White Walls - Mad Man Circus

White Walls falls roughly into the better end of the nu metal category; using heavy / clean choruses like a band such as Godsmack, without accomplishing the groove metal / thrash metal sound of Five Finger Death Punch. Guitars are played with second hand Dope riffs. Occassionally there will be a heavier -core like riff, or a sick hard rock / thrash metal riff thrown in, but they're far and few between. More common is the use of jazzy interludes / bass solos / acoustic passages; creating a fresh, bizarre sound thats pretty enjoyable if you disregard the other cliched guitar work.

The clean vocals have good range, and are the slightest bit whiny. the singer pulls off some pretty legitimate screams and growls, with a so-so "general purpose" scream.

The bass is by far the best part of the album, its just a bit louder than it should be, but there are some really fast, groovy riffs on the bass that make the experience as a whole.

The drums, finally are about average, they keep the tempo, but the timing isn't perfect, and the recordings mutes some drum notes to be barely audible.

Mad Man Circus follows plenty of cliches between the second hand Dope and sporadic chugging on the guitar. However, Mad Man Circus more or less redeems itself with riffs like those seen on the intro of "Lost art of Chapeaugraphy Part III", and the sporadic interludes and grooving basslines driving an abstract, moderately successful heavy clean sound. 6.5 on the originality, 8.75 on the execution, 7.75.

7.75/10

http://www.last.fm/music/White+Walls/Mad+Man+Circus