Search - Driven :: Driven

Stoner Rock Revival

06/02/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Remember when Ozzy and Black Sabbath took dark grooves and melded it with mind-altering lyrics. Somewhere along the way, that sound fell to the wayside or the fringe as sounds (even the timeless ones) are wont to do. Grunge brought back the sound in a limited fashion. Then Kyuss and Monster Magnet emerged taking the cue from Soundgarden and Seattle that everyone wanted something heavy but groovy, and here we have Stoner Rock. True to the genre, Driven makes it happen. On their debut record, Driven takes the Marshall stack two axe-attack fashion of Fu Manchu and brings it toward the more hook heavy melodic standard established by Queens of the Stone Age. The infectious labyrinth evoking Circles starts the party and from there on out, it is 29 minutes pure groove with lyrics that give you something to think about like "Two-Faced"'s "take the time to think and you will notice something in your narrow world has changed." There's love (Forever on this Ride), masked hatred (Bitter Pill), psychedelic imagery (Circles), and matter-of-fact wisdom (Whats Done is Done). Overall, this album is great for partying, driving, banging, and all those things that take a dose of energy restrained by a little self-medication."