BLINDSIDE – The Great Depression

Swedish rockers Blindside seem to make up the rules as they go. Is this to keep themselves from getting bored, or do they just enjoy throwing people off track? Who knows. The good news is that after a tad-too-safe follow-up to Silence, Blindside has opted to take yet another left turn and have come up with a genuine Rock album. Well, almost.

Like the name of the CD suggests, the common theme on this release is depression, or more precisely desperation. This is the first Blindside release where singer Christian has opted to tone down the optimistic vocals and has replaced them with what feels like and sounds like what a broken down man in submission would sound like.

For the fans of Silence, and its more polished follow-up, About A Burning Fire, there are a couple of tracks with the same feel. There’s “Ask Me Now,” which could have been lifted from either of those albums, sounding like what early U2 would have had they undergone a heavier direction. “We’re All Going To Die,” even though continuing with a slower tempo, has a familiar crunchy undertone. The trademark style of flirting with tempo changes is still there, but instead of Metal, listeners are now introduced to a much rockier vibe. This time, the overall sound seems to go from fast to dreamy and back again, and despite the few Hardcore tracks, the main vibe seems to be on the more lazy, almost dreamy, side.

The album starts with a spoken track, “The Great Depression,” which introduces a fuzzy sound in the background that continues throughout the whole album. The fuzziness, along with this strangely quirky guitar sound, and, at times, marching-like drums, that possess a light, airy feel to them, gives the whole album an feel like you’re watching a character who has lost the plot and is a bit out of synch… yet not necessarily aware of this himself.

“Heartattack” would be right at home on a Clash release. It sounds like Blindside has kept the melodic vocals and the occasional screams, but otherwise have adopted more of an English sound. “Bleeding Under Your Eyes” occasionally brings to mind the Cure. It would have been interesting to see which albums were on constant play on their respective stereos while writing and recording this release.

“Yemkela,” “We Are To Follow,” and “Come To Rest” all flirt with Hardcore with screamed vocals. “Come To Rest” even has a guest screamer sharing the mic with Christian, but despite the Hardcore tone, the song still ends in an acoustic outro.

“My Alibi” ends up playing with a dance beat, which those familiar with the Blindside’s history know that they have a strange affection towards. “This Time” is almost a ballad, with occasional high-pitched vocals and angel-like harmonies, with a midsection that has a David Lynch dream sequence out of Twin Peaks vibe all over it.

Good to see Blindside live up to their name once again by bringing back the element of surprise. Granted, this may not please all the fans, and, in truth, it takes a few spins to shake off the expectations of yet another sequel to Silence. Seems like Blindside is growing into a more mature sound, taking along their most precious asset, Christian’s voice, and the constant tempo changes… but to keep from repeating themselves, they have yet again introduced completely new pieces to their sound while shedding others. This route no doubt asks a lot from their fan base, but at the same time keeps the game interesting. Maybe one day they’ll come up with a totally new sound with this open mind approach of theirs. In the meantime, whatever trends they end up flirting with, rest assured it will all still be done with a lot of style and a pocket full of talent.