Published on May 17, 1999
I’m not completely sure that the world is ready for
retro-alternative rock, but Los Angeles-based Speak No Evil is
poised to strike as the leader of this new phase of musical
history.
With a sound that combines the work of Alice In Chains and
Soundgarden (albeit without the rhythmic challenges of the latter),
Speak No Evil’s self-titled debut album has the grooves down, but
needs to inject a little more originality in the mix if they’re
going to stand out in the long run.
The band – vocalist Curtis Skelton, guitarists Lisardo Rios and
Danny Gill, bassist Greg Weiss and drummer Chris Frazier – are a
cohesive musical unit, and they do try to push the envelope in
their own unique way by introducing rhythms and sounds that one
wouldn’t normally expect from this genre. “Small Words” illustrates
this style, by combining an Eastern rhythm with a hard-rock nervous
system.
For the most part,
Speak No Evil is a decent enough album, and the first half
of the disc is enough to suggest a strong future for the band.
Tracks like “Lock You In”, “Stand Low” and “Hold Your Breath” are
tracks that are sure to win them many fans. Skelton is a powerful
vocalist, and he does help to propel many of these tracks into
realms previously unknown.
But what Speak No Evil needs to do is to figure out a way to
carry that enthusiasm throughout an entire album; by the second
half of the disc, things start sounding a little old. While tracks
like “All Is Well” and “Get Off” are not terrible by any means,
they do lack a sense of originality. This is something that will be
gained only be experience, so I’m willing to give the band the
benefit of the doubt.
I’m also willing to guess that the music featured on
Speak No Evil takes on a whole new dimension in the live
show; I’ve seen band after band deliver the goods onstage but have
trouble carrying that momentum into the studio.
Speak No Evil still is a band that deserves to be watched, and
Speak No Evil is an album that should attract a fair amount
of attention. But I’m more interested in seeing what this band is
capable of in the long run.