Above The Noise [PA] - Revolution Smile (The) > Reviews > Smile! The Revolution is here!

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Outstanding
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Returns rock to what rock should be
Disadvantages:	It has to finish eventually

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Once, there was a band called "Far", who had a member called Jonah. Everyone loved Jonah and he has gone on to create various bands since. He's been a great guy for the rock scene around the world and its possible to think that the Deftones wouldn't be the band they are today if it hadn't be for him and "Far"

But in the background, there was also a guy named Shaun, who went on to create a band called "The Revolution Smile" and did for rock music what needed to be done. Made it awesome!

This album clocks in at 51:18, making it a long one for a rock album. I mean its not an hour long Tool epic but its not exact the usual 38/41 minute stint we're used to

TRACKS (13)

BONETHROWER (3:27)

So the album starts us out in a heavilly fuzzed up bass riff that is joined with a matching, equally as fuzzy guitar riff. The vocals start off in an odd way. Its not screaming, its not normal singing. Its like Cobain with more intensity. This song is king of like a non-grunge Bush. Shaun Lopez shows his skill as a vocalist and shows it well. He overplays it against a simple track which has all the skill of queens of the stone age slowed down. Like most of the songs on this album, its pure rock. The break down makes you swing and bounce your head in the way a drummer does when playing this track. A nice soft part with a single guitar kicks in with lopez's vocals before kicking back into to the over-fuzz of the track. Its amazing, it starts the album with great skill and shows that this band are no joke. Even with simple instrumental work its brilliant

PAYDAY (3:59)

The vocals take a step back and become more simple and sung without the powerful intensity. This song smacks of a pop rock. However thats not a bad thing. Infact this song is immense. The bass and drums take a back seat to the vocals and guitar work, which is not suprising since Lopez is a guitarist at heart and the vocalist for this band. This song is catchy and the lyrics say what we've all been thinking whilst sat at our desks 9-5. A mix between everclear and foo fighters. Not heavy enough to be the Foo's and not poppy enough for Everclear, its a great mix. I love Payday, but there are other tracks I love more...

THE GIFT (3:49)

...and Gift is one of them. A superb riff that could have been writen in the mid 90's (the best era of rock) starts us off as a heavy drum bass brings us into Lopez's vocals. This is where he mix's his pop rock style vocals with the intesity of his gravelly voice. Power chords are found throughout but do not take away from it as a riff breaks them up nicely. With a bit of solo and a lot of bass this song chugs along at a gorgeously slow rate. This is how rock should be played. Its not too heavy to put you off. Its got the right level of emotion in it. Oh I love it, I love it in so many ways. A real music lovers tune as it just grabs you and throws you into a mix of air drumming and mic stand humping goodnes. You are on stage, you are the rock god, they're all chanting for you. This is how this song should and will make you feel.

ALIEN (2:58)

Its all tipped up a notch as things get a little heavier and a lot more like the foo fighters but still keeping the speed down to a respectable level. Lopez really puts himself forward for one of the best vocalists ever in this one. This track would fill a stadium and more. The guitar work is simple again but at not detriment to the track. Some qualities to the vocals are very much like Lit. Its just a good track. Powerfull with a good solo in the middle to break things up nicely for you. Bass goes missing a tad but with the heaviness of the guitars its not that big a deal.

THE RIDE OF LOS ANGELES (3:09)

Becoming incredibly Feeder like (with a bit more balls) for this one. Its not as stand out as the other tracks. There is one saving grace to it though.....the chorus! Its eye bleeding intense. If you don't know what I mean. Try throwing as much into the singing as is done in this chorus and you'll soon find your eyes bleeding a tad from over exertion. Its not very different from whats out there but it builds on itself to become better and better until you've forgotten you've heard other bands do tracks like this and you're jumping like crazy, singing like crazy and just wishing you could be friends with this band.

GUN (3:46)

Ambience fills my ears as this track starts. If you've heard of Team Sleep, they stole their entire act from this song. This song could easily be a Team Sleep song, it just came first. The song floats through the air like a loud whisper. Programmed drums give it a semi-dance feel to it but gorgeous guitar work, synth and very understated piano give this track a feeling that can only be described as beautiful. As I said, Team Sleep have taken this song and made a band out of it, so if you like Team Sleep, you'll love this song.

FUTURE OF AN END (5:47)

I am sorry. I'm not going to deny it anymore. I tried to put on the hard image. This song is so good it makes me weep. Not because its a sad song but because rock has never been this good before. Well it might have been but this track is so good I've forgotten about anything written before it or after. Its a slow one, its not that heavy. Its just so powerful. It has noises in all the right places. It has guitar hooks in just the right places. The drums work so well. It tries to dissapoint me in the middle but then just picks up again. When reviewing all my albums, I always wear headphones but this one got transfered to speakers just to fill my flat will its gorgeous sounds. I always over genrelise things. This is rock, just rock! Sit down, listen to it. Oh and at the end it starts to build on itself, throwing into a power chord solo with more fuzz than is allowed! The end is better than the start which is stronger than the middle which is better than it all! Words cannot describe.

