Two years ago, Crying hit us with their Gameboy infused sad rock making them somewhat of a renegade for a genre all their own. Fast forward two years later and the band has now matured into a newer sound that takes those Gameboy sounds and makes them more useful to the band’s songwriting. I was quite intrigued when I heard that Crying’s debut album, Beyond The Fleeting Gates was being compared to the likes of Queen and REO Speedwagon. I took an interest in where the band could go from their first two EPs and after falling off their bandwagon; this album certainly brought me back on.

“Revive” and “Wool in the Wash” will certainly breakout those 80s nostalgia vibes. The band does an excellent job of borrowing from predecessors but making it entirely their own. While you can link the opening riff of “Revive” to a dozen 80s songs, it almost doesn’t matter. Patriot and “There Was A Door” were the track that really got me listening to this album. “There Was a Door” has got pop vibes with a rock feel as distorted guitars melodically play while Eliaza Santos does whatever she wants on vocals making the song that good. “The Curve” is the perfect album ender. It brings in everything new that Crying is working with: interesting synths, pretty guitars, distorted guitars. The band has self proclaimed themselves as partially ‘easy metal’ and sometimes that certainly shines through on certain tracks.

Crying’s progression into a new territory is an impressive one. The band truly shows how they have graduated from a chiptune band into a much more mature band still able to use elements from their old sound to form their new sound. While I don’t entirely hear the 70s and 80s vibe, I understand why they would be compared to as such. This album is definitely worth a listen as Crying prove on their debut just what they’re capable of.