Metal Underground.com

Sometimes it takes a while for a band to completely gel — especially when many of the band's members came out of other known groups. Such is the case with "Rise," the first full-length studio album from Anew Revolution, whose members include Unloco singer/guitarist Joey Duenas and ex-Slaves on Dope players Frank Salvaggio and Robert Urbani on bass and drums, as well as guitarist Shaun Stockton.

The melodic sensibility the band would find on its superior follow-up, "iMerica" (reviewed here), is definitely percolating on this album, especially on tracks like "True Faith" and "Saddest Song," which emphasize Duenas' considerable skills as a melodic vocalist, but still retain a sense of metallic sharpness.

Less successful are more conventionally "heavy" tracks like "N.M.E." and "Rise," which have Duenas falling into near-rap cadences, resulting in a nu-metal feel that sounds a bit dated (and probably sounded that way when the album was released in 2008). "Rise" especially has its share of Fred Dust-isms, with Duenas imploring us to "stand the fuck up and rise."

As with "iMerica," there are plenty of great instrumental moments, ranging from the creepy "backwards" intro to "Saddest Song," to the sharp guitar fills in "California Burning" and the extended instrumental opening of "The Lonely."

A shade heavier, but also less focused than the band's 2010 follow-up, "iMerica," "Rise" is nonetheless, a pretty worthy full-length debut for Anew Revolution.