BEDLIGHT FOR BLUE EYES

BEDLIGHT FOR BLUE EYES' "The Dawn" is not a metal or hardcore album. It's a rock album with pop songwriting and sappy lyrics. The band has more in common with DEL AMITRI than ATREYU. If that's not your thing, then stop reading now.

I can appreciate this heartfelt radio-friendly rock as much as the next guy, and do bust out a guilty pleasure or two on occasion. The problem with "The Dawn" is that for all Christian's (no last name given) soulful singing and the oodles of vocal harmonies (all the members have vocal credit),the songs rarely reach climax. It's not that the performances are sub-par or the arrangements are haphazardly thrown together (not by a long shot). In fact, there are more than enough compelling riffs and sweet melodic leads to satisfy most folks. With the possible exception of "Ephemeral Addictions" though, no one melody ever stuck with me after the album ended. It's all action and no money shot. It seemed like every time I made it halfway through the disc, I got so tired of the meandering melodies and the sickly sweet overkill that I had to come back to it later and start again. Christian is an incredibly powerful crooner, but he lays it on too thick with a melodramatic style. I'm probably letting my metal meathead proclivities interfere here, but some of these lyrics make me grimace. Cases in point are "Midnight Symphony" ("This time I know / I will find every spot on your body / my baby you got me tonight") and "Dig on This" ("Rock, Rock the FM Radio, Don't stop until you lose control").

"The Dawn" will probably be a successful release for Trustkill, given the vast market for the band's overt sentimental style. If you're into this kind of thing, there are many more positives than negatives. I just think the band tries to do too much and never reaches its final destination, or maybe I'm missing something.