Dirty Sexy Knights in Paris

2002 is shaping up to be a pretty good year for albums, with Butch Walker recently releasing his solo album and the likes of SR-71, TSAR and EVE6 all due to release theirs. Those of you more open to the Nu-Breed of melodic rock bands out there may well recieve AUDIOVENT like manner from heaven. Opening track 'The Energy' builds from a slow intro to tear out of the speakers at you, and just when you think you know what to expect the arrangement changes and knocks you off balance. And therein lies the genius of this album. There is a sense of creativity and thought gone into the songwriting process that lifts it head and shoulders above most other current rock releases. In fact it's difficult comparing the album as a whole to another band. Not because there's a unique or original sound here, but because the individual elements just combine so well within such finely crafted, powerful songs.

Highlights are almost too many to count, but on 'Rain' Boyd almost sounds like Hurricane's Jay Schellan. At other times the vocals are reminiscent of Mansun, but throughout the guitar of Ben Einziger is set to stun, laying sheet after sheet of melodic powerchords down, whilst never smothering the song itself. 'Sweet Frustration' slows down the pace, and the album closer, 'When I drown', is an almost acoustic piece. Then it's straight back to track one again. I defy you to play this once and think 'Ah, it's OK!!"

Atlantic have found a gem here. For once a band that sounds like it has the potential to really take on some of the big names and make a dent in the album charts of the world.

For anyone looking for powerful melodic rock songs in a contemporary 2002 style, look no further.

I can't recommend this highy enough.

Well, this album is a really strong, solid, major-label debut for the band, and doesn't disappoint. The fact that I absolutely adore Incubus' music has led me to compare the two styles of music and the vocals of Brandon and Jason Boyd, which is perhaps unfair (as anyone who has ever had to suffer in the shadow of their older sibling knows - and I am one of those people!), but it's inevitable, I guess.

Anyway, I'm diverging....from the first song, I was hooked. 'The Energy' is without a doubt one of the best songs on the album, and as it's title suggests, is saturated with energy, pathos and passion. It blew me away. It's AMAZING. The other two best songs on the album are 'Underwater Silence', which creates such a swirling atmosphere that you can imagine yourself being underwater. It's anguish-ridden and has an eerie beauty. The other stellar song is 'Beautiful Addiction', in which a destructive relationship is compared to a drug dependency. These songs are the cream of the crop.

Other good ones are 'Stalker', 'Looking Down' (written about the band's desire to diminish the emphasis on the Incubus connection), 'Gravity' (very fast and furious), 'The Rain' (sitar-like effect on the guitar) and 'Sweet Frustration' (which is good when it kicks in, mellow and laid-back).

The other songs I haven't mentioned are good as well, I don't actually believe there is a single bad song on this album, they are just more homogenous sounding and don't stand out so much. But they are still all good, and there are very few albums that you can say that about. The one song on the album which is radically different to the rest is the last song, 'When I Drown'. Apparently a 32 piece orchestra was used on it. Jason Boyd's vocals on this don't sound quite right for some reason, and it doesn't sound really like him either. But this is a good song, with a heavy swirling atmosphere pervading the whole song. The background vocals particularly recall the sound of the Beach Boys.

So there's my synopsis. If you like Incubus or Hoobastank, you are sure to like this. Jason Boyd does at moments sound like Brandon, but mostly he sounds closer to Doug Robb of Hoobastank. His voice is just as melodic as Brandon's, but whereas Brandon's voice is deeper, more quirky/idiosyncratic/charismatic and his style is something of an acquired taste, Jason's voice leans more towards the high notes and is probably less distinctive than his older brother's, although he probably appeals to a wider demographic as a result. Lyrically, Incubus delve into a wide range of socio-political topics as well as relationship type stuff, whereas AudioVent have stuck to the tried and tested method of writing about miserable relationships, so there isn't the same scope of expression. Also Incubus' lyrics have more of the poetic touch, whereas AudioVent is more simple and basic in its wording, and are sometimes quite amusing (e.g on Stalker: 'I'm static, you're clinging, you're my Klingon').

But hey - I'm not criticising. It's just very difficult to describe their music without referencing Incubus, particularly since I love them so much!
This album is a good slice of straight, melodic, hard rock. And yet another reason why California is the king of alt. rock bands (Stone Temple Pilots, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Incubus, Hoobastank, Rage, SOAD etc etc).
Get this album!