Specter at the Feast, the new album by
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, suffers from not being very good. Maybe it’s those
damn expectations of mine. Maybe I should stop trying to be critical of the bands I already like. Maybe I’m just hungry. Either way it’s disappointing; waiting
months for an album to come out and discovering that it’s painfully average and
not at all what I wanted is pretty rough. #firstworldproblems #whiteboyproblems.
Let me put the album into
context for you: a few years ago, the lead singer’s dad, who was also their
sound engineer, died at a show. As all successful artists tend to do, they hit
the studio hard, channeled their emotions into something productive, and came
to grips with what happened by recording a new album. It’s great that they were
able to do that and it’s impossible to knock Specter at the Feast in that context, so I’m not going to.
What I will do, however, is
discuss and be critical of the album in an entirely different context. Pretend
you didn’t read the above paragraph. Pretend I just told you that BRMC, after a
hiatus from the studio during which they spent their time touring, or fishing,
or playing golf, or building homes in Haiti, finally released a new album.
Okay? You with me? This album is a dud. It’s completely dull. At its best,
around the 1:20 minute mark on the opening track “Fire Walker,” when that bass
line first hits you, and when they sustain and escalate the beat for the next 5
minutes, they sound like vintage BRMC; heavy, hypnotic, a little trippy. But at its
worst – and I’m going to issue a quick redundancy alert before I say this – Specter at the Feast sounds like a
depressing version of Radiohead. Seriously; listen to the 4th track,
“Lullaby,” and try to tell me it doesn’t sound like some kind of lame mix between
Radiohead's “No Surprises” and “High and Dry.”
The word I’m looking for here is
pizzazz – if in a few months BRMC is looking for someone to re-master Specter at the Feast, I’ll make my
services available to them. I’ll get behind the controls, hit the pizzazz
button and call it a day. If you listen to Specter
at the Feast and say “Joe, there’s plenty of pizzazz,” I’d have to direct
your attention towards “Red Eyes and Tears,” or “Take My Time/Rifles” off their
debut album B.R.M.C. and ask you to
try again. All I’m saying is that they can do better.
There are three songs on the
album that stand out; among them are the previously-mentioned “Fire Walker” and
the penultimate song, “Sell It.” Now those are two songs I can get down with.
They are similar in regards to structure, length, and sound; “Fire Walker,”
again, relies on that steady, pulsating bass line while “Sell It” relies more
on a drum beat and is a little louder, but they are both equally haunting and
well-paced. The 6th track, “Rival," with its wonderfully
distorted guitars and relentless energy, is a nice surprise amidst the
lackluster middle half of the album.
I suppose I don’t hate the second track, “Let the Day Begin,” a
fast-paced song that starts out nicely with pounding drums and a frantic
guitar, but even that song evolves into a U2-like anthem, and while I really
have nothing against U2, let me ask a quick question: Who enjoys thinking about
Bono when they don’t have to? Anyone? I personally don’t like thinking about
Bono unless I’m listening to The Joshua
Tree or trying to stop myself from committing a crime against humanity, however,
Bono’s presence is inescapable throughout much of the snooze-fest that is Specter at the Feast.
Ultimately, you are left with a choice. Would you rather suffer through
an album that largely sounds like the bored offspring of Radiohead and U2 simply
because you appreciate what BRMC went through while making the album? Or
would you rather just skip it and listen to their older stuff? I’m going to
skip it and listen to their older stuff, because their older stuff is, I firmly
believe, where it’s at.
Grade: C-
I can't agree more. One of my favorite bands, but this is a huge disappointment.
Heard this track for the first time a few days ago and I have to say, it wasn't what I was hoping for. I am a huge fan of Radiohead and U2, especially since they are the primary influences of my band Face The King. Having said that, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is not meant to be that kind of band. I want a song that I can rock out to, drink and/or start a bar fight.
"Let the Day Begin" is actually a song originally by the Call who was fronted by Robert Been's father. They covered it as a tribute to him.