Corporate line:
“Season of Poison” is the highly anticipated sophomore album from Shiny Toy Guns. The album is the follow up to their critically acclaimed Grammy nominated debut record “We Are Pilots” which was released in 2006. The band spent the better half of 2 years on and off the road progressing their dance/rock and electronic roots. Once again producing the album by themselves, founding members Chad Petree (vocals, guitar) and Jeremy Dawson (synthesizer, bass) used 2008 technology to marry dynamic late-70’s style synthesizer programming with face-erasing stoner rock; gently spreading this over layer upon layer of ethnic and tribal rhythms. Not to mention their keen pop sense in lyrics and arrangement have collided with the legendary mixing abilities of super-engineer Andy Wallace to create a completely new color in the future-forward musical spectrum. The first single off of Season Of Poison is “Ricochet”, a heavy rhythmic guitar laden song already being heard on radio stations across the nation.
“Season of Poison” marks an evolution for the band not only sonically but in the band dynamics as well. Sisely Treasure from the band Cooler Kids replaced departed vocalist Carah Faye Charnow who left the group this past summer to pursue other interests. Dawson explains, “We moved forward with our initial choice for co-lead singer of the band in 2002, longtime friend Sisely Treasure. At that time she was still locked into her Dreamworks Records deal with her former project Cooler Kids and we were not able to professionally move forward with her. So we have returned to the exact original idea and lineup that Shiny Toy Guns was meant to be.” With a new singer who is also now a writing partner to Petree and Dawson, Treasure brings in whole new complimentary perspective to the band. The result is a hard rocking, groove shaking album that will appeal to die hard Shiny Toy Guns fans and new ones alike.
The mercurial foursome (which also includes Mikey Martin on drums), has been described as everything from ‘glam-goth-new wave-chic’ to ‘electronic mash-up with a dance floor destroyer,’ thanks to their riveting breakthrough single “Le Disko” which topped the charts in 2006. The playful dance-anthem permeated radio and clubs, was featured in advertisements for Motorola and Apple and was a single of the week on iTunes’ playlist. The band also was a “MTVU Freshman Five Artists for Fall 2006” as well as a MTV and MTV2 Discover and Download artist. They appeared on several television shows such as The Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Kimmel Live. The positive attention and legendary live shows led to an incredible accolade for the band, a Grammy nomination for Best Dance Album this past year.
The good:
“When Did This Storm Begin” – Interesting in parts but not necessary as a whole. Sisely’s attempt at vocal toughness leaves a lot to be desired.
“Money For That” – One track that doesn’t let fans down.
“It Became A Lie On You” – This is the one song that will have you listening over and over again.
The rest:
“Ghost Town” – Compared to the first two tracks this is completely ridiculous. Sisely’s contribution lacks any power.
“Frozen Ocean” – Painful.
“Ricochet!” – I’m sorry, but any song that appears to feature Sisely never holds up against Chad Petree vocal tracks. They sound hollow and weak no matter how tough Sisely tries to sound edgy.
Finally:
Sadly “Season of Poison” is mostly unremarkable. There are a lot of good ideas but some that miss entirely. The addition of Sisely Treasure hurts more than it helps Shiny Toy Guns. The tracks where she appears are the least interesting and devoid of any substance.
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