Reason

The Reason continue to move onward. With their latest album, they don't revert back to the screamo ways of Ravenna or completely replicate the pleasant peppy pop from Things Couldn't Be Better. Rather, Fools is a down-tempo album with melodies and textures hidden behind seemingly simplistic, radio-friendly jams ("Work With Me"). While the Reason haven't completely switched gears and created an overtly difficult album, it does take multiple listens to decipher the gems. "Come & Go" rests on Adam White's unwavering voice and a soothing bass line. The entire song is wrapped in tension, waiting for the expected explosion, but it never comes. The band enter, but quickly fade away and it resolves in the same quiet fashion it started in. Tracks such as "The Ending of Us All" will satisfy those craving what the Reason did on their last album and "The Longest Highway Home" will undoubtedly turn into a live anthem. But as the 11-track record ends, there's a sense that something's missing. While Fools is worthy of your time, the emotion is subdued and, at times, impossible to find, making it tough to enter into on its first few spins.