Taipei Metal

Review: Audio Blossom - 1st Faust

Korea’s Audio Blossom play a mix of classic metal and rock that harkens back to the late 70s and early 80s. It’s got a little bit of that Thin Lizzy groove and some definite glam scene influence from the likes of W.A.S.P., especially on the gritty vocals. In fact, until some online fact checking was done, upon listening to the first few tracks on 1st Faust, this reviewer was convinced that vocalist Hye Jon Son was a man. However, the fact that the English name given for the singer is Lydia, and that it explicitly states “female” beside that name on the band’s Myspace page, would suggest otherwise.

For the CD’s first three songs, Hye is channeling pure Blackie Lawless. It isn’t until the fourth song, “Singing Bird,” a slow, somber acoustic number, that it is at all apparent that one is listing to a woman on vocals. The disc then moves into “Human Nature,” which smacks of 80s era Dio if Cinderella’s Tom Keifer was filling in, crossed with the slightly nasal, gravelly quality of Alice Cooper. It’s an unmistakably 80s sound, with huge, simple metal riffs, letting the chords ring out and travel towards the ear drum like a brick wall on a slow-moving conveyor belt. The instrumental “Rock Move” follows with a Maiden-style bass line similar to that on “Run to the Hills.” On “My Song” the vocalist once again goes back to her sweet sounding clean tone, which is not especially strong. It’s a little wispy, but forlorn in an oddly compelling way. The imperfection makes it unique. It seems more real and honest, though in this reviewer’s opinion it would be better to stick with her dirtier style of singing. Guitarist Adam Park plays the song like a power ballad, but it’s missing the powerful, over-the-top vocal delivery, as Hye’s clean range seems a little limited.

It isn’t until the last track with vocals, “Run & Go Out,” as the very last song is an instrumental, that Hye tries to flex some vocal muscles with her clean range. It is not all that effective, but it is a good effort. Her style is definitely her own. It’s unapologetic, and delivered with fervor. Once again, one is left wondering why a disc of just 11 tracks has to include three instrumentals, and why the band chooses to end with one. A rock band would never end a show with an instrumental, so why end a CD that way? It just kills any momentum that may have been created. However, it should be noted that there are two bonus tracks that follow, Korean versions of “One-Sided” and “My Song,” so although it is a tad on the repetitive side, this does something to make up for this seemingly odd choice of track listing. Then again, other bands from Asia seem to have done the same, so perhaps this is an Asian tendency—a cultural difference. If you want to take a musical trip down memory lane, check out Audio Blossom, and get back to the roots of metal before things really got heavy.