You Asked For It: Serious Side Effects

Serious Side EffectsMay Include:(self-released)Grade: DDemonstrating even a small affinity for a band as roundly despised as Limp Bizkit takes some balls. Sure, Fred and the boys sold a gazillion records, but even the unhippest guy in the Valley -- I picture him as baggy-jeaned dude inking Chinese letter tattoos at...

By Martin Cizmar

June 30, 2009

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Serious Side Effects
May Include:
(self-released)

Grade: D

Demonstrating even a small affinity for a band as roundly despised as Limp Bizkit takes some balls. Sure, Fred and the boys sold a gazillion records, but even the unhippest guy in the Valley -- I picture him as baggy-jeaned dude inking Chinese letter tattoos at a plaza-bound shop in Avondale -- knows history has, thus far, been cruel to the band and the nu-metal movement they championed. So, yes, showing the Jacksonville rap-rock group has had any influence on you is pretty much suicidal. But straight up ripping them off, as Serious Side Effects does? Well, shit, I don't even know what to say about that.

Unholy Roller - Serious Side E...

It's bad enough that "Unhly Roller," the first song on SSE's EP May Include: starts off with snarled vocals that are obviously (ahem) influenced heavily by Layne Stanley, but the refrain, which is ostensibly the song's title, is spoken like "Rolli' Rolla" in the same tone and cadence as the Biz's international smash "Rollin' (Air Raid Vehicle)." Given that, I'm not sure how the band expected me, or anyone else, to take the rest of their record seriously, but I tried. Thankfully, it's not as awful, which is why they got a "D" instead of an "F."

The good points: "Operation" has a nice breakdown near the end, and "Hammerhead" starts out with a scorching off-time riff. Then you get to "Ballz" -- spelled with a "Z," in a way we might imagine would delight Durst himself. Seriously, guys? After that, it's hard for me to justify typing another word about this band.

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