Framing Hanley Returns with Envy

Framing Hanley
Envy
Thermal Entertainment LLC

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The big news is that Framing Hanley is back. The bigger news is that Envy is a monster of a release for the band that resurrects elements of their early days while forming an exemplified gloss over the production of these new songs. Envy takes Framing Hanley’s passion for music one step forward.

The popular saying is if we only know now what we knew then. This is Framing Hanley’s chance to prove that, and they nailed it. I love the devotion the band puts into these songs like the self-inflicting “Misery” or the modestly striving “The Way Down.” Kenneth Nixon’s challenges his songwriting ability, making Envy powerful.

The pop elements do not conflict with the intensity of the music. Even when they dip into a ballad, it’s never cheesy.

Let’s dissect the three singles for this album. “Puzzle Pieces” is West Coast brooding that turns into a chorus of reflective fireworks. The song is built to be a single with the chorus hooks and crashing rhythms. “Baggage Claim” is found at the end of the album that builds more perspective into the artistic prose of the band. It’s not so much single heavy as “Puzzle Pieces,” but does highlight the philosophy of the group’s panache for good songwriting.

“Throwing Knives” musically swirls giving dizziness to this serenade until the build up into the chorus and the chorus itself levels with distinct clarity. “Here for the last time, I will be on fire waiting for you.” Adding strings to the mix is not new for Framing Hanley, but here they really add to the impact.

For me, the band’s defining moment is “Forgiveness is an Art.” The harmonies, the undercurrent, the obvious way each member has to rely on each other to fit the pieces together, the catchiness of the chorus: these are some of the elements that make this song stand out.

Envy is an album that will not just please fans, it will pleasantly surprise them.

Envy Track Listing:

1. Say You Ever
2. Bubbles
3. Misery
4. Joke’s On Us
5. Forgiveness Is An Art
6. Puzzle Pieces
7. Maeve
8. Carousel
9. The Way Down
10. Throwing Knives
11. Counterfeit
12. Baggage Claim