Record Label: Wind-Up Records
Genre: Modern Rock
Band Link: link
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It pains me to say it, cuz I like the folks over at Wind-Up Records, but you know what to expect from them: Overproduced, commercialized nu-metal, the sort of stuff you’d hear on the Daredevil soundtrack. In fact, I think Wind-Up put that out too, come to think of it.

That said, Strata do have a different sound. They are modern rock in that nu-metally way – overproduced, thick guitars – but they’re not meathead-ish. They’re not quite college metal, but not quite indie either. They’ve also got effeminate vocals, rare to the field. At first I thought it was a chick singing, but my love of Rush has taught me the finer points of musical gender identification.

So this is modern rock, in an Evanescence sorta way, not so much song-minded as having multilayered everything in a thick casserole of hard rock. But they don’t have the toughness to make it tasty to those who like this kind of thing, so I’m not sure who this would appeal to, unless that’s the appeal.

It’s odd that I would criticize a band for not sucking the way I’d expect them to. But you have a certain idea of how slick nu-metal should sound, and Strata fall short of it by being better and smarter. But I still do fault them for being in a crappy genre, and I urge them to listen to more Rush. Rush is the Way.

Bottom Line: A more sensitive overly-produced nu-metal that I don’t know who would like.
Notable Tracks: Cocaine (We’re All Going To Hell)
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