Struck by Truth

Struck by Truth (2005)

Jordan Rogowski

I like to assume things about an album before I hear it, just to see how close to the truth I am once I listen. Be that through cover art, CD art, press sheets, song titles, or what have you. Struck by Truth did not afford me this opportunity at all. Coming in just a jewel case, and on a CD-R with only the band's name and the name of the three tracks on this EP, I had nothing to go on. And I guess that makes things a bit more surprising, and I'll give them that, I was surprised.

Going on the law of averages alone, I was expecting pop-punk, but instead I got a band who sounds remarkably, almost eerily close to Ion Dissonance. Sounds good enough, right? Well, it would be without those parts of songs that sound like System of a Down.

The first track is easily the best; "Liberticide" starts out with only some feedback, and then the crazy riffing and vocals are soon to follow. Chaos ensues. Struck by Truth's vocalist shares more than a few similarities with Gabe of Ion Dissonance, not only in the way his highs and lows sound, but also the delivery. The frenzied vocals are entirely dependent on the music backing it, becoming more and more chaotic as the speed picks up, and as the change between time signatures grows quicker and quicker. Closer to the end of the song, the riffs become more slow and deliberate, until really unleashing at the end. So all is well so far.

Then comes "All Just Pawns."

I really don't mind System of a Down, but I'd really rather not hear Serj singing for a tech-metal band, so on that token, I don't want to hear anyone who sounds like him singing for a tech-metal band. But he's not singing, or screaming over the chaotic parts; the band slows down to an almost nü-metal feel while he's at the helm, and any unity is immediately crushed. The final track, "In Their Eyes," is even worse. The crazy riffing and shrieking vocal start things off, and after a little bit, it breaks for the SOAD-like part to come in, and I immediately have no desire to hear the rest of the song, no matter how good, or how fluent the final half may be.

Lose the singer, it's that simple for this band. When that happens, they'll have a much better chance to record a fluid, and solid album.