Formed in 2006 in Germany, this four-piece have found themselves being marketed into different musical areas over the years, and this 2010 release was no different as here they were being portrayed as a progressive act. I do have some sympathy with that viewpoint, as the band they have most in common with is probably Muse, although with far less dynamics and passion, mixed with some of the softer elements of U2 and Incubus. There is a huge amount of alternative within their overall sound, and my 20-year-old daughter summed it up by saying that this was music designed to appeal to teenage girls who wanted to rebel against their parents and thought that this was a way of doing it! She also told me that in some ways they reminded her of a boy band, but even I thought that was a steep too far.
Even though they are trying to come over as powerful, with plenty of The Edge style riffing guitars, for some reason this just feels lightweight and plastic – they know what they want to do, but aren’t quite getting there. Apparently their more recent albums have been well received (I haven’t heard them), so possibly this was just growing pains, but it isn’t one to which I will be readily returning.
