PANDEMIC
PANDEMIC “Crooked Mirror”
By Theron Moore
Where do I start? PANDEMIC’s “Crooked Mirror” gets an “A” for effort but that’s where the good news ends. Lyrically PANDEMIC never got me interested in what they were writing about on this album. The songs were middle of the road at best. The vocals didn’t cut it for me either. Nothing on this record grabbed me and made me want to find out more about the band.
Musically PANDEMIC rocks and not all of the record is terrible. It’s the vocals which are problematic for me, often feeling strained or forced. At times I feel like I’m listening to Sylvester Stallone trying to sing thrash. Watch the movie “Rhinestone”, you’ll get my point. I did like "Gambler's Fortune," “Fog of Birkenau," and "Exorcism of the Exorcist" but again it's song titles like "Exorcism of the Exorcist" which don’t cut it for me, it’s a two dimensional and too cartoonish, like the band is trying to hard to demonstrate how true to their thrash roots they are.
I want to be clear; I’m not trying to purposely bash this band but “Crooked Mirror” is far from a must buy from this critic. Like I said, musically they rip, there’s no argument there. I think with the right vocals and better songwriting skills PANDEMIC could be a serious force to be reckoned with. Right now they aren’t. But don’t just take my word for it, you be the judge. “Crooked Mirror” is currently streaming on YouTube. Check it out there and make up your own mind. But me? It’s a no go.