I like to start off my reviews with a little paragraph talking about how i got into the band. i dont know why, i just like sharing. perhaps it gives you a better understanding of where im coming from, to get an understanding that all these bands that I listen to and love, I hold very personally and close to my heart. You might think it's just taking up space. either way, im gonna do it.
how i found out about this band is nothing special, i was flipping through the channels and happed to catch the end of "Wash Away" on music choice. that was enough to tempt me to get the cd, and two days later i picked up the only copy that the menlo park mall (new jersey, bitches!) had.
let me say that this band could have been one of the greatest rock and roll bands in history, if ever. they most remind me of bands like tool, a bit of pink floyd and 3 doors down (in my opinion, 3 doors down sucks, but the band is from Utah so the lead singer has the sort of southern rock voice). the band, which consisted of Jeremy Stanley (vox), Brian Christensen (guitar), Tom Collins (bass), and Joshua Zirbel (drums), released this in 2003 on Universal Records. then, they toured. then, after a few months of no updates on their website, bad news. Josh and Tom had left Acroma, and the remaining two members were considering calling it quits. then, their website dissappeared completely, including any link to the band at their label's website. im assuming that they're no more, which is a shame, because if they were to create more music like the songs found on this cd, two words: world domination.
although all the songs on this cd are really good, there are a couple that, to me, stand out.
Wash Away (Some Desert Night) - this song has a real nice guitar line, and does a good job of combining electric lead with an acoustic in the background, they each complement each other very well. the lyrics are basically about a girl (perhaps a girl Jeremy knew) who cant stand her life anymore and wants to get the hell out of the shit-hole town she's been living in for so long. the lyrics also tell us the reason is because she was a hooker, "selling her body, her soul, for the allmighty dollar". this is more of the rock side of Acroma, and it's one of my favorite tracks on the album.
Don't Think Just Move - more of the progressive side of Acroma. this is a slow song at first, with a lot of computer sounding effects and an echo sounding guitar riff. the vocals flow nicely through the song. it does get heavy at the end though, with Jeremy singing "What makes us behave in this way?/Dont Think, Just Move". ends very nicely, a good example of their progressive, toolish sounding side.
Motive - if there was a song to mosh to on this album, this is it. the bass starts off the song leading into a very mosh-able riff. the song slows down a bit after the second chorus for about a minute and a half, and then builds back up into the hard rock sound that we started with. i would have loved to see this live.
Big Karma Now - this song is more along the lines of motive, except it's more of a song to two step to rather than mosh. a catchy guitar riff leads us through the verse and up to the chorus.
Track 9 - the track that doesnt exist, it's not listed anywhere on the cd, the tracklisting simply goes from 8 to 10. this track is either a live acoustic track that they recorded, or they put the crowd sounds in after they were done recording it. the song is short, only about two minutes, but it's a very good sounding two minutes. Jeremy's vox really stand out on this track, considering that it's just him and the acoustic. good chill out song.
in the end, these thirteen tracks could have been the start of something great, but who knows? perhaps the band put all they had into this album, and there's no way they could have topped this. or maybe this was just a taste of the music that they could create. i guess we'll never know that one for sure, but in any case, give this cd a try. maybe you'll find what i found in their music, maybe you wont. either way, it's worth a listen.
