It’s been over 5 years since Indianapolis natives Kids in the Way burst onto the Christian market with their own brand of alternative metal musical arrangements and screamo style vocals. 2003’s “Safe from the Losing Fight” and 2005’s more aggressive follow up “Apparitions of Melody” were met with much critical acclaim. The latter received enough attention to warrant a Special Edition version of the album last year, complete with 2 brand new tracks and a DVD of behind the scenes material along with a pair of music videos. However, while KITW’s previous material exhibited plenty of spiritual and uplifting messages, their third outing “A Love Hate Masquerade” contains an agglomeration of anthems focusing on the darker side of love, relationships, and lust.

A broken relationship is compassed through “Better Times,” with Dave Pelsue singing “I kissed you one last time goodbye/Watched you walk out of my life,” but concludes with words of regret: “I didn’t mean to mistreat you/I need to reach you, I need to reach you.” Shattered hearts and love are also expressed in the songs “Letting Go” and “The Innocence,” but “A Love Hate Masquerade’s” lead-off single “Sugar” takes the listener further into the abyss of a bitter relationship gone askew. This ‘3 Doors Down meets 30 Seconds to Mars’ track emphasizes “Now she’s hungry for the blood of any boy/and she’ll get it cause she gets what she wants/She’s the devil in black stilettos/don’t cross her she’s a fully loaded debutaunte. Though similar to the prior mentioned track in its presentation, “My Little Nightmare” exposes the dangers of remaining in the deadly snare of a relationship that was doomed from the start.

Amidst the hauntingly dark-tinged lyrics of most of the album’s songs, hope and encouragement play a part midway through “A Love Hate Masquerade.” “Far From Over”(which is my personal favorite) is about standing against the forces of evil with lyrics proclaiming “Just hold on a little longer/these days in the cold will make us stronger/(Stand up) Stand up, we won’t back down/(Hold on) they’re coming for us right now.” Another message of hope shines through in “Your demon” whereas the conclusion urges the listener not to be afraid of the truth. Some of the most memorable tracks include “Winter Passing” and last year’s hit single “Fiction,” which was added due to the fact that the producer of “A Love…” also contributed to the production of the aforementioned song.

Musically, “A Love Hate Masquerade” is undoubtedly the best accomplishment from Kids in the Way in regards to musicianship and creative, harmonious vocal talent, with Dave’s trademark wails taking a back seat for the majority of the album’s duration. Fans of the band’s earlier works will definitely want to dip into their pockets to purchase Kids in the Way’s latest effort. Despite spirituality being nearly non-existent this time around, “A Love Hate Masquerade” is still an album worth owning from one of Indiana’s premier alternative/screamo bands.

Track Listing
1. Your Demon
2. Better Times
3. The Innocence
4. Letting Go
5. My Little Nightmare
6. Far From Over
7. Sugar
8. We Killed at Twilight
9. Winter Passing
10. Fiction
11. Farewell

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