No Bragging Rights

The newest album by No Bragging Rights might sound familiar; it takes the formula Counterparts utilized on their latest and runs with it. Although it's less interesting, it's also slightly more consistent and contains less filler tracks than their Canadian counterparts. One notable exception is "Repeater," which takes its title too seriously and repeats a generic breakdown, while the rest of the album manages to sidestep mediocrity. While merely dodging the norm doesn't give a band bragging rights, their singer certainly nullifies the "No" part of their moniker. Mike Perez's ability to leap from gravelly yell to a soaring harmony is far beyond that of his peers. While the group milk the melody this adds to their sound, can you really them? With as much melody as Cycles contains, it'd be a stretch to call No Bragging Rights really heavy, but they're also better than bands that concern themselves with such a trivial sound.