Bad Habit - hear-say

review by Arin Vahanian

Some things were meant for each other, like fish and chips, or bacon and eggs.  Sure, you can have them separately, but it just isn’t the same.  If one is lacking, it changes the entire experience.  Such is also the case with gossip and the music business.  No matter how famous or unknown a band is, its followers thrive on gossip and want to know every detail of the band and what it’s doing at the moment.  And that’s just what happened to Bad Habit, after its 1998 release, “Adult Orientation.”

Many rumors circulated on the Internet about Bad Habit.  Some people claimed that the band had called it quits, citing the different side projects that the band members were involved in.  Others claimed that some of the members had quit the music business completely.  Fortunately, none of those rumors proved to be true, and Bad Habit is back with the aptly-titled “hear-say,” its first album in seven years.

Seven years is quite a long time between albums, and there have certainly been changes in the band’s sound, but one thing that hasn’t changed is the musicianship and catchy songs that have given Bad Habit such a cult following. 

However, one aspect of Bad Habit’s music that has really changed is the addition of programmed drums and heavy beats in the songs.  While the previous record was full of lush, beautiful pop-rock songs, “hear-say” throws in heavier guitars, more attitude, and an overall bigger sound while still maintaining a high level of melody. 

Songs like “To Love You” and “I Swear” introduce this new sound, as the spacey keyboards blend with the high-tech drum beats and heavier guitar sound.  Vocalist Bax Fehling sings with an edge we last heard in the band’s second album, “Revolution,” and guitarists Hal Marabel and Sven Cirnski have a chunkier, beefier guitar tone.  This is quite a change from the band’s previous work, and may very well be a response to some critics, who argued that the band had gotten too soft.  However, as mentioned earlier, the band has not lost its melodic touch, as these two tracks are still really pleasant to listen to.

And along comes “All That I Want,” a slice of beautiful, soaring melodic rock that made “Adult Orientation” such a great record.  It seems that Bad Habit loves to throw us some curves, but it is a welcome change, for “All That I Want” is perhaps the best track on the CD.  Full of gorgeous melodies that glide over the heartfelt vocals of Fehling, who proves that he can still do the soft stuff, this song is a winner in every way. 

Wanting to surprise us again, the band storms back with a few heavy hitters.  Tracks like “Walk of Life” and “Alive” break new ground for the band, in that they leave behind the pop-rock of the previous album, but in songs like “Reason” and “Take Control,” the new sound doesn’t work as well as it should.  Indeed, these tracks will come as a big surprise to most fans of the band, albeit one they won’t be too happy about.  With “Reason,” the band tries to be something it’s not, as it is slow, boring, and the mysterious vocals in the chorus just don’t work.  With “Take Control,” the band seems to be trying really hard to sound aggressive and as a result, certain parts of the song sound forced and annoying.

   However, just one listen to “I Want to Know” will forgive the band everything.  Just like “All That I Want,” this track is a piece of melodic heaven, and will no doubt be spinning in your CD player and in your head for days to come.  This is where Bad Habit really shines, as Jaime Salazar’s drum sound melds well with Fehling’s vocals and Marabel’s melodies.  Fehling is a magician in this song, for he is able to intoxicate you with his sweet, crooning voice and keep you hooked.

And unfortunately, the album ends too soon, with “The Air That I Breathe,” another melodic track that takes Bad Habit back to its roots and shows fans that the band hasn’t forgotten about what made it successful.  I think this song is a fine ending to this album and sums up what Bad Habit has been able to do well on this album: take melodic rock and inject heavier guitars and drum beats to make a modern sound that is both melodic and contagious.

To be honest, before listening to this album, I had no idea what the band would sound like.  After all, it had been seven years since I had heard anything from Bad Habit, so I had no clue what to expect.  However, I wasn’t worried at all, for I knew that this was the same band that brought us records like “After Hours” and “Adult Orientation.”

To be fair, it would have been impossible for the band to top its previous album, which I still consider to be its best work.  But, “hear-say” is a great record in its own right and is another welcome addition to the band’s collection.  The new sound works really well most of the time, and, in spite of a few clunky songs such as “Reason” and “Take Control,” the album is solid throughout.  Indeed, songs like “All That I Want,” “I Want to Know,” and “To Love You” are superb and prove that this band can sound good no matter what the year or trends. 

In the music business, it is thought that gossip can make or break a band.  And indeed, this is sometimes true.  But not in the case of Bad Habit, who with its new release, “hear-say,” has proven that it can release a fresh, melodic, and hip album which pays tribute to its melodic past yet does not sound dated at all.