Pauley once again owns this track with an extremely catchiest chorus and truly impressive vocal performance. “Giants Among Common Men” is without question the band’s biggest single and the best song of They Said A Storm Was Coming.
Meanwhile, the band’s new emphasis on lighter, more accessible post-hardcore music is also displayed in clean choruses dominated by Pauley’s dulcet vocals as he proclaims one of the best choruses on the album: “Maybe now I’ll be made clean / While I bathe in your seas / As I seek out all the dreams / That I once had / Of a life already lived / Of a gift already given / That was taken from me, taken from me far too soon.”
The electronicore influence is seen in full force during the verses and breakdowns featuring mash-ups between synthesizers, keyboards and heavy guitars and drums. As the band weaves a compelling and emotive narrative about a fictional 19th century mapmaker’s long journey, some truly catchy choruses and superb post-harcore breakdowns make Jamie’s Elsewhere’s sophomore album a surprising triumph.Īfter two stellar opening songs, “ They Said A Storm Was Coming” really elevates this album to another level with Pauley belting out ridiculously long notes to a backdrop of Mike Spearman’s fast-paced synthesizer beats, lively drums from Scott Daby and active guitars from Matt Scarpelli and Mike Wellnitz. They Said A Storm Was Coming is a distinct departure from their debut and could really be called the Aaron Pauley Show, as the band’s new vocalist handles both the clean and unclean vocals with extreme poise and dexterity. With the introduction of a new vocalist and an emphasis on the post-hardcore and electronica influence, Jamie’s Elsewhere moved in a different and more generally accessible direction. However, the major component holding that first album back was its lack of polished clean vocals Chris Paterson was competent enough but suffered from pitch problems at times. To take anything away from the hard-rock-meets-post-hardcore debut, Guidebook For Sinners Turned Saints, would be a mistake, as the band’s former lineup were fully capable of making compelling and artistic music. Jamie’s Elsewhere is a band that has seen its fair share of lineup changes in a limited amount of time, but there’s no denying they created something intriguing and profound in the post-hardcore genre with the release of their sophomore album, They Said A Storm Was Coming.