Wait a minute. Is this the same band that released
Fixing Stupid back in 1999? Well, the membership may remain the same, but this self-titled set gives no warning to the roar of sound that immediately bursts from their speakers. In the intervening year, the group seems to have become hosts to the ghosts of stadium rock past, leaving fans who haven't seen them on-stage recently to listen with dropping jaws. But after the initial shock wears off, one starts to distinguish all the elements of old that still shine through the scorching, screaming guitars solos and big rock vocals yowling to heaven. The opener, "Miserable," still kicks ass punk-style, although it's almost trampled by the thundering guitar riff. "Bad Apples" is a frenzied skanker, with only the rolling drums and screaming vocals taking the song into the arena. "That's Not You" breezy third wave meets the new school via Brit punk circa 1978 is pure skacore, again with only the vocals fooling the unwary. And so it goes, as the band's roots show through their new dye job. But do fans really want to hear
Orangetree's blend of ska, punk, and hardcore through the prism of hard rock? Well, in the Midwest, those long-haired bands of yore never died, their music never faded, and they still blast out of the radio to this day. And hey, "Fall Apart," with its
Mott the Hoople intro and singalong with your cell phone in the air power ballad atmosphere, can't help but stir the blood. It sure is different. The only other band pushing into similar unchartered territory,
Reel Big Fish, had a much poppier edge, but this is the real thing. Real rock, with a really big sound, but throw away your preconceptions, and you too will be forced to step back in utter amazement.