2008 Woodie Awards
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Issue date: 8/28/08 Section: Out & About
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THE VERVE
Forth2008 seems to be the year of comebacks: Portishead returned from hiatus with a masterpiece, the Stone Temple Pilots are back touring sold-out stadiums, and even Gwen Stefani was able to deflate her ego enough to reform No Doubt.
And now legendary Brit-pop band The Verve has returned to the fold, with vocalist Richard Ashcroft and guitarist Nick McCabe burying the hatchet in order to devise new sonic explorations.
"Forth" provides some relief. Eleven years after the success of "Urban Hymns," the band members still sound right at home with one another, and the instrumentalists offer a seamless backdrop for Ashcroft's signature yearning vocals.
McCabe is also a vastly underrated guitar player. His textural melodies often resemble synthesizers.
Opening track "Sit and Wonder" demonstrates the band's rekindled chemistry nicely, with swirling guitars and an intense, epic chorus. "Judas" floats beautifully along, buoyed by McCabe's celestial guitars.
"Love Is Noise" is the biggest head-scratching moment, marrying a pounding dance beat to an angular section of (what sounds like) wailing sexual noises, courtesy of Ashcroft. But for all its peculiarity, it gels surprisingly well.
In comparison to the band's past work, however, "Forth" feels a bit unfocused and bloated. "Noise Epic" and "Columbo" meander too much for their own good, failing to keep the listener's attention. Plus, most of the 10 songs exceed six minutes, making for a slightly exhausting ride.
VERDICT: "Forth" may not yield a song as irresistible as "Bittersweet Symphony," but it offers more than enough solid material to keep fans satisfied.
O.A.R.
All SidesI have no problem admitting I liked Of A Revolution (better known as O.A.R.) in my high school years. Their jam-influenced college rock rightfully appeals to the undeveloped tastes of teenagers who consider Dave Matthews Band and Jack Johnson the pinnacle of music.
But the loose, good-times vibes that put O.A.R. on the map have gradually been supplanted by a more serious and mature sound. Unfortunately in the music world, "mature" music often equates to a lack of fun.
Sixth album "All Sides" sounds about like how its cover looks: unremarkable and dull. O.A.R. has opted to bury its former breezy roots rock in favor of a slick, heavily-doctored release that polishes all of the group's raw edges into a faceless product.
Lead single "Shattered (Turn the Car Around)" is a deliberate attempt for radio play, complete with chugging guitars and tinkling piano notes that would sound right at home on a Snow Patrol album.
Tracks like "Something Coming Over," "One Day" and "This Town" follow an identical blueprint, with subdued verses that never fail to morph into overwrought anthem-like choruses.
After several listens to the album, it becomes apparent that most of the songs blur together into indistinguishable mush, running on empty easy-listening pop melodies and yawn-inducing verse-chorus-verse templates.
VERDICT: "All Sides" offers zero surprises, every song developing exactly the way you'd expect it to. In other words, it's bound to get lost in the shuffle.
SCARS ON BROADWAY
Scars on BroadwayRising like a phoenix from the ashes of political metal band System of a Down, Scars on Broadway is guitarist and singer Daron Malakian's first true foray into the limelight.
Those who kept tabs on System of a Down have probably seen this coming. The band's final two albums, "Mezmerize" and "Hypnotize," showed Malakian splitting vocal duties with frontman Serj Tankian almost 50-50.
Scars on Broadway sounds noticeably different from System, but it is not quite as radical a departure as one might think.
For one thing, the songs have lost a lot of their manic weirdness and brutal thrash freak-outs in favor of more conventional guitar-driven rock.
"Insane" and lead single "They Say" are good examples of this shift in style.
But like his former band, Malakian still shows his prowess at editorializing. Each song is tautly constructed and lasts exactly as long as it needs to.
Scars on Broadway are clearly onto something that works, pushing the boundaries of System of a Down's old sound while not abandoning it completely.
"Kill Each Other/Live Forever" is a pummeling, Eastern-tinged rocker, and the simmering harmonies and growling guitar of "Babylon" are similarly effective.
In all fairness though, there are still some kinks to iron out. Malakian's lyrics are sub-par, often settling for trite rhyming couplets or gibberish. The politically oriented lyrics still pack a punch, but sometimes you wish they were a bit less vague.
VERDICT: An exciting, fast-paced and tightly written record that indicates the promise of a bright future for Malakian.
- John Barrett
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