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South FM may not sound
like the most familiar of band names, but in a month or so you
may think differently. In fact, I can easily envision SouthFM
making a name for themselves with the release of their debut
album, Drama Kids. Yea maybe they will not sell five million
copies, but they should take the
public by storm. It is just a matter of time. If nothing else,
their remarkable single, Dear Claudia, will sweep its' way to
the top of the charts, if it has not done so by now.
I would hate to see SouthFM being known only by their
remarkable hit single, but that just may be the case. The
single has THAT kind of potential. In either case, people WILL
know who SouthFM is, at one point or another.
SouthFM doesn't bring a totally new sound to the table, but
they do offer an interesting spin in a rather washed out
genre, especially as of late. From the catch in their hooks to
their uncanny ability to grasp you forcefully, SouthFM has a
jaw dropping sound. Throughout a full listen I found myself
hearing traces of various bands thrown
into the mix, which I labelled as incorporating the artists
that influence their song writing. Neat Stuff.
Their music is fairly difficult to describe as it encompasses
a plethora of sounds, all the while sticking to one general
sound, their sound. I would stick the band into the rock
genre, focusing upon the softer
side of pool. Most of their songs are downbeat
zingers that pitch blatant
expression in your face. You hear
the subtleties in both their instrumentation and vocal
artwork.
SouthFM is considered to be in the modern rock genre and comes
at you from the United States, Texas in particular. Members
include: Paco Estrada, GI Sanders, Chad Abbott, and Doug
McGrath. The album features thirteen
(13) tracks totalling 52:03 in play
time.
Here is a brief run down of the tracks:
01. Thursday Night - This song is your typical rock tune, but
with an added flavor. The track manages to encompass the sound
of several other bands and jam pack them all into this one
fine track. You can hear a hint of Live, Matchbox20, etc. all
cramped into this small knit package. The track itself has a
wonderful sound, complimented with a lyrical style that,
for simplisticy sake, fits.
02. Seven - This is a pretty much a slow roller, but instead
of you drifting off to sleep, you will be paying attention
throughout. A few instances leave the glaring guitars in the
open, but for the most part this one creeps on. Fortunately,
this tune combines a great message with a highly listenable
background.
03. Corporate White America - I consider this song to have a
mild cover that is neither too hard or too soft, but just
right. The message is carried out extremely well, but at times
I found myself dwindling. Overall you can expect to tolerate
this song, but I would not prepare to press repeat. This is an
average track at best.
04. Dear Claudia - Since we offer this for
download I will
choose to skip the review of the track and leave the
impression up to you. I will say that this is one of the best
sounding tunes to come along in quite some time.
05. My Sanity - This track offers an abrasive guitar in the
midst of a mellow atmosphere, a unique combination. The track
serves up a down-tempo rhythm and manages to provide little to
the listener. The message is on par with the rest of the
album, but the track is as close to boring as it gets. I have
been trying to enjoy this track in its entirety, but I have
been unable to do so thus far.
06. As You Dream - Track 6 starts off giving the feeling of
John Lennon's 'Lucy In The Sky With
Diamonds', but soon after you get
passed the hollowed out effects you will see very few
similarities between the two. The track fails to come to a
boil and is left to end without every becoming cooked
throughout. The track is prime background music or music that
will hit the spot on rare occasions.
07. Eve - After hearing this tune sound
off, I had a better feeling as to where things were
going. The tempo has been increased, the intensity has been
bumped, and the band is off to rolling in high gear. The
overall sound is not Earth shattering, but it is very
satisfying. The guitars find themselves wailing a time or two,
while the vocals fine tune into something that is loaded with
enjoyment. This is my pick for the sleeper
track.
08. Because It Was You - The sound of vinyl greets
you and your mind scrambles to
predict what is in store. As your mind scrambles,
you hear the faint sound of Chris Cornell during the
SoundGarden era, but just then the track is over. Yes,
'Because It Was You'
lasts a mere 64 seconds, just enough
time to become interested.
09. Luis - Number 9, Number 9 ... 'Luis'
begins with an eerie string rift accompanying
a guitar that grows louder by the second. Shortly after
your anticipation reaches maximum capacity the track finds
itself off and running. 'Luis'
can be broken up into stages, all of which vary accordingly.
