Bright as Blasphemy
Chevelle are good at making a song feel as though something is about to happen. Bright as Blasphemy is full of tense guitar parts, controlled rhythms and Pete Loeffler's uneasy vocal melodies. The difficulty is that the expectation sometimes turns out to be more interesting than the eventual arrival.
Rabbit Hole (Cowards, Pt. 1) makes that clear early on. The restrained passages build a strong atmosphere, and a heavier instrumental section gives the song a welcome surge. It also pulls back quite quickly, leaving the feeling that the idea had more room to develop.
The connection with Jim Jones (Cowards, Pt. 2) gives the two songs a clear thematic purpose. Manipulation, belief and the dangers of following without questioning run through much of the album. Those subjects suit the band's darker sound, and give the music something more substantial to work around.
Hallucinations has a similarly effective atmosphere. The voice and guitars create a real sense of unease, but the song doesn't quite find the melodic turn that would make it stay with you. AI Phobias uses its tension more directly, connecting the record's interest in control to a more current source of anxiety.
The playing remains a strength. Pete and Sam Loeffler understand how to create weight without filling every gap, and several riffs have a strong physical pull. Wolves (Love & Light) also gives the lyrical ideas a more inward-looking angle, questioning what manipulation does to a person's own judgement.
Shocked at the End of the World provides a stronger late lift, with more speed and a clearer sense of release. It makes a useful contrast to some of the album's more carefully contained songs.
At nine tracks, this is a focused record with interesting concerns and several good moments. The missing piece is consistency in the songwriting. Chevelle build compelling settings, but the songs need a little more individual character to match them. Fans of their tense, heavy sound will find things to enjoy; the strongest ideas deserved more decisive endings.
