Southforty - Power of Words
by James

Southforty garnered a lot of my respect for being one of the few rap/metal acts that I truly enjoyed. Their intelligence and dark tone really stood out from the pack of pimprock bullshit bands that had overtaken the rap/metal scene. With their second full-length effort, Power of Words, they have gone to even greater lengths to distance themselves from the Limp Bizkits and Salivas of the world. The rap element has been all but dropped from their sound and melody has become a very big part of the vocal mix. They are still the same band that they were on These Days, but the approach has changed, a little.

Of course, any time a band tries something new, there are going to be some hits and misses. I can honestly say that the hits on this record outweigh the misses, though. Vocalist Kyle Cermak's scream is far more lethal now, than it was a year ago, and the addition of Guitarist Beaux Dyson's guttural backing vocals up the intensity of the heavy sections of the album tenfold. Musically, they have picked up the pace a bit from the slower, crawling sound of These Days, giving them a much better overall groove. The only real misses, in my humble opinion, are in the overall production of the album and some of the melodic areas. The production is not so bad that you cannot enjoy this album, fully, but it feels slightly muffled compared to the raw production of These Days. The only fault I find in the melodic vocals is that, in a few parts, they completely kill the overall intensity the rest of the track has. Still, I would say even the melodic parts hit more often than they miss.

One thing that has not mellowed, though, is the intelligence and insight of Kyle's lyrics. If anything, he stepped it up a bit, tackling issues like religion on Simian and God or molestation on Down Syndrome. That is refreshing, because Kyle's words have always been what kept me listening to Southforty's music. Too many bands out there are trying to be Maynard James Keenan and write "deep" lyrics that end up making little to no sense. Southforty put together songs that are easy to relate to and identify with, though.

Overall, I have to say, while I was expecting a lot more out of Power of Words, it is still a good album. I applaud Southforty for having the balls to try some new things with their music, because it illustrates a desire to grow as a band. I just wish they could record an album that captures the intensity of their live show.