by Alexandra Mrozowska
– Sr. Columnist —
Even though there must be something in the water indeed as far as talking about the American Southern states and their rich music tradition, the Tennessee-based One Less Reason are far from tapping into the Country or Southern Rock vibe. They also do not try to jump on a nostalgia-driven bandwagon, as do many contemporary acts who base their functioning around a handful of retro-oriented gimmicks. Built around the band’s mastermind Cris Brown, One Less Reason is a band that screams 2016 – literally and figuratively – and doesn’t bother with looking back too often. Their sixth album The Memories Uninvited is a clear proof of both.
This fact becomes obvious just the first seconds into the album’s opening track “Break Me” and its follow-up “Something Beautiful.” Both are very modern and straight-in-your-face while at the same time remaining relatively melodic (especially chorus-wise). The overall sound is heavy and thick, flavored with post-Grungy “loud-quiet” mode. At times, however, they’re able to wander off the beaten track towards a certain degree of radio-friendliness as well (“Sometimes”, “Time,” “On The Way Down”). While there’s nothing really polished or overproduced about these tracks that qualify them for a radio airplay, one could have easily imagined them reaching at least decent numbers on Alternative Rock charts.
A bit surprisingly for a band that doesn’t seem to flirt with the “Classic Rock” formula, One Less Reason prove to be very skillful in the craft of balladry. Even more surprising is that fact that slow-ish parts of The Memories Uninvited, such as “One Day” or “You Didn’t Know,” are to be considered the highlights rather than the sentimental fillers you might have assumed them to be. There is something about those emotionally-laden, wistful vocals, wailing guitar embroidery and piano-driven melodies that make these songs altogether a paradoxically more powerful musical statement than most of the punchy, heavy tracks on the album. And speaking of ballads, the album’s closing piece “Rainmaker” is perhaps even more expressive than its predecessors, the group’s usually rich instrumentation and multilayered arrangements stripped down to acoustic guitars only.
Although One Less Reason has a certainly modern vibe to the band’s sound, the music may seem to be hardly palatable for listeners more oriented to whatever is dubbed “Classic Rock” these days – they couldn’t have been more wrong. Heavy, but not coarse, with its well-crafted melodies and interesting song arrangements The Memories Uninvited unleashes a handful of songs that are worth your attention regardless of particular taste in music. A very interesting listening experience altogether, and an album to be recommended.
Genre: Modern Rock, Alternative, Acoustic
Band:
Cris Brown – vocals/guitar
Blake Heimbach – bass
Cody Landers – guitar
Derrick Riggan – drums
Stephen Davis – guitar
Tracklist:
Break Me
Something Beautiful
Sometimes
Where Were You
Time
The Trade
One Day
On The Way Down
The Lie
You Didn’t Know
Rainmaker
Label: Tattooed Millionaire Records
Website: http://www.olrmusic.com – https://www.facebook.com/onelessreason/
Hardrock Haven rating: 7/10
