Fretplay.com Taproot CD reviews Taproot guitar tabs Taproot CD reviews Taproot tabs Welcome


Taproot - Welcome Audio CD

A fair review of the Taproot "Welcome" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Taproot reviews here, or go back to the Taproot tabs.

Taproot Band: Taproot
Title: Welcome
Rating:
Release Date: 2002-10-15
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Mine 2: Poem 3: Everything 4: Art 5: Myself 6: When 7: Fault 8: Sumtimes 9: Breathe 10: Like 11: Dreams 12: Time

Be your own judge
I like this CD. I like Taproot. You may not. Naming obscure bands who are "better" or bashing this one doesn't help anyone decide anything. Now, if you like Linkin Park, or Limp Bizkit, you will find Taproot's sound familiar. It's a good blend of melody, rhythm and brashness that appeals to alternative metal fans. It's a bit more "hard rock" than Linkin Park, who focused heavily on rapping, but the music overlaps in style. Taproot's latest CD crosses into the alternative rock brand of things, as did Linkin Park, but it still remains true to the band. Listen to the samples and give the CD a try, and if you like it, buy Taproot's new CD when it comes out!.


I like it
Bought "Welcome" and after several months in regular rotation I can tell this is one of those albums that I can listen to over and over again without tiring of it. First heard of Taproot on sat radio, downloaded a few of their songs, and was hooked. To me, that's what makes a good album.

I'm not ignoring the fact that "Welcome" has an Alice In Chains influence (particularly with respect to the vocals) or the fact that's likely what appealed to me at first, but this is NOT AIC. It's a different and unique blend of hard and melodic rock. It also appears to be recorded well, which is more than I can say for most of today's 0db white noise mastering jobs. There's a notable dynamicism to the recording that makes it a kick to listen to and crank the knob up to "eleven".

FYI, I bought "Gift" as a follow up to this album and while I haven't listened to it enough to give a worthy review at this writing, I can say that it's a different sound. If you like "Welcome" and are thinking of buying "Gift", give it a good listen first.


Taproot's Best...A Hard Rocker's Must
They are not. Taproot have been called an Alice in Chains imitation. Welcome is one of the most creative disks in the Hard Rock genre. Unfortunately, they took a different direction after Welcome (October 2002) with Blue Sky Research (August 2005).

2002's Welcome separated Taproot from the generic Nu Metal infestation of this decade with off-time beats most clearly heard in songs like Everything, Fault and Sumtimes. Poem was Welcome's claim to radio play and it was a great, foot stompin' rocker. There were different styles and sounds to the tunes on Welcome, and the songs didn't have the Nu Metal Nickelback epidemic of not being able to tell when the track has changed.

Sure, Taproot clearly was influenced by Alice in Chains. In fact, Toby Wright, Welcome's producer, even co-produced some AiC disks. And singer Stephen Richards has an unmistakably clear singing voice that is a bit similar to the late, great Layne Staley.

But Taproot were definitely their own band on Welcome and put out one of the most unique sounding hard rock disks of 2002.

Unfortunately, Taproot lost some of their unique sound with Blue Sky Research, and went to the Nickelback monochromatic formula for some odd reason. My guess it was pressure from their label (Atlantic) to take the fun and creativity out of the music and make more radio friendly music (indeed they hired Billy Corgan [Smashing Pumpkins] to help with some of the Blue Sky tracks).

This past summer drummer Jarrod Montague revealed on Taproot's MySpace blog that the band had parted ways with Atlantic Records. So hopefully Taproot's 4th release will get back to the music that made them unique and hard.

Hard rockers looking for something mostly unique with a bit of an Alice in Chians Dirt influence should absolutely pick up Welcome.
.


4.1
Just thinking there may be something i am missing. After being skeptical when hearing "Poem" on the radio 10,000 times, i bought this for the hell of it. I was right! This album is absolutely beautiful. Just listen to Fault, Breathe and Sumtimes. Perfect levels of heaviness, depth and emotion. I adore this cd. Too bad the follow up was so blah, because they were onto something here.


Listen Again !!!
I didn't like it at first and thought it was way too mellow for my taste, but after listening to it a few more times, I really love it. I completely disagree with those that don't like this CD. These are extremely good musicians, and that most definitely includes the singer. It doesn't hurt that the lyrics are well worth listening to as well. I'm glad I paid no attention to the negative reviews posted here.


You can see a complete list of all Taproot discography, or go back to the Taproot tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

Search guitar tabs

#ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
[ Search tabs | Guitar tabs | Bass tabs |
Easy guitar tabs | Guitar solo tabs |
Acoustic guitar tabs | Guitar chords |
How to read guitar tabs ]
Forum topics
Music forums
- Bands and artists - Songwriting and lyrics - Tablature talk - Promote your band
Instrument forums
- Guitar basics - Gear & accessories - Bass guitar
Community
- The pit - Site Feedback - Reviews
[ User survey | About us | Privacy statement ]