“Ready for War” by How We Feel

“Ready For War”, by How We Feel, is an album all about fighting your demon’s and making it out alive, which the lyrics point to in the first song “Make It Out Alive,” which is so good you just have to keep going. These songs all carry the same weight, with hard and soft edges, and each one as compelling as the nest. “Losing My Mind” warns not to look at the monsters under the bed, ad the outcome is one of the best on the album with vocalist Chris Bianchi, and drummer Brian Lamtman both come unglued as they rip through this one.

By the time you get to “Devil Inside” you can’t get off the ride, as it just keeps gettering better as it goes, as they sing and play with complete abandon on this dark and groovy track about being lost on the edge of life with a broken soul this is an epic song rocks and sways along with following “Dragging Me Under,” with a combination of grunge and death metal style vocals and roller coaster guitar riffs and drum syncopation. “Talk About Me” gets into the topic of hate, with a playful chant about the subject with some of the best singing parts on Ready For War.

This is an album that takes you through the times and doesn’t hold back when it comes to standing up to your demons and haters, expressed in a sophisticated way. These songs really rock all over the place, every single one of them, of which the songwriting, playing and production are world class. If you think about living in post pandemic times and having to brave your way through it, you’re on the right path with this well-crafted release brought to you by Bianchi on vocals and Lamtman on drums, both who deliver equally outstanding musicianship throughout the entire track list.

The duo from Ohio keeps burning the house down to the ground with “Fire” coming in next, followed by “Looking For A Reason” as the titles intrigue to listen to the stories about how you’ve got to keep running because the word is becoming more “Dangerous” by the day, which is yet another example of How We Feel cuts loose in the studio. Every song is a statement on Ready For War, with “Higher” being a point of reaching the stratosphere with some more of their best chops.

I was already convinced by the first three songs, and a few of the tracks were previously released but I missed them, but they saved the title track “Ready For War” to mark the ending of a very good record, but there’s still much to tell about it because it captures the whole meaning in one single story if you’re following or not. This one has it all and then some. And the story plays out well in some scenes in the video, which also helps get the story across in just one song that puts the icing on the whole cake.

Michael Rand