Multiverse plays a very safe brand of rock that is more likely to be heard in coffee shops and frat houses than anywhere else. The style is an adult contemporary brand rock that is blended with an adequate amount of jazz and funky to create something that can be received equally well by all. The disc’s first track “Different Worlds” seems to portend the blend of styles, and while there is a vocal presence during this track, this is by no means the focal point of the track. The vocal (vocals during the chorus) rise to prominence at times, but the guitars are what individuals will hear most clearly during the track. There is no denying that the band members of Multiverse have a great amount of ability with their instruments, but during this four-song EP, there is little in the way of experimentation or excitement provided by the band.
The act reminds me of someone like Tony Pena; there is a lot of instrumental kill but nothing much in the way of arrangement vision. The extended instrumental section of “Different Worlds” is something that stops the band dead in their tracks. Where the vocals on the track at least gave the band some direction and momentum, the lack of these vocals means that Multiverse spin their metaphorical wheels until “Pictures on the Wall” can start. The style of “Pictures on the Wall” is different from “Different Worlds”, and the inclusion of a synthesizer to this track allows the band to create a much more dreamy sound. This dreamy style is a nice jump for the band, but it only takes about a minute or a minute and a half before the band goes back into the same rut that they started the track with.
The vocals, which could show the band a nice out, stand out only as much as the rest of the instrumentation will allow them. The disc is only fifteen minutes long, but feels much longer as the same constructs and arrangements confront listeners at all points. For Multiverse to succeed with follow-up albums, there needs to be more in the way of experimentation and use of other styles. As it is, the band can do one song well, but no listener in their right mind wants to hear one song repeated ten times on an album or during a live show. Pass on Multiverse for now.
Top Track: 360
Rating: 2.5/10
Multiverse – S/T / 2005 Self / 4 Tracks / http://www.multiversemusic.net / Reviewed 11 August 2006
[JMcQ]