Michael Harris
Words Collide
7.4
Can someone please explain to me WHY the fuck certain singers have to try to sound more intense than they really are? I am getting fucking tired of great records being ruined by phony, plastic singing from guys who, despite having very good voices if they would JUST FUICKING SING AND QUIT EMOTING, can't seem to grasp the idea that forcing emotion into your voice when it doesn't belong actually sounds worse than singing off key or mellow or whatever they are afraid of. When I say great records, I mean the band and the songs; the ideas and performances that make up the musical portion of this record are fantastic. Excellent. Superb. Worthy of any serious musical aficionado’s time and attention. The songs are crafted with care and never stray far into the pretentious areas so rampantly trod by most prog freak bands. They almost have the delicate sensibility of Porcupine Tree, but remain firmly grounded in Hard Rock/Old School Metal. The songs have hooks and melodies that would make King's X at their height proud. And the musicianship itself is beyond criticism, really. Outstanding, energetic, bright and sublime and brash by turns. The bassist floored me more than once with some GeddyTastic fretwork, and he and the drummer are much attuned, sounding like a single entity. Guitars can go from meaty chunks to symphonic solos without missing a beat, and the keyboardist lends a layer of complexity to what is already a complex mixture. But the singer just fucks it all up. Stuck somewhere between Layne Staley and that annoying bastard from Styx, he sounds about as honest as the reason Bush gave for going to war. And what makes me so pissed about it is that I can hear that his William Shatnerish over emoting is affected! He has a good voice, but he tries to growl and downturn the end of every lyric, or inject high pitched mouse squeaks that sound like someone trying to sound as though their voice is straining to make the leap from one note to the other. It's GARBAGE, fucker. Just fucking SING. Quit acting like a rock singer and just fucking BE ONE. Christ I hate these people. And the lyrics don't help, either. They sound like they were written by someone hoping to sound deep, yet playful. I wouldn't mention them, in as much as I think most rock lyrics are pathetic, but when they are so clearly enunciated they become hard to ignore. Insult to injury. Bottom line: It's just a fucking shame that records like this have to happen. So close but so far. If you can stomach the heavy melodrama of the singer, there is an excellent album here. But I can't. Maybe as dude grows more comfortable he will drop the act and just sing, but until he does I can't recommend this band. And it fucking bugs to have to say that.
