May 12th, 2015 
James Shotwell 
Artist: Silverstein
Album: I Am Alive In Everything I Touch
Genre: Rock
If any of us outlast Silverstein in the music business then there truly is no God and we are all doomed.
Having survived over a decade in the scene, not to mention the coming and going of numerous musical trends, Silverstein have once again reaffirmed their place atop the hard rock hierarchy with I Am Alive In Everything I Touch. Both heavy and soft, the album offers a diverse showcase of the seasoned band’s proven chops, as well as a smattering of new ideas to keep things fresh for longtime fans.
The album is broken into four chapters: “Borealis” (North), “Austeralis” (South), “Zephyrus” (West) and “Eurus” (East). Each chapter represents an area on the globe where the city in which the real life events detailed in each song take place. It’s the closest to opening his diary and allowing us to read each page line by line vocalist Shane Told has managed to convey to date, and it’s relentlessly honest. There is a weight to the entire affair. A desperation amidst both moments of riff-heavy excitement and chug-filled breakdowns, which listeners know well, but have never heard quite the way it’s presented here.
Told has gone on record discussing the loneliness he details on this album, but it seems safe to say the aggression in the music also stems from Silverstein’s continued livelihood in an industry fraught with peril for bands big and small. You don’t get to eight studio albums in 2015 by playing it safe and keeping something on the side just in case things fall apart, but by sacrificing your all to pursue your one passion and being up for whatever doing so entails. Some artists are able to do that for two or three albums, maybe even four if things go really well, but Silverstein have managed to do double that while continuously pushing themselves to create better, fuller sounds.
That constant pursuit for evolution and sonic perfection has never been more apparent than it is on this record, especially by the time we reach the “Austeralis” section, which contains the flat-out spectacular tracks “Buried At Sea” and “Late On Sixth.” These two songs could not be more different, with “Buried” being the fury to the slow-building beauty of “Late,” yet they fit together like perfectly cut puzzle pieces. It’s in assembling the most eclectic, yet inexplicably harmonious record possible that Silverstein excel, and here they take those efforts to new heights. Further proof is just as easily found in the way “The Continual Condition” and its arena ready riffs pair with the Warped Tour angst of “Desert Nights,” or how “Toronto (Unabridged)” rips your heart strings out one by one as if it wants to make the listener feel like the broken robot on the cover the band’s debut album. It’s apparent throughout, and it’s incredibly entertaining all along.
I Am Alive In Everything I Touch is everything you could ask for in a new release from Silverstein. You have the same heartfelt writing from Shane Told that has served as a backbone for the group since day one, coupled with the perspective of the world traveler he has become. Match this with the equally experienced skills of each additional member and you have a gathering of unique talents and experiences that has only ever existed in this band. Lucky for us, they have chosen to share their gifts with the world for longer than some of their younger fans have likely been alive, and they show no signs of stopping any time soon.
SCORE: 9/10
Review written by: James Shotwell Follow @utgjames
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Great album. Great review.