Born Cages: I’m Glad I’m Not Me

By Matt Craig Burke

Some bands create a sound that appeals to the masses, making the teenagers scream for more. Born Cages’ stadium-rock style burst with heavy synth and club-loving dance measures on their debut LP, I’m Glad I’m Not Me.

If you’re looking for an album that is full of energy and lathed with radio-friendly pop, NYC’s Born Cages have you looking no further. The first track, “Rolling Down The Hill” sets the tone of constant overjoyed dance songs that would pair well with a JCPenny’s commercial. Lead singer and guitarist, Vlad Holiday knows how to write a pop-rock song, as he writes twelve of them on the new LP. As the album goes deeper, the songs start to blend together, sounding similar. Just about every song is comprised of colorful melodies, a heavy hand on the synth, and a plethora of screaming guitar solos that overflow the album. The lyrics are considerably encouraging, fitting the music perfectly, but occasionally come off as cheesy; “She’s a volcano in the rain, she wants to erupt on me again” Vlad confesses on “Volcano”. The last track, “Finding Beauty in a Broken World” triumphantly closes out the album with Holiday’s grumbling acapella of the world’s problems.

Besides the frequent dose of Disney pulsating through I’m Glad I’m Not Me, there is some excellent musicianship going on and it takes a lot of talent to write pop songs. Born Cages’s debut LP may be nowhere near groundbreaking, but it has the potential to be highly successful with its hefty dance anthem sound that bands will envy.

Rating: 6.0/10


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