Dead Poetic have been garnering a lot of attention as of late and it appears as though the Tooth & Nail/Solid State family took note of this as both labels have opted to join forces to put out this sophomore release. A slick blend of melodic emo mixed with aggressive guitars and a few well placed screams, "New Medicines" is likely to be Dead Poetic's coup d'etat as it has everything going for it in today's musical climate.

While their previous outing "Four Wall Blackmail" was a somewhat jagged, mismatched affair, "New Medicines" comes off as a fully realized and mature sounding effort. Similar in kind to the lushly emotive, yet commercially sensible output, of groups like The Juliana Theory and recent Blindside, Dead Poetic croon and swoon with grace and cunning. Reflecting this, the metallic screamo aspect the band used to practice seems to have been cut to a minimum this time out as only the opening cut, "Taste The Red Hands", bears any resemblance to the more violent moments of their past. Instead what you are treated to here is well-produced, cleverly written melodic metal meets emo from a band who proudly sport their heart on their sleeve.

Catchy and immersive, the group look to have set their sights on breaking into the rock radio market and yet they still have no problems making the emotion they convey throughout their material sound authentic and engaging. However, for all they do right, there seems to be a bit of a formulaic approach taken. Nearly every song tacks on a few screamed back up vocals at key moments, usually during the choruses, while the momentum rarely stutters, causing each track to speed along to the finish line. The material is still dynamic in ideals, but overall there's little surprise or pronounced highs and lows present. In turn the album as a whole comes off as rather straight forward and fairly uneventful. That's not to say it isn't enjoyable by any means. Just that it may leave those familiar with the style gazing at their vintage shoes on more than one occasion.