Saturday, August 26, 2017

Single Review: RED ELEVEN You've Been Warned

You've Been Warned
Independent
It's rare you find modern groups willing to interpolate old and new musical styles, which is why it is so interesting and fresh when an innovative group such as RED ELEVEN appears. Their single 'You've Been Warned' is pop-punky with its common usage of driving guitars. Complexity rears its head as there are elaborate arrangements in the percussion redolent of Neal Peart at his choppiest and most organic. Elements of RUSH are also in the common presence of synth-pads, always audible in the background. They're difficult to pinpoint but most certainly on the "lighter" end of the rock spectrum and a unique group. They owe to their influences but don't wear them on their sleeves. Vocal-wise there's diversity to singer Tony Kaikkonen; you get a full conglomeration of singing styles from his standard raspy quality to where it sounds like he's impersonating Mike Patton from early FAITH NO MORE. The band find their identity and there's a lot of versatility. The video is quirky and I must say I had difficulty relating to it. You've got tons of black-and-white footage against a red silk curtain as a quintessentially exuberant film from the Fifties. Everything takes a more sinister edge as the footage becomes consumed by inferno, much to the apparent dismay of the protagonists. Does it have anything to do with the song? I can't answer as I didn't write it. What I can say is this is experimental pop-punk with a frequent tendency to escape from the confines of 4/4 into unorthodox time signatures, giving them aesthetic credibility with a sensitivity for angst and artistic credibility in their efficiency. -Jaime Regadas

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