Leave Your Mark

The sophomore album from Los Angeles' Stars on Stereo, 2014's Leave Your Mark, features more of the group's powerful and melodic alt-metal and hard rock. The album follows the group's similarly inclined, 2013 eponymous debut. Produced by the band along with longtime engineer Eddie Jackson, Leave Your Mark finds Stars on Stereo moving in even more of a heavy metal direction, with a darker sonic edge. Cuts like the title track, "Firestarter," and "Fair Weather Friend" are pounding anthems centered around vocalist Bec Hollcraft, whose soaring vocals fit nicely alongside guitarist Jordan McGraw's wire-cutter guitar lines. This is dynamic modern rock that fits nicely alongside works by such contemporaries as Paramore, Flyleaf, and Halestorm. ~ Matt Collar