Sheesh! For a while there, it sounded like every Podunk guitarist half-wit and his tractor-driving brother were intent on aping Seattle sludgemeisters Pearl Jam. Even the English were nicking PJ licks (try as we might, can... more » we truly forget Bush?). Orlando, Florida's Seven Mary Three--guilty as Vedder-voiced charged--seem to have gotten the cease-and-desist message. Their third outing finds frontman Jason Ross skewing off on several nongrunge tangents. Even his singing has grown more emotive and enunciated, moving away from the mawkish Vedder-ish murmur found on the early hit "Cumbersome." Tellingly, every time the grunge ghost surfaces here ("Peel," "Hang On"), the song sinks out of sight. But each time Ross and company test their aesthetic limits (the soulful "Chasing You," the Skynyrd-styled "Joliet," the alterna-peppy "Super-Related"), SM3's stock spirals up, up, up. Which clarifies the whole point of influences anyway: you're supposed to glean what you can from them and move on. Seven Mary Three seem to have learned that lesson. --Tom Lanham« less
Sheesh! For a while there, it sounded like every Podunk guitarist half-wit and his tractor-driving brother were intent on aping Seattle sludgemeisters Pearl Jam. Even the English were nicking PJ licks (try as we might, can we truly forget Bush?). Orlando, Florida's Seven Mary Three--guilty as Vedder-voiced charged--seem to have gotten the cease-and-desist message. Their third outing finds frontman Jason Ross skewing off on several nongrunge tangents. Even his singing has grown more emotive and enunciated, moving away from the mawkish Vedder-ish murmur found on the early hit "Cumbersome." Tellingly, every time the grunge ghost surfaces here ("Peel," "Hang On"), the song sinks out of sight. But each time Ross and company test their aesthetic limits (the soulful "Chasing You," the Skynyrd-styled "Joliet," the alterna-peppy "Super-Related"), SM3's stock spirals up, up, up. Which clarifies the whole point of influences anyway: you're supposed to glean what you can from them and move on. Seven Mary Three seem to have learned that lesson. --Tom Lanham
"I really can't stand seeing so many people so closed minded. All they can say is, "the singer sounds like eddie vedder". If that's the case then you could say a firebird looks like a corvette. Only a novice music lover would say such things. They both do a growling vocals,? so what, it's just a style of singing. Then I guess nirvava sounds like offspring, and all the other grunge bands, and all the 80's bands? What I am getting at is, it's just a style of singing. So I don't know why people have to be so quick to label. I don't know a single 7m3 fan that can honesly say Ross sounds like vedder!Ok, now that I have that off my chest, my review! The album is a bit different. Popish yes. Basically their first album was full of anger, second was pain and love, slower more melodical. and this album is more of them kicking back, having fun, trying new things, more of a happy album. Like a peace with themselves. It is a bit different, and at first I didn't like it too much. But a real fan will appreciate this album. I think it just shows how much talen hey have. They can play all these different kinds of music and still sound great! Basically if you like a bit of a more upbeat poppish "let's kick back" kind of sound/album check this out. It really is worth listening to."
Florida Band Keeps Growing
Clay Garrett | Texas | 04/15/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"After dropping anything that resembles Pearl Jam on their sophomore effort "Rock Crown" Seven Mary Three cranks up the tempo and distortion a bit on "Orange Ave." Jason Ross's vocals are more restrained in this record than the hit album "American Standard" and guitarist Jason Pollock proves he can lay down some real lead work on his final record with the band. "Orange Ave." features the best three-song stretch of any 7M3 record to this point. "Over Your Shoulder" is the best song Ross and company have written, "Chasing You" is a solid mid-tempo track, and "Each Little Mystery" is a unique radio-ready ballad that unfortunately never caught on. Ross's voice is outstanding on the slow paced "Southwestern State" and Ross and Pollack show how far they have come as guitar players and musicians on "Joliet". "Flagship Eleanor" is also and overlooked gem.You're never going to hear "American Standard" from 7M3 again and that's a good thing because they are so much better than that."
Proving Them All Wrong...
ted | Tulsa, OK | 07/19/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Everyone said that 7M3's lead singer sounds "just like Eddie Vedder". This one proves anyone who said that to be absolutely wrong. His voice, far more pure than Vedder's, shines clearly on tracks like "Southwestern State". Everyone said that they sound just like all the other "alterna-grunge" bands. 7M3 has once again distanced themselves from the pack in terms of lyrical depth and sheer rockability. This album doesn't even sound like their previous two, let alone anyone else's stuff. Yep, everyone was wrong about these guys. Everyone except those who said that they are the best act in their genre."
Better than horrific....
Marcus T. Brody | Tampa Bay, FL | 08/01/2008
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Orange Ave. is better than horrific, but less than bad, if you catch my drift. :) This album is an awkward, dis-jointed record from beginning to end. From what was written about the album by Jason Ross, there was a lot of turmoil in the band during the recording, and as a result, they put out a pretty bad stinker. With that said, I gave it 2 stars because there are actually a few good songs, "Hang On" is my favorite song on the CD. "Flagship Eleanor" is also good, and "Peel" is a very good song. I wasn't big on the first and only release "Over Your Shoulder", and never will be. All in all, I'd give it 2.5 stars out of 5, but certainly not 3, so I'll stick with 2."
Why is this band not played more?
wysimdnwyg | Nashville, TN USA | 04/03/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This album has an outstanding mix of styles and shows where this band can go when allowed to perform the way THEY want. Rock Crown, while good, was IMO, unfinished. It left something to be desired, both with many of the individual tracks and as an album. Orange Avenue, on the other hand, brought 7M3 back up to the level of their first offering, American Standard. On A.S., the band was making the most of the grunge sound ("Cumbersome", "My My"), but not without displaying their individuality on songs like "Margaret" and "Roderigo". On O.A., they seem to have left most of the grunge sound in the past, but retained enough to keep this album rocking with songs like "Peel", "Hang On" and "Over Your Shoulder". Where 7M3 really shines on this album, though, is when they tone it down a little with tracks like "Joliet" and my personal favorite, "Each Little Mystery". With the exception of "In Between" (Ross' attempt at rapping leaves much to be desired, and the yelling by the band leading into the chorus is worse), every song on O.A. is excellent. Even the hidden track, "(Don't Let Me) Talk to You Like That", is a keeper.Will this album turn into a classic, destined to be in everyone's collection? Doubtful. But it SHOULD be."