully helped them mature as a band, and as musicians. The extra years of experience, plus the superb production work of Chris Harris – who has done wonders for metal bands of all walks of life, from The Acacia Strain, to Shadows Fall – should lend it’s hand to creating an album with a balance of amazing technicality, and production value.
 
However, as the album kicked off , and rolled through the introduction track, and into “Magnolia,” I wasn’t exactly blown away, the song began with a meandering yet technical breakdown layered with some distressed chords; pretty much the Texas In July standard. But after the rather lengthy intro made it’s way to the actual content of the song, one thing became exceedingly apparent, vocalist Alex Good has stepped up his game in a big way, and furthermore, his vocals take center stage more on “One Reality” than on previous records. On I Am it almost felt as though his vocals were an afterthought, taking second stage to the guitar riffs and drum parts; only included because a band is ‘supposed to’ have a vocalist, but on One Realty the vocals have a purpose, and so much depth and intensity, that was lacking on the band’s previous releases. The added focus on vocals throughout the album really lends a lot to the progression of the band seen on One Reality”. Of course, the songwriting as a whole progressed in leaps and bounds from where the band stood originally. While there were a few moments where the album became a bit monotonous; falling into the band’s old ways, it featured several very impressive songs such as “Dreamer,” “Cyclops,” and “Our Freedom” that were both technical marvelous, and extraordinarily well-composed at the same time. At first glance, this isn’t a huge departure from the band’s past sound, in fact, it isn’t, it’s more of an evolution, part of a natural progression in the life of the band, and even still, the differences are rather subtle, but once discovered, they make all the difference in the world.

This album marks a huge step forward for the band, and shows a lot of promise for things to come. One Reality may not go down as the band’s crowning achievement, but it was certainly very impressive, and a very solid sophomore effort from the band. I couldn’t help but get the sense this album was the proverbial “removing of the training wheels” for Texas In July, there were a few wobbles along the way, but for the most part, the band was certainly on the right track. I feel as though this album should be viewed as a sort of a mid-point for the band, as they continue to mature as a band, with each release being more cohesive and more impressive than the next. Texas In July has a unreal amount of potential to become something great, and with this release, it certainly feels as though the band is well on their way to realizing their full potential, even though it may not necessarily be through this album.
 
Score: 7/10
Review written by: Mike Hogan

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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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