Quayle

Item: Quayle
Author: Micah Liesenfeld

(1997)

Reviewed by Micah Liesenfeld

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Label Sublime RecordsThe LighthouseUnsorted 1998

alternative rock emo rock

The debut release of Quayle left me with mixed feelings. However, this is usually the case when a band comes out with a first album. First albums have a tendency to sound a lot like a band's influences, and its usually not too good, but not too bad either. This self-titled release produced by Michael Knott (of L.S.U. fame) fits into this category.

Aesthetically, the album rocks consistently (and monotonously) throughout the entire play time. Chord progressions are interesting, but they lack a certain spice due to the rather clichéd drumming and music theory of the songs. The vocals are to be appreciated by the audiences that like strained vocals, a la Jeremy Enigk or Skillet.

Lyrically, it seems that Quayle attempted to make a conceptual album of sorts. After pouring over the lyrics for quite some time, I've come to the conclusion that the band is mainly speaking about dysfunctional love relationships. Other than that, I can't really find much else, except that the relationship of "the two" seems to get better toward the end of the album, as "they" both realize that the mistakes of the past are going to have to be forgiven and lived with as best as possible. It's a good concept, but the lyrics are so vague that it's hard to really pull anything specific out to talk about and discuss. This is due to the overuse of pronouns that confuse the listener as to who is doing the action, and to whom the action is being done. Also, I found the metaphors that are used to describe situations and concepts to be too obscure to understand the meaning behind them. Overall, for the listeners to get anything out of the lyrics, they would have to project much of their own meaning on to the songs.

Potential can be found in the last few tracks. My favorite song lyrically and musically is called "Leaving The Lights On." A certain mood can be more clearly distinguished at this point, and the vocals become more interesting. The final song, "Superman Sun," shows that the band can (and hopefully will in the future) thoughtfully plan out their song progressions enough to slow down and groove at the same time when it's appropriate to do so.