RISE

Rise is actually two albums in one, and is presented with an "album flip" to give kind of the feeling of having two sides (even though in this case, each side is 40 minutes so far beyond what a vinyl could contain, so let's pretend this is a tape).

There is a fair amount of enjoyable music on this album but it is uneven. Resistor is clearly at their best when they are rocking out, as on the opening track and Spaceghetti, which are in my minds the best tracks on side 1. Spaceghetti in particular I like, for I find Steve's vocals weak (sorry Steve!) and it's an instrumental track, with lots of energy and some great violin work. The opener is also great, and in this case Steves vocals work great - I'm gonna throw it out there and say I'm honestly not sure why they don't work for me most of the time! In the opening track, Steve's voice rocks along with the music and it sounds great!

Perhaps the problem with the vocals is the same as one I would point out with the music - the band just isn't as strong at lighter moments, at least to my ears. I am totally grooving along with them when they are rocking out, when the guitars wail and the violins roar and the drums kick, but when they slow down, I just kind of lose interest until the next time they rock out.

The second "side" is a 40-long minute piece called "The Land of No Groove", and it is a tongue- in-cheek adventure starring the band members and their quest first to escape from, and then to improve the quality of, the music played on the radio. It is hilarious, my favorite part being "Sea Monster Battle", and the band is irreverent enough that I think even if you are a fan of music played on the radio you can't really get too offended by it. It pretty much has the same weaknesses and strengths as the first side, just with some additional comedy to lighten things up.

Unfortunately, although I do find this album enjoyable and amusing, it hasn't held up on multiple spins, and is rather uneven. Definitely worth a few listens though.