Phoenix, Arizona’s Blessthefall are releasing 10-year anniversary repressings of their fourth release, Hollow Bodies. I was shipped the “Wide Black” variant (pictured above), and it’s no frills. No thrills. Just a quality anniversary press with O.G. liner notes! The wax grooves are cut well (what else is new from Craft re-presses?) and the album came flat as my abs before becoming a father.
While listening to the record, I was reading the liner notes and learned that Pierce The Veil’s Vic Fuentes helped write “See You On The Outside!” I knew August Burns Red’s Jake Luhrs was featured on “Carry On” as well as Stick To Your Guns’ Jesse Barnett on “Youngbloods,” but I wasn’t aware Fuentes played a role. Would have been fun to be a fly on that wall!
Speaking of liner notes, did I ever tell you about the time I was tasked with solving the “liner notes crisis of 2009?” Yup. For my final presentation to earn a useless music business degree, that was my prompt. You see, young bucks, 2009 was at the height of digital music. CDs were still selling, but iTunes was at its peak–this was before you could pay for streaming the music you want (I know, I’ll let that sink in). So what was my solution, you ask? Bring vinyl back to the masses and develop supported digital art! NO! NOT LIKE NFTs! EVERYONE HATES NFTs …. Different… but yeah, ew. Needless to say, the class grilled me hard about physical media being dead, though the professor, a wax collector himself, thought I was onto something. If only I invested in all these Fearless first pressings back then. Well not this one. Apparently this one goes for like $30 on Discogs, but you get the idea.
Anyway, if you’re seeking a review of the songwriting, you’ll need to travel back to 2013 and snag an Alternative Press… or check out the album’s wiki. I’m only here to play gatekeeper of poor-quality pressings, and my black variant spins pretty damn smoothly! So I say buy away!
The band is also releasing additional variants through their own website, on tour, and via Revolver, Craft and Urban Outfitters which are set to ship August 18th.
