Bracket – Requiem (CD)

It takes an innovative band to come up with an album in which all of the tracks essentially have the same title (Warren’s Song, just split into specific parts), and Bracket does just that with their “Requiem”. The beginning part of “Pt. 16” starts off in much of the same way as does Queen during their “Bohemian Rhapsody”, before moving into an Aquabats style of pop punk music. There seems to be a certain maturation in Bracket’s style that really becomes obvious during “Pt. 19”; there seems to be some of the vitriol in their tracks that recalls early Green Day, but the vast majority of the music on “Requiem” seems to be taken out of the Face to Face discography.

Bracket has been around for longer than many of their potential fans (15 years), and tracks like “Pt. 14” show this experience, as what really will keep individuals listening is not any fury on the part of the arrangement but rather through the intensity of the instrumentation and arrangement that does take place. Zack’s bass line during songs like “Pt. 14” tike a front seat role, as they are really what give the track (and by extension, the disc) a specific feeling. With the shortest runtime on the disc, “Pt. 24” seems to be one of the more driven songs of the disc. This form of pop-punk is not of the school of Blink 182 and New Found Glory, but rather reflects a commonality between a band like Bracket and different genred acts like Weezer. The infusion of synthesizer in a track like “Pt. 24” really shows their related nature to bands like the Red Hot Valentines more than anything.

While there is not necessarily a cohesion enjoyed between each track, there is a certain brand of sound that dominates throughout the entirety of “Requiem”. For example, Bracket seems to take to hear a sound that is much more based in surf rock and sixties rock more than the bile spewed out by the Sex Pistols or the ennui expressed by The Ramones. What results is an album that is full of radio-friendly hits, but those that are not constrained by their structure in the least. The album comes out with 17 (count ‘em) tracks, btut Bracket is not a band that will try to load a disc down with tracks to ensure that individuals will purchase the album; the album is solid throughout, and individuals will appreciate any downtime by the band in creating this album.

Top Tracks: Warren’s Song Pts. 11, 19

Rating: 6.8/10

Bracket – Requiem / 2006 Takeover / 17 Tracks / http://www.bracketmusic.com / http://www.takeoverrock.com / Reviewed 14 January 2006

[JMcQ]