Fearless scares
By GARRET CARLSON | Sep. 5, 2007Arizona rockers, Scary Kids Scaring Kids, are determined to avoid frights with their tame second full-length, self-titled release.While past records have been contrived and included a gimmicky synthesizer, the band's latest reinvigorates a sound that has garnered them a loyal following of fans in self-sewn jeans and Chuck Taylors.Standing out immediately is the unusually moderate use of keyboard played by Pouyan Afkary, which makes a lot of the songs on the new CD sound more mature.Unfortunately, they have not grown out of sappy ballads, which would be more fitting on a Bon Jovi tribute than a post-hardcore record."Holding On" finally kicks the record off at track three, with some eerily familiar keyboards when vocalist Tyson Stevens yelps, "There goes the sun!"With the downplaying of said keys, the guitars are showcased and allowed to shine a lot more than in SKSK's past.
