Fuel
Angels and Devils
2007, Sony Records
rock, post-grunge
½
Fresh from their late 90s-early 2000 heyday with hit single “Hemmorage (In My Hands)”, the loss of lead singer Brett Scallions, rejection by American Idol fave Chris Daughtry, and a nationwide search for a new lead singer, Fuel returned in 2007 fronted by Toryn Green, who just happens to be a disturbingly nasal version of Brett Scallions (as if Scallions weren’t nasal enough). Was he a worthy choice for Fuel to make a ‘comeback’? Yes, and no.
Yes, because he is adequate for Fuel’s purposes. Fuel has never been a band of ingenuity or originality, and that is never clearer than it is in Angels and Devils. When required he can yell and mellow down with the best of them, and his voice is scratchy enough to give the band back its ‘rock cred.’
No, because he has added absolutely nothing new to this album or Fuel itself. I’d even go as far as accusing lead songwriter Carl Bell of lifting lyrics from previous Fuel albums if I could be bothered to search them. But this album is so beyond mediocre that I can’t even deem it a possible guilty pleasure. Not really worth a listen, and definitely not worth a buy.
“Again,” “Angels Take A Soul.”
myspace, last.fm
Three Days Grace’s One-X, Daughtry’s Daughtry
