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I had never heard of the Jacksonville band Mindslip before we were contacted to review the 2010 album "Rising Up", so I didn't know what to expect going into this review. I'm a big fan of hearing new bands for the first time, though, so I was excited to give the record a listen!

Right off the bat I could tell that this would be an interesting record for me to review. I'm not generally a big fan of Alt. Rock, so when the first track on the record Jade kicked off, I initially had to pause it and take a deep breath, remind myself to approach this record the same as I would any other album, with a completely unbiased clean slate. I restarted the song with my fresh perspective and took the song at its own merit, and guess what? I dig it!

The second track Broken Picture Frame got me even more into the band with driving guitar riffs and singer Matt Boucher's gravelly vocals. Even with the vocal style that comes hand in hand with Alt. Rock, Boucher manages to walk the fine line between edgy and obnoxious, keeping it interesting the entire time, and holding his own, without letting it get too far into the side that makes me cringe.

The third track Hookerlicious is catchy as hell! I'm so into this song I can't even tell you properly how much I like it. In fact, I liked it so much I had to listened to it five times in a row before I was able to move on and listen to the rest of the album. (My neighbors may or may not have given my wall a serious thump to tell me to put my headphones on. Whoops!) I love everything about this track, but the wailing guitar solo and in-your-face riffs kick it from "awesome" to "fuck yeah"!

Track four, Under The Spell, was my least favorite track on the record, it's an all right song, certainly not bad, but it was something that we've all heard before, with nothing really special to separate it from the sea of Alt. Rock radio-ready songs.

Track five, however, immediately drew me back into the record. The track is called The Story and starts off with a killer riff that grabbed my attention and held it tightly throughout the entire song. Track six Chasing The Clouds mellows it out a bit and gives the listener a bit of reprieve from the other up-tempo songs, while still managing to keep my attention. It has a sweet melody that I couldn't help humming along with.

Track seven, Hollywood Girl was all right, certainly not the worst song I've heard, but it didn't do too much for me. Track eight (Stars Crash Down (T.Y.C.O.)) and track nine (20 Below Zero) were both great songs, not my favorites on the record, but solid songs in their own right for sure. The final track, Faceless Soldier, left the album off on a heavy and hard note, which was fantastic!

All in all, I loved the record! I'm quite impressed with Mindslip for smashing the pre-fabricated barriers that Alt. Rock had placed in my music repertoire and giving it a fresh and new perspective! As far as what bands I could relate it to, my Alt. Rock selection is limited, but if you're a fan of that genre, definitely give it a try! If you aren't a fan of the genre like me, but enjoy bands like Bedlight For Blue Eyes, cKy or Billy Talent head over to the band's MYSPACE PAGE and give them a listen!

CAITY GIVES MINDSLIP - RISING UP 3.5/5 STARS!

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