Who would be the hardest band to Google, eh? Think about that for a moment. Here's your answer:
The ghost you gave to me --- 3 --- 2011 (Metal Blade)
Yep. Try googling a band called 3, and see how far you get. Possibly not the cleverest marketing decision made by a band --- I had to input the name of the album on Wiki to get to the band --- but certainly innovative, challenging and indicative of a band prepared to take risks. This, as it turns out, is their sixth album, and yes, it's another one of those I bought on impulse. Basically, I saw an ad for their album in a mag and decided I liked the look of it. After a quick read of a review I knew I wasn't veering too far off my usual path in checking their music out, but let's see
exactly how far they pull me off my normal route. With interest and a little unease, I note their Wiki entry says they have tried every genre from hip-hop to progressive funk and from metal to punk and rockabilly on their albums, leading them to describe themselves as a “hybrid” band. You have to be interested. This sounds like the sort of thing Jackhammer would be into, were circumstances different at the moment. In his honour, as it were, let's check it out and see if it measures up.
It starts very proggy with a nice little acoustic guitar track, very short, barely over one minute, with nice soft vocals from I guess Joey Eppard, as he's shown as the only vocalist on the album, but it certainly sounds female. “Sirenum scopuli” runs directly into the first full track, “React”, retaining its basic melody but filling the song out a little more with electric guitars and drums. Strangely enough for a so-called progressive band, or at least one with progressive leanings, 3 don't appear to employ any keyboard player, content to make all their sounds on guitar, and if that's the case then Eppard and Billy Riker deserve some major plaudits, as they definitely make their guitars sound like much more than just the instruments they are.
“React” is a good rocker, with some nice passages and some very decent vocals from Eppard, quite commercial in its way, and you could without question hear parts where keys would have been very welcome, yet the song doesn't seem to suffer from the lack of them, which is a hard trick to pull off. There's a great hook to the song, marking it for radio airplay should anyone bother to take notice, which hopefully they will. “Sparrow” is a much heavier song, bringing to mind images of Deep Purple in its hard guitar opening riffs, nice bass work from Daniel Grimsland laying a decent foundation to the song, which then veers off into kind of Led Zep territory, circa “Zep II”.
There are no backing vocals credited, but they are there, even if it's just Eppard multi-tracking his own voice, and they're good. There's a hook in this song too, but not as insistent or as instant as in the previous --- kind of wanders around a bit like someone who's had a few too many trying to find his way home in the dark, then “High times” reminds me of the Lostprophets, with maybe a dash of Snow Patrol, uptempo but much less heavy than “Sparrow”. Next up, “Numbers” comes in on a rolling drumbeat, then jangly guitar and there's a certain edge of funk mixed with hard rock on this, decent guitar solo that doesn't go over the top but makes its point. Towards the end though it does become little more than a vehicle for Eppard and Riker to show off their guitar skills, which are, it has to be said, admirable.
One of the longer songs on the album, “One with the sun” is introduced on almost pastoral acoustic guitar, a kind of post-Beatles vibe to the track, probably the closest on the album so far to out-and-out prog rock, or at least, what I consider prog rock. Makes me think of It Bites, actually. Quite similar. Yeah, the more I listen to it the more I hear It Bites in there. I like this one, best so far. Joey Eppard has a voice that's very easy on the ear: he doesn't seem to shout or scream, but you can hear him clearly on every track, and his voice has a great warmth to it. All too soon, “One with the sun” is over, and we're into the title track.
A heavier sound on this, almost a stripped-down sound, sharp guitar and pounding drums but I don't really hear the actual melody until about a minute into the song when the chorus kicks in. It's certainly a song of two halves, as it were: the verses have their own separate sound while the chorus is much more melodious and together I feel. “Afterglow” has a sort of Britpop feel to it, nice chunky guitars and quite commercial --- could see this as maybe a single being released from the album. There's something of a return to the prog-rock sensibilities of “One with the sun” then for “It's alive”, kind of early Yes in its makeup, and those guitars without doubt sound like keyboards, but I'll take their word that they aren't using keys. Heavy sound on the chorus, which seems to be something of a signature with 3: one sound on the verse, another almost completely different on the chorus. Certainly keeps it interesting, but are these guys being
too varied? I'm beginning to think so.
“Only child”, the longest track on the album at just over seven minutes, slows things down for I guess what you would accept as being a ballad, though it kind of goes along at a mid-pace, and again I could swear there are keyboards in there! It's got a sort of Spanish rhythm to it: you could almost imagine some girl in a flame-red dress dancing the flamenco to this. Then about halfway in the guitars get heavier, then lighter but faster, more technical, and the song kind of goes into a faster rhythm, picking up speed and getting more intense as it goes on. What sounds like violins or cellos at the end adds a nice extra dimension to the song.
An acoustic ballad closes the album, and “The barrier” is about the most straightforward of their songs I've heard now. It's very relaxing, and I am sure I can hear piano in the background but again none is credited. Nice little guitar solo in the song, very effective and also what sounds like accordion, but I'm sure it isn't.
I really don't know what to make of this album. My initial impression is that 3 are trying too hard to be all things to all men, and that seldom if ever works out well. Just when you think you've got a handle on their style, they change it --- often within the same song --- and it can be very unsettling and jarring. If all their music was like “The barrier”, “One for the sun” and “React”, I think I would be quite fond of and impressed with this album, but as it is it's just confusing me, jumping from style to style, genre to genre, and I'm left with a feeling of not knowing where I am, or what to think.
So all I can suggest is that you have a listen to it and decide if you like it or not. I can't recommend it, but in fairness I can't not recommend it either.
TRACKLISTING
1. Sirenum scopuli
2. React
3. Sparrow
4. High times
5. Numbers
6. One with the sun
7. The ghost you gave to me
8. Pretty
9. Afterglow
10. It's alive
11. Only child
12. The barrier