SPEED X

There is so much familiarity involved in the music of SPEED X's "Flat Black" that half the battle is determining the reference points, many of which land on a wide swath of '90s hard rock with associated "alt" and radio-friendly elements. Fortunately, in the case of "Flatblack", it is a comforting sort of familiarity, owing to some good performances and above average songwriting from a band that includes in its ranks guitarist Nick Catanese (BLACK LABEL SOCIETY),guitarist Mike Stone (ex-QUEENSRŸCHE),drummer Mike Froedge (DOUBLEDRIVE),bassist Joshua Sattler (DOUBLEDRIVE),and previously unknown vocalist/guitarist Jason Fowler.

So the resume is pretty impressive and the music runs from decent to damn good. The damn good material is found on the album's first half. Opening with the sound of a loud and obnoxious race car engine the album kicks off what just might be its finest song, the pile driving "Speed". All fat-riffed and hot-soloed, the tune puts the "hard" in hard rock and is energizing to say the least. The emphasis on the big and the beefy remains on "Fly". The title track is equally tough with lots of chugging groove and a hefty melody guided by the performance of Fowler, whose vocals are defined by range, tunefulness, and spunk.

In fact, it is his voice that sounds so friggin' familiar, like a hodgepodge of some of the '90s better rock vocalists, although that's a total copout because I can't put my finger on who he most reminds me of. Eh, screw it; the guy is good, let's just leave it at that. Anyway, the songwriting structure remains sturdy on "Feel", the first of several tracks that comes with a modern, sometimes "alt" edge, while "On My Side" pairs modern rock melodiousness with throwback, blues-rock riffing.

The rest of the album is all about variety, most of which works fairly well. The somewhat funky, electronic effected verses that give way to the modern rock choruses of "Pretending" are a tad strange, yet not distastefully so. "River" would seem to be the ready-made single (I've not checked and don't intend to) and is one of several tracks that at times vaguely reminds of LIFE OF AGONY (as do a handful of others) wrapped up in a modern radio rock package. It also boasts an infectious chorus that proves difficult to shake from the brain. "Loaded Up" brings back the stutter and is the kind of hard rock song you'll hear every single time you enter a strip club, "Criminal" is an interesting mix of aggression and quasi-experimental rhythm and vocal oddities, the cover of SLY FOX's "Let's Go All The Way" takes big radio rock and powers it with a TOADIES-like cadence and "Skeletons" is a little better than middling melodic rock.

In other words, the album's second half is a mixed bag, which for the most part should be taken as a compliment. Combined with an extra ballsy first half, the disc is anything but boring. A few slight missteps aside, "Flat Black" is a fully rocking and catchy affair.