REviewing the New Trading Yesterday Album

More Than This, Trading Yesterday's latest album, seeks beyond, with a sound that soothes and lyrics that cry out to inspire change in one's life. With frontman David Hodges on vocals, guitar and piano, Steven McMorran on bass, Mark Colbert on Drums, creates big soaring ballads in the studio. On tours the band has added John Campbell on Keyboards and Josh Dunahoo on Guitars to capture their full sound.

Hodges wrote, produced and played keyboards with Evanescence from '99 to 2002, until he connected with Colbert and McMorran in 2003. Their formation was sealed over dinner one night at an iHop, according to Hodge; apparently pancakes are inspirational fuel. Blueberry syrup aside, Trading Yesterday's founders connected on a musical level, but also on a spiritual one, something highly evident in their production.

In February of 2004, Hodges was awarded two Grammies along with Amy Lee from Evanescence. Just months later the release of Trading Yesterday's debut, The Beauty & The Tragedy, hit stores and sold out, attracting a deal with Epic Records. There where plans to release the follow up album, More Than This, but the band left Epic in November, 2005. For now you can still hear and buy downloads of tracks from the album, including "Revolution," Shattered," "One Day," and "She is the sunlight." "Shattered" and "One Day" were also on The Beauty & The Tragedy.

Their almost sentimental atmosphere on tracks like "Revolution" captures a solid counterpoint to its inspirational premise. The band proves then can take in up a notch too, letting "Shattered" build from an acoustic lullaby into a massive climax of power chords and symphonic strings. This is a band to listen for as they reach out to those looking for more than the drones of monotone Emo, and once found it on their debut album The Beauty & The Tragedy, but the official release of More Than This will be something to look forward to.

• www.myspace.com/tradingyesterday • www.tradingyesterday.com