Hailing from Kingston, Pennsylvania, Title Fight is a quartet that identifies with the pop-punk, melodic hardcore, and 1990’s emo genres.  An undoubtedly eclectic mix, the band that has been paying their dues since 2003 has released their first full length Shed, which leans much towards the latter two genres.

Frontman Jamie Rhoden has a distinct voice that, I, as a fan of the more polished end of the vocal spectrum, find hard to invest in. Personal tastes aside, however, his droning yells offer emotion and encapsulate the sentiment of Title Fight’s music. Shed offers twelve short but compelling tracks, each of which sounds a little like Foo Fighters’s “My Hero” with distorted fuzzy rhythm guitar composing the bedrock for a twangy lead.  Album opener “Coxton Yard” is the most rapid found on the album, and the chorus lyrics “Feeling like a bag of bones/Shrivelled up and cold/Nineteen years old” characterize the angst-laced tones that typify the rest of Shed.

The title track “Shed” is Title Fight at their very best, combining dark ferocious guitar melodies with a perfect combination of pop and hardcore. “Crescent-shaped Depression” echoes the sounds of the legendary American Football, and exemplifies (paradoxically) the more relaxed yet more serious side of Title Fight’s sound. “Safe in Your Skin” offers something similar, while crashing symbols and a marching bass drum conclude with Rhoden singing, “When you’re feeling safe in your skin, Maybe we’ll meet again”, resembling Jesse Lacey’s Deja Entendu voice.

“Your Screen Door” suggests that Title Fight hasn’t quite mastered the art of pop-punk yet, and should probably stick to the more sinister side of their sound. Closer “GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)” is the case in point – a tormented and moving tribute to the death of a loved one and the torture of being a young musician on the road, Title Fight shows that they are capable of epics.

Shed has been a long time coming from a band that has been working tirelessly to gain plaudits, and Title Fight can be proud of their debut release. 

***/***** 

*This review was composed by Ramsey Marwan