beekd91's Full Review: Sci-Fi Crimes * by Chevelle
Chevelle has had a fairly interesting progression over the years, especially considering how much of a disaster Point #1 was. I (and a good chunk of America) fell in love with their next album, Wonder What’s Next. “Send the Pain Below” and “The Red” showcased their gritty style that was all the rage when nu-metal wasn’t painfully overplayed, and Pete Loeffler’s gorgeous voice helped differentiate the band from the Creeds and the Stainds of the world. This Type of Thinking (Could Do Us In) kicked things up a notch with a greater emphasis on soaring choruses (allowing Pete’s voice to shine even more) and some of nu-metal’s best songwriting. So the expectations were high for 2007’s Vena Sera even when the band of brothers (it originally consisted of Pete, Joe and Sam Loeffler) replaced bassist Joe with Dean Bernadini, but I was rather disappointed. The sound was less polished than TToT, Pete’s screams were rarer and the choruses just didn’t have the same impact. Now here’s Sci-Fi Crimes, and it’s the least scream-heavy Chevelle album yet. This isn’t a criminal offense per se, but a new flaw has arisen to upset diehard fans: Pete’s lyrics make absolutely no sense anymore.
This isn’t an entirely new thing for Chevelle. Pete’s lyrics have always been enigmatic at best and incoherent at their worst. What separates Sci-Fi Crimes’s lyrics from the rest is that while previous albums were hard to decipher exactly, the listener could at least feel that Pete was portraying some sort of mood—“To Return” expressed longing and desperation, “Forfeit” expressed exasperation, “The Clincher” expressed awe and reverence, etc. But now Pete, already unconcerned with forming complete sentences, has now almost entirely given up on expressing anything the listener might possibly understand, and the album suffers greatly as a result (and this comes from a listener who adores complex, intricate lyrics). Sure, Pete can still sing, and he, Sam and Dean can still write an inexplicably addicting song, but the subpar lyrics hinder some songs’ great potential. The end result is a strong album, but one that seems to lack the lasting power of previous works.
Sleep Apnea kicks things off with a fairly raucous introduction before settling into a calm verse. When the chorus hits, the lyrical puzzles begin: “I gasp and hold my breath, these needs have changed so deep/ to face you all, let’s say I’ve been awake for years…” The song is generally lacking in punch, even as Pete stretches his range in the bridge, and the result is a merely adequate opener. Mexican Sun has a bit more bite, relying on a steady 6/8 meter and letting Pete’s vocals soar in the chorus. If not for the incomprehensible lyrics (“Like to be feeling the sand bring color back to both my arms…scheming devils never make it through/ hey, way to go lad…”), this song might actually have single potential—Chevelle’s well-worn nu-metal patterns work quite nicely here.
Shameful Metaphors’s emphasis on a less aggressive melody makes it an album highlight. The calmer, almost Creed-like approach makes sure that Pete has the listener's attention, and this time, his lyrics shine--his passion and longing are readily apparent as he cries: "So why then has all my life made no sound/ and are your eyes closing even now?" While it's very similar to Vena Sera's "Saferwaters" in structure and sound, I'll let them ape such a great formula once. Jars is a fair choice for the lead single; the main riff is catchy, and somehow Pete drives the chorus into the listener's head despite its constantly moving vocal line and typical Chevelle lyrics ("We can't both become the same pawn that's made to fall/ oil that tastes like blood stole the summer's scent from me...").
The second half of the album is something of a mixed bag. Letter from a Thief isn't very original, but its haunting guitar sound in the chorus, Pete’s impassioned vocals and the overall catchiness (this would make a better single than “Jars” in my opinion) impress, as do Pete’s vocals in the acoustic Highlands Apparition. Unfortunately some of the album’s lowlights appear in its latter half as well. Fell Into Your Shoes is merely forgettable, and as the album’s longest track (5:07), it simply doesn’t know when to stop. A New Momentum is even more forgettable; the chorus, typically a Chevelle song’s saving grace, falls flat.
Fortunately Chevelle has two more great tracks in them. Roswell's Spell is a highlight largely because of some fantastic production. The verse stars raucous, pounding drums and driving, low-pitched guitar work, and the whole thing is remarkably engrossing. It's almost a disappointment when the band progresses to the chorus, but thankfully Pete’s vocals are magnificent, and he even unleashes a scream in the satisfyingly brutal bridge. This Circus is similarly excellent; a driving verse transitions excellently into the resoundingly anthemic chorus of “This might feed the mother of all our needs…” The haunting guitar and soaring vocals hearken back to This Type of Thinking’s best moments, and it closes the album on quite a solid note.
Sci-Fi Crimes thus leaves this writer torn—by all means beating the same formula so many times deserves some kind of backlash, but somehow the band can pull gems like “Shameful Metaphors” and “Roswell’s Spell” out of its sleeves using the same old tricks. I don’t know how much longer I’ll be able to stomach the same old song and dance, but in the meantime, there’s some fun to be had here—just don’t try to decipher the lyrics.
Final Scores 1. Sleep Apnea—78% 2. Mexican Sun—83% 3. Shameful Metaphors—93% 4. Jars—86% 5. Fell Into Your Shoes—77% 6. Letter from a Thief—88% 7. Highlands Apparition—87% 8. Roswell’s Spell—92% 9. Interlewd—80% 10. A New Momentum—75% 11. This Circus—92% 4 Stars
Good for Fans of…Red, Breaking Benjamin, 10 Years, Evans Blue
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