The Things We Think We’re Missing
Balance and Composure / The Things We Think We’re Missing / 2013 / NSR095
Post-Hardcore music is something that has weaved in and out of my music rotation since high school thanks to my friends, but for whatever reason Balance and Composure was a band that eluded me for a while (Even as I was listening to a lot of Will Yip produced releases such as Blue Sky Noise from Circa Survive and Youth from Citizen). In college I eventually added Balance and Composure’s debut LP Separation to my iTunes, but it never really grasped me. It wasn’t until I discovered The Things We Think We’re Missing where I had an epiphany - and I feel the band did too when writing it in the studio with Will. It’s a staple alt-rock album that remains a go-to for myself and many others, especially on a rainy day or when you need a boost at the gym. Ironically, today marks exactly 10 years since the albums release!
Balance and Composure are a loud rock quintet from my old weekend stomping grounds of Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Front-man Jon Simmons really takes the reins with his searing voice and rhythm guitar tones on his infamous Fender Jaguar. There is nothing quite like The Things We Think We’re Missing - it’s a raw, grungy toned counter-play to punk music of the early 2010’s following in the echoes of bands like Title Fight. Opening track Parachutes really sets up the record for what’s to come. Jon screams “I found you inside of a dream! Spinning in circles, magically! Took a picture of your eyes, so I could find!” while being surrounded by the albums iconic driven guitar tones that producer Will Yip truly knows how to capture in Studio 4. It’s beautiful. The records first single release Reflection is another one of my favorites. Lead guitarist Erik Petersen solos a fretboard sliding line that builds into a breakdown of thick drums, bass, and guitars - it really gets your head nodding. Album closer Enemy is unreal. Opening with a melodic reverb-filled guitar line that evolves into feedback carried power chords, Simmon’s vocals really shine here in the verse - “Heat on your face, you know they’re calling it off again. And I thought I heard you sitting up there in the clouds. You know I’m fading out and that’s fine just shine right on me.” It’s an emotionally ravishing climatic close to the record that sends you back to your turntable to flip it and start it all over again from the beginning.
Balance and Composure is Jon Simmons, Matt Warner, Erik Petersen, Andrew Slaymaker, and Bailey Van Ellis. The Things We Think We’re Missing was produced by the one and only Will Yip out of Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Album design was created by Nick Steinhardt (Touché Amoré). You can check out the music video for Reflection here: Balance and Composure - Reflection (Official Music Video)
