Review Summary: Accomplishes little more than proving that Northern Michigan has nothing to offer the metal world thus far.
Timmy's In The Well (shortened to "TITW" by fans) is a metalcore/deathcore band from Traverse City, Michigan. The band formed in the spring of 2008, and after gaining a positive local reputation, recorded their debut EP, "Bears!" It is to be noted, that because I am a close friend of the band's members, and an active member in the Northern Michigan scene, that some of this review may be padded. However, because I have a strong distaste for breakdown bands, it is not a biased review, it is just nicer.
To give a rundown on the Northern Michigan music scene is to tell someone that after years of cancer remission, the disease is back in full force. It seems the entire metal community is waiting for another "outbreak" of good music from a new region of the country, and regrettably, Northern Michigan is not that region. There are legions of bands from the scene that all sound more or less identical. Timmy's In The Well is the epitome of this. The music is a combination of half time and quarter time breakdowns, harmonized melodic death metal riffs, and some moments of pseudo-technical riffing. Envision this, and you have all Timmy's In the Well is.
The album opens with "Dino Hunting With Dr. Grant," which starts with a fade into a chugging riff. The riffs delivered by guitarist Evan Urchik are both uninspiring and lazy. Some riffs come dangerously close to plagiarism, especially the opening riffs to "The World Watched In Awe" and "To Observe A Murder." The breakdowns consist of either dangerously slow open chugging, or chromatic runs that have been played thousands of times before. Towards the end of the album the band tries to experiment with indie-rock inspired riffs, but falls flat on their faces as they dive into another breakdown.
Vocally, the album is hit and miss. Tony Pasquino attempts to deliver a wide pallet of vocals, from death metal growls to poppy singing. Some of these results are terrible, some are good. Tony's deep growling is weak, and you can hear his voice cracking in many spots. However, his high screams are raw and unbridled, and his clean vocals are pleasant to the ear. However, his planning and execution is questionable. The attempted middle-eastern vocal melody in "Dino Hunting With Dr. Grant" is laughable. Lyrically, Tony is undeveloped and cliche. Lyrics like "You were my best murder scene" and "Let me see you hit someone" provide good laughs for the listener, but are unmoving and tired.
The weakest section of Timmy's In The Well is undoubtedly the rhythm. Drummer Logan Urchik plays bland drum beats that serve only to keep time for the guitars and vocals. The drumming isn't outstandingly metal, or brutal in its delivery. Never does Logan perform quit blast beats or double bass. However, the restrictive 4/4 timing limits Logan's ability to experiment, and therefore all of his beats sound the same. The beats are reminiscent of the kind one learns when they first start drumming. The bass player for the band is actually very talented, but he is restrained to playing boring root notes due to the poor overall song writing.
At the end of the day, Timmy's In The Well accomplishes little more than providing recordings of their live music. While the band does perform at all out intensity live, the music bores anyone interested in more than hardcore dancing. The unoriginal riffs and copious breakdowns put a serious halt on any vocal or rhythm section development that may be present.
