Incubus' Light Grenades Album Review

Light Grenades
Incubus.
United States: Epic Records, p2006.

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Like a fine wine, mature is the word which best describes the sound on Incubus' new album titled Light Grenades. Unlike that same fine wine, mature isn't always better especially coming from a band known for its diverse musical styles. Incubus was always one of those bands that were difficult to define and put a label on, and that was what made them special. Their mix of hip/funk/rap/metal tones always made them sound unique. Bands like 311 or Red Hot Chili Peppers are easier to label, which I like to call funk rock. That said, Light Grenades is a very different album than their previous releases, in some ways good and in some ways not so good.

First the good. There are some really great tracks on this album, most notably 'Anna Molly' and in particular, 'Dig'. 'Dig' is a track which sounds like Incubus' attempt to break top 40 commercial status. The lyrics are quality as Brandon Boyd melodically sings out "If I turn into another, dig me up from under what is covering the better part of me! Sing this song. Remind me that we'll always have each other when everything else is gone". The hook, verses, and chorus really invite and draw one into the song. The album also starts out rockin' heavy with 'Quicksand' which is basically an intro for 'A Kiss To Send Us Off'. The track 'Pendulous Threads' is probably the most typical sounding of their previous work.

Now the not so good. The entire second half of the album is almost forgettable. It almost seems as if the creative fuse just burned out halfway through the writing phase. The wild and chaotic title track Light Grenades is sandwiched between two ballad-like tracks in 'Love Hurts' and 'Earth to Bella Part 1'. The theme of this album seems to be love, or the lack thereof. The album almost feels too somber as if someone in the band really had their heart crushed recently.

Mature, Light Grenades is. Incubus' best album, it is not. They are showing that they are a career band and in it for the long haul (after all they have been together since 1991 minus a couple of roster changes), but they have diverged so far from what made them the great band they once were. They have progressed into a more mature sounding band, and that's the problem. Light Grenades is a decent album, but Make Yourself and Morning View are classic sounding Incubus albums, and are better.