Come What(ever) May [Edited] (CD - 2006)

Before joining Slipknot, guitarist Jim Root and vocalist Corey Taylor fronted Stone Sour, an alt-metal act with melodic sensibilities. The success of Slipknot inspired Root and Taylor to reform their original outfit, and the band's self-titled debut proved a success. Stone Sour's sound is reminiscent of Slipknot's, yet is distinctive enough to stand on its own merits.

COME WHAT(EVER) MAY, the group's sophomore effort, pushes Stone Sour's sound a bit further than its predecessor. While the album's sonic attack is still unremittingly heavy, with thunderous drums and distortion-saturated riffs, there's also a keen sense of accessibility that foregrounds melody and eschews thrash in favor of flat-out hard rock. These elements, combined with Taylor's throaty voice, place Stone Sour a cut above your average post-grunge metal outfit, and COME WHAT(EVER) MAY hints that the group may be poised for a mainstream breakthrough.

What sets Stone Sour apart from others of their breed is the band's ability to create smooth, radio-friendly alternative metal songs while simultaneously not boring the people who have heard way too much from post-grunge groups. The secret to this lies in guitarist James Root's unique style and drummer Roy Mayorga's unyielding intensity. Root and singer Corey Taylor re-created Stone Sour after the success of Slipknot in the late '90s; the band was meant to serve as a more introspective, melodic, and creative outlet for them, while not disenfranchising the fans of Slipknot. Stone Sour are more fierce than most alternative metal groups, incorporating brash heavy metal into many of their songs. The band's aggressive self-titled debut was far more reminiscent of Slipknot, but Come What(ever) May is moving further and further away from the shock rock, rap-rock aspect that originally brought Slipknot into the mainstream. Taylor lets loose his nearly metal growl (which is nearly untouchable compared to most of his contemporaries) on occasion, but maybe not as often as he should. The album's better moments are felt when his relentless, vicious pipes -- coupled with distortion-heavy riffs and double bass drum -- forge their way through the immaculately produced sound. Come What(ever) May starts out strong with the bass drum-heavy "30/30-150." The song explodes out of the speakers; it's a solid metal start for an album that dips between alternative rock, heavy metal, and post-grunge. Unfortunately, the album isn't always interesting. Songs like "Through Glass" are your average run-of-the-mill alternative metal tunes, and after a certain point the album seems to have little new to offer. "sillyworld" follows along the same lines, but still has more in common with Alice Cooper's "Only Women Bleed" than a Godsmack song. Still, Come What(ever) May has plenty of shining moments and it rocks hard, channeling heavy metal and blending it with alternative melodies. It's an unyielding effort from a promising talent -- one that might just help save alternative metal from becoming deeply generic. ~ Megan Frye minimize