Posted on: November 24, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

The Selfish Gene – The Grand Masquerade / 2007 Ruff Road / 12 Tracks / http://www.theselfishgene.com /

The Selfish Gene’s “The Grand Masquerade” starts out with brooding and dark strings, the title track giving a blend of goth and classical styles to individuals that are ensure of what the band sounds like. The chaos increases considerably, explodes, and a timid, shoegazing style of indie rock ultimately comes forth. “Weight of Light” shows that The Selfish Gene loves their Weezer and early Nada Surf. While their compositions on “Weight of Light” are decidedly more intricate than either of the aforementioned acts, the influences of those two acts are very audible during songs on “The Grand Masquerade”.

“Overboard” has hints of the alt-country style present during the opening strains of the song, but gradually is transformed into a fuzzy ode to seventies rock, as seen through the eyes of indie kids. The hard-hitting track is moderated my intricate arrangements and complex time signatures, but “Overboard” still has a catchiness to it that reminds individuals of a Jane’s Addiction. “Autopilot” throws in a little bit of surf influence, but the track sseems to not have much direction. The song itself bounces around different intensities and styles before ending, and what was a strong effort by The Selfish Gene is made a little bit weaker. It is only when the act takes an early Goo Goo Dolls and Replacements style for “Fist Fed Up” that the disc regains some of the allure that it originally came to the table with.

There is still a tendency by The Selfish Gene to go off onto tangent, but this more focused track is a step in the direction that the band needs to go. Where The Selfish Gene end their “The Grand Masquerade” at is a place that shows that the band has tons of talent but a very long way to go before they will be headlining and a household name. If the band could stick a little more firmly to a musical style and approach more tracks with the creeping catchiness of a “Bad About It”, the next Selfish Gene album would be impressive. As it stands, “The Grand Masquerade” is a decent album but does not have enough shining moments to make it a “must buy”. Check out the band live and see if there are any new songs debuted. Then, if the band has made improvement, buy their next album. The Selfish Gene has oodles of potential, but still needs work.

Top Tracks: Bad About It, Bidding War

Rating: 5.3/10

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