REVIEW: Seven Mary Three, Rock Crown (Atlantic)
- Scott Slonaker
One thing one certainly might not expect upon pressing play with the sophomore disc from Florida's Seven Mary Three in the CD player is an immediate Beatles reference. "Mean Mr. Mustard says he's bored," goes the opening line to "Lucky". 7M3's debut album, 1995's platinum American Standard, owed more to the crunching arena-rock of Live and early Pearl Jam, with singer Jason Pollock's nuanced growl distinctly recalling Metallica's James Hetfield. The band also bears the dubious distinction of being one of the last "grunge" bands to hit big. This, naturally, targeted them for a large amount of the backlash that emerged from grunge's death throes.
Rock Crown does manage to diversify the quickly-monotonous two-pitch arsenal of its predecessor (loud riffers/overwrought ballads) somewhat, but Seven Mary Three still comes off as largely the same band trying too hard escape a now-undesirable classification. In fact, they seem frightened of the riffy thudding that made them a teenage favorite; only a handful of the fifteen tracks really shake the speakers. Nevertheless, some of the band's attempts to branch out do connect. "Needle Can't Burn (What the Needle Can't Find)" chugs along fluidly in a Hootie-in- fast-mode groove; it's tuneful enough to hum. "People Like New" is a piano-based ballad that actually succeeds surprisingly well (before being tarnished by gratuitous guitar wanking at the end). "Make Up Your Mind" is another hushed tune that clicks due to Pollock's initial vocal restraint (the lack of such being a major problem with the slower numbers on American Standard). "What Angry Blue?" throws in some dobro and "na-na-na" backing vocals, cleverly copping Stone Temple Pilots' "Big Empty" in the process. And the aforementioned "Lucky", despite the poorly disguised lyrical inspiration, does possess an appealing acoustic hook.
Unfortunately, for every new ingredient that works, two don't. "Houdini's Angels" fails to build its lush orchestral backing into anything tangible. "Player Piano" is a clumsy stab at jazz. The spare "Times Like These" and "I Could Be Wrong" float by without much impression at all. "Honey of Generation", one of the few songs that moves at faster than mid-tempo speed, buries itself beneath completely toneless and overwrought vocal histrionics by Pollock and dopey lyrics ("It's the honey of generation/Makes you forget/Where you came from"). Tom Morris' production tries to create some live-in-the-studio ambience, especially on the multitude of acoustic songs, but the sounds that emerge often end up sounding canned and forced. And with so little going on musically within the frequently-spare arrangements, too much ends up depending on Pollock's cryptic and cliched lyrics (although his pacing and phrasing are improving somewhat).
The problem with Rock Crown is not the fact that Seven Mary Three are trying to do different things; in fact, I applaud any band's efforts to diversify musically. It's just that 7M3's new direction is going to completely alienate their younger audience that picked up on the band's pit-ready, Metalliskynyrdly debut. How many of those fans are going to be happy with a record that has exactly three tracks (and really only one good one, the title track) that might be able to stir those same feelings? (The middle third of the album, in fact, consists entirely of ballads.) Seven Mary Three may eventually turn into a band that's comfortable with both of its faces, but for now, it seems as though they have sacrificed their meal tickets for spotty experimentation. A handful of jewels do point towards a light at the end of the tunnel for Seven Mary Three, but this Rock Crown is largely a dubious honor.
