SimpLe hail from the MA. area scene and it shows, bringing a ballsy groove laden metal fused with full tilt hard rock that is fortified with caustic hardcore and metal overtones, the music they create is nothing short of powerful. The band can at times remind of Godsmack or Staind and even a bit of Pantera but no comparison can lay a solid claim to the bands sound. The group seeps out pulsing melodies with thundering drum beats, spastic basslines which switch from slap and pop to the standard metal bag of tricks and rampant guitar work which all flow under acerbic screams and bridled emotional verses. It's interesting to hear a band take a very headstrong metal approach and integrate elements of off time basslines that aren't exactly funk or jazz and wire them in with a constantly heavy progressive song structure. Vocally lyrics are steadfast, with Keith being the main vocalist and backing vocals provided by both guitarist Ray and bassist J-Bone there's alot of environmental contrast between the pitches and tones they use and with a steadily changing forefront to the music it definitely keeps it liquefied. There's hints of System Of A Down styled ramblings, gravel gargling Pantera flavored howls and then your more Earth Crisis reminiscent aggression laced verse screaming. One thing to note is the vocals always seem agitated and low, and in turn the constant grinding aggression that they exude darkens the whole feel of the CD. With three vocalists, it's hard to vividly describe the whole playing field the group covers but it is in the very least a trait the band puts to good use. Guitar's are fairly straight forward with jagged riffs that switch on and off and a bit of experimentation and good use of scales. There's a bit of shrill effect drenched atmosphere provided by ringing tones but the bulk of the songs are filled with steady repeating riffs. The odd part about the band is the fact that the guitars seem to be overshadowed by all the other instruments which in turn makes for a unique styling. Without the guitar in the spotlight, a very percussive mid range sound takes place and in effect gives the band a notch of innovation above most other groups. Bass is surprisingly experimental for a band who play this style of music, lightly downtuned slapping and popping and spiraling mildly jazz influenced basslines that can run off into a controlled syncopated guitar riff or flow downstream into the vast free reign of slides and off key patterns are things that J-Bone does well on this CD. Drums are very visible in the music, and also very thunderous, a bit of a low tuning gives the drum work a very reverberated feel and almost leaves the listeners head pound after a floor tom hit. Standout tracks would be Smother'd which features an evolving song structure that starts out with a moderate tempo and then progresses into something that would be best described as riding on a dilapidated merry go round that slowly builds up going faster and faster until the visions of chaos and fear are all that the listener can see while the song pounds into a full on assault of musical rage. Another stand out track is Ritalin which features a violently exhaustive riff that sweats pure adrenaline backed by a restrained slap and pop bassline, thunderous drums and a transcending vocal that starts off mildly chaotic and siphons into a tight dead on attack of intense loud music. There's a few faults to the CD, but all in all they are very trivial, a few that should be noted are that the band overemphasizes the drawn out growls and screams and focuses more on the anger than the melodic parts, although it's an energy the band brings on it's still good to have a few breathing spaces in the climax of the song structure instead of constantly filling them with growls and other primal vocals. Another thing that is kind of a disappointment is the band shows a good deal of experimentation but at the same time it feels very restrained, and with the talent their buzzing it seems almost tragic to not let the band just explore whatever they want instead of always winding the track back into a heavy corrosive bridge and outro. Still the band is extremely talented and impressive and it's rare for a genuinely heavy band that isn't shy of dabbling in various different areas to emerge and deftly extend themselves in their music, let alone manage to keep it all tightly packed in a song structure akin to a nailbomb that's on the verge of exploding. SimpLe represent an evolution of a gritty hard rock sound melded with metal and hardcore elements that can honestly keep the listener interested. They have the skills and talent and right direction,it just might take a bit more time of growth to hit the stretch of road that is a bit smoother so they can really bring their music and all elements of it through at a full throttle speed. The band shows an impressive amount of dedication and unity to the independent scene and actually preview tracks of some other up and coming bands in their radio dial scanning intro and outro's that cap off both ends of the CD. The band is truly a hot up and comer in the metal/hard rock scene that has recently been thrust into the spotlight by Staind and Godsmack, but while those bands bring about more commercial melodies SimpLe instead veers off into the unlit tunnel bringing a much heavier dark version of the style and yet do it with the digestibility of both mentioned bands. The talent is there and the key elements are in place, It only seems like now the largest stepping stone left for the band is to get their music into the right hands, which unfortunately for them and all the other great up and coming bands, is not that simple.