Review: Jacob's Ladder "Ours For The Taking" [EP]

It is hard to write a review for the South Florida band called Jacob's Ladder without hearing Huey Lewis sing the famous Bruce Hornsby tune! But Jacob's Ladder - the band - sound nothing like these big cheeses from the 80s. Jacob's Ladder is firmly planted in the soil of modern rock, in the same garden reaped by Fall Out Boy and Panic at the Disco.

Jacob's Ladder is a young trio of talented musicians (Sammy Gonzalez - bass, vocals; Oren Maisner - guitar, vocals; Brian Hernandez - drums) and their new EP was produced by Cyrus Bolooki Of New Found Glory. The band polishes their chops by touring relentlessly (over 400 shows!) and they've racked up some pretty notable achievements so far, including sales of over 4000 records between 2007-2009 and sponsorships from Ernie Ball and Gibson.

For this early in their career, Jacob's Ladder is off to an admirable start; there are good dynamics in the music, considerable harmonies, and a few memorable moments in emphasis tracks such as "Home Alone Tonight", "Not Your Enemy", and "Birds Of A Feather". The band needs to focus a bit more on developing a good strong hook or a lot of people ain't going to bite. The "Ours For The Taking" EP demonstrates some potential for this trio to rise above the crowd, but they still have a few more rungs to climb in order to reach the top.

iPOD-worthy: 2, 5, 6

Jacob's Ladder on MySpace.