Search - Papa Roach :: Paramour Sessions

Kenneth W. (Eyesore) from TAUNTON, MA
Reviewed on 12/4/2007...

Papa Roach has evolved since their early days. Their first few albums are harsher, heavier and noisier, but on songs like "Orange Drive Palms" you got a glimpse of what was to come: full-blown rap-rock. They fully embraced the mix of rap and rock on their 5 Tracks Deep EP, a style later perfected on Infest. At the height of the rapcore movement -- and in a move that went against mainstream logic -- they abandoned virtually all of the rap aspects on the follow-up, lovehatetragedy, and went straight for a more modern rock sound. The result was excellent! Getting Away With Murder further solidified this band as a great rock band even if their departure from the style of Infest steered them from the mainstream spotlight somewhat.

Far-out-of-the-spotlight bassist Tobin Esperance, surprisingly, has always been the main songwriter in Papa Roach, and on The Paramour Sessions he has followed the same path of modern alternative rock found on the last two albums, but this time he's added some new elements. "Forever" has, for possibly the first time, Jacoby Shaddix (who now looks like the mutant son of Nikki Sixx and Billie Joe Armstrong) truly singing, almost crooning, in a clean Jim Morrison-like vocal tone. He actually has a very good singing voice (he's used it sparingly in the past, but not so strongly). "Reckless" is an acoustic rocker, while "The Fire" is like a 70's rock track with a little Latin flavor. "Roses On My Grave" has Shaddix singing again and rockin' out over an all-orchestral backdrop! A great song, indeed. Songs like the catchy-as-hell "I Devise My Own Demise," "Alive ('N Out Of Control)," the electronic-tinged "Crash," and the lead-off single, "...To Be Loved" (featuring the album's only rapped verse during the breakdown), will immediately please fans of the band's previous two albums.

Website: http://www.paparoach.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/paparoach