Review Summary: The League of One is hard at work at making classic heavy metal cool again.
These days, the favourite hobby of many groups that have ‘heavy’ as one of the designating descriptions when their sound is concerned is to add at least one descriptive element to their sound. That also supposes that the actual sound should include something else, good or bad, just as that ‘else’ is there. As if they actually they want to disassociate themselves from what is considered ‘classic’ heavy metal.
While we can be thankful to some of those innovators like Motorpsycho, quite a few others should be lost in the mazes of memory. Still, one key question should be asked here - what is wrong with ‘classic’ heavy metal after all?
Nothing, pending, of course, that it sounds good, ie, that the musicianship and vocals are or on a really high level and that the riffs and guitar crunch really do that ‘heavy’ trick.
On the evidence of "Dispatch", their latest album, it seems that the Regina Canada trio The League of One share that opinion. If you have at least one (or all) albums by, say Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and certainly their compatriots Rush, you’ll probably want Dispatch too.
While the trio doesn’t shy away from its influences, they still do them justice, with some excellent riffing that like on the excellent “Plastic Crackhead” sounds familiar but as if it has been re-arranged to give it that so desired twist. Vocalist/guitarist Will Maeder has a knack for switching his vocal tone from Robert Plant-like “Wax Museum” to more close to the home sound of Rush’s Geddy Lee (“I Get Around).
While Maeder is the only constant member of the band since its inception in 2003, the fact that the lineup, that also comprises “The Rev”( bass/vocals - he seems to be that gruff vocal on “Antz”) and Bill Grant (drums) has been together since 2009, makes their sound rich, tight and, ahem, heavy. Exactly what you would expect from a good, ‘classic’ heavy band. Really heavy band.
