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Band:Shakra Album:Infected Record Company:Locomotive USA Writer: Mark Carras Media: MySpace Click Album Cover To Buy Now

For a band that got most of their press due to the video "Chains Of Temptation" where singer Matt Fox is shown giving himself a heroine injection, I was not too excited about this band to be honest. Heroine pisses me off to no end and band's that flaunt it's use should be smacked up side the head for being such retards. That kind of stupidity makes me loose a shitload of respect for a band! Despite that I have to say that the band is damn good. If I only judge the band by the music alone I have to admit they do have some great songs. Singer Mark Fox has a nice gritty sound while still maintaining a range. With a good producer I think he has the potential to mixx it up enough to bring this band an international level.

The band does have a few good hooks that could create a hit on American radio given the right push. I could totally see the song "Playing With Fire" being used in some video game or major motion picture and becoming one of those hit songs that is played to the level of annoyance. That being said, it is my least favorite song on the cd. It's just too pop friendly. "Dance With Madness" still has hit single written all over it, but for some reason I like it. It has this perfect balance between pop sensibilities and heavy rock grit. He also doesn't repeat himself near as much, so that could be why I like it more as well. "Love Will Find A Way" is one that will get all the women swooning, but shouldn't turn away too many of the guys. It's a ballad without sounding too "emo". Now since Mark doesn't sound like a whiny little bitch he can forget about the song being played at the end of a WB show, but maybe something else will get the song exposed to a better audience? Now although Mark does keep a great range throughout the cd, a little bit more versatility would make the band an unstoppable force. After just a few songs he starts to sound too much the same all the time. He has tons of potential and with just a little bit of help from the right producer I think this band would explode to the level Guns And Roses were at in the early 90's. Ok, that and getting on the next Guitar Hero video game might help too, but at this point everyone wants to be on that thing. Ask the band Dragonforce why if you don't know.

So did this Rock My Monkey? Yes! Will I listen to it again? Probably, but it might be in my wife's car more than my infamous PDA. I like it, but the wife seems to like it even more. She's a sucker for hard rock done with pop hooks and a catchy chorus. So if you see some crazy woman in Olympia Washington driving a red Kia Rio while banging her head to this cd, get me some video. I know she does this when I'm not looking and I need proof!

Band:Shakra Album:Infected Record Company:Locomotive USA Writer: Mark Carras Media: MySpace Click Album Cover To Buy Now

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