Radio friendly alt rock, at least for me, is always hit or miss. Though I idolise particular bands, others that aren’t so different can make me cringe. Avedis are an alt rock trio from the States, and while I wouldn’t go as far as saying they make me cringe, what stuck out to me from their
Red Sea was minimal. Having stated
Sevendust and
Chevelle as influences, Avedis was initially something I prepared to dislike. And perhaps I was proven wrong, as I took a liking to the song ‘Walk Alone’, but the rest of it doesn’t quite grab me.
The EP opens with ‘Mer De Messonges’, one of the two proper rock songs on this EP. Combining bass-driven verses with catchy guitar licks and anthemic vocals, both are light on the ears though not overly remarkable. Of the two, (the other being ‘Mega Ditz’), ‘Mer de Messonges’ is a lot more effective in engaging the listener, perhaps due to its less opaque sentiment. The third track ‘Walk Alone’ is the only song on
Red Sea that I particularly cared for – it has a somewhat darker mood than the rest of the EP and builds up around itself quite well.
Closing the EP is ‘Bound Together’, which attempts to create an accessible ‘ballad’ of sorts, and though it starts off strong, by the end of it all I could think about was something a band like
From First to Last would play to juxtapose against their angst-driven ‘screamo’. The lighter vocals are very well done, but when he strains himself in order to sound more emotional, it comes off as very clichéd and transparent.
It might be that I’m no longer particularly fazed by this kind of music anymore, but I feel that Avedis, while perhaps having more to offer, don’t quite achieve a connection with the listener on
Red Sea. They have the right idea with their music, and clearly know how to write a decent rock song, but the overall atmosphere is not entirely convincing. Though, I would say that fans of the bands mentioned earlier might be inclined to give this a listen.
