Review Summary: Butt rock is as butt rock does.
Okay, this
has to be a f*cking joke. Because, if so, well played, truly. If not, we need another crusade, but specifically for Theory of a Deadman and whoever is still choosing to listen to their music.
Theory of a Deadman have always appealed exclusively to a very particular sector of the population, often the lowest common denominator of any community. It's an example of a stereotype that actually fits its target to a T. C'mon, you know who I'm talking about; the guys who drink Mountain Dew like its water and who didn't bat an eyelash when Lee Brice started smooching an Alaskan pollock at the TPUSA halftime show. It's a decidedly small percentage, but that is Theory's fanbase all the way. With laughably horrid vocals from Tyler Connolly and stupider, contrite lyrics, the band carved out a presence at mainstream rock radio on the back of that uncynical listener pool. They never amounted to that which was enjoyed by the premier acts of the format (Three Days Grace, Breaking Ben, Shinedown), rather ending up closer to a Trapt - a band that is mocked far more times than it is respected or even tolerated. None of this is to say that the band doesn't have a shred of talent. I could count maybe a
couple of songs of theirs I don't mind, namely "Got It Made" (thanks
NASCAR 09 soundtrack!) from their multi-platinum 2008 album
Scars & Souvenirs, which spawned
ten singles. But this is a band I've always scoffed and rolled my eyes out, because this is easily the worst of any band with a longstanding track record in this format. With their newest EP,
Part 1: Funeral Songs, they not only prove why, they seemingly play into it as well.
Funeral Songs gives you difficulty figuring out if its just the product of a band way over the hill spiraling into disaster, or that of a band trying to get in on the jokes about them by deliberately thumbing in the eye of their critics. The morbidly hilarious "Monster Truck" which appears about halfway through, seems to be executing the latter. Theory is a band from Canada, yet the lyrics are objectifying American women and very facetiously heaping praise on America itself. It definitely comes across as satire, but then you remember that this band has fans who will gobble this up, get swept in jingoism and be none the wiser about the underlying subtext, which is more of an indictment on the band for cultivating such a listener base than anything else. It's the musical equivalent of ragebait. "Barricade" as an instrumental is fairly catchy and has some good ideas structurally, but the vocals are so ghastly, and the lyrics so predatory, that you want to descend nukes on the studio it was recorded in. Darn shame that a great melody (especially on the pre-chorus) is wasted on such dross.
Elsewhere, the band struggles with the kind of identity crisis that has plagued them throughout their career. They try to get seriously on the overly melodramatic ballad "Deep End," and while some of the guitar fills are interesting enough, the broader composition is borderline pretentious in its loud and hyperbolic presentation. From there, we oscillate back into purposeful novelty, with "Prenup" aping country and pop affectations as much as it is lampooning the slice-of-life subject matter alluded to in the lyrics. It's at this juncture that Theory is clearly not taking themselves seriously, and you almost have to tip your cap and acknowledge the fun they're having.
Make no mistake, this sh*t still f*cking blows. It's vacantly performed at times, egregiously sung, and comes from a band with a history of misogynistic and braindead songwriting. It adds absolutely nothing meaningful to the landscape, and it has too few adversaries worth pissing off to justify the attempt at such. I can confer a nugget of grudging respect for seemingly giving no f*cks whatsoever, but Theory of a Deadman's latest musical abomination is still exactly that. It's
very poor, like most of their catalog.
