Imagine, if you will, a football team without a striker. Sure, they might have the best midfielders in the world and create beautiful attacking moves, but they just won’t ever score. They are lacking that cutting edge, and no matter how nice the football they play may be, they won’t ever win. I’m sure you can see what I’m getting at with this.
A quick glance at the Top 40 Singles and you will notice that the bands that make an appearance right now are Cobra Starship, Foo Fighters, Lostprophets, Kings of Leon and The Editors. One thing all of these bands have in common is a stand-out front man. Radiohead, Coldplay and the Arctic Monkeys are probably the three most successful British bands around right now, and in each of their case only the diehard fans know of anyone but the lead singers.
A front man gives a voice and face to the music, and I’m finding it extremely difficult to listen to a band without one. The music lacks direction, and whilst 65daysofstatic’s members aren’t awful musicians, they aren’t particularly outstanding either. I was expecting an industrial sound, and have no idea why. During the first track it seemed like I was going to get one, but it soon moves on to become mediocre rock that could, depending on the style of an added vocalist, pretty much be categorised as anything. Add a Thom Yorke and you’d have to call them alternative rock, add a screamer and they’d be called post-hardcore. But as it stands they are, well, nothing.
After earlier reviewing a band with a vocalist that demanded attention, I can treat this album with nothing other than contempt. It sounds unfinished, and does nothing to capture my imagination. I don’t think I’ll be delving into the murky waters of ‘rock music without vocals’ again.
I’m giving this album a stupendous 15%, solely because the first minute of Default This is quite nice.
Oh no :(
ReplyDeleteWell now I have to review this.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to your riposte.
ReplyDelete