Landon – Defying The Stereotype / 2006 Self / 8 Tracks / http://www.landonband.com /
“Only 20†is a track that is interesting to me. The Spartan, heavily electronic style of the instrumental segment of the track is good enough, but the vocals only reach their stride when Landon moves from the spoken style of vocals to something much more singing-heavy. “Only 20†has catchy bits, but is not solid enough to mark Landon’s first entry into the rock radio charts. “Hush†is the next track, and is a much stronger effort by Landon. This track could make it even onto the pop charts, as the vocals link together Avril Lavigne with Kelly Clarkson and Pink to make a harder-edged pop princess. The guitars follow from the grunge tradition, but add a little bit of the Santana style to playing guitar to make something qualitatively different to anything else on the market.
The only thing that could be construed as a weakness during “Hush†is that Landon moves back to a stilted delivery that does not flow naturally. “First To Come In Last†is the third track on the disc and shows that Landon et al can move into a slower style. The move back and forth from slow to fast, light to heavy, is actually done correctly and represents another hit for Landon. “Ms. Jones†throws in the synthesizer to make for a fuller sound to Landon’s approach, and represents to me the direction that needs to be taken for the upcoming full length. If Landon and the rest of the band are able to have so many things happen at once without making the resulting song sound too complicated or cluttered, fans will come in by the hundreds. Give the disc a go if you like the girl-led rock of individuals like the Switchblade Kittens and Bif Naked, and want something that deals with more current genres and styles.
Top Track: Ms. Jones, Angry
Rating: 7.0/10