*Note-the artwork reference in the title refers to the front cover--as divad23 pointed out, Squint Records did strange things with their jewel cases and artwork.*

In my opinion, producers are sometimes the worst things to ever happen to music. They can commercialize everything about a band and completely ruin them just to appeal to a dumbed-down public. Or they can over- or under-polish them. The alternative rock band Chevelle has suffered from the last option. And I know this. I’m no production freak, but I know what Chevelle sounds like. They do not sound like a band where the riffs would fit on a 12 Stones record or a NES game soundtrack. But that’s what the now-gone Squint Records did. Then again, they were never known for good production (38th Parallel suffered from this as well). Fortunately, Chevelle recovered and made a two good albums later. Sadly, this album isn’t later.

The Band
Joe Loeffler-bass (no longer with band)
Pete Loeffler-vocals, guitar
Sam Loeffler-drums

The Good

Open is just an instrumental opener, fueled by choppy riffs that eventually flow into more melodic territory. It does sound cool, but it also introduces the weak production. The main reason this is a highlight because of how well it sets up the following track, the album’s title cut. Seriously, the transition is seamless. And the title track itself isn’t shabby either. Pete’s lyrics are wonderfully confusing, and the chorus, with Pete’s hypnotic voice and the rolling riffs, rocks: “He’ll say pay for it, the whole sum ‘cause to magnify pain is point number one…” The vocals only improve in the bridge and second chorus, and there’s actually a rare (for this album) scream and a guitar solo, which is very rare for Chevelle on any album. In short, this is one of the album’s highlights.

One of the more NES-worthy riffs pops up in Mia, but hey, it gets stuck in your head, as does the chorus: “I made a face that bugs you/ I won’t design conversation around you…” I’m not entirely sure what it’s about (anti-conformity, maybe?). Still, it’s a catchy little (2:21!) number, and that riff is unforgettable. And I like Pete’s passion in the bridge. Skeptic’s intro notably carries on for far too long (I get the whole choppy riff thing already!), but Pete has a compelling whisper, and he uses it to full effect here. Even when he actually sings, it’s magnetic: “This isn’t even clear, it doesn’t even tell the why/ this is an incomplete, it doesn’t tell the why…” The intense bridge also works, making this one of the better anti-evolution songs out there.

While I’m not sure whether Dos is supposed to be the Spanish word for “two” or something more complicated, I’m sure that it’s the album’s best song. The riffs come across as hypnotic rather than poorly produced, and Pete’s whispers and croons are enrapturing: “You two are what’s left/ I don’t take requests/ you two come this far, I might have something to say…” And when he starts to belt it out in the bridge, it only improves. Sure, it’s 6:29, but it’s absolutely mesmerizing. Long showcases Pete’s loudest vocals, but the man holds a note nicely. This is definitely Chevelle’s most openly Christian song to date, with lines like “Anyone lose a god, cause I found a God…see how the sparrow gets fed from our Lord…” While the chorus comes across as useless filler, a sweet bridge and coda, where Pete holds his notes for a fantastically long time, saves the song.

The Bad

Prove to You simply refuses to be anything but average. The lyrics are not a problem: “Learn of patience worth to you/ many teacher, no students/ we go by name, not by rank/ too many sighs incompetent…”, but the choppy riffs get old quickly, and Pete’s shouts of “I’m gonna prove to you” don’t leave much of a mark. Anticipation sounds awful production-wise, and Pete suffers from redundancy syndrome with a chorus that drives shouts of “Face!” down your throat several times too many. I think the song is about Thomas doubting Jesus’s resurrection, though Pete does a nice job of masking it. While the bridge is decent, particularly with the guitar, the song on the whole is mediocre.

Blank Earth is something of an opposite of “Long”: both have solid verses, but this song peaks in the chorus and falls flat in the bridge. The former showcases cool, squealing riffs and solid vocals and lyrics: “And you don’t care/ where is the mother figure while I’m here?” However, Pete’s howls of “Caught me” in the coda get extremely annoying very quickly, nullifying any previous efforts. Sma, a title I’ll never get, almost shares an opening riff with the preceding track, and the verse’s guitar mimics the title cut. Most of the rest of the song is just filler, with the soft-loud dynamic in the chorus just doesn’t work for me. While the lyrics are ok (saying it isn’t someone’s fault for something?), the song as a whole just doesn’t impress.

Peer closes things off, and it starts off innocently enough, with its lyrics revolving around some drug dealer, and the soft guitar plucking complementing that Loeffler vocal magic nicely. And what he’s singing isn’t bad: “Pick me up on your way/ send away virus…watch him sell mugs to bikers to make a million dollars…” The song’s problem is later on, where the tempo and volume are jacked up, and Pete ruins everything this song had going for it with his squawks of “Back off!”. Sure, the instrumentals are cool towards the end, but man, I’m not feeling that bridge.

Sure, the good outnumbers the bad. But the gap is small. And besides, I’m not gonna recommend this to you when there are two vastly improved Chevelle albums out there.

Final Scores
1. Open-83%
2. Point #1-89%
3. Prove to You-75%
4. Mia-83%
5. Skeptic-84%
6. Anticipation-74%
7. Dos-90%
8. Long-80%
9. Blank Earth-73%
10. Sma-74%
11. Peer-71%
3 Stars

Good For Fans Of…Nickelback, 12 Stones


Recommended: No