It's almost redundant to say this anymore, but here's another new grunge band from Seattle. No, really, they are from Seattle. Grammatrain are a three-piece band, and a darn fine one. I had heard about them in a few places, so I was looking forward to watching them play at Cornerstone. I was pleasantly surprised. You see, usually when people in the Christian market rave over how good a band is, they really aren't all that good, or they sound just like "so-and-so."  I'm happy to say that this isn't the case here. Sure, comparisons such as "Soundgarden meets Tool" are not all that far off, but these guys stand pretty well on their own. I can see the comparison to Tool in the bass playing. The guy has that kind of vibe going, as well as that killer "Tool" bass tone. Sorry, the bassist in me is showing. I'll shut up about the bass player. Comparisons to Soundgarden probably come from Pete Stewart's vocals. On the Cd I could hear a certain quality in his voice that sometimes reminded me of Chris Cornell, but he really does have a distinct voice. He's not a bad guitar player, either. 
There are 8 songs on this Cd--actually 10 tracks, but two of the songs are repeated. The first four songs on the Cd were recorded in a studio. Tracks 5-10  are live acoustic tracks recorded onto DAT.  "Execution," a song about abortion, is repeated acoustically, and "Jerky Love Song" is also repeated acoustically. In my opinion, though, neither song comes off as well acoustically as electric. 
The lyrics are actually pretty good, and sung with passion and expression. The music is well-written and performed.  "Jerky Love Song" is the exception, but it's a deliberate silly song. 
I'm not sure about the availability of this Cd. They only had a limited amount left at Cornerstone. But they were about to release a full-length album. I got to listen to some of the new album, and it's really good. So keep your eyes and ears out for these guys. They know what they're doing. For info, write:  ZOE Worldwide  Box 8165  Kirkland, WA  98034.

Last year saw the release of Sixpence None The Richer's "The Fatherless And The Widow," which was basically Matt Slocum and Leigh Bingham with a few studio musicians. Overall, not a bad album.    Since the recording of their last album, Sixpence has grown into a full band, and "This Beautiful Mess" shows that really well. I guess the biggest difference I notice on this new album is the rhythm section. The rhythm section is really a team here and everything is just more fluid on this album. With two guitar players, we get a more well-rounded sound. The other band members had a hand in the songwriting also, and it shows. While Matt Slocum still writes most of the material, you can see the influence the other band members have added in the overall sound.
The lyrics on "This Beautiful Mess" are really good. They're creative and not cheesy, which is always desirable (to make a big understatement). That's one of the cool things about Sixpence. The lyrics have been creative and well-written all along.
The musical style continues in the same vein as on "Fatherless And The Widow," and it's still very reminiscent of 10,000 Maniacs, but this album is so much better than "Fatherless. . ."  It's not nearly as one-sided musically. It's got a really cohesive sound. I'm not usually a fan of bands with female vocalists, but I play this one constantly. 
Another improvement is in Leigh's vocals. Her vocal lines have grown in creativity, and she's become even more expressive in her delivery. She's got a really beautiful voice and the more she learns to use it, the more unresistable it is. Honestly, if all the music dropped out I would still be glued to my speakers. She's just fantastic.
The packaging is very attractive. There's all this really cool artwork in the infold. And the production on this thing ain't no slouch either. This is just a fabulous album. I love it. I've probably already listened to it a billion times, and I still love it. You need to pick up a copy.

Here we have the latest offering from Mike Stand's newest band. For those of us who remember the Altar Boys, Mike Stand is a familiar name. But Clash of Symbols is not the Altar Boys revisited. Clash of Symbols is a whole new band, with the exception of Mr. Stand. 
What we have here is really raw, driving music in the proud tradition of Mike Stand, but with much more sense of melody and a lot more sensitivity. The first track, "Free," declares loud and clear musically that this is not the Altar Boys. In fact, I could actually see some of this stuff getting airplay on some of the more open Christian stations. Still too wild for most of 'em, though, and too "Christian" for most of the secular stations. It's definitely still in the alternative music vein.
Lyrically, Clash of Symbols differs completely from the Altar Boys. You actually might need a mind to read their lyrics, whereas the Altar Boys' lyrics usually sounded like they were written by a teenager--which was appropriate for the target audience, I should add for fairness.
Not a bad album, really. It's not up my alley, but I can appreciate it. My only complaint is the lyric sheet. What is this? I just really hate it when you have to be a contortionist to be able to read some band's lyric sheet. It looks interesting, I guess, but it's really annoying. This is the kind of album you might not like at first, but it might grow on you.