Threes

Performer: Sparta
Engineer: Joe Chiccarelli
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Sparta: Jim Ward, Keeley Davis (vocals, guitar); Matt Miller (bass guitar); Tony Hajjar (drums). Given the band's first two hard-hitting albums, not to mention the members' previous tenure in the seminal post-hardcore outfit At the Drive-In, Sparta's heavy indie-rock pedigree was pretty firmly established by the time THREES was released in 2006. It's a bit surprising, then, that the album flirts with mainstream rock, offering up tunes that brim with powerful, anthemic choruses and the passionate grandeur of acts like U2. But Sparta never sound forced or out of their element. On the contrary, THREES weighs tight musical muscle with melody and accessibility, building on the band's post-hardcore past while moving confidently towards a crossover future. A new label (Hollywood Records) and a new guitar player (Keeley Davis) seem to have invigorated the mighty Sparta, resulting in an exchange of shadows with the often mightier At the Drive-In. While Sparta's previous releases have shown a knack for the brooding, bloody-fingered antics championed by bands like "...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead" and British Sea Power, the memorable moments have been few and far between, something that has changed considerably with Threes. It only take 30 seconds into "Untreatable Disease" to see the spark returned to the once meaningful term emo, as vocalist/guitarist Jim Ward finds the middle ground between Jeremy Enigk's "Jack-in-the-box" howl and Brandon Flowers cocky but ruined self-assurance. "Taking Back Control" may pilfer liberally from U2's "New Years Day," "Atlas" may steal a page or two from Coldplay, and "False Start" could launch a thousand stadium lighters, but Sparta, especially on this record, sounds like a beast that's broken its chains and is fighting between the road ahead and going back from whence it came, and it's that indecision that makes Threes so electrifying, even when it's not sure of what it wants to be. ~ James Christopher Monger

Spin (p.104) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "Sparta have evolved, with a melodic approach and a postdepression, fist-pumping attitude." Entertainment Weekly (p.72) - "Their third and most polished full-length matches intricate guitar jousting with a melodic stickiness recalling a punkier U2." -- Grade: B Uncut (p.116) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[T]here's mammoth hooks and meaningful shouting galore here, most effectively on opener 'Untreatable Disease'..." Alternative Press (p.182) - "Behind Ward's expanding register, Sparta finally seem intent on realizing their destiny as an arena-filling, life-changing band." CMJ (p.41) - "The addition of guitarist Keeley Davis...and singer Jim Ward's vastly improved vocal range propel the band's transcendence and rebirth."

When seminal post-hardcore band At the Drive-In called it quits one camp went on to form the high-concept prog act Mars Volta, while the other members--consisting of Jim Ward, Paul Hinojos, and Tony Hajjar--formed the more traditionally-minded hardcore punk ensemble Sparta. Though the band would lose Hinojos to the Mars Volta, Sparta went on to become successful mainstays of the melodic, musically complex subgenre of hardcore variously known as screamo, emo, and melodic hardcore. The band released its third full-length, THREES, in 2006.

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