Adrenaline Mob
Omertà

When I learned about the musicians who would play in this new "supergroup," I jumped out of my desk chair, locked myself in the bathroom, and violently masturbated thinking about what would come out of it. (From the band, not from my penis).

Sleazy sex jokes aside, when you find out that Russell Allen (Symphony X), Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater, Transatlantic, Neal Morse), Mike Orlando (okay, I admit, in this case, I had no idea who he was) and John Moyer (Disturbed, although the bass tracks on the album do not belong to him but to Paul Di Leo from Fozzy) form a group and produce an album of originals, it is definitely a pleasant surprise that brightens your day. And here's where the problem arises, namely from the sky-high expectations that a band with members of this caliber creates and that often are not met, not entirely at least. Because yes, I don't want to sugarcoat the pill for potential fans of these musicians who haven't got this album yet... the album is an (almost) complete disappointment.

The album feels like something you've already heard, the riffs are banal and predictable (just listen to the intro of the opener Undaunted) and are almost entirely identical (Psychosane, Indifferent, and Believe Me first and foremost). Not even the choruses can elevate the quality of these tracks; in fact, they often sound decidedly bland. In short, most of the album is generally flat, something I never expected from artists of this level. Sure, there are some positive episodes (maybe positive is a big word, I believe "less negative" is more fitting). Personally, I appreciated the two ballads, namely "Angel Sky" and "All On The Line," two tracks that shine in their own light despite not being masterpieces represent a small light in an ocean of darkness. The production is certainly excellent and the album is nonetheless played excellently by people who know their stuff, and Russell Allen remains one of the best singers around (as if there was any doubt), but unfortunately, that's not enough. And here we circle back to the expectations I mentioned earlier. If this album had been produced by the band playing behind my house, where the oldest member isn't older than 22, this beginning wouldn't have been so bad, but here we’re not talking about emerging musicians, we're talking about professional musicians with years and years of career and experience who absolutely cannot afford to release an album where the best song is A COVER (Come Undone by Duran Duran, featuring Lizzy Hale from Halestorm). And the saddest thing of all is that the two subsequent albums (albeit with some lineup changes) are even worse than this... it really is so disappointing, because the potential was enormous, the actual quality of the product decidedly less so.

What a shame.