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Sevendust had an interesting year in 2005. Co-founder and guitarist Clint Lowery
left in a seemingly acrimonious manner, and the band jumped from TVT Records to
Winedark and released Next, with new guitarist Sonny Mayo (ex-Snot). TVT
packaged material from the band’s first four studio records and threw in four
rarities to create Best of (Chapter One 1997-2004), which serves as an
excellent introduction to the band.
Sevendust stands out from similar artists in the genre by the much wider vocal
range of Lajon Witherspoon. He can yell and scream like many of his peers, but
can also sing when he needs to. This collection is constructed in chronological
order, with three tracks from 1997’s Sevendust, four tracks from 1999’s
Home, three tracks from 2001’s Animosity, and two tracks from
2003’s Seasons. Three of the four bonus tracks were culled from B-sides
of the Seasons record, and a previously unreleased version of Alice
Cooper’s “School’s Out” finishes the collection.
The band is fairly monothematic in lyrical approach, as ‘get out my face
motherfucker,’ ‘I’m a miserable motherfucker’ or ‘I’m a miserable motherfucker
because of you’ are the common threads throughout the material. Titles like
“Bitch,” “Assdrop,” and “Too Close to Hate” clue you in on the rays of sunshine
the boys are selling.
The Animosity cuts stand out as the band’s best work. "Angel’s Son”
sports a string section and Witherspoon’s best vocals to date. The longing over
the death of a loved one pierces through his voice while the band shows
remarkable restraint, for a change. The rest of the collection is unadulterated
anger and angst, fueled by the bottomless bass playing of Vince Hornsby.
The two covers included are enjoyable as they build metal structures for Marvin
Gaye’s “Inner City Blues” and Alice Cooper’s “School’s Out.” Although not
necessarily better than the originals, they certainly add a whole lot of
testosterone to each and create unique versions of both classics.
~R. David Smola
pretendcritic@aol.com
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