People On The Side

People On The Side

Album Review: People on the Side

Opening track, Ready, offers strong electro build ups reminiscent of punk synth dance legends The Faint. Then an attack of guitar rhythms puncture the beat and the singer delivers a quiet but luring verse, while the chorus builds back into a rock stomp. All of this is equipped with a shouting style somewhere between Slipknot and Mr. Bungle's distortion.

The band's delivery of kilter bridges and samples in between the song structure does hold the attention of the listener at all times. After my first initial reaction of the song, it took me into a more untagged direction; a la Dog Fashion Disco meets Prog metal.

The second track, Undone, layers a head banging beat very well, mixed with filter sweeps. It seems the band has the potential to draw fans of bands like System Of A Down or Faith No More. But they could also appeal to a more dance oriented rock crowd who might seek after sounds of KMFDM & Mindless Self Indulgence.

The one thing this band lacks is not its talent to tear down, but rather add more emotion and substance to the melodic and down tempo verses of the albums core. But the singer does a great job juggling the aggression and tone. The album is definitely a solid first release. And more importantly, their concept is original to the New Orleans and Louisiana scene.

Mary dig dirt, the 3rd track on this album, delivered a funk fueled rock jam,
but lacked the metallic spasms that were so addictive in the opening tracks.
This band is tight, and does show a obvious connection between the musicians. As a point of constructive criticism, I would advise the band to focus on there strongest asset, which is the mathcore time signature heaviness and keyboard interject.

The melodic points are intriguing but seem to not possess as much soul as when the band is in the fire and hashing out pure metal obscure bliss.

Article by: Ryan McKern for Neworleansmusicians.net

myspace. com/ryan_mckern