Sober

On the back of 'Crazy' and 'Insane' comes the third, and thankfully final, episode of the self-hailed trilogy from 12th Avenue.

'Sober' is more of the same generic hard rock from the Cape Town-based quartet, shrewdly written to fetch copious amounts of airplay across South African radio stations.

One can hardly begrudge their effort, a so-called concept album which finishes off the tale of two fictional characters, 'Anjee' and '12', and their respective misadventures. It is consistency perfect for the mainstream market, which, any band looking to make a quick packet and enjoy a flashy stint in the limelight from, would duly look to cater to. In that respect, they've come up trumps.

On the flipside, it's the severe lack of originality that finds one yet again disappointed as vocalist/guitarist Mark Haze and posse add another average offering to a veritable mass of conventional rock littering the country's rock scene.

Negative lyrics, occasional profanity, weak imagery and an abundance of clichés, coupled with predictable guitar work and unsurprising song structure proliferate throughout the 11-track production, painfully evident in 'Take This Life', 'Time Bomb' and 'Over The Edge'.

The stirring and Seether-esque intros to 'Better' and 'Faking Heaven' respectively provide brief relief to the disillusionment before Haze's distinct but mismatched vocal range ends the short-lived respite.

'Gone' an exasperating attempt at a ballad, spans for a veritable age, while 'Six Feet Under' sees guitarist Bjorn Faree, bassist Stanley Hill and drummer Gareth Haze delve into collective instrumentalism not dissimilar to that found on pop rock albums currently pleasing a conformist, and slow to question, South African music public.

The title track does a creditable job in trying to neutralise the mediocrity, but only slotting in at number 10 on the track list, the damage is already done before its arrival.

One wants to patriotically support every band that makes its way onto the South African rock scene, but it is humdrum monotony like 'Sober' that make it increasingly difficult to keep one's loyal inclination convinced.