Today, another review I wrote is on the site, about a group called XBXRX. It's a short review of an album which I found to be of poor quality. In my original write-up, I had a bit about a chimpanzee. It was amusing, I assure you. At least, I thought it was. The chimp was even named Bubbles. Who could refuse the kind of ensuing hilarity simply inherent in the situation? True, it wasn't incredibly innovative, especially given the name of the chimp. But it was an enjoyable read. And yet, my editor felt it was forced. Apparently, that kind of humor doesn't come naturally to me.

Now, I trust other people when it comes to my own writing. People aren't their own best editors. It seems to take a lot of effort to pull off a comedy bit about a chimp. It's not very original, but it now makes me respect the kind of people who can write that kind of joke and get a chuckle out of me. This realization is similar to one I had about music a long time ago: there's a lot of enjoyable music out there, but there's even more music that sucks. And much of the enjoyable music would be considered "unoriginal" or "not innovative." But I forget sometimes that it really does take a type of talent, or at least a certain knowledge, to make enjoyable music, even on a stylistic path which has been crossed by so many others. Their effort impresses me.

Philadelphia's Burning Brides are no exception to this rule. Their brand of aggressive, distorted, rawk-out rock is the kind that can be easily found in your local record store under MC5, the Stooges, Frank Black, Blue Oyster Cult, or sometimes even Metallica. But on Fall of the Plastic Empire, the group proves they aren't just going through the motions. They maintain the cocky attitude and swagger of a British '70s garage-rock group while loading the record with enough actual good songs to keep the distinctly American band from being just a novelty.

Singer/guitarist Dmitri Coats certainly adds to the group's undeniable appeal. He has a sense for meaty, loud riffs that don't overpower you, but rather, urge you to rock along with them. And yet, in the midst of such a thick distortion stew, pure pop hooks, melodies and harmonies shine through. Granted, the moments that veer too close to heavy metal territory are probably the record's weakest, and the otherwise strong closer and title track features an all-too-familiar driving, screaming chorus found too often in groups like Godsmack or Disturbed. But even these moments can enhance the album's charm when not taken too seriously.

Because on top of it all, it's the slight tongue-in-cheek moments that make Fall of the Plastic Empire work best. The cheeky spoken-word announcement break that comes in the midst of the swinging hard rock of "If I'm a Man" adds a kind of droll self-awareness to the mix that similar groups can't seem to use effectively. Coats' humorous asides and in-jokes seem to follow through on the perceived goal of relating to his listeners.

Yet, the Burning Brides' entire existence still seems to be based entirely on rocking a crowd's ass, even if the crowd is only one person and the venue is a set of headphones. The delicate balance between such light-hearted sentiment, catchy melody and a serious dedication to rock is admirable. And I can't help but respect the fact they probably didn't have an editor to help it all work out. I have to be happy with myself that I came up with such an interesting parallel between chimp jokes and music. And with only minimal editing.

-Spencer Owen