Metric has 'Old World' style
By Jeff Renfro
Metric's debut, "Old World Underground, Where Are You Now?" is a mix of post-punk guitars and danceable beats. The album is full of catchy hooks that relay a staunch anti-war message. The political agenda set forth by the lyrics is a constant on the album.
The band members (Emily Haines, James Shaw, Josh Winstead, and Joules Scott-Key) hail from all over the world. Haines, the band's lead singer, met the members in her travels. The band eventually came together in Toronto, where they have been attracting attention from their live shows, and more recently, for their music video for "Combat Baby."
The album kicks off with the aggressive "I.O.U." The first sound is a buzzsaw guitar that offsets Haines' soft, feminine voice. A drumbeat enters that sounds more like a metronome than a human player. The fast pace of the song slows down for the delivery of the chorus, which features the lines, "Every ten-year old enemy soldier/ thinks falling bombs are shooting stars sometimes/ But she doesn't make wishes on them." As these lyrics illustrate, Metric attempts to fight the dehumanizing aspects of war and convey that real human casualties are a result of our current military campaign.
The band turns its critical eye toward the media on the new single, "Succexy." The track begins with a guitar riff that ignores melody and just creates a syncopated rhythm. The song continues to go on in this fashion, with Haines delivering her lyrics in a disaffected drawl. The song features the lyrics, "All we do is talk, static split screens/ As the Homeland plans enemies/ Invasion's so succexy/ So succexy."
The album's standout track is the lead single, "Combat Baby." The song's video has garnered as much attention for the band as the catchy hook. The video features a claymation Haines driving a tank through a war zone. The song is a call for an organized resistance against the evils of the world. Featuring the great line, "Ever since you have been gone it's all/ caffeine free/ faux punk fatigues." The track features a drum machine backing, and a guitar part that would sound at home on a Joy Division song. As always, the soft voice of Haines offsets the darkness of the music and the heaviness of the lyrics.
The only weak point of the album is the song "Calculation Theme." It rehashes old lyrical themes and the music sounds like the band was too tired or bored to make a completed product.
"Old World-" is a strong debut. Musically, the album features catchy hooks that will be stuck in the listener's head for days. Lyrically, the band gives everyone something to think about.
Grade: B+
Contact Jeff Renfro at (408) 554-4546 or jrenfro@scu.edu.