Sometimes an album comes along that makes me stop and go “WHOA!!! What was that?!?!?!?” Upon my first listen to Sharma’s latest
effort Chaosmopolitan, I had just such a moment. The kind of moment that makes you question
yourself: Was that as amazing as I think it was??? Truth be told, I listened to the promo on
their Bandcamp page, but was with family over the holidays at the time and only
listened to several songs before turning it off so as not be the
brother/son/uncle in the corner being antisocial. Later, much to my dismay, when I went back to
continue listening to it I discovered that my free promo was no longer
accessible, so I pulled it up and streamed it on YouTube, then promptly went
back to the Bandcamp page and bought it.
I paid for it in Kroner. I’ve
never paid for anything in Kroner. I’m
actually surprised I remembered that the currency of Norway is Kroner! Luckily, the interwebs sites like Bandcamp
are equipped to tell ignorant ‘Mericans like me how much the cost of an album in
Kroner is in U.S. dollars. Getting it
was the easy part though; the challenge would be where to start writing about
an album with such a vast scope of styles and influences.
Anyways, I digress…”Welcome To The Show” goes off like a bomb to the
ears with a thrash metal guitar riff and thunderous drums behind an angry
melodic vocal attack not unlike early Chris Cornell. “The Cryptid” displays elements of Rage
Against The Machine/Audioslave style staccato guitar and bass riffs with a feel
reminiscent of the mighty Zeppelin’s “Kashmir.” “Somebody (Call An Ambulance)” continues
with a steady driving rhythm with more Audioslave-era Cornellian (I did it
again, I made up another word…) vocal performance. There is a subtle psychedelic feel underlying
many of the songs with trippy sound effects, but the riffs are always massive
and in the forefront. “Our Sin When
Gear” features vocals that are more aggressive, like a grittier Steven Tyler
with anger management issues. “Where The
Buffalos Roam” takes a definitive left turn at Albuquerque, with a very Queens
Of The Stone Age chugging riff with a distinct desert rock feel that would feel
right at home next to Josh Homme & Co.’s “No One Knows.” Title track “Chaosmopolitan” conjures
up thoughts of a heavier, more fuzzed out Velvet Revolver or Audioslave, before
a lead break that’s straight out of the thrash metal double-time solo breakdown
handbook. “Daddy’s Porcelain Doll” could
have been ripped from a mid 90’s Stone
Temple Pilots or
Soundgarden album, while “Trancylvania” features spacey vocals over bass guitar
before erupting into wall-of-sound choruses leaden with pounding drums and
super-distorted rhythm guitars with Morello-esque lead melodies woven
throughout. “Stupid Is As Stupid Does”
is a furious thrashfest with vocals that wouldn’t be out of place on any
self-respecting Death Angel album. “Sea
Of Excuses” once again has a very Audioslave feel, while “Skulls On The Floor”
has a stoner-rock vibe with staccato guitar riffs punctuated by funky bass
riffs, more angry Steven Tyler vocals and a brilliant solo break. “Hypercritical” begins with one of the
greatest guitar melodies on the album, which thankfully is repeated over each
chorus, but the beautiful mellower verses are what really set this one apart
and it is easily one of the highlights of the album. “Stretched Like A Toy” has what could be
described as something like a dance beat with a techno-ish synth riff with
guitars underneath before the guitars break out over the choruses, leading into
a solo break that sounds like a 90125-era Trevor Rabin/Yes harmonized guitar
solo on steroids. “The Brink Of Strange”
blends elements of Kashmir-feel Zeppelin blended with QOTSA style vocals and
guitars, then boils down into a sludgy low-end breakdown with psychedelic
noises in the background. Finisher “The
Anchor” has an Angus Young flavored lead melody opening the song, then turns
into a mid-tempo stomp, then takes a left turn into a doom-metal lead guitar
break with killer NWOBHM inspired riffs, then takes yet another left turn into
a guttural vocal section right out of the death metal handbook of heavy that
brings this leviathan of an album to an end.
My only very minor complaints would be that the production is a bit
rough around the edges, and that the album is only available via digital
download, so I couldn’t add it to my vinyl or cd libraries, but the music is
the important thing, I suppose my collector-nerd compulsion will have to be
sated elsewhere. Surely (insert
“Airplane” joke here…”don’t call me Shirley”), Chaosmopolitan is a
phenomenon to be experienced as much as listened to, as many times as I used
comparisons to bands from the Cornell-isphere (another new one haha!) QOTSA and
others, they don’t truly do this album justice, they’re just the closest ways I
could come up with to describe it. The
album has that “familiar” feel without being a clone of anything else in any
way. Perhaps that’s what makes it feel so
immediately accessible? I don’t know,
all I can say is GO LISTEN TO THE ALBUM.
I did. Boy, am I glad I did.
-Riffcaster
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