And lo they came from the depths of UK suburbia to save us from ageing American post-hardcore outfits in short trousers with shorter cvs. A ridiculous Wayne Rooney-esque weight of expectation was put upon Hundred Reasons' shoulders when they arrived on the scene back in 2000 but they delivered in spades with the debut "Ideas Above Our Station" in 2002. A rash of Top Of The Pops appearances followed, confirming the UK rock revival and HR's place in that long-awaited talent surge.
So now, two years and countless thrilling shows on, comes that ‘difficult second album’. Difficult? Piece of piss boys! "Shatterproof Is Not A Challenge" rocks like old rolling stock on the Northern Line, with just enough quieter moments to keep the emo (didn’t Rod Hull have one of those?) fraternity happy - in their own way.
"Savanna"'s opening riffarama won’t disappoint those fans. Its’ Chili Peppers twang giving way to a musical storm and singer Colin Doran’s dual attack of ‘sing it then scream it’. "Stories With Unhappy Endings" flies out of the traps before launching into a fine chorus built on pleasantly ascending guitar chords - as complicated an arrangement as you’ll find in a young British band’s repertoire. It also boasts an irresistible punk rock coda that the Dead Kennedys would have been proud of.
The legendary Dave Sardy’s production thunders along, but guitarists Larry Hibbit and Paul Townsend are easily up to the job of providing the sonics and realising these arrangements. And if a song says all it needs to in under two minutes – "The Great Test" and "80MPH" - then the band is confident enough to stop there and then. A rare exhibition in taste and restraint in such young hands. "Still Be Here", meanwhile, is a beautiful song, pure and simple, while "Makeshift" wouldn’t have embarrassed side two of "Abbey Road" - I kid you not, magnificent.
Hundred Reasons might need to consider how many of their songs sit in the key of ‘C’ - presumably to aid Doran's vocal gymnastics, from belting it out one minute to stripping the lining of his throat the next. That limited range and the intricate arrangements make it, on occasion, easy to get lost and forget which song you’re listening to.
But whatever you want to call this - emo, post-rock, post-hardcore, punk... - "Shatterproof Is Not A Challenge" is a triumph.
