The Homefront

With Honor experienced a bit of a stylistic change come their 2005 split EP with the Distance, and as it seems they're all but on the verge of breaking up with members busy in Ambitions, a seeming inability to keep a lead vocalist and a sore lack of updates/shows, fans who preferred their harder sound of older are especially likely to never hear much of it again. Unless of course, they're listening to the Homefront.

The Homefront remembers precisely what With Honor did sound like before that transition and take a direct, shameless inspiration from it for their first full-length, Sacrifice. The well-played effort from these ex-members of Verse, and Guns Up! and Have Heart (pretty excellent selling points overall for anyone remotely knowledgeable of New England hardcore in the 2000s) is clearly derivative of it but fairly enjoyable all the same. Rarely do the Homefront slip into straightforward, tuneless territory, instead employing a completely subtle and underlying sense of melody that never compromises the intensity and aggression present throughout Sacrifice.

Among the sing-along breakdown of a track like "Word of Honor," the minute-long blast of "Time Will Tell" and the slow-churning build of "So Here's My Renaissance" the similarities all over the place. However, there is one exception: "Against the Tide," whose mid-tempo intro is more reminiscent of Modern Life Is War. Also, "Escape (Fuck This Town)" is probably the most original song here, and features some pretty stellar guitar noodling. Otherwise it's rather clear who the main influence driving Sacrifice is.

You should know exactly what you're getting with Sacrifice. I'm not saying this is a carbon copy of Heart Means Everything, but the two share enough qualities where there should be plenty of layover when it comes to the fans.

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Snakes vs. Man
Against the Tide
So Here's My Renaissance
Escape (Fuck This Town)