October 16, 2001 - Invitation To The Dance

A week after my last release and over two years since their debut "Side Show Freaks", 40 Below Summer released their second album "Invitation To The Dance" on October 16, 2001. Jordan Plingos has moved from bass to lead guitarist and Hector Graziani joins as their new bassist to make things a five-piece. This is 40 Below Summer's first album on a major label and they were recruited by Slipknot's label No Name because percussionist Shawn "Clown" Crahan liked them so much! That's pretty cool! Let's check out the latest!

The album kicks off with "We The People" and it's got a pretty catchy and groovy main riff with some cool drums by Carlos Aguilar, some nice heavy guitars by Plingos and Joey D'Amico and some solid vocals my Max Illidge. Illidge sings for thr most part, but he mixes in some nice screams and things sound pretty sweet in the verse and chorus. They don't stray far from the main riff, but it's cool enough that I don't mind and it's a good choice for the opener as it gets the blood flowing and the head banging. Up next is "Rope" and Graziani starts us off with a cool bass riff before the guitars come in with another cool and heavy main riff. Illidge sings a solid verse that matches the groovy mood and in the chorus he does a great job once again of mixing in some well-timed, heavy screams. After another round they briefly quiet things down, only to explode into a nice heavy riff with Illidge's vocals sounding very distorted but pretty interesting. They predictably wrap things up but this easily another pretty cool tune. Track 3 is "Still Life" and it's got another pretty solid main riff with some cool stop-and-start heavy guitars and a solid rhythm section by Graziani and Aguilar. It's another typical 40 Below Summer vibe and Illidge really seems to have nailed this mostly singing but occasionally screaming. There's a pretty cool faster part midway through with Illidge spitting out some fast vocals in some cool nu-metal for sure! No let-up so far, another solid song! The next track is "Wither Away" and the mood finally slows down a bit with an acoustic opening that leads into a solid hard rock main riff, but hard rock is pretty tame for these guys and it's certainly more accessible and less metal. Plingos plays some creepy and cool guitar and Illidge sounds pretty good singing a softer verse and chorus. There's a brief heavy part that sounds good, then they segue pretty nicely to an acoustic chorus before closing things out with a couple loud choruses. A softer one, but still good. Track 5 is "Step Into The Sideshow" and it is, by far, my favourite song by 40 Below Summer. Words don't do proper justice to some really great nu-metal with lots of cool guitars and bass, a groovy and catchy rhythm section, and lots of great fast singing and screaming from Illidge. The whole middle section is so perfectly done, the slow down to nothing, only to emerge into a fantastic breakdown and a super fast and heavy finish. What a fantastic song! Up next is "Falling Down" and they jump right into another heavy riff with some cool bass, some sweet heavy guitars and some ferocious screaming by Illidge from the get-go! They move into a super catchy main riff that is both bouncy and heavy and sounds pretty cool, then the chorus breaks down into a slower and spacier riff that sounds interesting even though it's not as heavy. I guess that's what the great heavy verse is for! After another round they break away to a space-y new riff that is alright, but it goes on for way too long with not that much happening, a weird thing for this album! I loved the verse but the experimentation wasn't the best. Track 7 is "Smile Electric" and they dive right into another cool main riff (words are starting to lose meaning, but it really is another heavy and cool riff) led by some heavy guitars and Illidge sounds great singing and screaming quickly overtop. They distort his voice for a cool and trippy effect on the way into the chorus, and it's a catchy and heavy chorus and Illidge sounds great here as well. They don't stray far from the verse and chorus on this shorter song, but things sound pretty sweet to me! The next track is "Rejection" and Graziani plays a creepy bass riff that drives the verse while the guitars add some other creepy noises. Illidge sings slowly and creepily to match the mood and things pick up nicely in the chorus with some nice screams by Illidge and some cool stop-and-start music on guitar and drums. There's a nice heavier riff after the chorus, then they hit reset and do it all again. The creepy vibes are well done and they combine ot with their typical heaviness very nicely on this song. Track 9 is "Power Tool" and it's got a softer main riff with a quieter lead guitar riff and Graziani playing some cool bass in the background. Illidge sings a soft verse to match and the chorus is pretty pop-y and simple with some louder guitars, but they are super slow and simple and Illidge sings a pretty pop-y verse too. After the next round they shift to a heavier and more typical riff that sounds pretty good, then it's back to the simple chorus. They do this a couple more times, but this is one of the lesser songs on the album for me. The end fades into the next song "Drown" and it sounds like someone taking a bong hit, before they start up another slow guitar riff. Graziani plays some pretty wicked bass in this slow but groovy main riff, Aguilar has lots of good drum fills, and the guitars are slow but heavy and solid. Illidge sings with no screaming and things sound very smooth, groovy and cool. It's not a true headbanger, but they really nail things with lots of groovy stuff. Track 11 is "Minus One" and they're finally back to some faster stuff with another great main riff. Lots of groovy and cool guitars and Illidge sounds awesome holding lots of long screams mixed with some spitfire singing in a pretty wicked vocal performance in the verse and chorus. They quote things down for a second, only to wonderfully explode back in and for a two and a half minute song, this was pretty sweet! The final song on the album is "Jonesin'" and Aguilar plays a cool drum beat as the guitars and bass fade in and eventually culminate in a nice heavy main riff that is also pretty catchy! They have a great balance on this song of being accessible, but still their trademark style of heavy and Illidge rides the line as well with some pop-y singing, but also some great screams! Towards the end things even devolve into an acoustic version of the main riff, and it sounds pretty good too! A pretty solid way to wrap up the album.

That is the end of "Invitation To The Dance" and I thought it was a pretty sweet album! 40 Below Summer are just full of catchy and heavy riffs on this album and while there were one or two slower and simpler songs, most of them were more than good and "Step Into The Sideshow" is a nu-metal masterpiece. I think it's easily better than their debut album and I can't wait to see where 40 Below Summer go from here!