Customer Reviews

Fears in the Water

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With clever lyrics in the vein of Shirley Manson, belting out from a voice reminiscent of old skool Gwen Stefani, Vincent Black Shadow sets the stage for rejuvenation of femme fatale scene, definitely holding their own. To compare the range of uniqueness encountered on the debut, "Fears In The Water," to anything else, would not give due justice to the sonic innovation that theVBS has brought to table. However, Vincent Black Shadow's sound could inadequately be summed up as a shot of No Doubt, a jigger of JackOfJillness, a splash of Garbage, shaken over some 1940's cabaret, and topped with a healthy amount of good ol' dark dementedness. On a personal note, this is one of the few albums I can listen to from start to end, without the bothersome need to skip from track to track, which to me is the mark of brilliant musical talent.

This album is deceptively good. I mean that by the fact that it's easy to forget the significance of everything that's going on during the course of "Fears In The Water" and get lost in the groove and sing-along quality of it all.

The hooky riffs and over-all catchiness do not get lost by the continuous hodgepodge of styles, which range from gothic to cabaret to ska to whatever they feel like at the time. I'm especially partial the eerie keyboard parts sprinkled liberally throughout the mix in almost every song. There are definitely some young skilled song craftsman at work here, who manage to maintain a very fresh perspective. And despite the creativity and original method found commonly on "Fears In The Water" it's extremely safe to say `The Vincent Black Shadow' never loose grip of their pop sensibilities or their ear for what actually sounds good and accessible...

...The obvious drawback from this however is that they have a tendency to stroll dangerously close to being too repetitive for their own good, at least by my tastes. And regardless of it's seemingly repetitiveness, it's never boring. And besides that, really the only thing that's stopping me from giving this album the full 5 stars is the way it doesn`t exactly flow "perfectly" from song to song throughout the entire course of the album.

Apart from the mere musical perspective, there is some serious songwriting and amazing singing going on here. Cassandra Ford has a voice that will get you to shut up and pay attention even if you're not partial to her style. Admittedly it takes myself quite a few listens before I really start to relate and really connect to it's emotional content but `The Vincent Black Shadow' don't make it too difficult with the kind of word play and themes they use to get, and hold, your attention.

Fear's in the Water is a fun alternative act propelled by frontwoman Cassandra Ford's Gwen Stefani-esque vocals and the band's new wave cabaret sound. The first single, Metro, is the band at it's jivin' best, though one would never know it wasn't some lost track from Tragic Kingdom era No Doubt. Bullet on the Tracks sounds like Gwen-meets-The Lovemakers; but in spite of at times obvious sources of inspiration Fear's in the Water still has fun and, as a side note, looks damn good doing it.

Reminds me of No Doubt crossed with Garbage. This album is slick & tight with good hooks that stick in your head & make you want to hear the album again. Lead singer has a nice voice also. A Band to watch.

Cassandra Ford has got a great voice, and she shows it in this album. Its a really upbeat and fun album to sing a long with... songs that will get stuck in your head for sure. If you havent already, check out Chris Kirkham's (bassist of TVBS) band, Nim Vind. He's got a great voice too. Stand out tracks: Metro, Control, Surgery, Fear's In The Water.

I heard one song from this group and I really liked it but over the years I have learned to wait for at least two good songs. This way you will not be stuff with a "one hit wonder" CD.

Sure she has a Gwen Stefani like voice but is that enough?

This CD was as good as I expected and better. I suggest it to anyone into Goth Metal such as Lacuna Coil, or people into rock/pop like Gwen Stefan/No Doubt.

I used to listen to this album a lot. It's really good, and the lady singer has a great voice.

Everyone has picked up on the No Doubt/Garbage twist but few have brought in the obvious - to me at least - third piece of the puzzle. The Brian Setzer Orchestra. There are some distinctive 40's themes reminiscent of Brian Setzer (or the Squirrel Nut Zippers or any other band of similar style) in there.

The House of Tasteful Men sounds like a song written by Garbage and sung by Gwen Stefani fronting Brian Setzer's band. Not a combination I would have ever suggested but quite impressive here.

Fair warning - when searching Amazon for The Vincent Black Shadow you will also get hits for Vincent Black Shadow (sans The). Specifically, there are two CDs (Vincent Black Shadow and More Deeper) that are NOT by this band. Fans of The Vincent Black Shadow's Fear's In The Water will probably not like Vincent Black Shadow's More Deeper and fans of the More Deeper Vincent Black Shadow will probably not like the Fear's In The Water The Vincent Black Shadow. Pay attention to whether or not "The" precedes Vincent Black Shadow and make sure you're buying a CD by the band that you, yourself, like.

it's eerie how similar vocalist cassandra ford is to gwen stefani. for all of those people who have given up hope on ever hearing great no doubt again, here's an album that will give your "tragic kingdom" album a rest... trust me, this album is worth it. this band is going to be huge...

I bought this for my husband because he couldn't get "Metro" out of his head and after I listened to it I liked it. The singer sounds similar Gwen Stefani way back when.... but not too much.