A fresh alternative

Split Shift enters mainstream hard rock with a bang. Its debut album, Tension, is creative but hardly unique. It follows a path laid by many bands before it by providing gut-wrenching grunge with slower lyrical passages. Tension opens well, tightly bound with an emotional soul, it releases fervor and sets the tone nicely. The album, at its core, is typified by songs with good compositions, fluid introductions and satisfying conclusions. The precision drums, solid bass line, ethereal guitars and vocals with the right touches added by keyboards drift into a darkly enchanted realm of sadness, confusion and angst providing an "alternative" to straightforward hard rock. \nHowever, it veers from the dreary wasteland of heavy metal in three of the last four tracks. "Intro" is a somber guitar trio not living up to the pioneering lyrical sounds of Metallica in the 1980's. After "Witness," a menacing song typical of the first two-thirds of the album, Split Shift incorporates punk rock. "Witness," is a fun, heavy number tailor-made for rocking house parties. Tension takes a surprising final twist as it concludes with "Outro," a soft emo instrumental with the poppy feel of a Weezer song.\nOverall, Split Shift breaks few boundaries providing another short but good hard rock album with a softer side.