Otep

If you remember Jonathan Davis’s annoying whimpers in "Daddy” or "Kill You” you’ll instantly recognise Otep has endeavoured to make an art out of them. Capitol has apparently jumped off the bridge, diving into what they hope is the next heavy phenomenon to penetrate the mainstream. A woman delivering the whining and biker death grunts is definitely an interesting way to start. It may even help them leech the young, largely untapped rocker chick audience in what’s best described as clever marketing. It sounds as if Kittie met a bunch of shitty Spineshank boyfriends and formed an inept group of musicians designed to purge their demented emotions. The lyrics are way too dramatic and adolescent to stimulate anything but scorn. Pseudo raps and whispers dominate the vocal arrangement. The screaming parts are few and far between, and the shaky beat poetry teeters on tolerance. This isn’t to demean genuine emotions, but this will only appeal to children. Everyone over 20 has gotten past this sort of contrived anger. The music is of little interest and a minor focus of the record, resulting little more than another Ozzfest headliner.