IGNARUS

Tired of blast beats, growled vocals, and metalcore? The self-titled debut from IGNARUS is probably an album you'll want to check out. The genre is called hard rock and while not exactly earth-shattering, the tunes hit hard and the songwriting is more than adequate.

The first thing you'll notice is how much vocalist/guitarist Kevin Showmaker sounds like Layne Staley (ALICE IN CHAINS). Rather than coming off as cheap imitation, the style suits the music. Showmaker seems to wear the influence with the utmost respect for the deceased front man. Take out the vocals and the odd instrumental section though, and the approach is closer to what one might hear on an album by BLACK LABEL SOCIETY (without the monster shredding and dark tones). That said, "Shattered Life" does have a certain "Jar of Flies" quality to it on the verses, but ends up sounding more like an acoustic-based BON JOVI tune on the chorus, which is honestly not meant to be a slam. Songs like "Know it All", "On to Something", and "Shadow of Pain" are quite catchy. The band actually sounds more comfortable when just letting go and rocking out (with only hints of the AIC influence),such as on "Stranger's Eyes". Although blandness begins to creep in at times and a familiar feeling of "I've heard this before" comes into play throughout, most fans of modern hard rock should enjoy the disc Predictable as it may be, I can't find much fault with it. The boys are good at what they do. This is probably not an album that I'd reach out and grab for future entertainment purposes, but it's a decent first effort nonetheless.