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For years, fans have watched Static-X trudge past the classic Wisconsin Death Trip up through various soundtrack spots, from Queen Of The Damned to Punisher: War Zone — yet after all this time, their style has hardly changed. However, to be fair, this mainstream industrial behemoth has maintained some credit, adding more textures to their music without disrupting the intent, which was always to make people essentially lose their minds. Heads continue to roll with the group’s sixth album, Cult of Static, but not in the way these Californians intended.
Simply put, Cult of Static is a mess. The handful of mistakes here resemble a band that threw things together without thinking too far ahead. They dare to be different though, but it’s less daring and moreover unfortunate.
In place of gut busters like “Fix” or crash course, hit singles like “Dirthouse” are sappy dedications, a soundtrack inclusion (“Lunatic” from Punisher: War Zone) and songs that, for the most part, feel like stati…I mean, useless noise of Ring-like proportions. It’s not just the music to blame, either. Lyrically, Static and Co. have always held at least some fraction of depth, yet these songs feel hollow and rather cheated. So, where did it all go wrong?
Things got “personal.”
Between 2007 and 2009, frontman Wayne Static managed to court the sensational former porn star Tera Wray, who gave up her career at the time they started dating (gee, thanks Wayne!). In honor of their established relationship, there are two tracks here, “Stingwray” and “Terafied” (a nod to Oscar Wilde?), that most definitely draw inspiration from the new flame. While keeping it real and personal isn’t something entirely new for the band (e.g. the Ostego songs?), these inclusions come off rather, well, tepid.
Anyone who attended 2007’s Ozzfest might know that Static-X is not a bad band. Together they create some engaging music, and two years later the heart ripping solos of Cannibal still come to mind. Yet Cult of Static is an utter disappointment, and partly because it seems more like a Wayne Static solo effort, and an extremely distracted one to boot (I wonder why). What happened exactly between getting some action and the songwriting involved here remains a mystery, but in the end it’s nothing one monstrosity of a tour can’t fix. In a sense, that seems to be the case with a lot of acts in their league these days.
Better luck next time, Static.
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TAGGED AS: Static X
comments (9)
As a long time Static-X fan… I couldn’t agree more. Cannibal was an outstanding album and something new from Static-X. Cult of Static is trash, and I also had a rousing suspicion that it’s due to Wayne’s personal life post-Ozzfest 2007.
Be it a darker tone or not, I just feel like this is less for the fans and more for Wayne Static personally. Agreed that the Mustaine partnership is pretty cool on its own, the song he appears on still feels slightly thrown together.
While there are noticeable changes to SOME extent in the Static-X catalog (Shadow Zone and Cult of Static), you might just as well call this a Wayne Static solo outing.
I’m not asking that the band rehashes Wisconsin Death Trip because then they would sound stale and dated. What I am saying is that if a band chooses to highlight a new direction, that they should do it with a bit more finesse.
Cult of Static is a reference of thanks to the devoted followers and fans that have supported the band’s efforts to get them where they are today. The first track, “Lunatic,” was released on the Punisher: War Zone soundtrack, and then re-recorded for this album to feature a guitar solo from Megadeth icon Dave Mustaine. The solo seems just slightly thrown in just because they had Mustaine’s partnership (and it sort of was judging how Wayne Static described it in a Headbanger’s Blog interview), but it’s cool nonetheless.
Cult of Static is also somewhat of a symbolic pennant of Wayne Static’s new flame, Tera Wray, former adult film star. Not only is her name in song titles, but she appears to be featured on the artwork front cover – both Wray and Static pose as a crowd of clones of themselves. The first single, “Stingwray,” is really the only song that’s classic Static-X, so it’s no surprise this was the first choice.
That said, the rest of the album is where the direction changes. Not only are the songs darker than before (the band had their blinkers on in Cannibal, but just didn’t make the turn), but they run longer with an epic atmosphere. “Tera-Fied” at over five minutes is the epitome of this including solemn, mysterious synthesizers. With mystifying loops and sounds, intense piston-pumping riffs, “meedley meedley” guitar solos, and powerful, gritty vocals, the “evil disco” sound we strive for is here but with a darker tinge. Static-X have certainly had different sounds over the course of a decade, and Cult of Static remains to differ from anything they’ve done, but it’s all gravy.
this review stinks… this album is very good. 8/10.
shame to david buchanani agree… but who said all reviews have to be good and positive?
See, the thing is that not even CoS believes that this is good music. Look at the rating they gave this album and the Papa Roach album they reviewed last week.
Mikey, you’re still with Citibank or should I direct to your BoA account?
Nathan, all music is subject to (and deserves) review and opinion, for better or worse. “These reviews” are exactly what sets CoS apart from the countless other blogs printing the exact same news and reviews day in and day out. The fact they take a chance and listen to things most other blogs would write off just reflects the open-mindedness I’ve come to expect from this staff. Plus, if reviews of “this genre” bring in new readers and get them interested in better bands, I’m all the more for it.
(CoS, I’ll expect my check in the mail!)
Why? Why? Why? with these reviews…Papa Roach..Static X… I’m not asking indie hipster bands, I’m just wondering why you guys focus on this genre so much.
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