Review Summary: While the instrumentals have potential, the lyrical content and the vocals leave much to be desired making Cruiser simply a garage band that has access to a recording studio.
After reading the review posted by onlyhuman, I decided to take a chance on this unknown band and listen to their EP "My Dear Friend".
However, I'd like to have those 18 minutes back.
I personally did not enjoy the EP. From the first track, to the last. The opener, My Dear Friend, came off as nasally whiny to me, almost as if the singer is carrying some sort of grudge that he can't get over. Now, to be fair, the instrumental work in this track is actually decent, but the vocals absolutely kill the track. If this band wants to be successful, they'll either have to put more of a budget on studio production, or, replace the lead singer entirely. I will give credit to the rest of the band for their efforts, but the track just didn't do it for me. It was a clunker of an opener, and I considered not listening to the rest of the EP, but I decided that one bad song doesn't make a bad album.
It was a decision I'd live to regret.
This Song's For You is terrible. With My Dear Friend, the rest of the band at least put on a decent effort, but the guitar riff on this song is annoying. The vocals at least remained consistent, but with the vocals on the previous track being poor, consistent is not a good thing in this case. I don't know if they had any other tracks they considered putting on this EP, but this is one that they should have left off entirely.
The Day I've Missed You is a track that doesn't really accomplish much of anything. It is, in my opinion the best song of the EP and the instrumentals are at their best. But, it's average at best, and once again, the vocals kill any hope of this song being a very good listen. But, music enthusiasts like myself like to look at the glass half-full, and having the belief that every album has at least one recommendable track is the way to go. If I have to make my one song recommendation from this album, it's this one, but it's not something you want to listen to on your Spotify playlists regularly.
Have A Little Faith is a misnamed song that was dead in the water before it was ever produced. It appears the band had too much faith in their singer to let this song on the EP. Note to all musicians, if your guest vocalist is better than your lead vocalist, that reflects badly on you. This song is a culmination of that. The lyrics and the message of the song is tiresome. If you want to listen to a song about never giving up, you most likely have about 20 of those songs on your playlists already. The instrumentals were solid in the song, and had the guest been the lead vocalist throughout the EP, there may have been a chance for the EP. He's not a world beater of a singer, but he definitely had a better performance.
And lastly, as if "This Song's For You" wasn't terrible already, they had to include an acoustic version of this song, which is even worse. With all due respect to onlyhuman, and contrary to his opinion, this is the worst track on the EP. The vocals were poor in the song with production. Without them, the vocals are completely abysmal. The guest appearance is passable, but again, better than the actual lead singer of the band. This is a case where the lead singer in the band, simply put, can't sing. His high pitched, nasally cracking voice is a major detriment to the band throughout the entire EP. You can forget the Green Day and Snow Patrol comparisons, Cruiser in its present form is just your typical garage band that just happens to have access to a recording studio.
The instrumentals have potential and could become solid with time. The lyrical content is redundant, stale and it's a poor attempt to connect a listener to its themes. The vocals are far and away the biggest setback in this EP. If Cruiser wants to have a future, this is an area that they must address. The band itself though, can potentially have a future with a new singer or by being simply an instrumental band.
Star Rating for Album: *1/2
Star Rating for Tracks:
My Dear Friend: *1/2
This Song's For You: DUD
The Day I've Missed You: **
Have A Little Faith: 1/2*
This Song's For You Acoustic: BOMB
