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Written by Jason Green Wednesday, 07 November 2007 10:05

Despite able musicianship, the final product lacks any spark or originality, offering nothing Thursday or Thrice hasn't done before, and done better.

With a name like Scary Kids Scaring Kids, you're probably going into this review expecting this to be yet another in a long line of sound-alike emo bands. Sadly, you aren't really that far off.

This isn't to say that the Gilbert, Ariz., sextet's self-titled sophomore effort is bad, because it isn't. Singer Tyson Stevens has a pleasant voice and his lyrics are pleasantly devoid of embarrassingly personal revelations, guitarists Steve Kirby and Chad Crawford shoot off nimble heavy metal guitar solos with regularity, and keyboardist Pouyan Afkary adds a nice bit of atmosphere. The problem is, despite able musicianship, the final product lacks any spark or originality, offering nothing Thursday or Thrice hasn't done before, and done better.

The most refreshing change of pace comes at the halfway point, from the melancholy acoustic ballad "Derailed" (think Jimmy Eat World) and the pretty organ-and-guitar instrumental "Breathe" that follows. Besides that three-minute respite, the remainder treads over the same well-worn screamo territory, resulting in a well-constructed but ultimately unaffecting album where only diehard fans of the genre will find much to dig into. C | Jason Green

RIYL: Thursday, Thrice