Jackson Caged - Still Born

I really dig this band so check this out. This is a review of the five track EP Still Born by Jackson Caged.

I think the first track Sweet Revenge sounds like something out of The Matrix. It has distinct sounds which remind me of the movie. There is a vocal in the middle of the song which totally sets off the track. It has an awesome effect to it either a reverb or echo which is mastered in very well. The lead vocal is as follows: I'm thinking about how I'm going to kill ya sweet revenge etc.... The next track Still Born starts with an excellent guitar line. The beginning vocal also fits in well with the guitar line. This is one of the tracks that remind me of the band Disturbed. It has an excellent solo in it which isn't too extreme.

Playing it Blind is an excellent track. The vocals almost sound like it's an M.C. rapping. Haha. It starts out with a wicked guitar riff. It has an excellent guitar solo in it, which is more on the high end of the guitar. This song sounds very professional. Haunted is a slower track. The vocalist almost sounds like he is scared, which is well portrayed. He is putting his spirit into the song. I think my apartment is haunted so bear with me. The song picks up about two thirds the way through right before a nice break down. I think both of these elements make the song sound very good. Jaws starts out with a little guitar riff which sounds a little like punk but, when it drops into the track it turns out to be awesome. The song seems well structured. The verses by the vocalist are dope [that's good - Ed]. I think this track is the best out of the five.

I like this band a lot. Check out their myspace at myspace/jacksoncaged where you can listen to a few of the tracks.

Jackson Caged describe themselves as a hard working Rock and Roll band more than capable of taking over. When you listen to their latest EP you realise there is actually some foundation for such bold statements. When I reviewed their last EP (Jarhead) I commented that Jackson Caged didn't break the mould massively and needed to get out of their Heavy Metal comfort zone more... and they have. Combining classic rock, heavy metal, hip-hop with some soft melodies and spine tingling guitar solos in places, the boys have raised the benchmark with their latest demo.

Admittedly I’m not a massive metal fan but this CD did it for me, sounding much more polished, more experimental and unique this band are developing fast and all you metal-heads should start getting excited.

My favourite track on this demo would have to be Still Born, although the title creeps me out slightly, this track is in a similar vein to Darwinian on Jarhead (which was my favourite then). This track feels more minimalist than the rest of the demo and with trippy guitars, belting solo, immense drums & bass and melodic vocals it is by far the most unique on the EP. A definite winner!