CHEVELLE: Niratias (ALTERNATIVE ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

At Music Waves, we try to cover as many releases as possible, but there are inevitably some omissions. Among the forgotten are the Americans of Chevelle who have released four albums since our last review in 2007 for "Vena Sera". In the meantime, the Loeffler brothers have cleaned up around them since they are now the only masters on board the Chevelle ship.

Before listening to this "Niratias", our memory brings back an impression of heavy alternative pop without much personality because of its strong influences to be found on the side of Tool and Deftones. We have to admit that the beginning of this record is rather surprising because we don't expect it to start with a hybrid instrumental track made of sludge and grunge of good quality. The surprise effect quickly gives way to the realization that Chevelle hasn't changed his mind and that he remains in the grip of Tool and Deftones' aura, both in the riffs and the vocal intonations. Thus, the parts of guitar of 'Pistol Star (Gravity Heals)', 'Peach' and 'Ghost and Razor' are deeply marked of the seal of Adam Jones, the atmospheres of 'So Long, Mother Earth' and 'Remember When' make irremediably reference to Deftones and the whole of the interventions of Pete Loeffler are a mixture with majority of Maynard and the remainder of Chino.

Of course, it is not written in the tables of the law of the music the prohibition to be inspired by such or such group. The problem with Chevelle is the lack of personality and the lack of melodic sense. Because if the rhythmic architectures and the riffs are solid in the majority of the compositions ('Ghost and Razor', 'So Long, Mother Earth') and that the energy does not miss ('Mars Simula'), the quality of the melodies as much intrinsically as in their role of milestone to bring effects of contrast is not there. It is necessary to wait for the end of the album with 'Endlessly' not to despair to hear finally the Americans to deliver us something else. And if 'Endlessly' is not the mid-tempo of the year and its melodic choices are rather rudimentary, we still enjoy a more personal vocals and a music that has no obvious connotation with the two mentioned bands.

Almost fifteen years later, we can take word for word the conclusions of Struck's review of "Vena Sera". Chevelle is a band still too much influenced by Tool and Deftones despite a certain efficiency. - Official website

CHEVELLE

NIRATIAS

SONY BMG

ALTERNATIVE ROCK