Hotly tipped Polish rockers Chemia tapped the talents of top producer Mike Fraser (AC/DC, Aerosmith, Metallica) for this, their second album, and as you’d expect the results are sonically faultless.
A shame, therefore, that the band’s musical approach – densely rendered post-grunge commerciality in the style of Creed and Alter Bridge – is so dated and lacklustre.
Wojtek Balczun’s lumpish guitar dominates proceedings but singer Lukasz Drapala is the primary source of irritation; he’s a tortured tonsil-wrangler in the Chris Cornell vein but with none of the Soundgarden man’s commanding presence or storytelling skills.
Chemia can deliver a lighter touch – as the breezy vocal harmonies on I Love You So Much and Don’t Kill The Winner prove – but as the album progresses their unyielding mirthlessness proves too much to bear. Our advice? Get a quart of Wyborowa down your neck and stop listening to Mad Season.
