HIGHLY SUSPECT: Mcid (ALTERNATIVE ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

In the ruthless world of music, few bands manage to make a place for themselves in the sun. Between the mainstream always heard on the radio and the underground that want to stay hidden (by definition), is there a way to exist and be heard? Highly Suspect is between these two poles: not mainstream enough to be programmed on the (European) radio waves but not underground enough to benefit from this "label". And for good reason: among all this easy listening, the band has managed for years to get several Grammy Award nominations without being able to win one.

"MCID" is the third album of the band which continues to progress in its writing. Highly Suspect is a kind of melting pot of all that America has to offer in terms of music. Not totally alternative rock, not totally hip hop, not totally grunge or electro, the band is all at once while succeeding of being coherent. In this album, the band goes further in this experimentation by colouring it in a more electro way like in 'Fly' which welcomes the listener in a surprising way for a rock album, with notably robotic voice effects.

But Highly Suspect always puts things straight with the melancholy that characterizes it, personalized by the catharsis writing of its singer, Johnny Stevens, whose work is remarkable. '16' is the symbol of this, telling a love story that ends badly on a modern rock and electro melody draped in almost celestial choruses. And even if this numerical orientation is disconcerting, you'll be surprised to appreciate it.

The melodic research remains at the centre of the concept of the American combo which is enriched by a new member in the person of Matt Kofos as second guitarist whose riffs are wreaking havoc in a 'Canals' more complex than it seems. The band doesn't forget their rock ambitions as in 'Upperdrugs' where the guitars are highlighted, or their typically American addiction to songwriting in the very touching 'Arizona' folk with its strings that enhance the sentimental melodic line.

The band offers surprising featurings like with Gojira and a 'SOS' that starts out very metal and then moderates in its development after its opening rage. Highly Suspect adapts to its guests: hip hop with The Young Thug ('Tokyo Ghoul'), or power ballad rock with Nothing But Thieves ('@teddybear'). These tracks demonstrate the wide musical spectrum of the Americans, which goes beyond subversive rock and grunge with a surprisingly open mind.

Constructed as a kind of playlist that corresponds to the air of the time, zapping from one style to the other so as not to tire, this new album might seem incoherent when it's quite the opposite. Highly Suspect has found the recipe to mix the genres and get the best out of it in a "MCID" which is the most beautiful testimony of it. - Official website

HIGHLY SUSPECT

MCID

AUTRE LABEL

ALTERNATIVE ROCK