Framing Hanley will release their 4th studio album Envy via Thermal Entertainment on February 21st, 2020.
Framing Hanley’s first new album in six years, Envy, is filled with big moments on an epic scale. The result of that is both cathartic and liberating, but also at times, suffers from redundant wordplay that overuses stock cliches and phrases, which can be exhausting to listen. The material comes off way over the top and is melodramatic, but it’s clearly from the heart and a sincere place.
The 12 songs play out like momentual life lessons that sound like grand realizations and epiphanies. Reoccurring themes focus on the quest to find meaning in one’s life without being a toxic person, shaking unhealthy patterns and the ongoing effort to break those chains, working one’s on sobriety and loving one another with respect, maturity and more authenticity than going blindly head long into any relationship based on pure lust. Wrestling with demons is universal and most people deal with that, so the highly-personal and confessional material does speak to the audience drawn in on some or all levels.
Listen to Framing Hanley’s single, “Puzzle Pieces,” from their album, Envy:
Clearly, from 1.5 million downloads, over 150 million digital streams and 40 million video views, Framing Hanley is connecting with their fan base in a massive way and doing something right, which has obvious appeal to them. The best cuts on the “Envy,” include “Misery,” “Puzzle Pieces,” “Maeve,” “Carousel,” “The Way Down,” “Throwing Knives,” “Counterfeit” and “Baggage Claim.” Overall, the music is classic indie/emo rock but also incorporates pop, electronic and orchestral elements.
“Envy” strives to be adventurous by covering a lot of musical bases and does create a diverse sound palette. Kenneth Nixon is a good vocalist and had a strong range in this genre. With Ryan Belcher and Nick Brooks on guitars, Jonathan Stoye on bass, and Shad Teems on drums, as a collective unit the band brings the musical muscle, power and foundation to Framing Hanley to match the torrent of emotional complexity and conflict present in ”Envy.”
