What Have We Become,
Seemless......This is more like it.
Somewhere between the late '90s and the present day, good old fashioned rock 'n roll got lost in a mess of identical-sounding bands with comb over fringes and jeans too tight to be worn by the skinniest of men. Fortunately, Seemless are here to remind us that it wasn't always this way with the release of their debut full-length 'What have we become'. Paying homage not only to the rock gods of yesteryear, but clearly displaying influence from more modern acts such as Deftones and Audioslave, we have something of a treat in this fifty minute package. Opening track 'In My Blood' introduces us to the band with a subtle build up, soon descending into a dirty, gritty and down right 'old fashioned' riff-based ensemble. The Chris Cornell comparisons to Jesse Leach's voice are somewhat inevitable, but his vocal tones sit comfortably atop the band's back-to-basics sound.
Despite also being former frontman of one of the hottest metal bands around at the moment, Seemless's debut record bears almost no resemblance to anything Leach has done in the past with Killswith Engage, and I find this hugely refreshing. Too often side projects sound like a collection of B-sides that the original band have thrown together to cash in, but with 'What have we become', this is just not the case. Listening to 'Seven' and 'Jaded' emphasises this, as there's an almost Queens of the Stoneage-esque feel to them, as opposed to the KsE brutality. If anything, he sounds more comfortable here than he ever did before leaving Killswitch.
It's not a flawless album by any measurement, as at times it can become a nightmare of repetition, especially when the guitar parts are concerned. As well as this, the album closer drags on a few minutes too long, as the 9-minutes of '...Things fall apart' seem wholly unnecessary. Shave off 2 or three minutes from the breakdown, and the song would've been much more effective. However, these are just minor flaws when considering there are very few bands around today that are still making this particular breed of raw, honest rock.
'What have we become' is a commendable record, and definitely worth a look in.
Andy R
» Official Website
