Customer Reviews

Cul-De-Sac

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Thank you XM Satellite Radio for playing Monsters by V Shape Mind, because in New York City there is no FM rock station currently that would dare.

I heard Monsters and said "that sounds a bit like Mudvayne...but better". On this particular track, the music seemed not only "more driving" (and less chaotic) than Mudvayne, but the singer never launched into that growling shout that too many Nu Metal bands seem to think is alluring.

So I bought the CD on Amazon, and what I received was a welcome delight. The fist tune on the CD, Antithesis of Origami, has a great "driving" beat that also clearly let's you know that each of the musicians has a lot of talent. Tight melodic guitar, great but not over the top drumming. And the singing by Brad Hursh is smooth and hard (there's an oxymoron for ya!).

It's one of those CDs where you listen to the first few songs and think it can't possibly get better after the radio-played Monsters (track 3)...then along comes track 8 called Gravity.

So what are you doing still reading this? Jump up and hit the Buy button!

If guitars annoy you then you shouldn't listen to this cd. The band plays some mean, easy to listen to riffs that I find real catchy and appealing. The music contained is actually musical if not with a sort of gothic feel. It's not the headache pounding metal so many groups play, thank God. VSM kind of reminds me of the old Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream cd in that it's not aggressively sung but aggressively played at times. It's mellow rock music from the hearts of good musicians that no doubtedly spent some time writing their material. No rapping, no screaming, no wimpy stuff neither...so if you can live without those being in your music, you should find it easy to drift away by listening to V shape minds cool lyrics.

V Shape Mind is an amazing new band. This album completely rocks. The lead singer's voice is one of the most badass voices I have ever heard. He has one of those voices that you just hear and know it's him, kind of like Aaron Lewis of Staind, Lajon of Sevendust, Scooter of Cold, or Johnathan Davis of Korn. If I had to describe it, I would say he sounds mostly like Chad from Mudvayne but without the screaming. If you've heard Mudvayne's song "A World So Cold" (which is the greatest song ever IMO), the way Chad sings in that song is the way V Shape Mind sounds throughout this entire album. His voice just goes so great with the music. I would recommend this album to anyone who listens to bands like Sevendust, Element Eighty, Sloth, Mudvayne, Endo, etc. My favorite songs are Antithesis of Aragami, Glitches, Dangle, Peel the Rind, and the hidden track (which I'm calling "Let It Go").

01 - Antithesis of Aragami - 5/5
02 - Glitches - 5/5
03 - Monsters - 4/5
04 - Dangle - 5/5
05 - The Taste of Vinegar - 3/5
06 - Totally Different Head - 5/5
07 - Peel the Rind - 5/5
08 - Gravity - 3/5
09 - Brakecheck - 3/5
10 - Chameleon Wars - 5/5
11 - That Cool Refreshing Drink - 5/5
12 - Let It Go (Hidden Track) - 5/5

For rizzle, this is one of the best metal cds I've heard in a while. Its refreshing and doesn't sound like all the rest, but its still good metal. Brad Hursh has a very cool voice. Yeah, I thought "Monsters Under The Bed" was kind of silly lyrics, but that is one reason the song grew on me so. I loved when the radio would play this song. I found this cd at BestBuy one day and from then on I knew a little more about music. All these songs are really cool. Its the kinf of awesome cd you'd expect to be underpublicized because there aren't many bands that can compete with V Shape Mind talentwise.

An amazing debut album from a Midwest Band. The music is hard edged but the vocals are restrained and melodic. No thrash screaming or growling on this cd. Brad's lyrics are thoughtful and sometimes a little trippy but that's a nice change from the in your face lyrics of a lot of the 'new metal' bands of the last 5-6 years. Chad of Mudvayne guests on the single Monsters( he is a longtime friend of a couple of the players in VShape). These guys opened for Mudvayne on a US tour. They were amazing and could play live to back up the music from the studio.(A lot of young bands can't say the same). A shame that this came out just as the music business was tanking. They couldn't afford to buy the rights to the cd from Universal so they had to call it quits.

