Not Just Another Fish In The Sea ...

Today I'll be taking a look at the Alternative/ Hard Rock band Dirty Beloved who hail from Canada's Capital City, Ottawa. This is a special post for me because earlier this year I reviewed another Ottawa band by the name of Headview (many years past relevance) whose album I truly enjoyed, but feared nothing more from them (A surprise second album will be reviewed here at some point). Well, I received a comment from Headview's lead singer Armin Kamal who stated his surprise at such a belated review of said Headview album "Sad Tomato" and directed me to his myspace page and new band Dirty Beloved. The band has just released their debut album "A World Made For You".

It would be easy for me to compare this album to Headview's, but also it would be unfair and unnecessary. The only thing in common between the bands is sharing the same lead vocalist, but musically they are worlds apart.

"A World Made For You" is hard driven rock album with experimental touches and providing a nice alternative to today's cookie cutter rock albums. The album begins with the bluegrass influenced reflective instrumental "Prelude" which leads into the the 2nd song "Let It Shine" as the accompaniment during the verse's before Michael Hope kicks in with some thick, solid electric guitar riffing for the chorus. Add to this Armin's melodic vocals and this makes for a very catchy opener.

What I think surprised me most with this album was the solid wall of rock guitars. Very heavy and crunchy. I'd almost say heavy metal in influence and certainly at times I get a feel of the classic hard rock sound of the mid-nineties. This is most notable on "Should I let It Slide" which is a slow groove laden number with harmonic melodies and "UnLock The Cage" which is a flat out hard rocker with some blistering drums and fine bass work.

"I've Done All I Can" is ballad like and one of slower sweeter moments both melodic and moving. "The Weight Of All Your Words" is sweetly melodic as well with some nice ambient guitar work and ska/reggae like guitars adding a little flavour and drives us into the experimental closing song "Tilting At Fuller".

"Tilting At Fuller" is ambient sounding with some spoken word vocals and effects laden guitars mixed with jazzy style drums. Armin's vocals reach an almost frustrated wail while vocalizing ~Why do people do/say stupid things~ which makes for an amusing, thoughtful song. Despite it's effects heavy sound it doesn't seem out of place on the album.

The stand out songs for me are the guitar heavy "On The Pharm" that's pummelling and aggressive and shows Armin's strength's as a vocalists. It also features a nice solo and is an all around solid hooky song. My favourite track is "Fish In The Sea" which has a funky groovy rhythm section by the bassist Todd Jodoin and drummer Neil Grandy. The verse has a real catchy guitar and bass mix with some good subtle keyboards for mood. The chorus is heavier and rock oriented while staying melodic and some haunting vocals. It's a really nice song that sees the whole band come together by standing out individually.

"A World Made For You" is a solid, well produced album that allows each member to stand out, but keep a strong unit sound. I really like the bass melodies and I can actually hear them instead of being drowned out by everything else. The drums are steady with nice flourishes and plenty of subtleties to keep things interesting without sounding showy. The guitars are thick and heavy and very rock and the vocals are strong and melodic, sweet yet rock gruff and passionate.

A strong debut with loads of potential. Check out their website and MySpace and see for yourself.