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| REVIEWS |
Blueprint
76
Better Late Than Never
(Broken
Spoke)
When a musician leaves a popular and credible, if not awesome,
band it is inevitable that they will not only be forever linked
to the previous band but that all works thereafter will be compared
to those which came with the reputable band. Even Jesse Michaels
went through this when Common Rider played on the 2002 Plea
for Peace/Take Action Tour. I remember the band was promoted
with slogans such as, “Jesse Michaels of Operation Ivy.”
If you have any knowledge of the two bands you will know that
they sound nothing alike and such slogans only caused the crowd
to expect a blast from the past when Common Rider takes the
stage. This review has nothing to do with Jesse Michaels, Operation
Ivy (perhaps very indirectly), or Common Rider. I mention this
to provide you with a parallel. For Royce Nunley, most likely
best known for playing with the superb Suicide Machines for
eight years, has a new gig with Blueprint 76.
Unlike the Common Rider/Operation Ivy link, the Blueprint 76/Suicide
Machines link is slightly stronger in the musical sense. Blueprint
76’s album does in fact remind one of The Suicide Machines
on a few tracks, most notably “Help on the Way.”
I can’t remember which song this sounds so much like,
though I am sure if I were motivated enough to put the CDs in
and compare I could come up with an answer in no time. As it
is, I am one lazy fuck and will not be providing you with any
gratification on this matter (though I am leaving towards a
song on Steal this Record…the one that’s
like “I hate everybody, everybody hates me”…the
verse part at least…maybe)
If anyone has read any of my other reviews, doubtful as I am
about that, then you may recall my love of vocals, my desire
for melodies. I am not the biggest fan of the yelling although
some bands nowadays are doing a great job coupling the yelling
with some semi-singing background vocals. I am all for that,
when done correctly. Unfortunately, there are a few songs on
this disc that I cannot bring myself to listen to more than
twice. After a great first track, which has lovely vocals and
instrumentation, the second track seems like a letdown to me.
Many of you will no doubt love it, but I can’t bring myself
to give it such adoration. The yelling is just something I am
unable to get passed especially given the vocals in the previous
track. On the second time around I found that I liked the rest
of the song quite a bit, save the yelling. Luckily, after enduring
the second track, the third reverts back to melodies, to singing,
to ear pleasing music. This trade off between yelling and singing
no doubt shows some depth in the vocal straining abilities of
Royce; it is just a gradient that I am not ecstatic about.
In the end, the good more than balances out the bad. While my
praise for the vocals wavers depending on the song, my praise
for the guitars, drums and bass are consistent: fast, complimenting
each other, and smile inducing. All in all, it is a relatively
strong first full-length release for both the band, and the
label. Worth checking out if they are coming to your town on
their current tour. Unfortunately, they didn’t make it
over here.
Reviewed by
Shivani Verma
August 4th, 2004 |
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