2008 Woodie Awards
Seymour Glass shatters
Andrea McPhee
Issue date: 10/7/04 Section: Arts and Entertainment
Note to self: don't buy Seymour Glass' debut album. Released on 456 Entertainment on Aug. 24, the band's first record, Note to Self, is generic, over-produced and just a little bit boring.
In 2002, Carson Daly, of MTV's Total Request Live and NBC's Last Call, teamed up with Jonathan Rifkind, vice president of Loud Records, to form 456 Entertainment.
According to the label's Web site, "The goal of 456 Entertainment is to find and develop fresh, dynamic, and talented artists."
Rock group Seymour Glass was the first band Daly and Rifkind signed to their label. And, boy, does Seymour Glass scream "I'm Carson Daly's baby!"
The band, reigning from Staten Island, N.Y., consists of Artie Kitchen (vocals), Steve Pepe (guitar), Sal Guanti, (drums) and the classically trained pianist James Frederico, (bass and piano). They recently performed at The Middle East club in Cambridge.
Seymour Glass, much like Daly himself, is a well-planned marketing product aimed at teenyboppers and hailed to be "the next big thing."
Don't get me wrong now, Seymour Glass' Web site is impressive, with an animated video of cars zooming through dark city scenes, while the bands' music blares in the background. Unfortunately for them though, this isn't a review about the Web site.
What Seymour Glass lacks is real talent and a genuine sound.
Credit is due to Frederico's amazing piano playing, which adds a light, poppy feel and gives a glimpse of what the band could do with such an interesting talent. But clichéd lyrics, such as "You just let me burn / I didn't even think you'd notice / But you watch me come apart / Ohh, that's who you are? I'm all confused," on the song "Abrasion Uncommon," bog the CD down.
Track 1, "Hypervent," starts with an electronic, pounding drumbeat, which is broken up by the light patter of a pinging piano in the background. However, boredom sets in by the time Kitchen's screechy vocals pop in and the formulaic lyrics that are present in every song start.
The band got their name from the troubled title character in J.D. Salinger's short story "Seymour: An Introduction." They obviously attempt to convey a heavy and serious tone with their lyrics and instruments. But I fear that the 10 months of tampering that went into the production of Note to Self ruined any real emotion that may have possibly been conveyed to an audience.
Overall, we've heard this band before; they are Creed, Hoobastank, Adema, and Papa Roach, only not as good.
In 2002, Carson Daly, of MTV's Total Request Live and NBC's Last Call, teamed up with Jonathan Rifkind, vice president of Loud Records, to form 456 Entertainment.
According to the label's Web site, "The goal of 456 Entertainment is to find and develop fresh, dynamic, and talented artists."
Rock group Seymour Glass was the first band Daly and Rifkind signed to their label. And, boy, does Seymour Glass scream "I'm Carson Daly's baby!"
The band, reigning from Staten Island, N.Y., consists of Artie Kitchen (vocals), Steve Pepe (guitar), Sal Guanti, (drums) and the classically trained pianist James Frederico, (bass and piano). They recently performed at The Middle East club in Cambridge.
Seymour Glass, much like Daly himself, is a well-planned marketing product aimed at teenyboppers and hailed to be "the next big thing."
Don't get me wrong now, Seymour Glass' Web site is impressive, with an animated video of cars zooming through dark city scenes, while the bands' music blares in the background. Unfortunately for them though, this isn't a review about the Web site.
What Seymour Glass lacks is real talent and a genuine sound.
Credit is due to Frederico's amazing piano playing, which adds a light, poppy feel and gives a glimpse of what the band could do with such an interesting talent. But clichéd lyrics, such as "You just let me burn / I didn't even think you'd notice / But you watch me come apart / Ohh, that's who you are? I'm all confused," on the song "Abrasion Uncommon," bog the CD down.
Track 1, "Hypervent," starts with an electronic, pounding drumbeat, which is broken up by the light patter of a pinging piano in the background. However, boredom sets in by the time Kitchen's screechy vocals pop in and the formulaic lyrics that are present in every song start.
The band got their name from the troubled title character in J.D. Salinger's short story "Seymour: An Introduction." They obviously attempt to convey a heavy and serious tone with their lyrics and instruments. But I fear that the 10 months of tampering that went into the production of Note to Self ruined any real emotion that may have possibly been conveyed to an audience.
Overall, we've heard this band before; they are Creed, Hoobastank, Adema, and Papa Roach, only not as good.