song of the day: march 5/2011

Handsome - Ride Down

Album: Handsome [1997]

when five pieces from the splintered membership of hardcore's most influential '90s outfits came together, handsome was formed and the songwriting, textural, and creative limits of an entire genre of rock music were expanded to a previously unimaginable degree. at its center, handsome was directed by former helmet guitarist peter mengede. while not officially credited as the group's songwriter, mengede's very identifiable riffs and song structures seem to be a musical basis for handsome's music. ex-quicksand guitarist tom capone also had a significant impact on handsome's tight yet exotic hardcore grind. "handsome" was released in february of 1997 and was met with general confusion due to epic's marketing of the group via their historic punk lineage. the record was indeed aggressive but much more melodic and balanced than any helmet release. the angular hardcore textures and critical lyrics are present, but these elements along with some progressive songwriting and almost pop melodies are tightly packaged in dense but shimmering new metal production that calls to mind the likes of deftones and white zombie. handsome was really creating a real new metal of their very own that relied on traditional punk and metal architecture and the very distinct vocals of jeremy chatelain. churning, almost surgical guitar riffs, shifting time signatures and a rock-steady rhythm section help to make this collection of songs stand out. the album delivers a distinctive hybrid that is complex and interesting, particularly when the band shifts effortlessly from one hook filled section to the next and satisfies people who are looking for an intelligible yet hard(core) alternative. the group supported the release by touring with silverchair on their first tour, then touring with the likes less than jake, the descendants and even the wu tang clan. capone quit the band before the final tour was finished and handsome officially disbanded in 1998. the advent of a more pronounced corporate influence on the music business and the dramatically reduced cost of music production created a difficult situation in the '90s. simply put, practically anyone and everyone was making records. the amount of new artists getting signed and tossed against the proverbial wall was staggering and created an immensely competitive commercial environment that led to many great bands not receiving more than one chance to prove their viability. the resulting pressure on labels and artists had a huge cost. the lack of support and development available to talented and original band's like handsome probably cost these groups their career (and fans of '90s rock the opportunity to enjoy many great records that were never made).

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