Metalcore outfit The Bunny The Bear have been knocking around for a while – they started in 2008, when vocalist Matthew Tybor aka ‘The Bunny’ recruited fellow vocalist Chris Hutka, ‘The Bear’. However, after creating four albums with the group and battling various drug addiction problems, Hutka left the band and was replaced by vocalist Hayley Roback. With a fresh line-up, The Bunny The Bear hit the studio to create their latest offering, ‘A Liar Wrote This’.
And it’s a piss poor effort.
It’s a shudder-inducing mix of horrific screams and absolutely bland riffs. ‘Love, Trust and Compromise’ starts off with promise, but is marred by Tybor’s screams, which is a recurring problem throughout this album. There’s barely any energy – the album just plods through tracks such as ‘Oblivion’ and single ‘Lover’s Hands’, giving off the air of a tired, bored old man.
And then there’s ‘Empty Hands’, which is a weak and pathetic attempt at some kind of ballad; it’s painful to actually listen to it the whole way through, causing many winces. And they fare only a tad bit better on ‘Loose Lips’ which sees Hayley steal the show, despite Tybor’s incessant and annoying screams.
At an absolute push, the only track really worth listening to is ‘It’s Not Always Cold In Buffalo (Revisited)’ – it’s here that Tybor puts his guttural and grating screams to one side, and compliments Roback’s soaring vocals with his own clean vocals. But saying that, this track mostly showcases Hayley’s potential, which is pretty bloody huge.
Overall, ‘A Liar Wrote This’ is a horribly messy affair of an album. The only silver lining is Hayley’s powerful, charismatic vocals – she has an impressive vocal range, and delivers a mighty performance. She is definitely one to keep an eye on. However, even she can’t salvage this pile of rubbish. It appears that, with this release, The Bunny The Bear have become road kill.
JESS TAGLIANI