VERISMO: City Of Kings (Independent)
By Fizz
Rating 7.0
After the disappointment of Shadows Fall’s latest album, I found myself in dire need of a quality thrash fix. So one day, I was sitting at my desk, procrastinating as usual, and listening to my favorite Internet radio station, and along comes Verismo. Hailing from Brooklyn, this trio wants you to know that they’re trained musicians … and they like to drink. Well, sure! What band doesn’t? Anyway, after hearing a couple songs, I decided Verismo were definitely worth investigating.
What we have here is some pretty jamming, technical thrash metal, mixed with enough other flavors so that the thrash tag doesn’t seem to quite cover it. The base for this metallic stew would be heavy doses of Testament and Vulgar Display-era Pantera. Season liberally with Shadows Fall, and splash in some progressive elements, a la Forced Entry. Add a pinch of Black Label Society and a dash of Corrosion of Conformity, and simmer all day, and you have a pretty good approximation of Verismo. The riffs are thick and meaty, the rhythms are often complex and can turn on a dime, and the vocals are rough and aggressive, without ever resorting to hardcore screaming or death-metal growling. Whiplash is not going to be much of a problem, as the pace is more methodical than manic. But what the band may lack in terms of speed, they make up for with plenty of interesting twists and turns. And they can obviously play their asses off.
In fact, if there’s one area the band could stand to improve, it’s in the songwriting department. As great as these tunes sound while they’re playing, only a few of them really stand out from the pack, and there isn’t exactly a wealthy of memorable hooks. Some songs are more heavy rock (“City of Kings,” “The Last Word”), while others are more in a thrash vein (“Bad Day,” “Moment of Clarity”). There are some grooving, doomy numbers as well, like “The Legacy” (not a Testament cover), and even a bit of funk on leadoff track “Enemy.” Testament are the most obvious reference point in terms of sound, but, as I said before, Verismo really reminds me of Forced Entry, with their many time-changes and off-kilter rhythms, but also in the way the band really blows you away with their musical prowess, but the songs themselves don’t always stick. Also, since this is self-produced, there are a few areas where you can hear the guitar and drums getting tangled up in each other, but I’m sure a real producer would have that straightened out in no time.
Overall, I would have to say my favorite songs, or at least the ones that stand out the most, are “Enemy,” “Moment of Clarity,” “The Last Word” and the title track. The whole album is solid all the way through, really, but just not what you might call catchy.
Aside from what I’ve already covered, my only gripe is this: is it just me, or is there just something wrong with a metal band writing a song based on a Dr. Seuss book? Yep, Verismo does it, offering up “The Lorax,” transforming the whimsical verse of the cautionary tale for which it was named into a dead-serious harbinger of doom.
Anyway, City Of Kings was, for me, one of those CD’s that I was really pumped up about when I first got it, but have cooled down on somewhat after many listens. Maybe it’ll have the opposite effect on you, and be a “grower.” Regardless, Verismo is definitely a band with lots of potential, and worth watching in the future.
Best Songs: ‘City Of Kings,” “Moment of Clarity”
Worst Song: “The Lorax”
