What is it about France that has allowed it to turn out some of the more interesting music I have listened to lately? Just check out the likes of Gojira and Hypno5e (and their side project A Backwards Glance on a Travel Road) if you don't believe me. Now we have My Own Private Alaska, a three-piece that channels experimental metal through a bizarre, alternative jazz trio. Well, at least that is my take on it. There is something strangely beautiful and simultaneously off-putting about this free-form trio.
My Own Private Alaska was recently signed to Ross Robinson's (Korn) label and the band recorded their debut release, Amen, with Robinson as producer. The album is a fascinatingly dark excursion into original music. While there is the feeling of screamo and death metal, there is also a classical and jazz element that cannot be denied. Think of someone like Underoath crossed with The Dresden Dolls with a dash of classical music stylings and you will approach something akin to My Own Private Alaska.
The more I listen to Amen, the more I am entranced by it. However, I cannot say that I love it. It is definitely intriguing and the more I listen the more I think I like it. If nothing else, these three musicians know how to create a crossover sound that is like nothing else out there. All too often a band tries to get clever and start crisscrossing genres in an effort to be original when they actually begin to sound like everything else again. Everything comes full circle, you know? It really takes some forward thinking to take you outside of the box if you want to create something genuinely unique.
This is a dark album. Once you are sucked in, there is no escape as you will be held captive to its ebb and flow. The music delivers a broad dynamic range from gorgeous piano passages to frenetic sequences that truly mess with the mind. Even more impressive is that it's all created with piano, drums, and voice. There are no guitars nor bass to be found.
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