Building Rome has put out four records and the most recent, “Nightmare,” is by far the most solid. According to this local band’s website, this album is loosely based off of the movie “Jacob’s Ladder.”

The first song “What Are We Fighting For?” starts out with bells chiming, giving the song an eerie tone. It then proceeds to pick up with the guitar and vocals, and you can’t listen to this song without feeling the emotion behind the lyrics. “What Are We Fighting For?” is an intense anthem that catches the listener’s attention and leads into the rest of this emotion-filled album.

Songs like “Nightmare,” “Dr. Doctor” and “Take Cover (Burn)” are fast-paced songs, good for dancing, but are also filled with interesting lyrics filled with insanity and helplessness; you must take the time to listen to them again just to pick up the deeper meaning. “Haunting Me” sounds like a catchy pop tune, but when you hear, “Thoughts of death invade my mind, I am running out of time” you begin to wonder more about the events that have taken place that cause the band to come up with these intense lyrics.

The last song “If This Is Where It Ends” ends with the chilling question, “If this is where it ends, then where do we begin?” It is soon followed by crashing cymbals and drums, similar to the first song “Nightmare.”

If you have never listened to Building Rome before, this is the album to check out. “Nightmare” is a good balance of fast and slow songs, each with a unique story to tell.