Incubus - A Crow Left of the Murder

Pike: Incubus has always been one of those bands that's kept me interested to see what they would do next. I don’t love them. I don’t hate them. They have some good songs, but I have always felt the best was yet to come, and if they would venture into another sonic realm they might have some untapped greatness. Unfortunately, their new album serves to just reinforce what I already feel: A pleasing enough band but just not great. A Crow Left Of The Murder opens with the blistering single “Megalomaniac,” a very political song (with a very political video) that does an outstanding job of combining catchy vibes with thoughtful lyrics. What follows is a somewhat bland parade of rock songs. After a few listens they grow on you enough to start to enjoy them and sing a long a bit, but overall they ride the fence between background noise and rock a little too much. “Beware! Criminal,” “Zee Deveel” and “Here In My Room” provide a few nice moments to keep you interested, but at fourteen tracks in length, the album could afford to trim some of the fat. Lead singer Brandon Boyd’s voice soars through most the album and adequately maintains his status as one of the most soothing voices in alternative rock. The rest of the boys are focused and skilled at their weapons of choice, taking skill out of excuses for the effort. Each song is well executed in an album that is a bit harder edged than for what most fans have come to know them. Incubus is a group you can’t help but like for their occasional hit and mainly for the fact that they stand tall as a group of genuinely nice guys amongst an industry sometimes filled with rock’n’roll stereotypes. The problem lies in the songs on this album. Aside from a few nice moments, the album stands as just kind of bland. Nothing jumps out and grabs you and really makes you want to continue the journey. Overall, a good disc to just put in and have something to groove to, but it leaves you wishing the guys would take a bigger jump and make things more varied. Simple: Here at Silent Uproar I read through all the reviews before we put them online, and while I sometimes disagree with what our writers say, I have never felt the urge to do what I have done with this review. Unlike pike, I am a long-time fan of Incubus. And although I admit their last couple albums have been weak, I think A Crow Left of the Murder marks a return to greatness for the band, and thus deserved a second perspective. S.C.I.E.N.C.E. is by far Incubus' greatest record; however, from that point on each record has become more pop and less quality. I had all but given up on the band when I first heard “Megalomaniac” on the radio and was blown away. Could they do it? Could they bring the rock back? Well once hearing the album I found that “Megalomaniac” is clearly the stand-out track, but there is also an album full of other great songs. With A Crow... Incubus seems to have stepped back from the catchy radio tune format that has plagued them in the past, and instead focused on building quality songs that incorporate all the elements that made them so great to start with. Brandon's amazing vocals, funky deep bass lines, superb scratching from DJ Kilmore, and a more free flowing feel to the album are all present in the new disc and add to its overall appeal. A Crow Left of the Murder marks the frst time since S.C.I.E.N.C.E. that I have been excited about a new Incubus record. The disc has stayed in my frequently played pile since release, and after talking with many other Incubus fans who agree, I felt that you the reader needed a fans perspective on this album. I am here to say: Old school Incubus fans, go buy this album. [www.enjoyincubus.com]