Review Summary: The worst of both worlds.
I think it's cliché at this point to mention how the internet has influenced music and musical genres on the intro of any review that deals with an unorthodox release, but the impact it has had on the way we listen (and play) music truly cannot be overstated. Now more than ever, musicians are free to explore and take cue from any subgenre and any artist they wish, thanks to the emergence of niche markets and open-mindedness that thrive in the liberty offered at the reach of one's fingers, just one click away. This has resulted in, amongst other effects, the birth of unthinkable genre mishmashes, sometimes implausible on paper but quite effective when actually played by competent musicians with an ear for art and aesthetic vision. Just last year, a certain band by the name of Babymetal took the web by storm with their energetic, jolly bubblegum-pop take of Heavy Metal, and just before them a certain Claire Boucher garnered attention with her brand of catchy indie pop made out of angelic (or sometimes robotic) vocal harmonies; bubbling, pulsating synths; clicks, breaks; and just about anything that she could transform into a melody.
More subtly (and perhaps more relevant to subject of this review) is the way Periphery infused with electronic flourishes their characteristic way of playing Metal to create their much acclaimed self-titled debut. Sometimes, it pays off to take risks -- Periphery could have faced backlash from the more conservative and close-minded community of metalheads that pervade internet forums --, but to try first you must have the ability, the experience, and the focus to make it work. Enter Minnesota head-bangers ChugChugWob.
ChugChugWob are a self-described "Weirdcore" band who (as their name implies) mixes chuggy, djent-sounding Christian metalcore with the wubwubs that characterize the histrionic brand of brostep that let Skrillex have his 5 minutes of fame, and the results are, well...
I already mentioned how it takes a talented musician to tread styles like that, but I still find it quite baffling that ChugChugWob would be so dead-set on taking the worst and most superficial aspects of the genres they base their gimmicky shtick on, and not realize the disaster they put to record for their debut
Redemption. The type of djenty metalcore that ChugChugWob play is best served with either teenage angst-ridden lyrics and a vocalist capable of really conveying said angst, or perhaps just get away with cryptic lyrics and just let the riffs do the job. On
Redemption however, there are no memorable riffs, as they decided to honor their band's name and play chug after chug of droning that feel more like part of an interlude, homogeneous and barely there, waiting for something worthy to erupt and grab the attention of the listener, something that on the whole record never happens.
While not the most profound or carefully-orchestrated music out there, what made Skrillex and his kind worth listening to was the massive, anthemic choruses, the pulsating beats, and of course, the grossly overhyped wubwubwubs that gave birth to the passing trend that was brostep. They were fun, they were energetic, and they were
catchy. Like the chorus of a well-crafted pop song, said wubs are best placed after a build-up, to accentuate the impetu of it. ChugChugWob's influence of dubstep is limited to Skrillex-style wubs (of course), and only relegated to a few couple songs. But instead of the stadium-sized bass-drops and punching wobbles, what we get are wimpy, annoying blips, misplaced at the end or the middle of monotonous, droning metalcore songs, where they are not anticipated but unsurprising and anti-climactic anyway. It harks back to 2011's
The Path of Totality, when the clueless inventors of dubstep (!) made a botched album that paradoxically managed to be as obtuse as possible while still remaining completely unexceptional and ordinary.
The lyrics are feeble attempts at the Christ-loving tales of torment and repent that Christian metalcore bands are so fond of, but without any of the mastery, or even the emotion that their contemporaries wield. Honestly, were it not for the darker tone in which they were written, they wouldn't sound out of place on the recordings of a cheesy amateur Christian rock band that plays at their local church on Sundays. The lyrics would be forgivable if only the music was good, or just catchy, or even just peculiar enough to draw the attention of the listener, but it's not, and it casts all attention on the horrid prose that predates this album. What could have been an entertaining if vapid affair became an almost-insultingly stupid and even kind of preachy 37 minutes of music from a band struggling to find anything worth putting on a CD.
With their first release, ChugChugWob fell flat on their faces. The made a gambit, and ultimately failed to pull off what should better be left for more seasoned musicians. In their inexperience, they tried to mix two genres that they haven't quite grasped yet, ignorant of the nuances of making songs in either, or any other genre. They missed many opportunities to make of
Redemption an album worth listening to. It's always a sad sighting when a young band has a start this messy, but they should take this opportunity to reconsider what songwriting actually implies, if their gimmick is truly worth the effort, and what made the records and genres that inspired them to play what they are.
