Search - F5 :: Drug for All Seasons

Excellent But Obscure Modern Rock

Joel Israel | Cedar City, UT United States | 03/23/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"F5 is probably one of the better modern rock/metal albums of the past few years, but was not much more than a blip on the music scene's radar. Most people (myself included) probably purchased this album to find out what erstwhile Megadeth bassist Dave Ellefson has been up to since quitting Megadeth, a band whose sound he had helped define since it's inception.



Unfortunately, Ellefson's playing is not only subdued on this album, but placed low in the mix. Fortunately, what this disc delivers is a solid platter of meat & potatoes modern rock/metal which is quite an enjoyable listen, with cool riffs, great vocals, and dynamic, grooving songs. I actually have found this album in heavy rotation lately. Sure, it's not exactly breaking ground, but it's not trying to. I found this album's sound somewhat like a combination of the guitar on James La Brie's solo project, "Elements Of Persuasion" and the vocal style of Filter. A cool album....check it out!"

Best Underdog Band of 2006?

David Johnson | 11/24/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Chances are the only reason anyone's heard of this band is because they were wondering where 'the other Dave' went after his abrupt exit from Megadeth. This band retains a bit of MD's aggression, but is very modern, and the byword here is melody. With the possible exception of 'What I Am' (a quasi-Limp Bizkit rehash), every song here is a keeper - nothing earth-shattering, but very, very solid. Memorable choruses (lacking a bit of background vocals usually) and great musicianship. The album flows well, the vocalist/lyricist does a great job, and the whole thing just has a cool, driving, heavy vibe to it. Recommended for fans of Godsmack, Disturbed, Jon Corabi (Scream, Motley Crue), and Lynam. But with better songs. Can't wait to see what the future holds for these guys (hopefully some more exposure!)."

Nu metal from Dave Ellefson?

Brent E. Johnson | Naches, WA | 03/07/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This really caught me by surprise. I saw Ellefson was in the group and assumed it would have thrash/speed tendencies. Think again. This is pretty much a nu metal style album. There are some thrashy riffs at points but overall they stay away from old school metal.

These are mostly straight ahead rockers that don't stray too far from each other. Song 3 has a cool melodic intro and song 9 flirts with a brief metalcore breakdown in the middle. Vocally the singer is almost a cross of Mike Howe era Metal Church and Scott Stapp. Some of the guitars hearken to Creed's heavier stuff in fact. May be the first time I've thought Metal Church and Creed in the same music.

Though I'm not a huge nu metal fan I do like some of it, and the musicianship here is high quality. Except song 6. Edie Brickell? Don't do it!"