The Blood Theory

With a pedigree that includes ten years of playing with bands like
30odd8, Beneath Blue Skies, The Bleeding Heart Massacre, My
Own Devices, SubAssembly, and Critical, the members of The
Blood Theory realized that being in a band had to be like being in
a family.

Brothers Chris and Adam Barbiero (vocals/guitars and drums
respectively), Dan Flynn (lead guitar), and Mike Cooper (bass)
came together with that idea in mind, focusing on their chemistry
as musicians and the product is their debut CD, Thicker Than
Water.

"I was struggling to find the right recipe for a band," recalls
Chris Barbiero. "I've realized finding the right members is 80 per
cent of the work, once you have the chemistry there, everything
else falls into place. I called my brother who was feeling the same
way at the time, and asked him how he felt about jamming again,
and he was down. We started writing but quickly knew what we
were missing as far as the other elements went.

"My brother came up with the name when he started
thinking about how well this was working compared to the other
bands we were in," he adds. "The Blood Theory is a reference to
blood brothers. The theory is if you are so close to each other,
then the music, as far as writing and live shows goes, is pretty
much like clockwork." Even though Dan and Coop aren't family by
blood, you would believe they were when you hear their music.
Recorded at Barbiero's InHouse Music studio, Thicker Than
Water delivers a metallic punch but with a strong sense of
melody. The songs are loud and brash, but focus on developing a
dynamic within the song, ripping a page from the likes of local
Juno nominees and fellow Burlingtonians, Idle Sons and pushing
the energy up another level.

"We never chose what type of music we wanted to play, we
just brought what we had to the table and this is what we ended
up with," offers Cooper on the band's sound. "We have metal
influence, and of course a hard sound, but we are trying to put
our music everywhere in the spectrum. What we are trying to
accomplish is getting heard internationally, regardless of our
stereotype. We love bands like The Deftones and Thrice, who have
blown up but still stayed true to their music."

"We are trying to get away from the typical aspect of hard
metal guitar riffs accompanied by screaming over them,"
interjects Barbiero. "I love melodic vocals, as well as melodic
guitars, plus myself and Coop are into hip hop as well, and my
brother keeps that groove going in the tracks."

"Dude, we go fucking nuts on stage," says Cooper on the
band's stage show. "The energy of the entire band is absolutely
ridiculous. It's not all crazy serious and dramatic, we just love
playing and love having fun with the crowd. Just come to have a
good time, and see a band give everything they have in 45
minutes.

By Ric Taylor

Courtesy of Hamilton's View Magazine - View Magazine

So here we are boys and girls for the first ever CD Review on the Throwback Revolution. You guys are probably asking yourselves "What the hell is with this long delay for CD reviews?". Well, I wanted to do a review for something that I actually like listening to first and nothing mainstream. Why you ask? Because that is what the Throwback Revolution is about! Bringing you great shit that you've probably never heard of (unless you're a long time fan of the show or indie rock in general)! This is no exception. I'm going to be reviewing Hamilton, Ontarios own The Blood Theory and their album, Thicker Than Water. Now this isn't going to be like one of those general reviews. I don't like those. I'm going to be reviewing every song individually followed by a summary! I'm also doing this as I listen to the songs on the album so that way you guys know that you're getting an honest review. So here we go kids!

1- The Last One
This starts off with a killer guitar riff. This is a fast paced song that you could rock out to. This is about a previous relationship and if you have the ability to listen to the words, it tells a very good story. This song has a very good beat to it and is very enjoyable to listen to. The only downfall I see from this specific song is that at times, it is very hard to hear the vocals. Depending on your taste of music, this can be a blessing if you just like to rock out but a curse if you like to take in the lyrics and paint a picture in your head while you listen to the song. This is a good song but the lack of audible vocals at times takes away the presence of it being a great song.

2- Walk and Wonder
Nice melodic intro, it's very well done. A pretty mellow song with a kick to it, very enjoyable. Unlike the previous track, you can really get into this one and get a feel of what the song is about. It seems to be about someone thinking about someone they love and tells a very good story. I'm loving this song, it's great! Most people will feel the heart of this song and get into the hypnotic beat it has to it. Great track!

3- Same as Before
A new twist from the first two tracks, it starts off with a good piano play then a guitar riff takes over. These guys are great with their intros and will sink you right into the rest of the song. Great beat to the song, you'll be able to bob your head to the beat very easily. Hell, if you don't you probably don't have a pulse. I can't really grasp what this song is about by listening to it... Probably because I'm a little too into the beat of the song. I hear "Same as Before" but the rest of the lyrics are somewhat hard to pick up at times. However, unlike the first track, the beat to this one is great and covers up the flaw of not hearing the lyrics all that much. A good song you can really get into.

4- Sun Will Shine Again
A nice slow intro to start off. This one is worded well for you artistic people who like to hear the lyrics. The beat of the song is pretty slow and that suits this song very well. It is put together very well and you can visualise what the song is about. This isn't the most innovative or flashy song but it doesn't need to be, it's still kicking some ass in my book. Very well put together song that everyone that hasn't heard TBT before will surely enjoy.

5- Thicker Than Water
Starts off pretty good. This song so far on the album is their best one. It has a great mix of beat and vocals, really seperating it from the previous four songs. Very well put together song, telling a great story and you can rock out to it. This song should be a blueprint to aspiring rock bands on how to make a track. Clear lyrics, great beat, great sound, great story. Those, in my opinion, are the four basic elements of every song that every band should try to get and this song has it all. Very well done boys!

6- More Time
I love this intro. It has a quote about what it's like to love someone with, what is the perfect background for this minute long quote. Phenominal intro, possibly the best one I've heard in awhile from current artists. This track has a feel to it that everyone who has ever been in a meaningful relationship can feel. A strong emotional track so far that isn't on the radar of a slow song. It's pretty impressive. The beat is pretty basic for this song but for a song like this, you shouldn't have to over do the beat. I like this song alot. To put this into perspective for everyone, this song is giving me flashbacks to a relationship I had when I was 18... and I can't remember jack shit from when I was 18! This song is great. The last minute and a half of the song is just instrumentals. I'm not sure why they would fill a minute and a half of the end of this song to just have instrumentals, especially for a song like that. A great song but the minute and a half of instrumentals is overkill.

7- Staying Friends
The intro for this one is fun, I like it. It has a different feel to it. So far, every track on here seems to be abo - Throwback Revolution