Volume 17, Issue 4
Features:
Joe Mazzari
Interview: The Maytals' Toots
Calendar
Classifieds
Archives
Arcade
Contact
Columns:
1
Jazz Lives
2
Shane Kinney
3
Bumstock 2004
4
Movie Review: The Passions of the Christ
5
CD Reviews:Thrills and Spills With Will
6
Book Reviews by Joe Gutenburg
7
Indie Eye
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CD Reviews:Thrills
and Spills With Will |
Working with Wood
Cynical
While it may look simple at times, the Hard Rock game is
really a tough nut to crack. The actual differences between
significant heavy bands and brainless jock rock groups are
pretty scant. Significant lyrics, thunderous noise, lots of
distortion—doesn’t seem like such a difficult task. But the
great ones that have mastered it, like AC/DC, Black Sabbath,
and Metallica, have clearly showed that that there is a big
difference between them and say, Ronnie James Dio, even
though at first listen the sounds are similar.
Here is where Cynical come into the picture. Their latest
album, Working with Wood, clearly idolizes metal heads
Metallica, and also shows much appreciation to mid-‘90s
legends Soundgarden and Alice in Chains. However, Cynical
lacks the creative spark that made those bands geniuses.
Instead of coming out booming like vengeful Hell Wolves sent
back to destroy Earth with lightning bolts, (which is how
every hard rock group should sound), Working with Wood
really just whimpers like rudderless riff rock.
After two songs you begin to get a pretty good read on how
the whole album will pan out, and Cynical do not disappoint.
The only glimmer of hope for some discrepancy in the music
is in the beginnings of the songs. “Deep Inside” starts with
kind of a jazzy interlude, and “Proof Positive” launches
with a mellow and Middle Eastern sounding twinge, before
eventually cascading into a thick chunk of distorted guitar
riffs.
The music is skilled, if not original, but the lyrical
approach is straight out of hair band legend. An ambitious
ode from “One More Time” isn’t exactly Dylanesque, “I lied
for you/ I cried for you/ Would’ve Died for you.” Can’t the
legendary Bryan Adams sue for plagiarism? The corny lyrics
give the music a very Motley Crue/ Slaughter type of feel,
which, unless your hair is 18 inches high into the air, is
not a good thing.
From songs one to ten, Cynical keeps with the Hard Rock
thing, never straying from their tried and true method. One
has to admire their persistence and tenacity, but if all ten
songs end up sounding like Motley Crue covers, you’d think a
little deviation from the path would be a good thing. |
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