INDIANA FEELING (2:47)

Things speed up again into a right little goer. Its not overly special but once again has a catchy chorus. The guitar work sticks to a familiar pathway which again can be brought into line with the foo fighters or feeder quite easily. This song has more speed than the rest of the album but throws nothing special into the mix. Listen to it by all means. Tap your feet like crazy (I just realised I was) but it all feels a little bay area rock for me.

CADILLAC ASS (3:46)

There is the bass I've been waiting for this entire album. For those of you who read my reviews, you'll know I love bass. The start of this track does not dissapoint with bass and simple drumming being matched up along with powerfull vocals being scratched out of Shaun throat in (again) a similar style to Cobain just with twist. Unfortunately this song goes no where. The bass line stays the same throughout. The vocals only change for a slight break in the middle of the track and it just doesn't pick up into the quality of the other tracks. Bass heavy but not the greatest.

LOOKING DOWN THE BARREL (3:04)

Ok, now I've mentioned the Foo's a lot througout this review. This song could easily be one of theirs. The vocals are the same. The guitar work is the same. The drumming is the same. I like the song. It runs a lot to a formula. The simple verse chorus, verse chorus, break, chorus works, its always worked on rock albums but I just want something a little different and higher standard from a band that have proved over the last half an hour or so that they can do it.

READY FOR THE WORLD (2:56)

This is where Lopez get back to his roots. So many aspects of Far (if a little heavier) can be heard in this one. Downtuned guitars take over from bass again as lots of drums rattle through your head. Lyrics don't matter as the power of his voice is just so overwhelming its hard not to love it. If Far and Feeder had a child, it would be this song but with more power. The sound is lit up through your ears as you struggle to find a place to hide from the sheer size of it. His voice acts as another instrument to the sheer epicness of this tune. Its not in the league of some others but it would work as a school yard bully. Everything about this one is big. Rock has never sounded so huge.

ORANGE (7:09)

The longest track on the album and probably sponsored by "Captain Fuzz's Effects Pedal" (I made that up, thats not a brand). Everything about this song is fuzzed around with. If I didnt know better I'd say even the drums are run through a fuzz pedal. It grinds along in a glorious maner. With Lopez's vocals always the main attraction of this carnival of sound. It flies between softly sung words and building up to being pant wettingly good power vocals in lines you didn't think could contain the both. I hate so many songs that change time sig and style randomly in themselves but this track manages to do it so non-randomly that its worth standing back and being in awe. It flows so well together that even the repetativness of the guitar work doesn't bother me. I want Lopez's voice, I want it now. Buy me it for xmas please.

I WISH I (4:34)

Acoustic guitar brings us into the final track of the album and i feel a sadness its almost over. Keyboard synth noise rolls over the acousticness and fades away to release the vocals. Softly sung and having the Grant Nicholas (Feeder) touch to it but with an extra level of depth, this song could have been on Feeders polythene album easily and would have probably outshined everything else on it. At 1:43, it picks up and introduces bass and drums but not enough to overpower the song. It continues in a lighter burning, arm swingingly great rock tune. Some great melodies are added in to give the vocal aspect something that hasn't been found on the rest of the album. I put my forehead in my hand, I pull back my hair, I tilt my head to the side and I sing this song. It could have been written by any of us in our hearts. We are all the music video for it. This song is "human". It lives whilst its on and dies when its finished. This is the song that should be playing in your head as you look into nothingness and sigh with your eyes.

VERDICT

You know what? I kind of like this album. This album has done to plain rock what should have been done a long time. Made it good again.

I havent listened to a rock album and really wanted it to never stop, keep going for ever, be the soundtrack to my every waking minute, since....well....ever. Colour and the Shape by the Foo's was good, Polythene by Feeder was all fine and well but when when all said and done, they're not The Revolution Smile.

They'll never be as big as either of the two bands just mentioned. I'll have people tell me I'm crazy for thinking that. But I just don't care, I'm right, I'm right in so many ways. If Shaun Lopez had been in Nirvana and not Far, then The Revolution Smile would be one of the biggest and best supported bands in the world.

There are no words, no words (apart from the ones I've just typed) to describe how amazingly great this album is. I'm so glad I could review it for you, just so I could listen to it solidly whilst doing nothing else. It pains me to know I will never be this talented but it warms my soul to know I've heard this album.