Smoke Theory Get Down and Bloody
Unpretentious Toledo rockers Smoke Theory — formerly known as Black Sheep Squadron — make their recorded debut with the self-released EP, Blood and Sin, cavorting with easy riding (widing?) riffs and a stoner rock mentality hewn from the likes of Kyuss, The Atomic Bitchwax and Suplecs.
…And that’s about it. So we’re done here, right?
Yes and no. As much as I hate saying so about an unsigned band, there’s not much to really dig into on Blood and Sin. Even the title is a dead giveaway — and naming a song “Burnt by the Sun” that isn’t actually about the band Burnt by the Sun just makes it seem like they’re not paying attention. Opener “Swamp” and instrumental follow-up track “Peace, Love and Strangulation” each have some cool riffs, as does “She’s a Closer” (showing that Suplecs influence, and being from Jersey, I’d throw Halfway to Gone and/or A Thousand Knives of Fire in there as well), but the recording on the black-spraypainted CDR sounds like a low quality mp3 stream and isn’t doing the songs any favors.
It’s not that Smoke Theory‘s tracks flat-out suck, they’re just predictable, paint-by-numbers stoner rock. I kept hoping there’d be something about Blood and Sin that would stand out in a positive light, but even “Burnt by the Sun,” which chops its tempo at 4:26 to transition into the best groove the band has going, doesn’t set them apart from scores of other bands (Negative Reaction among them) who’ve used the same riff. And closer “It’s all Over (but the Cry’in)” [sic] attempts a rocking emotional balladry, but paired next to “She’s a Closer” it’s hardly believable and only undercuts what’s probably a genuine sincerity behind the song.
Check them out and decide for yourself, because they’re unsigned and should be at least given the benefit of the doubt. If I lived in Toledo, I’d probably even catch Smoke Theory live because they’re bound to sound better at full volume and without digital compression, but for now, Blood and Sin, while an amiable effort, can’t possibly be doing the band justice. Whether they take these five songs and re-record them or move on to new material, one hopes next time around they pull together a more professional outing, especially if it’s being used as a promotional tool. Either way, it would be a waste to write them off completely based on this EP, and I’m sure I’ll be following up with Smoke Theory somewhere down the line.
Thanks for the honest review. For lack of time and money 4 of the 5 tracks were recorded live in studio in one take (not counting vocals or a lead or two), as is SOP for our poor white asses. “It’s all over” was a last minute addition as we had never really finished writing it until we hit the studio. I think of it more as a drinking tune. The final art is still in limbo. The live show is much more satisfying.
ditto what graves says above. not sure how this even got put out for review. the end product was not good enough to put out. we have just given copies to friends and local bars, etc.
i do appreciate the fairness in the review though.
i think it’s impossible to be original after 50 years of rock music. everything’s repeating something previously done before.
but you hit it on the head. we’re way better live.
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