GenQ - For the not so straight individual

It’s been a while so if you’ve forgotten who Alter Bridge are, or never knew in the first place, here’s a quick recap. After leaving Creed due to tensions with lead singer Scott Stapp, former members, Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall and Scott Phillips, recruited singer and guitarist Myles Kennedy and formed Alter Bridge. They released their debut album, ‘One Day Remains’ in 2004 to success and acclaim, but after difficulties with their record label, (the label was reportedly pressuring the guys to reform Creed with Stapp) the band bought themselves and their catalogue out of their contract and started fresh. So that brings us to their latest release, ‘Blackbird’.

In a time when ‘emo’ and adrenaline punk rock is dominating the alternative scene, Alter Bridge’s very American brand of guitar driven, not-quite-heavy-metal rock full of intense emotion can seem a little dated, but I found it more refreshing than anything. Their style of heavy guitar riffs and sweeping choruses that peaked in the late nineties with bands like Creed, Metallica, Korn and Fuel aren’t often heard anymore, but believe me they’re worth listening to.

Blackbird is a thematic listening experience. Addiction is tackled on the aggressive, ‘Buried Alive’, and on one of the album’s highlights, ‘Watch Over You’, their most radio-friendly offering. The heartbreaking track about loving someone with an addiction is the closest the band comes to a ‘love song’, with the guitars and drums building superbly in intensity.

The bands frustrations with their previous label and struggles to start over seem to be reflected in a couple of tracks. Album opener, ‘Ties that Bind’, is uncompromising gothic rock, and ‘Come To Life’, sounds very much like a Korn song. The album receives a change of pace with ‘Brand New Start’, a refreshing lack of heavy riffs and a defiant guitar solo.

‘Before Tomorrow Comes’, a stand-out, and ‘Rise Today’ are inspiring and uplifting challenges to the apathy without feeling sanctimonious, and the sweeping ‘One by One’ is a salute to soldiers of war. ‘Break Me Down’ and ‘White Knuckles’ are calls to the disconnected and disaffected, the latter loaded with heavy riffs and strong drums. Album highlight ‘Wayward One’ is a spine-tingling and haunting song about the cycle of abuse.

But it’s the title track, ‘Blackbird’ that remains the band’s pièce de résistance. Coming in at 8 minutes long and sitting in the middle of the track listing, it’s a touching farewell to a fallen loved one. The blues influenced guitar solos and soaring vocals on a beautiful lyric create both a bittersweet and uplifting track. It’s worth the price of the album alone.

Vocalist Kennedy shines, bringing an intense level of emotion and conviction to every lyric without ever making it seemed forced or melodramatic. It’s lead guitarist Tremonti however, that steals the spotlight. To borrow a line from ‘Almost Famous’, his incendiary guitar playing and stunning solos have the power to make you feel both uplifted and despairing, sometimes within the same song. For a girl who loves her drums I did feel they were a bit lacking amongst the many guitar solos, but that’s more a beef with the style of music than anything else.
‘Blackbird’ is a substantial album with a few striking songs, and if you like your rock/metal with a lot of emotion and one hell of a chorus, this is the album for you.