By John Bedard
On paper, this should be a home run for me. Reading through the press information, so many boxes are checked that set up Accidental President to be a favorite of mine. A female-fronted band described as hard rock mixed heavily with goth and metal influences, I was rather excited. Unfortunately, once I started listening, I found it quite underwhelming. By track three, I was quite bored. It is really a shame too, because I was ready to like this…
Musically, things are actually not bad. There is some pretty good construction of the rhythms and some decent leads but it is still less than I was hoping for. The tone is muddy, which can be a stylistic thing but, in this case, it sounds more like something is wrong in the amp settings or the mix. Many notes lack definition and just kinda get lost. Especially in the leads. I can tell there is some good talent under there, but the tone just does not let it shine. It is like they were going for that heavily overdriven old school tone but just missed it. Also, it often feels like the song is building to a climax bet then never really hits it.
Vocally, it is a very similar story. I can hear some good bones, but overall things just fall short. In the lower ranges, there is some good driving power but higher I just don’t think she has the power to keep up. The vocals become harsh at times. This is made worse by each track being pretty repetitive, so if there is a part she does not hit quite right you will be hearing it again, and again. I just don’t hear all that much range and there is not much evolution so most of the experience feels very much the same.
When I first put this album on, I was in the car as I find it is the best place to really give an album a fair go. I admittedly had high expectations for it but by around track four or five, I heard myself involuntarily say out loud “I don’t like this at all” while reaching for the radio dial. After that, I had to keep reminding myself that I had to finish it at least twice for a fair review. Unfortunately, that was a slog I do not wish to repeat. I really did not want to shit on this so much, but there just is nothing special for me to highlight.
- ‘Accidental President’ is out now. You can get your copy HERE.
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