What is post-hardcore? I mean, if it’s bands that come after hardcore bands then what is the hardcore scene now? Are only the originators truly hardcore? Is modern hardcore post-hardcore? Because I just usually call it hardcore... Fugazi came after Minor Threat, so are they post-hardcore? Beastie Boys were hardcore and now they’re hip-hop, where does this leave them. Maybe post-hardcore is really hip-hop? In a world totally obsessed with pigeonholing you’d think I’d be able to understand what the hell some of them mean...

Anyway, with that rant over I will tell you that Lock and Key are apparently a (surprise surprise) “post-hardcore” band. While I won’t claim to have the first idea what the hell that’s supposed to mean, I will tell you that this record gives this crazy sub-genre a pretty decent name.

I’ll start by stating the obvious, singer Ryan Shanahan has a pretty odd voice. All I can say is that I’m incredibly glad the record doesn’t depend on the lead vocal so much. His unique style works to a certain degree but really does tend to become annoying by the third song. The odd thing about this is the fact that the backup vocals provided by Mike Vera are actually very good and would probably be more suited as a lead vocal.

The other instrumentation on Pull up the Floorboards is very tidy. Catchy lead riffs, frantic guitar breaks, jackhammer drumming – it’s all there. The songwriting is very good too, with a nice mix of soft, intricate moments and big, dumb, powerful, fuck off trices. Even the parts where the instruments go soft and the vocals become unbelievably whiney are pretty well constructed.

This brings me to the thing that impressed me the most with the record and that is the production. Everything seems to sit very well, a difficult task given the complexity of some of the arrangements. The production of this record is clearly a job that has taken an awful long time and a hell of a lot of effort and given that the liner notes make absolutely no mention of a producer I will guess that the band did it themselves. If this is the case they certainly should have mentioned this as it is very impressive. Special mention must also go out to Ethan Dussault (assistant engineer on Cave In’s 2002 release Tides of Tomorrow) who recorded and mixed the record and has done an amazing job at achieving a great middle ground for the band that isn’t too polished nor too rough.

Any people not afraid of something a bit heavy yet a bit clean should give this record a go. Don't take the rating as too much of an indication, I was forced to deduct many marks for the annoyance the lead vocals caused me.

Well my first official post-hardcore review was quite a pleasant experience and I’m willing to guess that this crazy genre can be described as like emo with a bit more of a tough edge to it. Which leaves us with the question... What the hell is emo?