Of course, I was prepared to hear something similar to AC/DC. I admit it. Since the Aussie monsters are not that eager to release any new album in the 21st century, I 'grimed' with joy seeing the title of this self-financed release. Yet, things turn out to be a little bit different. This album is surely for you, the Metallica follower.
Now info did I know for this quartet as soon as I got the CD for review. Their 'normal' site (www.maximum-overdrive.com) seems to be 'down' for awhile, plus less-than-zero data could I obtain from the WWW in general. The album was released in 2005 - as I can assume - and I have no fuckin' idea what's the band up to this specific period (the band's MySpace page was not that helpful, too).
For a start, the band flirts in strength with Metallica's deeds in the post-''Black Album- 90s. This means a) middle-pitched guitars, groovy rhythm section, fuzzy production and a-la Hetfield-meets-Ozzy vocal harmonies. However, this is not happening throughout the whole album. There were times I thought I was listening to some 80s US Metal band trying to be up-to-date with the country's current 'media' requirements, whereas at certain points some of Zakk Wylde's 'approach' was quiet obvious. Traces of Corrosion Of Conformity, Pantera and even Exodus are featured in here, also. Enough guitar leads are quite interesting due to their 'harmonic' reach while various riffs could easily be used in Stoner Rock songwriting. Confused? Me, too.
To simplify: Maximum Overdrive's effort is quite interesting, since the band deals equally with various sounds/styles mentioned above. Apart from this, no particular tune was capable of sticking in my mind after the audition was over. This may mean lack of specific scope? It may, I assure you. Still, it's worth the try - specifically if you're into 'whatever-they-'ve-done-is-cool' Metallica. Yeap!