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Atreyu
Retribution is a great name for a Metal band. Too bad for five Orange County guys the name was already taken by a nearby group. So at the suggestion of a friend they became Atreyu, the name of the main protagonist in the fantasy, The Neverending Story. Atreyu, whose name means "son of all," is summoned by the Childlike Empress to embark on a great quest.
OK, back in the real world, Atreyu released a 7 track EP, "Visions," in '98, which was sold at their shows. "Fractures In The Facade Of Your Porcelain Beauty," rolled out on the Tribunal label. It was following this second EP that Atreyu began a mid-course change.
The group landed at Victory Records in '01 where they released "Suicide Notes And Butterfly Kisses." The set saw the emergence of Saller as a second vocalist (mostly backing at this point) - spelling Varkatzas.
"The Curse," Atreyu's sophomore effort, earned them some notoriety, which led to being on the soundtrack of the '05 Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie movie Mr. And Mrs. Smith, with a cover of Bon Jovi's "You Give Love a Bad Name."
A year later, "A Death-Grip On Yesterday," continued Atreyu's move toward mainstream with Saller's vocals being more prominent. Still the group was deemed too "heavy" for radio play. The album drew positive reviews while IGN (formerly Imagine Games Network) called the set "a brief but potent hissy fit."
The next stop was Hollywood Records where they unfurled "Lead Sails Paper Anchor." The '07 effort contained "Becoming The Bull" which landed in the Top 5 of the Active Rock Radio Chart. Now that's mainstream acceptance.
"Lead Sails Paper Anchor" was later reissued in the CDVU+ format. The disc had a cover of Faith No More's "Epic" as well as footage from three live performances, profiles of the band members, behind-the-scenes tour clips and a guitar lesson from Jacobs.
Absent Varkatzas' vocals, Atreyu, on "Lead Sails Paper Anchor" sound like an accessible Emo Metal band. Even though he's somewhat restrained on this set, when Varkatzas unleashes his guttural roar Atreyu becomes a different animal.
Saller sings with passion and makes choruses soar while Varkatzas finishes the thought on a dark and belligerent Metalcore note. "Honor" and the single "Becoming The Bull" leverage the juxtaposition to maximum effect. It is not a new idea but they work it as well as anyone.
"Falling Down," the group's Metal-Punk, an alternate take on Green Day, is flawless, right down to the "Holiday" type vocal processing. And the Metal ballad "Losing It" is actually a powerful song. The set closes with a bonus track which turns out to be "Epic," a faithful Faith No More Cover.
"Suicide Notes And Butterfly Kisses" is as dense and brutal as Atreyu gets - and it's extreme. The group drives toward Goth-Metal on "The Curse." It's all dark, vicious and nihilistic. Seemingly lost in Marilyn Manson territory - and Manson did it better, Atreyu changed up again on "A Death-Grip On Yesterday." The Saller/Varkatzas combination is completely dialed in and it gives the tracks additional life. Featuring the ballad "The Theft" and a pair of searing tracks "Ex's & Oh's" and "Shameful," the album demonstrates Atreyu is headed in the right direction.