Talking to Billboard Magazine in early 2010, John Vesely promised that Secondhand Serenade's third album would be “more upbeat” than those preceding it.
Released several months later, though, Hear Me Now still clings to Dashbooard Confessional’s downtrodden template, with all 11 tracks subscribing to the notion that a song isn’t worth singing unless it involves heartbreak and defeatist lyrics.
“I hate myself when I’m away from you… please don’t hate me, too,” Vesely pleads on the opening track.
Over the next 35 minutes, he laments his loss of faith, his lover’s lack of confidence, and being “stuck in this life I didn’t ask for.” The tempos may be bouncy throughout -- “So Long” is downright buoyant, even -- but this is still fairly melancholic stuff, with every major-key chord progression being dragged into the murky depths by Vesely’s sad-eyed lyrics and open-armed embrace of emo pop clichés.
Hear Me Now isn’t offensive; it’s just predictable and anonymous, since none of these songs offer up anything that Secondhand Serenade’s Warped Tour comrades haven’t already done with their own albums.
For someone who’s completed three full-length records of his own, Vesely should know that standing out from the pack is better than disappearing within its ranks.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DistanceJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:56 | 9 MB | 27 MB |
| 2 | Something MoreJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:24 | 7 MB | 22 MB |
| 3 | Stay AwayJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 02:48 | 6 MB | 18 MB |
| 4 | You and IJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:37 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 5 | Is There Anybody Out ThereJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:42 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 6 | Reach For the SkyJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:21 | 7 MB | 23 MB |
| 7 | Only HopeJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:44 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 8 | So LongJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 02:59 | 6 MB | 21 MB |
| 9 | World TurnsJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 03:42 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 10 | NightmaresJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 04:03 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 11 | Hear Me NowJohn Vesely | Secondhand Serenade | Play | 05:24 | 12 MB | 37 MB |
| 40 mins | 93 MB | |||||
| 40 mins | 279 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phil Allen | Recording Assistant |
| 2 | Eric Brengle | Recording Assistant |
| 3 | Tom Breyfogle | Drum Programming, Drums, Engineer, Producer |
| 4 | Jay Clifford | String Arrangements |
| 5 | Ryan Cook | Engineer |
| 6 | Dave Levitta | Guitar |
| 7 | Davie Dunkeith | Engineer |
| 8 | Mark Endert | Mixing |
| 9 | Joey Florence | Engineer |
| 10 | Jared Hirshland | Assistant |
| 11 | Robin Holden | Engineer, Recording Assistant |
| 12 | Warren Huart | Engineer |
| 13 | Aaron Johnson | Guitar, Mixing, Producer |
| 14 | Doug Johnson | Mixing Assistant |
| 15 | Marke Johnson | Art Direction, Design, Layout |
| 16 | Nathan Johnson | Art Direction, Design, Layout |
| 17 | Stephen Marcussen | Mastering |
| 18 | Tim Palmer | Mixing |
| 19 | Zac Rae | Keyboards |
| 20 | Dan Rothchild | Bass |
| 21 | Secondhand Serenade | Primary Artist |
| 22 | Steve Shebby | Engineer |
| 23 | Juliet Simms | Vocals |
| 24 | John Vesely | Bass, Composer, Glockenspiel, Guitar, Keyboards, Producer, String Arrangements, Vocals |
| 25 | Lukas Vesely | Bass |
| 26 | Dave Wilder | Bass |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |