CRY HAVOC – Fuel That Feeds The Fire

Cry Havoc. Now that’s a cool name for a rock band. “Wreak” Havoc would be a step up, but in this case, they do literally “cry havoc,” mostly because of the booming vocals provided by singer Stevie Durrand. His voice is so loud in the mix it seems like he doesn’t even need a microphone to be heard. And this isn’t an insult; it is completely apropos, given the band’s name.

The band was formed in 1994, and have been fighting for years to get their debut album, Fuel that Feeds the Fire, released. Luckily, Chavis Records bailed them out, and their almost decade’s worth of toil now sees the light of day.

The CD begins with the song “Cry for Help/I’ll Be There.” The intro is a soft keyboard piece, and then an actual “cry for help” takes place on a barely audible telephone conversation, that ends in an evil laugh. Nothing spectacular, but semi-interesting. Then, the actual song starts, and you will immediately be taken with Durrand’s voice. He has a smooth delivery, and doesn’t have any vibrato on the notes he holds, so give that man a cigar. This basically sounds like an ‘80s pop metal song, heavy with drums and bass.

They describe themselves as a band with “a combination of raw, in your face power, tender harmonies, and rich melodies.” You are going to get a lovey-dovey, feel-good vibe from this band, with titles of songs like “Forever Once Again,” “Holding On To Your Dreams,” “I Need You,” and “Heart On My Sleeve.”

“Rescue Me,” is a pretty, acoustic guitar construct, a song pining for “someone out there to understand, someone out there to even care … to take my hand … to treat me fair.” Now, this sentiment will score points with the ladies, but guys may find this your average ballad. Again, Durrand’s vocals are almost over the top. He does emote well, and for what it is, “Rescue Me,” does a good job. The guitar solos here are one of the highpoints on the CD as well. They should follow this up with a good drinking song, though, just for credibility.

Instead, they follow it up with “Holding on to Your Dreams,” a song that starts a cappella and then rips into a scream. This is one of the hardest songs on Fuel that Feeds the Fire, yet is still melodic.

This is a solid overall release. If you like their sound, then you’ll like their songs. (Somehow, that might be the most rhetorical sentence ever written.) They don’t stray from what they do best, and keep to the formula of melodic rock. Some other highpoints on the CD are “I Need You,” an acoustic ballad; “Long Way to Heaven” another heavy track; and “Heart On My Sleeve,” because of the wicked bass line intro.

Cry Havoc cries ‘80s rock, and hopefully, their next release won’t take a decade to be released, so instead of sounding somewhat dated, they’ll sound a little more “timely.”