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JFH Indie Review

JFH Indie Music Spotlight Review



Auburn
Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth EP

Album length: 5 tracks
Street Date: January 13, 2009


Auburn, a new artist on Blue Duck Records (hopefully a Billy Madison reference), hails from the state of Massachusetts. But upon listening to even just the first few seconds of their new EP, titled Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth, you would be more apt to guess that they would be from Georgia, Mississippi, or somewhere at least near there. The EP has a huge southern metal sound, resembling bands like Maylene and the Sons of Disaster and Once Nothing (more so the former).

EP opener "Waking Snakes" starts off with that Maylene sound. Some heavy guitars and drums serve as the background for a southern rock-style guitar lick, while the vocals focus on a mix of guttural screams and half-screaming/half-singing. The style continues on throughout the rest of the EP. "Like Trying To Kiss A Freight Train" even offers a cowbell-laden intro. A very big highlight of the album is Auburn's ability to throw in some heavy metal breakdowns. A lot of "Wise Guys" consists of breakdowns, and they're a very beautiful thing. The album finisher, "Party Song," really is a party of sorts. It's hectic and slightly chaotic, but structured. The pace changes quite frequently, particularly in the first minute and a half of the song.

Auburn keeps the focus of their lyrics directed toward God. In "Like Trying To Kiss A Freight Train," the chorus (which is coming from God's perspective) says, "Don't run away My child, come back in My arms, I know you may stumble, I won't let you fall." With lots of new artists making their appearance in the metal genre, it's nice to see that - in the midst of the ones that don't - we're still going to get those bands that keep their attention on the Creator.

This EP isn't anything new, but it's certainly good. Lots of bands are making their way in the music biz with this particular sound nowadays, and some of them just can't pull it off. Auburn, however, is able to do it and make it sound great. Once they get enough for a full-length record, it should be nothing short of goodness all the way through. They've given us a small taste of what they can do, and now anyone who listens to Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth will have high expectations for their first full-length. The only thing I ask for differently next time around is to stay away from the supposed-to-be-cute-but-thought- provoking Christian slogans (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth is an acronym for BIBLE, if you hadn't caught that yet). So long as they stay away from anymore of that, everything else they do in the future should be great.

- Review date: 1/18/09, written by Scott Fryberger of Jesusfreakhideout.com



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. Record Label: Blue Duck Records
. Album length: 5 tracks
. Street Date: January 13, 2009
. Buy It: Blue Duck Records

  1. Waking Snakes
  2. Burning Bridges
  3. Like Trying To Kiss A Freight Train
  4. Wise Guys
  5. Parysong

 

 

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This Wednesday, October 22, 2025
SINGLES
Phil Wickham Fear Has No Power - Single [Fair Trade]

This Friday, October 24, 2025
ALBUMS
John Allan untitled EP [Centricity]
Dan Bremnes The Villain - EP [Curb]
Clear Convictions Endure [Resuscitation]
God Behind Bars Music Live From Angola Prison Vol. 1 [Provident]
Fepeste This World Ain't Mine to Change [Velvet Blue]
gio. FINE BY ME [Capitol CMG]
Brandon Lake Amazon Music Songline [Provident]
Latter Day Exploits Within Consumed (Expanded Edition) [Charon Collective]
Tyson Motsenbocker Modern Worries [Tooth & Nail]
Smalltown Poets St. Augustine (independent)
Zahriya Zachary Rediscovery [Bethel]

SINGLES
29:11 Worship, Zion Rempel You Never Fail (feat. Emily Guy) - Single [DREAM]
Joe L Barnes Grief, Joy, Gratitude - Single [Provident]
Chad Cory, Zacardi Cortez My First Love (Remix) - Single [DREAM]
Leanna Crawford Beginning Of Your Grace - Single [Provident]
darthy Juniper Tree - Single [WieRok]
Emerson Day Midnight Hour - Single [Fair Trade]
Good Weather Forecast lows2highs - Single [DREAM]
Grace + Max Rich - Single [WieRok]
Jamie Macdonald You Can't Take My Song - Single [Capitol CMG]
Mercy Tribe Music The King is in the Room (feat. Ayiesha Woods) - Single (independent)
Mountains in the Sea You Never Fail (feat. Emily Guy) - Single [DREAM]
Seph Schlueter Already On The Way (feat. Benjamin William Hastings) - Single [Provident]
Tomb Slayer The Christmas Lamb (feat. Khristian Dentley & Sarah Whittemore) - Single [Tomb Slayer]
The Undertaking! All Smiles - Single (independent)

VINYL
Clear Convictions Endure [Resuscitation]

Next Friday, October 31, 2025
ALBUMS
Hope Deferred Darkness Remains [The Charon Collective]
Testimony of Apocalypse Agony in the Garden [Roxx Records]

SINGLES
Dreamers My Heart His Home - Single [DREAM]
Roxanne Grace Try Again - Single [DREAM]
Lock & Chi Do To Me - Single (independent)
John Long Simple Pursuit - Single (independent)
Warren Zeiders How Great Thou Art - Single [Warner]


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