A Case Of Missing Identity

Have you ever had that feeling when you're checking out a new band, and they look really good from the cover?  Then you listen to them, and everything you thought you knew was wrong!  That was the case when I listened to XFactor1.

Famous.Last.Words cover

Their last album, Famous.Last.Words, started out as something promising, but failed to deliver in the end. What started out as something with an obvious influence of Taproot, and other sort of "canned" rock sounds; blended with subtle colors of Alice In Chains, soon became a free-fall in to the maturity level and stylings of Limp Bizkit.  Admittedly, some people get into this, but it's not for me.

The early 2000s Staind sound on the slower songs makes me think that the only people who could enjoy this band (and not get bored after the first 10 minutes) are high-school kids, and neo-goths with daddy issues.  Again... I've been wrong about things like this before.

A surprise cover of Billy Squier's "The Stroke" makes the album a little more bearable, but pretty much exists as a crowd song.

Overall, a major identity crisis happening on this record. Influences or shades of Alice In Chains on one song, Limp Bizkit on another, Godsmack on yet another, Rob Zombie in some spots, and Staind on the slower songs makes listening to this album in any sort of sequence really fatiguing. My advice: PICK 1 STYLE AND STAY WITH IT!!! Case in point: the closing song, "Miss Me Now", solidifies the identity issues as it is the only song on the entire list that has a major chord structure and might be considered a love song.  Where did this come from? Why is at the end?  I know it's not unheard of to put a slower number at the end. It leaves a nice "encore" feeling with the listener.  However, this was so drastically different that it honestly didn't even fit with the rest of the album.

Of course all of the above is simply my opinion on the record.  XFactor1 has met with success and do have a rather large fan base.  They have had 3 songs featured on the radio from Famous.Last.Words, including "The Stroke", "Bring It On" and most recently, "Parasite".  They will also be on our with Taproot this summer as part of the "Infest America" tour, and later on playing at "Rock On The Range".

Whether you agree or disagree with me and my opinions, I encourage you to formulate your own opinions on the band by checking them out on Facebook, Twitter, and Reverb Nation.

In fact, why not leave some comments?  Let's talk.

XFactor1 "Fisheye" style