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Some people believe that Incubus has sold out like Sugar Ray. Yes, Sugar Ray really sold out, but I say that Incubus has evolved — from starting as a rap-rock band that toured on the first Family Values Tour with KoRn, Limp Bizkit, and others to becoming one of the most talented bands in the recording business.
Incubus’ latest release, Morning View, is their best effort yet. Although S.C.I.E.N.C.E. and Make Yourself were excellent albums, the variety of styles on Morning View and the lyrical styling make it just that much better.
The first song off the CD, “Nice to Know You,” is enough to catch the attention of any listener. It begins with a nice soft feel of keyboards and scratching. It then crescendos into an extremely powerful rock feel and then dies back down into a tight drum rhythm, keyboards, and scratching.
“Mexico” is a calming song with just Brandon Boyd singing, Michael Einzinger on acoustic guitar, and a nice string arrangement. Many bands have a hard time doing acoustic songs that sound good, but they do it very well.
After a donation of a Ko-kyu by a very talented guitarist, Steve Vai, Incubus began experimenting with the instrument. The song that resulted was “Aqueous Transmission.” The song has a very distinct oriental sound to it. The string arrangements in this song are phenomenal and coincide with all the other elements in the song. It is just one of those songs that takes a little getting used to, but after a few times of listening, it becomes one of the best songs on the album. The lyrics to the song just give you the impression that you’re floating down a slow moving river without a care of where it takes you.
My father has told me that Morning View is an excellent album. It takes a lot for new bands to impress my dad because he usually listens to classic rock — you know, before rock went on a downhill slide. You know, the 70s and 80s. If you don’t want to take it from me, take it from my dad. Morning View is a must-have album.
