Spell
Mississippi (Island)
by Marc Hirsh

never published

When a band that bills itself as being this original ends up being this predictable, it's hard to be too optimistic for the state of things to come.

Welcome to Spell, who hail from Denver, for whatever that's worth. It's about the only surprise available about the band, whose debut Mississippi is here and ready to give you nothing you can't already imagine.

It's not really as bad as all that. They manage to sound impressively full for a trio and are heavy as all get out, to boot.

Problem is, this is nothing that hasn't been done a million times before. At this point, it's the songs that make or break groups like this.

And the songs just aren't there. The problem is the same as before, predictability. When things are quiet, it's usually pretty easy to guess when they're gonna get loud and distorted, which causes songs such as the "All Apologies"-like "More" to suffer.

The lyrics also tend to repeat, especially in the choruses. "Seems To Me," for example, consists of four lines repeated ad infinitum. "Straight To Hell" is the same. Not just any repetition, mind you. We're treated to the same lines repeated, say, four times in a row before moving on.

This is not a band without serious promise. Three songs ­ but only three ­ make the album worthwhile. The opening "Dixie" starts things off strong, putting its repetition to good use, while "Safe" wins out by being supported by an indestructible guitar part. The real high point, though, is "Superstar," which shows what Spell are capable of doing if they put their minds to it and write a ridiculously catchy chorus in the process.

Three great songs out of ten (eleven if you count the unsurprising hidden track) does not a great album make. By ignoring their strengths to show off their eclecticism, Spell manage to sabotage their first shot.

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