The Reprise/Intoxication Records debut from Canadian hard rockers
Art of Dying manages to fuse classic rock, retro-'80s hair metal, and 21st century post-grunge into a palatable cocktail, but
Vices and Virtues never sinks its hooks in deep enough to draw anything out but a trickle of red. Produced by
Howard Benson (
Daughtry,
Three Days Grace,
Creed), the Vancouver quintet shows promise on arena-sized, radio-ready crushers like “Die Trying” and “You Don’t Know Me,” which fall somewhere in between
Godsmack and
Nickelback, as well as the slow-burn, midtempo “Sorry,” which shows off the band’s excellent three-part harmonies. ~ James Christopher Monger