Alpha
Alpha, the latest outing from this veteran act is both good and maddening. Good because many of the riffs and the songs to which they are affixed are driven by an element of boogie––for lack of a better term––too often absent from contemporary metal. Maddening because the group often cops out and trades in original and challenging ideas for the expected mid-song freak outs that will no doubt send listeners over the brink once the band takes the stage but do little but inspire passive listening in the current setting. As good as Sevendust may be on the stage, this is the studio and they owe it to listeners to create an experience that will last them a lifetime. A few more risks and less of an allegiance to brute force may serve this band well as it does in the more subtle moments of "Deathstar" and "Driven." ––Jedd Beaudoin