Darwin's Waiting Room have now officially graduated from their native Florida scene to the big leagues with this, their MCA debut. At present, their name may not be familiar but the vocals of one of the bands two frontmen, Grimm, might be, as he has appeared on the latest CD by fellow Florida area act, Nonpoint, on the track, "The Tribute". This has turned out to be a fitting match indeed, as there are more than a few similarities between the two acts, but where Nonpoint tend to delve into more traditional metal structures, Darwin's Waiting Room instead prefer to launch into rapcore tinged assaults, sounding like a mix of (hed)p.e., Sugar Ray, Linkin Park and older Incubus.

With two different singers both fronting the band, the vocal portion of the disc is dynamic and encompassing as the contrasting tones and styles consistently crisscross each other, dizzying the listener with swift verbal dexterity. However, rather than saturate the songs or drown each other out, a firm division of roles is implemented with Jabe grabbing hold of the melodic reins with his emphatic Brandon Boyd of Incubus styled crooning and tuneful wails while the edgy and gritty fast paced raps complete with ferocious screams akin to M.C.U.D. of (hed)p.e. are left in the capable hands of Grimm. Using interesting time structures, the guitar work relies mainly upon punchy new metal riffs and effect laced harmonic swells that bring to mind the likes of 311 and "S.C.I.E.N.C.E." era Incubus. Perhaps influenced by the aforementioned acts, the bass playing can also sound a bit familiar, as catchy looming riffs and slap and pop funk with the occasional effect tinged tap styled part make their way into the mix, adding a certain buoyancy to the songs, which for the most part tend to speed forth at an intriguingly rigid pace. Drum wise, the album is filled with booming beats that take a bit of a backseat with shades of hip-hop styled production, leaving their steady array of splashes and muffled snare hits to serve more as a foundation for the rest of the band to build upon, rather than anxiously vie for the listeners attention.

There's no doubt that the pairing or rap metal and funk has already been extensively done, but Darwin's Waiting Room thankfully have enough defining qualities to set them apart from the bulk of the current copycat crop. One of the first few things that instantly springs to mind is the overall aggressive feel of the album, avoiding the near candy coated feel good music route to instead indulge in a darker, more heavier direction. Another is the competent musicianship, which although does highly bring to mind earlier Incubus, is still catchy and funky enough to get the listeners head thoroughly bobbing. But perhaps what truly saves them is the tendency to stray from the ever so typical song structures, leaning more towards progressive compositions with unexpected twists and breakdowns. Still, even with the music continually throwing curve balls, perhaps the biggest surprise included on this album comes in the form of a guest appearance from pop-reggae star Shaggy, who lends his vocal talents to the laid back, somewhat dancehall styled number, "Innosense". Admittedly, as a whole the effort doesn't necessarily offer anything that is entirely new or groundbreaking, but what it does offer is a rapmetal hybrid that is well executed and enjoyable, encouraging a cathartic release that is as hummable as it is grating. In the ends, its things like these which place this band miles ahead of the swarm of contrived/pretentious MTV rap-rock bands currently invading the airwaves and as such, this "Orphan" should easily be able to find more than a few happy homes.