Maylene metalhead

By Timothy Cuoco

What strikes me, from the first snare drum hit, while I listen to the new Maylene & The Sons of Disaster CD IV are the clean vocals coming from x-UNDEROATH vocalist Dallas Taylor. 

Congrats are in order for putting out yet another great release. (I reviewed another Ferret Records release, Dead Throne, from the Ohio-based The Devil Wears Prada last week.)  This latest release from Maylene came out Tuesday, Sept. 27.

Maylene is a southern metalcore (mixed with blues influences) band hailing from Birmingham, Alabama. Without getting into too much detail, Taylor left Underoath in 2003, at which time Spencer Chamberlain from Chapel Hill, N.C. took over vocal duties.

While Maylene is southern rock/metal in musical style, “Taylor-era” Underoath took on a heavier screamo direction.  This fused a fun ride with every song being accessible to both fans of metal and rock music.

The Maylene story comes from Dallas’ childhood trips to see the reenactments in Ocala, Fla. of the legend of a gang allegedly run by Ma Barker & her sons in the “public enemy” era of our country. The moral of the story was that their evil deeds were met with divine justice. 

Is Maylene & the Sons of Disaster a Christian band? Dallas has this to say, “For us, our faith is what makes us. We believe in showing our fans respect and kindness. I love it when bands minister, as long as their lifestyle off the stage lives up to their life on stage. Nowadays it is cliche in some markets to be a Christian band, but being that in itself is hard and sometimes can put a bulls eye on your back. It is not an easy thing sometimes, but no one is perfect. But living to the standards of what you preach and talk about is a big deal and something we chose to do everyday.” Right on, Dallas.

IV is a fun romp musically with some blues-esque riffs while still keeping it metal. Gone are the screams so accustomed to this style of music but replaced with actual singing. If there is one track I would relate this album to, it would be Listen Close from the third album. In a perfect world, Maylene would be at the top of rock music charts across the globe, in my humble opinion.

If you buy the CD off Amazon or iTunes, you can get the deluxe edition which comes with an additional track as well as a remixed song/track.

Album singles are the lead “In Dead We Dream” and the latest “Open Your Eyes,” which is the 4th track on the album.  “Open Your Eyes” has a chorus just itching for crowds to belt out as Dallas stretches out an arm for folks to sing into the mic. “Drought of ’85” reminds me of a laid back song in the same vein as “The End Is Here…The End Is Beautiful.”

Take if from someone who’s been a metalhead kid since the ripe old age of 13: Maylene is sonic candy. I have been an avid fan of Taylor’s vocals since Underoath’s first CD Act of Depression was released. Although this latest album doesn’t pound you eardrums with explosive blast-beats, it sooths your eardrums while making you bob your head to the melody.

You can catch Maylene on their current tour with Thursday (a band I saw a couple months ago), but the closest Maylene will be to us is in Florida for a while. I caught them headlining the Scream the Prayer tour in Charlotte a few months ago. Listen to my show, listed below, for updates to their whereabouts on my concert calendar. It also has all the social networking site pages for the music.  

If you have been searching for a band that is a cross between Pantera and Lynard Skynard, check out the band Maylene. As usual, be sure to listen in to my show CASTINGSUCHATHINSHADOW, Saturdays from 12-4 p.m. on winrfm.com to hear Maylene and other metal bands.