Originally written by Jason Jordan.
I was way off on this. I know it’s not good to judge a band by their name, but I thought I’d be getting something like Genghis Tron because End of Level Boss appears to be a videogame term, and older videogame music usually consists of electronica and simple-yet-inviting melodies. It was hazy logic, so naturally I found myself listening to Prologue – a whole different animal. In spite of my moronic thought processes, I still didn’t enjoy the album as much as I’d prefer to, especially when factoring in the virtually uncountable amount of quality releases I’ve heard this year.
Contrary to the stoner rock label, which is what End of Level Boss have loosely drifted into, I couldn’t help but notice the early ‘90’s, Seattle influence emanating from Prologue. Maybe it’s Armstrong with his Cornell-esque (Audioslave, ex-Soundgarden) vocals that have cursed me with the chore of likening the band to purveyors from the Seattle scene. It’s not so much that Armstrong sounds like Cornell, no, it’s that Armstrong possesses similar delivery nuances. And, there’s no way in hell that I’m further expounding upon that. So, whereas the opening tune “Freak Waves” is barefaced, “Disjointhead” is livelier and breaches jam band territory during its ten minutes in the spotlight. The quirkiest – and most attractive – passages found on Prologue conjured instrumentalists Trephine, which is never a bad thing.
As End of Level Boss would have it, the remainder of the debut rarely veers from any style or sound that hasn’t already been mentioned. For one, the correspondence to the grunge acts, a decade-plus old, was what predominantly irked me to the point of exhaustion. Whether or not my assertions are based on fact(s), it still doesn’t change anything. In addition, the quartet are kind of derivative when it comes to the style, song length, and their approach to each.
Even though I misfired when I tried to ascertain End of Level Boss’ sound simply based on their pseudonym, Prologue didn’t treat me poorly. The latter just left me unfulfilled and a tad confused due to the band’s slight lack of direction. I won’t be wading in this release ever again, probably, but I namedropped a couple of groups (hint: GENGHIS TRON and TREPHINE) that can be quite unlike this particular gang of musicians, though they do share traits at times…except for GT. Listen to them.
