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Boring, empty, generic, but with a little hope and potential coming through.-
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| Shraphead: Blind & Seduced |
Alternative Rock, Melodic Death Metal
Metalville Records
June 28th, 2011
- Welcome - 1:15
- Stolen Trust - 3:00
- Merry Go Round - 4:27
- Blind & Seduced - 4:32
- Just Another Fool Who... - 4:30
- The Hundred - 4:49
- The Life, The Path to Choose - 3:45
- Nothingless - 4:58
- Revelation - 3:36
- The Bond - 3:55
- Iconoclast - 4:40
- Evilberry Jam - 5:42
- Ageless - 5:42
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| Review Information |
Release length: 54:40
Review posted on June 29th, 2011
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| | Overall Score: 4.5/10 |
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| Discography |
Discography covers all information available up to day of review and is updated if future albums are reviewed. |
| Full-Length(s): |
Blind & Seduced (2011)
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| EP(s): |
Ageless (2006)
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| Review |
Shraphead is a Melodic Death meets Alternative Rock act that hails from Norway. The group formed back in 2004, and has stayed consistant with their line-up through the years, which is something not many acts can say for themselves, especially after seven years before they release their first full-length recording. Blind & Seduced is that first album, but not their debut as the group had issued a four song EP back in 2006 as well that introduced the band to the world. It's been five years since, and Shraphead brings thirteen new songs, just under fifty five minutes worth of material, to this album, but quantity doesn't always mean quality. Is this rather long first track into the full-length world a successful one that will impress listeners the world over?
Right off the bat, Shraphead really isn't much to look at musically. The songs on Blind & Seduced aren't really much, coming off as a mixture of toned down Metallica with some more traditional and generic Melodic Death Metal material, but the shocker is the more Alternative Rock vibe the vocals give off. This is more where the band becomes unique, having a vocal presence that feels like something you'd hear on the radio for modern Rock acts, such as Nickelback, as well as the edge and performance of Five Finger Death Punch, but the performance itself varies. At times it can feel inspired by Metallica (which is where much of that reference comes from) thanks to some extra energy put in, then sound lifeless at times to take on a more generic Alternative Rock presence, but one from a group with a vocalist that just doesn't seem to care. Sadly, these really don't set a fire under the listener, though it sounds different and and gives the band more of a distinct sound, which works both in favor and against Shraphead. The quality of the album also feels a little lacking, mostly due to it sounding a little hollow and not as rich as it should. The bass is present and is pretty distinct, working nicely with the music, and offering something other then generic Metallica-clone vocals that seem to be all the rage in anything remotely Thrash in these days, so for that it's actually a welcome performance. But, when the material goes into a more chugging approach, it really seems to drift off and doesn't necessarily capture the listener's attention.
Sadly, this is exactly how Blind & Seduced starts out. Right away you pick up on the more Alternative Rock presence in the vocals and even the music, some decent music that's only real fault is sounding a bit empty, and a vocal performance that seems to try to capture that hollow sound, but in the end come off uninterested and bland. This doesn't really count for the intro track "Welcome", which has a slower pace that does sort of set up what to expect from the album and establishes a little atmosphere, but that atmosphere doesn't ever really feel acknowledged throughout the album. "Stolen Trust" slams right in with some very impressive, hard hitting riffs that hammer away at the listener with an energetic scream behind it, and then it just slows down and becomes hollow. It's such a drastic change, and the song never really picks back up, leaving the expectations horribly dashed, though the chorus does offer some promise to the melodic elements of the band's material. It starys pretty consistant to this throughout the album, though never really picking up expectations in the same manner then completely clashing against it from the other end of the musical spectrum.
The title track "Blind & Seduced", however, kicks things up a bit and really shows the band's strengths. The song has a far more energetic performance all around, and while some moments do come off a little more hollow, it still feels far more rich then "Stolen Trust" due to the band having more going on musically instead of simple chords with dead gaps between the notes being played. The additional speed really ties everything together, and the vocals feel like life had been kicked into them and they take on the more passionate-sounding atmosphere of the chorus, and the rougher, more rugged style for the verses and everything else. The guitar solo to this track is also enjoyable, though still nothing too exciting, but in it's defense it does fit the song well and anything more would send it off into a direction of having to alter the music for that specific section. Shraphead also does dabble in some ballad tracks for this release, and they aren't all that bad. "Just Another Fool Who..." is the ball song in question, and the passion of the song and the subject material doesn't come off one hundred percent by the band, and the vocals just sound uninteresting at times, but the atmosphere is there for it to set a bit of a somber tone to the song. Again, the track gives off more of an Alternative Rock vibe to it, comparable to something one might expect from Stone Sour or even Staind, but without any whininess to the song at all.
There's a good deal of songs that follow that are just iffy, and some that are good. "The Life, the Path to Choose" is actually another pretty strong track. It has some solid music that sounds rich and an energetic vocal performance to keep the listener attentive. "Nothingless" does the same thing, though this time takes on more of a Five Finger Death Punch presence to it with an atmosphere similar to "Welcome" and "The Life, the Path to Choose", playing more on the listener's emotions with it's more passionate yet energetic vocal performance, and solid, heavy music that takes a more mainstream approach to it's melodic edge. "Iconoclast" also makes for an enjoyable track that has a bit more of a kick to the music that some of the previous tracks lack, and is well worth checking out off the album. Again, the music almost takes a mainstream approach to the style, clearly having some Alternative Rock-like input, but also incorporates a little of that Thrash element that hasn't made much of a dominating presence in the sound thanks to the additional gang chants in the background here and there. But, though there are some track like this that do exist, there's really not a lot, and much of it all start to sound similar about half way through, making the near one hour journey through the album actually become more of an endurance test after a while with lackluster versions of these songs and the few other stand out tracks of the recording.
This isn't the first album that takes on more of a Melodic Death Metal and Rock approach, and it surely won't be the last. Shraphead has some good ideas, and the more Rock oriented vocals sound good with the music when a good deal of effort is put into them, and the same can be said for the music. But, there's nothing really all that unique or fantastic about the album. There's many songs on here that just come off as a solid interpretations of Melodic Death Metal inspirations against Alternative Rock roots and intentions, and thanks to the overall quality of the audio sounding rather empty and not having any sort of bite to it, being too clear and aimed more for a mainstream approach even when the music isn't, much of it just ends up being bland and often quite boring. Long albums, especially debuts, have always come off pretentious in my eyes, and really, Blind & Seduced is the shining example of why. While the band is not bad, they just haven't really honed their sound yet after all this time, and the production definitely holds the band back as well. With little worthy of headbanging too, some very generic music, and issues with vocals being spot on with energy and passion to bland and lifeless, this album has it's ups and downs, but too many downs to really make anyone outside of the diehard Rock fanbase looking for something edgier take a long hard look at Shraphead.
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