REVIEW: Days of the New, Days of the New II (Outpost Recordings)
- Linda Scott
With their eponymous first album, the Days of the New band jumped into the world of platinum rock success. The young quartet, headed by the intense Travis Meeks, seemed to have it made with appearances on Letterman, opening for Aerosmith and the mighty Metallica. They sounded like Alice in Chains, with Meeks' voice a young echo of Eddie Vedder. The acknowledged super-talent, Meeks was feeling impulses to fly beyond where he could go with this band.
After some firings and reconciliations, one day the band dismissal took effect for good. Three original members were chucked out, and Meeks declared that he would keep the band name filling slots with possibly short-term musicians. He declared himself to be Days of the New (just as Axl Rose did to Guns N' Roses) and produced Days of the New II as evidence that the times and Meeks had changed for good.
This album is more a concept album to be listened to and judged more as a unit than as individual tracks. Meeks wrote all but one of the songs himself and surrounds his vocals with an orchestral sound. Guitars are still here, but cellos and violins underlie them, and oboes and brass accent bass and melody. The ex-rocker says he has moved closer to where he is going. More depth within arrangements and a wide range of melodies from all kinds of instruments is where Days of the New is going. With this vision on the one hand and the rock band idea on the other, is it any wonder this band split apart?
New band members have been imported, but ultimately Days of the New's success or failure belongs to Travis Meeks. Like Jim Morrison, Meeks is becoming more of a visionary. For example, Days of the New II opens with the sound of horses hooves charging. There's a scream, and a voice says, "Pain is my pill." The beginning leads through mystical, sometimes interesting sections like this. The musical orchestration is often delightful, sometimes overblown. The listener hears fiddle solos, guitars, loops, American Indian chants and other mixtures that are strange to the ear. This is an album to be listened to carefully, with no interruptions.
But this is not to say that all of it is worth that attention. Sometimes the lyrics cause some eyerolling or laughing, but it's all worth a listen. This little album is an odd one in today's rock world. Back in the days of Led Zep and Pink Floyd and Morrison, Meeks would have fit into that scene very well. It remains to be seen if today's listeners want to be so involved in the lyrics and music. Travis Meeks has something else in mind for his next album as he evolves toward the musical state he wants to live in. Days of the New II, if nothing else, is the statement of a talented musician in transit.