I bought this CD mainly because I was familiar with a few of the songs and I couldn't find them anywhere else. The music is ok but not amazing which is probably why the band is no longer together and why this was their only mainstream release. For the price, its worth buying but only if you've heard them before and you really truly like the music. If you've never heard the music on this CD before, or you don't know what you're getting into with this CD, don't bother. Shipping was quick enough to satisfy but could have been slightly faster.

The music itself is excellent, but the vocalist has an odd voice... It strangely reminds me of Kevin Palmer from Trust Company, just a little more on the raspy side.

However, I still dig the hell out of this CD!

V-Shape Mind is an excellent cd, and even though they do have a bit of a Mudvayne-ish quality to their music, they can stand alone on the strength of the songs on this album. Every track is solid. I couldn't find any that made me go, "UGH", and skip to the next. There are a few songs that really stand out, my personal favorite being "Dangle." "Monsters" kind of grows on you with a catchy beat and Chad Grey from Mudvayne on guest vocals.
If you dig songs by Mudvayne like "Happy?", "World So Cold", and "Forget to Remember", then it is likely you will be a fan of this. I haven't heard anything new about these guys in 4 years, so hopefully they are still around.

Nu Metal is a genre of music that tends to have very little originality as more and more bands keep jumping on the slowly fading fad. Though every now & then a band comes along in this genre that has more to offer then simplistic guitar riffs and harsh vocals. V Shape Mind was a band that stood out among the mass of Nu Metal look-a-likes combining heavy catchy riffs, fair drum playing and vocals in the stem of Mudvayne only a tad more melodic in spots. One could say that Cul-De-Sac has a form of Heavy yet Melodic approach rather than a bunch of Heavy Chaotic tracks that the Nu Metal genre is known for (mudvayne, slipknot etc..).

Every song is a keeper and the entire cd deserves a spin at least one full rotation of the tracks. Many of reviewers have said that the radio aired track Monsters has a hint of Mudvayne to it more so than the rest of the album, Well of course it does Mudvaynes vocalist Chad Gray is featured on the track. Thus the reason this track was released as a single instead of the others. I truly feel that 'Stand out Tracks' on this album are non existant as the entire album as a whole blends, But for those of you who are curious of my personal favorites here they are...

Antithesis of Origami
Monsters
Dangle
Gravity

and the "hidden track": E.L.T.

If you are a fan of Hard Rock or Metal bands with a more mellow/melodic side to them this album should be right up your alley. As for any Mudvayne fans I advise purchasing immediately cause as a Mudvayne fan I can admit that V Shape Mind are about as close to MVayne as you'll get. Fans of the harder/heavier metal genres (death,black,grind etc) probably wont be too interested in this unless you stray from your heavier roots from time to time.

Sadly this album marks the end of the band as they broke up in 05 playing there final show Thursday, May 6, 2005 at Lincoln Square Theater in their hometown of Decatur, Illinois. I encourage fans of this album to also check out the bands: Flaw, Endo, Revolution Smile & of course Mudvayne.

Thanks for taking the time to read my review, Please hit YES if my review helped you in the decision of purchasing Cul-De-Sac! Thanks again.

I bought this album because I am a fan of it's producer. Having not heard anything by the band before I was unsure of what to expect.... but was quickly won over. Brad's Hursh's voice is longtime overdue. I had almost forgotten how much i appreciate great vocals because it has been so long since I have heard anyone with a distinctive and intersting voice. Hursh's voice has the capacity to incite me and also to lull me to sleep. If he decided to become a cult leader I'm sure he'd have no problem recruiting followers. The instrumental side of the album is great as well. I'm a huge guitar guy and this album has a lot to offer there. The album has powerful guitar sounds accompanied by some funky little riffs. Excellent work for a first album. Those of you looking for a band that sounds like TOOL should wait for TOOL to put out a new album. Anyone who is interested in a great rock album with a lot of variety and unbelievable vocals should give this a shot. Good choice for Mainstation's first band, David.