"Music for masturbation," the digitized voice proudly proclaims on the intro track for Ian Svenonius's newest band, Weird War. It is an adequate summary of the sort of simplistic style the band creates using various elements of R & B, rock, punk and blues in their album, "If You Can't Beat 'Em, Bite 'Em."
Compounding heavy bass lines with snappy guitar riffs constitute the background of these vague metaphors, all uniformly aimed to appease and inform. Svenonius has somewhat of a reputation in the indie/rock scene for expressing his political beliefs in veiled messages.
The intro song uses the bass riff as the lead into a distorted Led Zeppelin-esque riff on track two, "Grand Fraud." Svenonius's strains his high-pitched voice to throaty snivels and, at times, guttural screams as he sings with a tension that never seems to waver.
Svenonius lets the rest of the band build the drama through incessant beats and the work of bassist Michelle Mae, the bands strongest asset, as Svenonius's voice cracks and quivers into the background.
Svenonius, however, shows his talent for breaking apart from the band and stealing the show when he wants, in tracks like "Tess" and "One by One," where the band depends mostly on his falsetto and guitar. The title track is a cross between a dance/pop song and an early hardcore punk song.
The band's mellowness and his creaky, straining voice do falter at times, as in "Store Bought Pot," a repetitious and less well-crafted song. The track features a voice nonchalantly singing, "Store bought pot. Say what?" This is repeated over the same drum pattern for a few minutes, eventually fading out anticlimactically.
Svenonius's ability to bring certain energy without breaking into an all out tantrum and the band's ability to incorporate the rhythm and bass of blues and R&B keeps the album flowing smoothly. "If You Can't Beat 'Em, Bite 'Em" is easy listening if you're looking for fresh and innovative music.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
