CRONIC
Reviewed by Christopher J. Kelter
After four spins of Cronic's "Noi" I really didn't know what to make of it. "Noi" is largely devoid of any sense of melody and seems to hinge all of its riffs on varying degrees of arrhythmic patterns. Consequently, to my ears, "Noi" was a largely unlistenable affair.
Many of the riffs on this eight song disc work really well, but only as riffs. And they are slapped together without much regard for the entire song. Much of the 'lead guitar' is haphazardly thrown on top of the riffs which only leads to more. As such, the songs are disjointed and required too much effort to get through.
The lyrics, however, are actually pretty good – in an extremely abstract kind of way. The words conveyed emotional turmoil, fear, desperation, and the like. I really got a sense of the artist's point of view. However, the vocals are fairly atonal. Just when I'd get a hold of the lyrical meaning the vocals would drag the whole thing down.
I'll just file this one under the wide cover of unique vision and artistic freedom. Those of you who like things from way out of left field then Cronic's "Noi" is just what you might be looking for.
"Noi" was produced by Cronic.
Cronic is Ingrid Baumgart on vocals and rhythm guitar; Craig Davis on all other instruments.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright © 2004 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised: 14 Oct 2024 14:01:56 -0400.
