Daily CD Review: "Splinter" - The Offspring ...Smooth Criminal

Alright. Thanks to extreme boredom and lack of other activity in my life, I've decided to create something that I like to call... "Daily CD Review." The title is self-explanatory.

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"Splinter" - The Offspring / Average customer rating on Amazon.com: 4 out of 5 stars (based on 87 total reviews).

REVIEW: To be perfectly honest, this was the first Offspring I've ever purchased. And it did not disappoint. It's fast music with catchy tunes and lead singer Dexter Holland carries the band beautifully with his (high) voice fitting in perfectly with the rest of the band. Offspring really knows what they're doing.

Probably the biggest letdown of the CD, overall, was its length. All in all, the CD clocks in at 32:04 which is just a little over a half hours worth of music. But the 12 tracks plug right along and, honestly, makes the CD feel like its going by quicker then it really is. Sitting here listening to it, the CD will often be over before I realize it had started. Memorable tracks, in my opinion, are:

The Noose - Track 2 - There is a nice, slow introduction that quickly picks up speed and volume in the verses and then explodes into a chorus that you will have stuck in your head for days.

Hit That - Track 4 - The single from the CD, that you've probably heard on the radio or seen the music video to MTV. It's a good song but I think 'The Noose' would have been more fitting as a single. An electronically placed sound on top of a drum beat for the choruses, then bringing the guitars back in heavy for the chorus.

Lightning Rod - Track 9 - An odd that consists of an electronically placed noiced on top of an echo guitar distortion, with Dexter singing over it... that breaks into the usual fast-paced, catchy tune. I especially love this song for it's semi-choppy chorus with awesome guitar / drum arrangement and Dexter's awesome singing.

NON-memorable tracks, in my opinion, are...

Neocon - Track 1 - This isn't really a song and basically serves as an introduction to the CD. On a CD this short, I much rather would've had the band place an actual, complete song here.

When You're In Prison - Track 12 - The last song on the CD which has an old 30's feel with odd electronic distortion to make the singers voice sound farther away and a static sound purposely added in the background to make it sound old. While the lyrics had me chuckling the first time, it was hard to listen to a second time.

FINAL THOUGHTS: This is a solid CD. Looking at other reviews, it's not the strongest effort that Offspring has come out with. If that's the case, I'll be racing to buy other CDs as soon as possible. "Splinter" is filled with catchy tunes that get stuck in my head and I don't really mind that they do. I'll be listening to this over and over for a good long time. Who cares if it's only a half hour long? Quality over quantity, my friend.

NOTE: This CD carries a Parental Advisory sticker for strong language. All the cusswords are contained to one song, mostly, but there are some other things that parents might have problems with. Haha.

See you tomorrow.



....Smooth Criminal

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