Mourning Grey – “Hollow” (Pavement Entertainment)

Hollow is a lesson in effective time management, a clinic in precise brevity if you will. Mourning Grey efficiently utilize these six tracks, showcasing every facet of their abilities while leaving nothing in reserve, a literal emptying of the arsenal of the Phoenix, Arizona products. Frontman Benjamin Chapman channels [Sevendust frontman] Lajon Witherspoon (with a subtle nod to fellow Phoenix rockers Signs of Betrayal) time and again amidst a turbulent sea of staccato riffs and deafening percussion (opener “Scarred” sees Chapman craft stirring hooks laced with strained screams, “Falling” is a true clinic in melodic modern rock, “Lost” sounds as close to Sevendust as Hollow gets with beefy riffs, sky high hooks and Chapman filling the role of Witherspoon very admirably, “The War” is an onslaught, a juggernaut fueled by visceral refrains from Chapman, closer “Up To You” has the making of a hit single). Hollow sounds like a rock record from a band well beyond the years of Mourning Grey; it’s polarizing, at times stunning and thoroughly immersive. It’s one of the better rock records I’ve heard this year.  

Go Download: “The War”