Palms – Palms

June 25, 2013 • Ipecac Recordings

After a band like Isis breaks up, I imagine it'd be difficult for the members to move onto something else; how can you possibly try anything that would live up to the legacy? Palms is three-quarters ex-Isis members and one-quarter Chino Moreno of Deftones, in what should (theoretically) be one amazing supergroup. Though their debut is a little underperforming for what they have to live up to, it's not bad and there's plenty of room to move forward.

It's almost impossible to listen to Palms outside of an Isis or Deftones context, but I'll try. Essentially, the sound they're going for is a heavy-alternative-rock sort of thing with quieter post-rock-like bridges and intros. Nothing terribly groundbreaking, but for what it is, it's pretty decent. There are plenty of good riffs all around, especially the trudging heavy parts, and the vocals don't feel that out of place.

There's not much else good to say about the album, though. The songs do tend to run a bit long, though, especially with their meandering and often-repetitive structures, making the album a bit difficult to get through all at once. It kind of feels like it should be over after the third song. And the sound itself is pretty empty. With only one guitarist, there's a lot of empty space that the vocals can't really fill. Maybe this is just me trying to compare it to the thick, dense sounds of both Isis and Deftones, but Palms just comes off a bit lacking.

I can't say I'd recommend this album to anyone outside the original bands' fanbases; Palms seems like a novelty release for right now and there's really nothing interesting about it that anyone unfamiliar with Isis would appreciate. That being said, I hope they try another album because there's a lot they could do if they really wanted. It just didn't happen here.

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