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| New album reviews tickle heavy metal, jam band
fancies |
by Kevin DeLury
Senior Staff Writer |
The kind folks over at WASU were
nice enough to lend this lowly writer some new albums for review,
none of which I have had any previous listening experiences with.
After a week of careful listening and volumes of notes on all the
particular facets of each individual song, I have presented the
best and worst of the group for your reading enjoyment.
 Think
“Dungeons and Dragons.” Think epic battles on snow swept
plains, with damsels clad in leather and chains, and of course,
more dragons.
Now you’re getting the idea. This is heavy metal, baby.
I’m not talking about that weak dribble they put on television.
Seven Witches is the real deal. On “Passage to the Other Side,”
the true metalheads out there, or “the fellowships of the nerd,”
as I like to think of us, are given what we crave: dramatic songs,
filled with solos, operatic vocals, and dismal social commentary.
Rock ‘n’ Roll!
On “Passage,” Seven Witches manage to accomplish what
very few bands these days have been able to. Every metalhead remembers
that first album with songs that filled their chests with such emotion
that they wanted to pick up their broadswords and march into battle
against the demon hordes. Or maybe just play Nintendo and daydream
about getting the best of the jocks that picked on you in middle
school. But that’s just the purpose of the music Seven Witches
produces: escapism at its finest.
Only after we come to terms with the fact a cheerleader
will never date do we understand that the technical side of “Passage”
can be reveled in. Tracks like “Johnny” and “Wasted”
call to mind bands like Judas Priest and Overkill. The rock is there,
unscathed by time, and heavier than ever. The question is, can you
unleash the fury of your inner geek?
 It
seems there’s another newcomer to the ever-growing alt-metal
community. To save us both the time and energy, I’ll give you
a brief rundown of The Revolution Smile’s “trademark”
sound: imagine Trapt meets Smile Empty Soul meets Evanescence meets
Puddle of Mud. That is to say, these guys are easily interchangeable
with almost any band out there.
Musically, the band falls back on the tried and true idea of singing
then screaming (but not too aggressively) then back to singing like
a wounded animal. Throw a few “tough guys have feelings too”
ballads and there you have it, the standard alt-metal formula.
Lyrically, The Revolution Smile serves up the
same old themes of alienation (i.e.: their track titled “Alien”),
isolation (“Looking down the Barrel”), and overall whining
straight out of a bad book of high school poetry.
 Joining
the fray, only this time from a nu-metal stance, is Lollipop Lustkill.
Think of Godsmack meets Disturbed meets Drowning Pool … you
get the idea. Save for a mediocre and very much unneeded cover of
Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus,” this group offers
nothing that could be deemed even slightly imaginative.
Ultimately, these guys just come off as The Revolution
Smile’s “misunderstood” gothic older brother who
won’t take off that silly makeup and get a job.
 Go
Junior! Go Senior!
Trust me, one listen and this mantra will be stuck in your head.
Believe me, I know, I haven’t been able to stop. It’s
getting pretty scary, actually.
So here’s the rundown on Junior Senior: the straight/gay, thin/portly,
young/old hail from one of those frozen northern countries that
is roughly 15 years behind the United States in terms of pop culture.
So, if my figures are correct, they have just discovered Frankie
Goes to Hollywood and Wham! How cool is that?
This duo manages to take saccharine sweet pop hooks and lay them
over punk driven guitars and relentless call-response vocals. Think
you’re too tough and manly to rock out to D-d-don’t Stop
the Beat? Too bad for you, macho man. Meanwhile I’ll be dancing
till I drop.
The best way to convey the aura of Junior Senior is by thinking
back to that first five-day bender you had during spring break in
Cancun; by the fourth day you were grinning like an idiot and high-fiving
strangers for no reason. By the fifth day it all kind of ran together.
With Junior Senior, it’s day four on repeat. Long live the
high five.
 Okay,
I’ll admit, the guitar work of Keller Williams is undoubtedly
good, no ifs, ands or buts about it.
Everything else I’m not too sure about.
The jam band find is definitely in full effect, as well as the hideously
vague lyrics about jam band stuff…you know, love, good ol’
mountain folk story tellin’, and a universal energy that connects
us all making us equals with no socio-economic cultural boundaries
or something like that.
Of course there’s songs praising food, jam-esque funk songs,
blues songs and overall weird songs. The diversity and musical chops
are there, but somehow I can’t find one particular element
that would put Keller Williams a step above the rest of his ilk.
So put on your big flower print skirt, skip that morning shower,
kick off the sandals, and head for the nearest hackey sack. At least
now there’s another soundtrack that can’t be added to
those late-night post party theological discussions.
Don’t believe me? Check out Williams on September 25 at Farthing
Auditorium and decide for yourself.
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