Flyleaf
Flyleaf is:
- Lacey Mosley- lead vocals
- Jared Hartmann- guitar
- Pat Seals- bass
- Sameer Bhattacharya- guitar
- James Culpepper- drums
Mosley, the 24 year old lead singer who fronts the band, has a voice that
sounds sweet and breathy one moment, yet will jar your soul out of
complacency with a growl and scream that strikes like a viper without
warning. This five member band comes from Temple, TX with a ferocity
that says “HEY! Here we are!”
Hardcore fans will devour this standout debut from Flyleaf who is just
starting their inaugural headline tour with Staind in the UK. To support
their debut album they are touring with Cold, Staind, POD and Taproot
after having earned new fans playing in front of Saliva, Breaking Benjamin,
3 Doors Down, and Trust Company audiences during the Spring 2005
tour supporting Flyleaf EP release.
Rip-roaring guitar, brooding beats, and emotionally-driven lyrical delivery
from Mosley combine to create the distinct Flyleaf sound of “beautiful
aggression”. It is a sound that is hard to describe because it can change
in an instant. In some ways this captures a specific aspect of humanity
in that our thoughts can be simple, yet we complicate them by mulling
them around in our finite brains, which creates chaos that becomes
confusion; a jumbled pile of hurt, brokenness, healing, setback, anger,
redemption, faith, security, sadness, and hope. Like a silver orb in a
pinball machine, our thoughts bounce all around, agitated and unsettled,
ceasing only now and then for rest.
The first single off the album “I’m So Sick” is garnering much attention
and winning instant Flyleaf fans. Driving bass lines carry along the
esoteric and atmospheric guitar that provide the foundation over which
Mosley sings a very melodic “I will break into your thoughts
With what’s written on my heart” and then she cuts with a growl that
means business, “I will break, break!” This single is quite representative
of the Flyleaf sound.
“Fully Alive”, “Perfect”, “All Around”, “Breathe Today” and “So I Thought” (a very strong ballad-type song) and “There For You” showcase the beauty of Mosley’s intimate voice on the softer side, while “I’m so Sick”, “I’m Sorry”, “Cassie”, and “Red Sam” demonstrate through growling and intense vocal singing that this young woman has something important to say and you better be listening! This debut is a deluge of talent from this young singer.
A favorite off the CD is “Cassie” which features the story of Cassie
Bernall, the “heroine” of Columbine fame who when asked if she believed
in God, responded “yes”. That “yes” was fatal to her body, but believers
everywhere understand that Cassie’s spirit lives on. This song captures
the intensity of that moment and what it meant to be asked, or should
mean to any believer when asked “Do you believe in God?” Mosley
sings with a defiant and definitive “How many will die, I will die, I, I will say YEEEEESSSSSSS!” Another interesting thing to note about the lyrics is that they are written to say “Cassie pulled the trigger” implying that she, with her faith in God, was in complete control of the situation.
“The question asked in order
To save her life or take it
The answer no to avoid death
The answer yes would make it“…And Cassie pulled the trigger”
This debut showcases the powerful pipes of Lacey Mosley and musicianship of the band members who make up Flyleaf. The songs are honest and always offer hope and positive messages. The driving metal sound is catalpulting their message to mainstream audiences who desperately need to hear them. No doubt that controversy will follow this band with people asking “Is Flyleaf a Christian band or not?”, but to me it seems obvious through the lyrics of their music that their hope lies in the Savior Himself.
From the Flyleaf bio:
While many loud rockers reopen old wounds by singing about their broken homes and broken hearts, Flyleaf confront past traumas to heal old scars and prove in the process that hope shines brighter than despair.
Flyleaf’s self-titled debut album echoes with songs about abuse, neglect, addiction and dysfunction, and messages about overcoming adversity. And the band’s wide array of brooding beats, atmospheric textures and lunging riffs compliment Mosley’s emotionally revealing lyrics, which range from breathy and beautiful to scathing and aggressive.
The blank page that one finds at the beginning of a book when it is first opened up is the flyleaf. It is the page that one writes a note, usually a personal note, to a friend when they give the book as a gift. Through amazing spiritual and sometimes gut-wrenching lyrics and their emotionally charged metal driven music, Flyleaf is penning the “dedication” on that blank page, and it’s a positive and hopeful message to their fans and to hardcore rock music lovers everywhere.
Visit these sites:Â Â