TREE
"Our
Day Will Come" (Wonderdrug Records; 1999)
Reviewed by Brian Connelly
If a Tree falls in the forest and no one is there to see it, does it make a
sound? After hearing this album, I kind of wish it didn't. Tree takes the most consistently annoying aspects of the
wanna-be core scene today and throws them all into a mass of throbbing and monotonous stew.
They take the hammer-you-over-the-head message of Earth Crisis, the teeny-bopping
screaming vocal sound of Powerman 5000 (a former Wonderdrug band) and the sonic stubble of Stick.
Imitation lyrics (that stoop so low as to make up the word "gladness" just to rhyme with madness)
drone on about self-empowerment, capitalism, environmentalism etc. etc. Sheesh, just leave
it up to hardcore masters who know what they're doing, please, like Snapcase or Agnostic Front. Subject
matter ranges from the mundane to the ridiculous ("vee vie vicky vie vee vie voo
vum?" That's deep, man) to the utterly sacrilegious: "Burning
Seed" is a blatant pilfering of Alice in Chains' "Rooster," minus the personal touch. The motto here is while
you're at it, might as well tarnish the best (i.e. a tactless and useless nod to Dylan’s
"Blowin' in the Wind" in said song).
A few strong points pop their dusty noggins out on occasion, however. River's vocals sound like
Powerman 5000 at worst, but more like Initial Record’s Harvest at best on songs such as
"Real" or "Ammunition," which also showcases River’s vocal diversity. He exudes soulful
Morrissey-meets-Scott Weiland vocals on aforementioned song's chorus.
"Pesticide" exhibits a powerfully catchy hook, which could really come across as meaningful if the
lyrics weren’t so trite.
River should be careful when he states that
"punk's dead." After all, most of the band’s appeal and power are derived from that late
80's punk/hardcore sound. They don't even have the creative ingenuity to try and meld that
punk sound with new wave hardcore or metal (which holds punk rock as its godfather anyhow). Songs like
"V.O.C." and "Ammunition" make Tree's roots painfully obvious.
Finally, please skip over the final track, which should be called something more like Stupid Silly
Jack-off Mix. It's just the whole album all over again without the breaks in between. Feel free to notify
me if you can figure out the purpose behind this. (Editor's note: According to a
Rough Edge Reader, this track was designed so that a Tree fan could play the
entire album for the price of one song on any jukebox).
Visit the Tree Website: http://www.treemusic.com
or visit the Wonderdrug Website: http://www.wonderdrugrecords.com.
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 © 2001 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights
reserved.
Revised:
12 Aug 2024 14:33:59 -0400.
