The String Quartet Tribute to Chevelle
My String Tribute to Chevelle came in yesterday! I was stoked and pleasantly surprised by it.
The problem with these string tributes to metal bands is... well, there is more than one problem. Firstly, the "tributes" attempt to follow the original music either too closely, or deviate from it just so that's it's not creative; rather, it seems that the orchestrators of the strings are stubbornly trying to force the music (metal being rebellious by its very nature) to fit snuggly into the chamber, if you will.
Second, when trying to immitate the original songs note for note, this particular tribute sounds more like mockery when translating Pete Loeffler's screams into chaotically screeching strings. Seriously, how hard is it to pick a note? I understand the desire to capture the primitive nature of a human scream; however, the String Quartet's immitation only serves to irritate the ears. I try to judge this CD from two sides: both as a Chevelle fan and as a patron of chamber music.
The Chevelle fan in me appreciates that the String Tribute utilizes the violin, viola, cello, and contra bass to highlight the harmonic and melodic nuances of Chevelle's music. Overall, the songs chosen (two from Point #1 and eight from Wonder What's Next) translate well into the chamber because of the inherent dark nature of Pete Loeffler's song-writing. Among the most fitting of the tributes are The Red, with perhaps the least screeching on the CD; Send the Pain Below (a refreshing new version of a tired song); Closure, and my personal favorite, Blank Earth.
Most of these string versions vivify Loeffler's mastery of suspensful rhythms; if one never noticed before, it becomes clear when one notes how the bass instruments in Family System and Wonder What's Next are reminiscient of the JAWS theme. Parts of many of the tracks could easily be used in a score for some suspense-thriller.
One also come to question the motivation to compose a String "Tribute" to a metal band. Is it simply to be ironic and do covers of hard rock songs with string instruments? Is it motivated by greed? The fact that some of the better songs on the CD are the ones with which the general rock-listening public is familiar, suggests that this might be the case.
The chief composer, cellist John Krovoza, may have approached this project with a detached, unfamiliar mind in regards to Chevelle's work. That serves towards its own creative end, of course, but can be lost to the measures of where true emotion is found on the originals. One example is a lack of forte in Send the Pain Below, when the chorus is resumed after the bridge - in fact, a diminuendo is added instead. On the original, this factor serves as a metaphor of perserverance under strife. But I imagine the deliberate use of the opposite on the String Tribute serves to return to the serene (almost mundane) atmosphere that had been established at the beginning of the song.
While the album is as decent as a String Tribute to Chevelle could be, there are dissapointments. Opportunities to really intensify and illustrate the dark and sexual qualities of Comfortable Liar and An Evening with El Diablo are somehow left unchallenged. I would theorize that it is the preoccupation with matching the vocals and rhythms that throws it off, yet there are moments during Comfortable Liar that are unique to the String Tribute.
Overall, The String Quartet Tribute to Chevelle is at best an amusing novelty to the devout Chevelle fan, and at worst peculiar oddity to the chamber patron.
5.5/10
The problem with these string tributes to metal bands is... well, there is more than one problem. Firstly, the "tributes" attempt to follow the original music either too closely, or deviate from it just so that's it's not creative; rather, it seems that the orchestrators of the strings are stubbornly trying to force the music (metal being rebellious by its very nature) to fit snuggly into the chamber, if you will.
Second, when trying to immitate the original songs note for note, this particular tribute sounds more like mockery when translating Pete Loeffler's screams into chaotically screeching strings. Seriously, how hard is it to pick a note? I understand the desire to capture the primitive nature of a human scream; however, the String Quartet's immitation only serves to irritate the ears. I try to judge this CD from two sides: both as a Chevelle fan and as a patron of chamber music.
The Chevelle fan in me appreciates that the String Tribute utilizes the violin, viola, cello, and contra bass to highlight the harmonic and melodic nuances of Chevelle's music. Overall, the songs chosen (two from Point #1 and eight from Wonder What's Next) translate well into the chamber because of the inherent dark nature of Pete Loeffler's song-writing. Among the most fitting of the tributes are The Red, with perhaps the least screeching on the CD; Send the Pain Below (a refreshing new version of a tired song); Closure, and my personal favorite, Blank Earth.
Most of these string versions vivify Loeffler's mastery of suspensful rhythms; if one never noticed before, it becomes clear when one notes how the bass instruments in Family System and Wonder What's Next are reminiscient of the JAWS theme. Parts of many of the tracks could easily be used in a score for some suspense-thriller.
One also come to question the motivation to compose a String "Tribute" to a metal band. Is it simply to be ironic and do covers of hard rock songs with string instruments? Is it motivated by greed? The fact that some of the better songs on the CD are the ones with which the general rock-listening public is familiar, suggests that this might be the case.
The chief composer, cellist John Krovoza, may have approached this project with a detached, unfamiliar mind in regards to Chevelle's work. That serves towards its own creative end, of course, but can be lost to the measures of where true emotion is found on the originals. One example is a lack of forte in Send the Pain Below, when the chorus is resumed after the bridge - in fact, a diminuendo is added instead. On the original, this factor serves as a metaphor of perserverance under strife. But I imagine the deliberate use of the opposite on the String Tribute serves to return to the serene (almost mundane) atmosphere that had been established at the beginning of the song.
While the album is as decent as a String Tribute to Chevelle could be, there are dissapointments. Opportunities to really intensify and illustrate the dark and sexual qualities of Comfortable Liar and An Evening with El Diablo are somehow left unchallenged. I would theorize that it is the preoccupation with matching the vocals and rhythms that throws it off, yet there are moments during Comfortable Liar that are unique to the String Tribute.
Overall, The String Quartet Tribute to Chevelle is at best an amusing novelty to the devout Chevelle fan, and at worst peculiar oddity to the chamber patron.
5.5/10