文章基本信息

标题：Bayside disc lacks emotion
作者：Cameron Adamson Central Valley
期刊名称：Spokesman Review, The (Spokane)
出版年度：2004
卷号：Mar 15, 2004
出版社：Cowles Publishing Co.

Bayside disc lacks emotion

Cameron Adamson Central Valley

BAYSIDE SIRENS AND CONDOLENCES

For a while now, Victory Records has been hyping Bayside as the next big thing. With Victory responsible for fantastic albums such as Thursday's "Full Collapse" and Taking Back Sunday's absolutely amazing "Tell All Your Friends," this new band from Victory was definitely worth checking out.

Considering That "Tell All Your Friends" sold more than 200,000 copies, Victory proves that you don't have to be a major label to sell lots of records. This year, Victory released Bayside's "Sirens and Condolences" in hopes of having the same success as the label's previous CDs.

Bayside opens up right in your face, with a hard-pounding, unforgiving intro that jump-starts the record. The guitar work is simply fantastic and never stops throughout the album. At times, it is eerily similar to one of my all-time favorite bands, Jawbreaker. That probably should be expected, since Bayside covered a Jawbreaker song on that band's tribute album.

Unfortunately, superb guitar work is about all Bayside has to offer. Lead singer Anthony Ranieri has little-to-no vocal range. After a couple of listens, his voice is flat out annoying. It's a shame, especially considering that his lyrics are deep and insightful: "If I surrender to this feeling, maybe all the aches can go, and I can close my eyes."

Lyrics like these are great, but he sings them without any variation in voice and tone, which leads to a CD that sounds flat. Each track is like a broken record, replaying the same sound over and over again. That is what separates Bayside from bands such as Taking Back Sunday. Bayside has half of the equation, and that equates to a half-bad album.

As a whole, "Sirens and Condolences" is a disappointment. It gets three-quarters of the way there, but it is missing the most important element - feeling.

Regardless, I still look forward to the next Victory band. It could be all the Bayside isn't.

Grade: C