Despite several member changes since vocalist/guitarist Wesley Scantlin first formed Puddle of Mudd in 1992, it’s safe to say the band has a defined sound.
Some call it post-grunge, some say alternative and others just stick with good, old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll. Regardless of its sound’s description, Puddle of Mudd harbors a very distinct musical style.
And that’s why for the remainder of this review, the band’s genre will be referred to as “Clear Channel Rock.”
Why? Because the group’s new record, Volume 4: Songs in the Key of Love & Hate — and all of Puddle of Mudd’s music for that matter — and Clear Channel Communications-owned radio were made for each other. Puddle of Mudd fits right in with Clear Channel’s mild grunge-esque rock programming on stations such as DC101, which features Soundgarden and Smashing Pumpkins on “new” alternative rock stations. Both the band and the corporate channels are just bland enough to keep the higher-ups happy, all the while having some harder riffs to keep the fans coming back.
There’s nothing too threatening or dangerous about their new album, PoM’s fourth major-label release is out today, and there is no risk involved in listening to it. The band offers nothing new or innovative. And besides a little more anger in Scantlin’s voice, nothing on the LP is out of the ordinary at all. The band sticks to its time-proven formula, and it sticks to it firmly.
But this formula isn’t too misguided. Scantlin and company are absolutely capable of writing good hooks, and they do so frequently on Volume 4. The guitars are tight, the drumming is strong and Scantlin retains his distinguishable vocals, a feat that is performed in a noticeably above-average manner for a post-grunge band.
Songs such as “Stoned” and “Uno Mas” are pretty good individual releases. The songwriting is solid and, like the aforementioned description of the band’s formula, the instrumentation is tight.
Unfortunately, when considered as parts of a whole album, the quality of the songs decline. And that’s the problem with Volume 4. The entire album is so perfectly Clear Channel Rock that the songs get jumbled together and become unmemorable, as they all sound the same — every single one.
“The Only Reason” sounds like a slowed down “Out of My Way,” and “Pitchin’ A Fit” sounds a whole lot like “Stoned.” Songs include some different introductions, which shakes things up, and if one listens very closely the lyrics vary a bit, but to the casual listener the album becomes a aural Bud Light — it’s not great, but it’s really not that bad either.
Also, in continuation with the group’s commercial success, either “Stoned” or “SpaceShip” is poised to breakout and become a nice-sized single in vein of 2007’s “Psycho.” Again, there’s nothing too different about those songs, but by themselves, they are each pretty catchy.
On the other hand, hard-core fans may think this is a great record — kind of like how fans of Bad Religion acknowledge that the band has essentially been putting out the same record for 15 years, but no one cares because it’s always that good. Similarly, the Puddle of Mudd-heads will love this one. It’s just different enough that longtime listeners will be very pleased with the small changes the band has made, all the while sticking to its sound.
And what else can be said? Puddle of Mudd has been around the block. It has seen one-time contemporaries such as Staind and Limp Bizkit come and go, but the band has remained strong, partly because of its proven-successful sound. And on Volume 4, the band uses that sound with the same amount of effectiveness it has displayed for the past six years or so.
Because that’s just what Puddle of Mudd does.
klucas@umdbk.com
RATING: 2 stars out of 5
