Proglution

AMG Review of Proglution

Alexey Eremenko
All Music Guide

UVERworld belong to a line of bands that are the actual epitome of J-rock phenomena, right there with Alice Nine and L'Arc-en-Ciel. The genre is established as clearly as pop-punk or country music, building up on '80s radio rock, but with the songs much more frantic and anthemic, the emphasis on melody, not rhythm, and with those well-trained vocalists who aim at singing instead of hollering, even if they don't always succeed. Evaluating these bands means seeing how well they handle the genre conventions, and here UVERworld prove themselves worthy of praise: there are no overdone vocal mannerisms that sometimes ruin the songs of Alice Nine, and the hooks are plenty. The band is also heavier on the "speedy" part than on the "anthemic" one, and just generally heavier -- the musicians obviously keep an album or two of Helmet and Papa Roach on their CD racks, although it's only an additional influence. Granted, this weirdly named record doesn't have as much staying power as UVERworld's two previous releases, but it's still good addition to any J-rock collection.