SR-71's "Tomorrow": loud and droning, but sometimes catchy

When I first listened to "Tomorrow," the new release of Baltimore natives SR-71, I was greatly disappointed. What happened to the energetic, upbeat, more musical style of SR-71's first album I knew and loved? According to their press material, "Tomorrow" is "heavy yet melodic, urgent yet introspective." The description is half right: it's heavy but missing excitement, and impatient without purpose. The first sentence of my review was "'Tomorrow' is your standard loud, droning alt-rock album."

Then I listened to the album a few more times, and actually started to like it.

SR-71's first album, "Now You See Inside," which certified gold in 2000, was a huge success for the previously small time local group. Fans of that album may have a bit of trouble adjusting to this new one, however, as "Now You See Inside" was overall more upbeat and more melodic than "Tomorrow." Songs from their first album, such as "Right Now," "Politically Correct," and "Last Man on the Moon," were musically energized. No song on "Tomorrow" comes close to the rocking beat and riff of "Right Now."

Almost every song on "Tomorrow" follows the same formula: a near-whispered verse with soft strumming followed by a screaming chorus with blasting drums and power chords galore. Most of these songs are nothing worth listening to a second time. The catchy verse of "Goodbye" is overrun by its loud chorus, and the distracting guitar of "Hello Hello" comes with a sing-song refrain that's more annoying than musical.

Nevertheless, the depressing tone grows on you.

And some of the loud, droning songs aren't all bad. The first track, "They All Fall Down," has a strong beat, catchy techno licks, and controlled volume that make it a keeper.

The title track, "Tomorrow," supposedly has an uplifting message. "I'm not afraid of tomorrow," lead singer Mitch Allan sings, but his anguished voice and the haunting instrumentation (by which I mean loud and droning, of course) convey a far more depressed tone than the explicit message.

Another noteworthy song is "Truth," a somewhat angry, somewhat mournful song about September 11. It's also a pretty good song, although it fails to convey a meaningful message about the tragedy.

The fast-paced "She Was Dead," track seven, stands out from the more dreary songs of "Tomorrow." In my opinion, it should have been one of the first tracks on this CD. The omnipresent dull throb is replaced with a simple rocking beat. Allan's voice isn't put through the weird voice-filter, he just delivers a breathless barrage. "She Was Dead" captures some of that relationship rage seen in SR-71's original hit, "Right Now." In fact, the bridge of "She Was Dead" refers back to "Right Now" with the line, "Already told her she's Miss Right Now / But I wish she was Miss Yesterday." (The chorus of "Right Now" ended with "I know she may not be Miss Right but she'll do right now").

The band has a new drummer for this album, John Allen. The press kit claims Allen adds a new level of energy to the band, but his influence isn't nearly as strong as the producer who turned up the volume and reverb on the guitar and turned up the distortion on the vocals.

"Tomorrow" may disappoint some fans of SR-71's original album. If you're willing to forgo a bit of melody and tone, or if you're a fan of the loud buzzing chorus, you'll probably find more enjoyment from "Tomorrow."

SR-71 will play at the 9:30 club on Friday, Dec 20. For more information on upcoming music events, go to the Silver Chips Online weekend section.