[7/10] In the last twelve months, Dayton, Ohio-based emo-rock/post-hardcore outfit Hawthorne Heights have gone from a hugely successful act, to one that almost lost it all.

Not long after the release of their sophomore album If Only You Were Lonely, the band announced they were leaving Victory Records and followed with a lawsuit against the label. Victory Records quickly responded with a counter suit, resulting in the two fighting it out in the courts for the better part of a year after.

However the real tragedy in this whole sordid story was the passing away of guitarist/screaming vocalist Casey Calvert in November 2007. An accidental overdose of prescription medication was found to be the cause. Naturally, it left the band in a state of uncertainty, with the possibility of a split a very real possibility.

But in a surprise move, the remaining four members (comprising of vocalist/guitarist JT Woodruff, guitarist/backing vocalist Micah Carli, bassist/backing vocalist Matt Ridenour and drummer Eron Bucciarelli) decided to continue with works on their third album. In the process, they also patched up their differences with Victory Records, who now bring us the band’s latest effort Fragile Future.

Hawthorne Heights have never really impressed me with their first two releases. And with that thought in mind, I wasn’t expecting much from Fragile Future. But to my surprise, Hawthorne Heights’ latest effort shows some signs of maturity, with Fragile Future boasting some of the strongest material to emerge from the band to date.

I say some of the best material, because at the heart of Fragile Future, it’s still very much the Hawthorne Heights we knew from before. Tracks such as the single “Rescue Me,” the addictive “Desperation,” “Let Go Of Everything You Know,” “Come Back Home (Reprised)” (in which the chorus reveals itself as a reprisal of “This Is Who We Are” from If Only You Were Lonely) and “The Business Of Paper Stars” stick very much to the formula that has worked for the band in the past, with only the absence of Calvert’s screaming back-up vocals and the improved lyrical content marking any great changes.

However, it’s tracks such as the multi-layered/harmony vocalised “Until The Judgement Day,” the urgent “Somewhere In Between,” the highly experimental “Sugar In The Engine,” the hard rocking “321” and the half ballad/half rock based “Disaster” where the band reveal their willingness to try something new and adventurous.

Fragile Future isn’t a complete reinvention of sound for Hawthorne Heights, and those moments of experimentation don’t always work. But if anything, Fragile Future is a step in the right direction for Hawthorne Heights, and one that at least hints at some potential greatness with their next release.

www.hawhtorneheights.com