After digging deep through all the poor metal bands that we are exposed to today, you may come across an album that will actually do the genre justice. That band turned out to be Wichita, KS band, Seasons After. With their debut March release "Through Tomorrow" they entered the music business with a bang and made it clear they were around to stay.
Seasons After is a five-piece band that formed in late 2006 in Wichita, KS. Though they just released their debut album, the success the band is experiencing hasn't just begun. The band has been given breaks to play on the Vans Warped Tour and the Taste of Chaos tour. Along with these tours, their fanbase continues to grow with every day while they tour to support their debut album.
With the first listen, it is clear who their influences are coming from. The sound Seasons After has given with this album is a mixture of nu-metal with some classic metal sound thrown in from legendary bands. This album features a blend of fast and hard drum and bass parts, vocals ranging from very hard and intense screams with the ability to convert back to good singing right away, and catchy guitar riffs. Another appealing element they show on this album is their rawness. This album has all the components it needs to catch any metal fan's attention. Fans of bands like Sevendust, Five Finger Death Punch, and Shaman's Harvest would jump at this album right away. The band has released three singles from this album so far. Their cover of George McMann’s and Michael Mainieri’s "Cry Little Sister" ranks as one of the best songs on the album. The band put their own heavy twist on this song, making it stand out among the other covers of the song. Their single "11:11" is another great song featuring a heavy message in the chorus. With lyrics of "Stand for something now, don't fall for anything" anyone could feel lifted up from such a powerful message. Other stand out tracks on this album are "Marked" "The Worst Parts" and "Through Tomorrow."
Not being an avid metal listener, this band definitely stood out to me and gave me a new look at the genre. They have something more than what most metal bands have. They have all the components they need to catch fans' attention and they certainly caught mine. All rock or metal fans should listen to this album and hear the talent this band possesses.
The first album I am choosing to review is from a fairly new, Chicago-based band called Janus. Their debut album, Red Right Return has become like a new religion to me. For the past few months, no matter what this album usually gets put on somehow and I end up listening to the whole thing. After one of the first listens I gave them, I knew they would become one of my new favorite bands.
Janus was formed in Chicago in 2004 but they have just recently been getting their feet off the ground and forming a fan base with their September 2009 release of Red Right Return. The band received a lot attention from rock radio stations all over the U.S. with their first single, "Eyesore." Being probably the heaviest on the album, it was definitely the song to release to attract new listeners and fans. The song features different instruments that make the rest of this album unique like different electric sounds and percussion not often heard. The chorus of the song is definitely a headbanger, featuring frontman David Scotney's ridiculous and almost painful sounding screams. A video was also released for "Eyesore" which features the band playing in front of large crowd in what looks like a war setting with gas masks covering their faces. It's definitely a powerful video going along with a powerful song.
"Eyesore" is just one of the many great tracks on this album. This album would definitely attract fans of such bands as Evans Blue, Sevendust, Chevelle, Sick Puppies, or many other popular names in rock today. What caught my attention most was their striking resemblance to Evans Blue. That is when Evans Blue was good when they had Kevin Matisyn in the band. Anyway, Scotney's vocals are very similar to Matisyn's, especially in one of their more slower tracks, "Maybe It's You." The album starts out with "Six Letter's Sent" which opens with a heavy riff that caught my attention right away and made me know this was going to be a great album. It then takes you to their second track and their just released second single "If I Were You." Other stand-out tracks on this album include "The Nerve" which is another one of their more heavy songs. One of the best parts of this song is the continuous screams let out at the end and heavy instrumentals which is definitely the climax of this song. "100 Years" is the closing track on the album, and this song is another one of their more slower songs. Going from songs like "Eyesore" and "The Nerve" and then to a song like this definitely shows their range and ability to create both kinds of songs.
After being an owner of this album for about a month now, I can definitely name Janus as one of my new favorite bands. Their hard rock sound with distorted and melodic guitar riffs mixed with the unique vocals of Scotney makes for a great album. I see potential of this band becoming big or at least gaining a huge fan base. I recommend this album if you're into the bands listed above, or are just a fan of good rock music.
