The Honorary Title - Untouched & Intact (CD)

All Music Guide

To tide fans over until their major label debut Scream and Light Up the Sky came out in late August 2007, Brooklyn band the Honorary Title issued a foursong EP, Untouched and Intact, that contained two songs from the new record (the title track and "Along the Way") and two older Bsides ("Finally Understand," "7 Blocks"). There's definitely a difference between the two sets; the newer songs are poppier and fuller, focusing less on acoustic guitar and turning towards something that closer resembles the Format's work on Dog Problems or even Alkaline Trio singer Matt Skiba's side project Heavens. "Untouched and Intact" is actually a pretty great song, upbeat and clean but with a subtle darkness underneath, and "Along the Way," while more in the vaguely altcountry vein that the band has previously explored, sounds more mature than anything they've done before. Yes, the new music is more produced, more polished, but not in a way that takes from what the band has already established. Rather, ...it shows a development, a growth, that will hopefully lead the Honorary Title into the future while still keeping their fan base happy. - Marisa Brown, All Music Guide Read more Less