Review Summary: The album does not possess any originality, but what it has can hit the spot. Sometimes.
The Canadian rockers from Theory of a Deadman have never been favorites among enlightened critics and more sophisticated music lovers. “
Nickelback clone”, “spawn of Chad Kroeger’s producing attempts”, “bland and tasteless”, “one of the worst bands of all time” (these are not literal quotes but close to what you can find on the net) are only some of the epithets expressed. One can easily imagine that the amount of swill poured on the band would fill up a large volume. Now the question is whether all of this is fair and valid. Let’s try and assess the objectivity of these claims through their third (and most commercially successful) album,
Scars & Souvenirs, released in 2008.
Frankly speaking, some of the comments happen to be valid, for instance when they’re called a Nickelback clone. While listening to their two previous LPs (as well as this one), the origin for such a comparison is clear. Just like their Canadian colleagues, Theory of a Deadman play standard, even somewhat cookie-cutter, 21st-century hard rock with songs blatantly aimed at radio airplay. The whole of
Scars & Souvenirs is stuffed with conventional but solidly crafted tracks – be that more aggressive (like
So Happy,
Got It Made,
Sacrifice) or ballad-y ones (
Not Meant to Be,
All or Nothing,
Wait for Me), which can easily end up on the albums of many of their contemporaries without any feeling of discord. The songs have a minimum amount of big but simple hooks, enough to get stuck in the head of an unsuspecting listener while at the same time avoiding wearying him or her. All of it is wrapped in an envelope of uncomplicated riffs and rhythms that fully correspond with the conservative approach of the bands who broke onto the radio in the beginning of the millennium. Theory of a Deadman can be easily included among them, confirming the above-mentioned claim of blandness.
'Then how could this album sell over a million copies?', can rightfully ask the reader. It would seem that the answer is quite clear and was already mentioned in the previous paragraph. Despite their conventional nature, the songs are executed with an appropriate understanding of pop music rules, devoid of unnecessary length and lasting only the prerequisite 3-4 minutes. There is yet another aspect – the lyrics. They are simple, easy-to-understand, and provoke the necessary associations. To be honest, who has not had similar thoughts or impulses in a situation close to something described in
Little Smirk? Who cannot understand the simple sentimentalities of
Heaven (Little by Little) and
End of the Summer?
Bad Girlfriend does not seem so preposterous, given that there are girls who want to be “bad” and guys who chase after this type. It might sound ridiculous, but Theory of a Deadman and the rest all follow the clearly defined rules formed in the 1960s by
The Beatles,
The Who,
The Kinks, and others. The only difference between the masters and the students is the complete lack of any innovation. So it is probably wrong to call the poor Canadians one of the worst bands of all time. They are just middle-of-the-road. Which might be even worse, actually.
Summing up, it is safe to say that albums like
Scars & Souvenirs have a right to exist. Obviously, they are primarily aimed at unsophisticated listeners or those who only start on their path to real music. And indeed, it does not possess any originality or freshness, but what it has can hit the spot. Such pop (hard) rock does not really commit to anything.
P.S. Nevertheless, Theory of a Deadman has one trait that allows them to stand out a little bit. These guys, unlike their contemporaries, know how to laugh, even at themselves. Among the swarm of songs full of angst and despair, some humor and tongue in cheek really help to dilute such gloomy sauce.
