Reviewed by Chris Sharp

This is the third release from Element 101, a five-piece pop/rock outfit hailing from New Jersey, USA. I love the opening to this album. The atmospheric guitar intro to "Fade Away" lulls you quickly into a false sense of security which is then almost immediately shattered by the individualistic vocal style of Crissie Verhagen. Lyrically cryptic in places, there is a an interesting mix of original metaphor and pop cliche. At times I found the lead female vocals a little instrusive and they really do dominate a lot on this album. It would have been nice for the vocals to have eased back at times and let the other instruments break out. It feels like there's a lot more to come from the band as a whole, but most of the time the album only seems to be cooking at about Gas Mark 3. Muscially the band have previously been marketed as punk/rock, but this album does not reflect that at all. Too often I found myself thinking I'd heard Element 101 before. They even remind me of the Red Hot Chili Peppers in places, which is certainly a
compliment, but unfortunately this album just doesn't stand out from the crowd.


Chris Sharp is a member of the Nottingham-based alternative rock band Sibling.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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