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Aiden

Disguises

Written by: TL on 04/04/2011 22:26:01

I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry, when confronted with the fact that a band like Aiden can be releasing a fifth LP, and even do so packaging the thing in a production that sounds noticeably more slick than the utterly gutter-type sound of the band's humble beginnings. Over the course of their career, Aiden have been at best a super-cheesy guilty-pleasure (see: "Nightmare Anatomy"), and mostly just a ready example of blatant musical rubbish (see: everything since then).

When Aiden have had some resemblance of merit, they have played fast, sloppy and over-the-top emo/goth-punk. As with many other bad punk bands, speed and energy go the longest towards making up for poor technical ability and lacking class and creativity. On "Disguises", Aiden seemingly forget about this, as their songs - although technically still up-beat - are all weighed down with the gloomiest, most rumbling sounds the band has been able to think of. This makes the soundscape sound overly inflated and serious, which ends up comical when one discovers that yes, guitarist Angel Ibarra still only writes derivative and run-of-the-mill goth punk riffs, and yes, frontman Wil Francis still has noticeable difficulties controlling his graveyard-type voice.

Essentially, it doesn't really make much of a difference then, how many eerie samples and horror-themed lyrics are used in this over-ambitious attempt by Wil Francis, at giving God and his followers the finger. Him and his band-members still come of as clowns to all but the angstiest teenagers of suburbia, and the fact that business people keep booking and signing them, is nothing but a depressing reminder of how people of under-developed taste have too much financial influence in the music business.

Overall, what you really need to know about the new Aiden album, is condensed in the following two facts: A) the best original song on it, is the one on which Wil Francis eventually hands over vocal duties to the somewhat more capable lead singer of Girl On Fire, and B) the best song overall is a cover of Alkaline Trio's classic "Radio", even if Aiden's rendition is utterly awful compared to the original.

Download: ReEvolver
For The Fans Of: HIM, I Am Ghost, Black Veil Brides
Listen: myspace.com/aiden

Release Date 29.03.2011
Victory Records