If you’re looking for originality, you’ll want
to steer clear of 40 Cycle Hum. Their debut album, Secret
Skin, comes straight out of the late-’90s/early-2000s
hard rock/metal playbook. You’ll hear down-tuned guitars,
angst-filled growling vocals and the obligatory cover of a
1980s pop song. The band actually does what it does rather
well, so I suppose it’s a question of whether we need
another band like this now.
Frontman Brandon Mitchell spends most of the disc alternating
between a Nickelback-like rasp and a scream that brings Nothingface
vocalist Matt Holt to mind. Mitchell is at his best employing
a smoother tone reminiscent of John Bush of Anthrax and Armored
Saint fame. He gives his strongest performance on “Just
Leave It,” which has a slamming guitar riff that recalls
Pantera’s “Five Minutes Alone.” If your
influences are going to be so obvious, you might as well take
from the best. The song showcases guitarist Mark Zavon as
a capable lead player. In fact, the guitar solos sprinkled
throughout the album liven up the entire recording.
The album, which the band self-produced, benefits greatly
from its raw sound. Too many bands in this genre gloss their
songs up in the studio and emerge lacking anything resembling
an edge. 40 Cycle Hum keeps it rough and the songs sound like
they would translate well to the stage. I could do without
the first single, a cover of Real Life’s “Send
Me An Angel,” but the band has enough going for it that Secret Skin is worth a listen. |
