Panama's Cage9 is comprised of Evan Rodaniche (singer/rhythm guitarist), Gustavo Aued (bass), Pipo Canton (drums), and Jesse Belz (lead guitar). This bunch of brash youngsters play an upbeat brand of alternative rock with little doses of metal and prog thrown in for good measure. Their Hispanic background also comes through in the music, adding that extra element to their sound. Make no mistake about it, Cage9 know how to write catchy songs, as there's radio potential all over El Motivo. Rodaniche's vocals literally soar throughout this CD, especially on songs like "Further From the Truth", "Ice to Eskimoz", and "A Last Lullabye", and the guitar work is extremely textured here, with the band throwing in all sorts of textures and tones, reminding of a mix of styles that would include bands like U2, Rush, and The Police. Some keyboards add a little atmosphere on a few of the tracks, and coupled with the dexterious guitar work, give things a slight progressive feel. When the band gets serious, as they do on the excellent "Dead Letter", the music takes on a dark yet melodic feel, and when they decide to get more aggressive and complex, like on "My Doppelganger", they really impress with their instrumental talents. Of course, there are a few Green Day-like moments where things start to sound all too familiar, but for the most part this is very promising material, and when they thrown in their native influences (check out the Spanish styled guitar and drums on "Four Lead Clover") things really work. Apparently this album is also available in Spanish, which would be really fun to check out.
Track Listing
1 Ice To Eskimoz
2 Hollywood Car Crash
3 Hearts And Scars
4 A Last Lullabye
5 Further From The Truth
6 Dead Letter
7 My Doppelganger
8 Breaking Me Down
9 Octopussy
10 My Darling
11 Four Leaf Clover
12 Wasting Away
13 El Motivo--->