The overall sound is not electrifying, but instead is levelled
off enough for you to appreciate. Some stages are rough
around the edges lined with a semi-shouting vocal style,
whereas the section next to it may offer a gentle softer
breathy vocal style, unique to say the least. This is not the
strongest attempt on the album, nor one of the weaker. Listen
and see for yourself. :)
10. Crimson - The initial guitar rift brings the circus (or a
carnival) to mind especially as the
sound joins up with some crowd noise. I am not sure if the
design was intentional, but after listening over and over
again this is what springs to mind each time,
a circus. Aside from the bothersome atmosphere, the
track floats down a gentle stream, floating carelessly with no
stop in sight. This track searches for freedom and manages to
get lost a time or two. On the contrary, the ending of Crimson
is on task, organized and sounds great. The circus mood is
gone and SouthFM is back to being
your typical rock band again.
11. Brick Layers - Gone are the unorthodox rifts and here to
stay is the enormous talent that SouthFM keeps bottled up from
time to time. This tune does what a few other tracks fail at
doing, which is putting together a solidified sound. From the
guitar sounds, to the vocals, to the mesmerizing drum beat,
Brick Layers caught and held my attention from start to
finish. This is an excellent track.
12. Driving - If any of you have heard the solo project from
Scott Weiland (and liked it), then you are in store for a de-ja-vu
experience. Without taking any credit away from SouthFM, this
track is marvellous to say the least. It is ever so basic, but
instead of appearing likewise, 'Driving'
is tangled up in a complex web. The message that is carried on
by Estrada offers SouthFM-expression
at its finest. From beginning to end
this track is concrete, but never overwhelming. I would vote
this as a must listen for anyone out there, however I am sure
some would disagree. Oh well, I loved it.
13. Becomes Apart - The finale track to Drama Kids unlocks the
more aggressive style that has been silenced up until this
point. The guitars come out quickly sounding better than I
would have imagined. From a distance this track may sound
typical of the prior 12 tracks, but I found this track to be
significantly different. The lyrics are carried with grace,
while the guitars are uncharacteristically
loud and aggressive, as I mentioned earlier. Again the song
has several sections, but all of them are tied together
perfectly. This is a great choice for the ending track. The
best for last? No, but dang good!
---
So, what do I think of the album as a whole? I think that it
is a better-than-average album that suffers on occasion in
respect to maintaining am ambitious sound. Although this is
their only album [that I am aware of],
SouthFM seems to have the uncanny characteristic of breaking
their songs into sections, while trying to keep each section
glued together as one. This is very tricky to do successfully,
let alone with 4 - 6 minute songs. I give them plenty of
credit for trying and doing succeeding, in
general.
SouthFM is a great band for reviving their own songs. What do
I mean? Well they are not a band that can be called
repetitious. In fact, most of their
songs have distinct sections that almost give you the feeling
as though the track number has increased without the good ole
2 second paused sandwiched in between. However, at times the
fact that each section can sound dramatically different is not
necessarily a good thing. The process of doing so is hit or
miss in my opinion. SouthFM managed to hit most of the time.
I would recommend this album to anyone looking for a band
trying to breakout with a great debut album. Those of you who
enjoy trying to guess what will be thrown at you next will
surely enjoy this.
Those of you who are looking for something entirely new should
listen before buying. The album is not bad, but at times you
may not appreciate it from every angle. Sure you will find a
track or two that knocks you off of your feet, but for the
most part you will cast aside the album as a whole.
Those of you who have no favorite style, or drift aimlessly
from number1 hit to number1 hit should avoid this. I would
recommend downloading the hit single and moving on. The hit
single is one of the best (if not the best) songs out at the
moment and will be for several weeks to come. Take that and
stay away.
Fortunately I feel as though most of you would fit in between
the first 2 categories that I have listed, so I would have to
recommend the album to most of you. If I were you I would
sample a few songs other than the single and then decide, but
either way it would not be a waste of hard earned cash. Go
ahead take a chance, buy it. 4 planets!
Track Listing:
01. Thursday Night
02. Seven
03. Corporate White America
04. Dear Claudia
(LISTEN)
05. My Sanity
06. As You Dream
07. Eve
08. Because It Was You
09. Luis
10. Crimson
11. Brick Layers
12. Driving
13. Becomes Apart
Ramz Rating: 4 out of 5
Planets
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