Send "Emery " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Absolutepunk |
 Devin Shelton, vocalist and guitar player for Emery, is gone. The words rocked my ears. Though I was surprised, I anticipated some change subconsciously. Emery's core members had been together since before the release of The Question (2005). The law of averages demanded Shelton's blood. Losing him is like losing a kidney for Emery. You can go on living, probably doing most of the things you love to do, but the kidney is still gone - and it's noticeable. Shelton was obviously one of the chief contributors in writing. Without him, Emery produces honest, but at times slightly duller and ineffective, lines than we are used to. The first six tracks hit so hard, it is nearly impossible not to crack a smile. The album enters strong. We have start-and-stop breakdowns, pummeling double bass and frenetic screaming intertwined with lead vocalist Toby Morrell's urgent, yet smooth, voice. Songs like "The Cheval Glass" and "The Curse of Perfect Days" are sure to stay in the band's rotation for awhile. Tracks 7 and 8 take the album down to a manageable level, as "Daddy's Little Peach" provides relief from the album's fist-to-face first half. "Addicted To Bad Decisions" sounds like a B-side from The Question, and it doesn't work as well with the new album. The final two tracks, "I Never Got To See The West Coast" and "Fix Me," ring sincere, but slightly ajar, as the record closes. If We Do What We Want was a 12-track album, I think Emery could have justified the placement of these tracks as the album's closers. Emery manages to put their own spin on the "metal" aspect of the record. This is the best creative aspect of the band. They have an ability to infuse hard music with Emery, not the other way around. They have shown that they are equipped enough to write metal tunes as well as contemplative and mournful tracks....full text |
| Thenewreview |
| Since their inception in 2001, South Carolina’s Emery has been chugging along quite nicely. Releasing five albums in eight years, the band has been steadily churning out hits time after time, to a generally favorable response. Staying strong in a genre that is surely gasping for its last breath, Emery infuses life back into a stale scene and gives it a leg to stand on. Blending post-hardcore, rock and emo (yes, I said emo, now let’s move past it), the band is able to capture both the melodic and dissonant ends of the spectrum. Since their early days, the band has always prided itself on vocal and melodic layering. Creating this undeniable beauty with their multi-layered guitar riffs and “round” style of singing, the band is able to capture emotion and use it to their advantage; whether it be to make you fall in love or help you fall out of love, Emery has the sure fire recipe for success. What has always drawn me to the band is that even at their most emotional and melodic, there was always a chance that right around the corner was a left hook of anger, turning the soaring melodies and love-infused hooks into distorted, double bass driven bouts of fury. Now don’t get me wrong, they certainly aren’t switching into a Deicide or Slayer all in one song. The extreme end of Emery’s spectrum isn’t that extreme, but the aggression is enough to get anyone’s head banging just a little. Now, on Emery’s fifth release, We Do What We Want the band has decided to explore that side of their repertoire a bit more. The band kicks off the album with two heavy hitters, tracks you didn’t think Emery had in them. Both “The Cheval Glass” and “Scissors” offer up some of the heaviest material in Emery’s arsenal. So much so that you can even find breakdowns, something that you would be hard pressed to find in any other Emery release. With the departure of long time vocalist Devin Shelton, the rest of the band has had to rediscover who they truly are and the answer appears to be…pissed off. Following the trend of their previous release, In Shallow Seas We Sail, less focus is put on falling in love and in its place is what sounds like a general hatred for love lost and blown opportunities....full text |
| Altpress |
| The first thing you really notice on We Do What We Want, Emery’s fifth full-length, is how heavy it is. Like, ridiculously heavy. Between the ubiquitous A Day To Remember-styled chugga-chugga breakdowns and frantically shrill screams, it’s the hardest performance the band have served up in a long time, if not ever. It turns out that this was the plan all along—with a mostly acoustic album also slated for this year, Emery decided to go in the complete opposite direction for Want, and it takes all of about five seconds of “Scissors” or “The Cheval Glass” to reckon they’ve succeeded. Parts of the record are flat-out, starch-your-socks pummeling. With Devin Shelton on an indefinite hiatus, the vocal/lyrical responsibility has fallen squarely on the shoulders of vocalist/guitarist Toby Morrell, who rose to the challenge with some of his most personal work, particularly in his explorations of faith. He’s embraced a prevalent Christian message on Want, writing almost as a conversation with God at times, culminating in “You Wanted It,” the album’s thematic linchpin, where the protagonist realizes that his decision to live outside of faith has failed him, through his own fault alone. We all have the gift of free will, and we do what we want....full text |
Emery lyrics
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