Humming
Wire
Self-titled CDEP
Self-released
Genres: alternative rock, metal, hard rock
Dec 13 - 19 2004 |
To their credit, Humming Wire plays remarkably tight hard
rock. The songs here are technically fine, and it's clear the
band members know what they're doing. However, bland alternative
rock such as this doesn't seem to have anything interesting or
worthwhile to its credit. The
lyrics are generic, the sound is far from original, and the melodies
are nothing special. "Love Machine," for example,
sounds like any one of those hard alt rock bands that used to be
popular (Incubus, Korn) - the songs rely on simple power
chords and emotional vocals that become all growly and vicious at the
song's climax. Only the album's love song, "Stella" is
melodic enough to be pleasant - as the EP's lush, calm moment, it
makes for a nice break from the generic mayhem that fills out the rest
of the disc. Finale "Airplane Song" also has a neat
guitar part during the verse, but the screamy chorus fails to do it
justice. All in all, this isn't a bad record,
it's just too bland and unoriginal to warrant any real
attention. At times, the band shows off some interesting
concepts - proof that they do have what it takes to produce
something original - however, they'll need a bit more time to marinate
before they're ready for their next release. 68%
Matt Shimmer [Vitals:
6 tracks, distributed by the
band, released 2004] |