Sometime Sunday - Drain (1995)
Back in the day when Tooth and Nail was still in diapers, I remember reading a review of "Stone" (Sometime Sunday's first album) and the accompanying plea for the powers that be to relinquish control of the label and place it in the hands of these guys. Although that didn't seem like a bad idea, Tooth and Nail have managed just fine on their own, and Sometime Sunday have given us a demo and two albums which hearken back to the days when g...g...grunge was all the rage with the kids. Though certainly not restricting themselves to the confines of flannel flyin' grunge, Sometime Sunday managed to play a form of heavy music that got stuck somewhere in between grunge and metal. And, it was good...really good. So much so that I managed to catch these guys live four times while out promoting "Drain." My friend and I always joked that we were the "deadheads" of Sometime Sunday, following them around every chance we got. But, I digress... as a second album, "Drain" was a bit of a surprise to the band's loyal following. Gone were the days of long hair and 'lurch rock' found on "Stone" and the "Pain" demo, and in their place were shaved heads and a much more noticeable punk and hardcore influence. As much as I dislike the vast majority of punk rock, there was something in this record that allowed it a relatively long stint at the top of my all-time favorite album list (and it's still not far from it now). Don't misunderstand, Sometime Sunday was never punk or hardcore by any means, but those influences became much more noticeable on "Drain." The opening cut, "Needle," showcased the band at a faster tempo than previously heard, and most of the songs clocked in at under three minutes. The vocals overall were just as raw and abrasive as ever, but there was a bit more variety in the changes from all out screams to quiet singing. The same is true for the music as well with more variation between the heavy and mellower moments. Despite all this, some things never change--the mandatory wah-wah guitar lines and killer distorted bass lines were ever-present, the song titles were never more than a single word, Andy "Mr. Prayer Chain" Prickett was responsible for what little production there was, and the entire album was once again recorded completely live with virtually no effects. Lyrically, without going into too much detail, it was obvious that Mikee was venting much of his frustration over some ongoing controversy. Yet, the centrality of God in his cries was never compromised by his often brutal honesty. I still consider "Blind" to be one of my favorite songs (even if it does have that riff nearly identical to Stone Temple Pilot's "Flies in the Vasiline") and I will always admire the simple, but effective, musicianship of these guys. Oh yeah, the last 20 minutes of the album is worth the price alone. Skullhead will never die! And in case you're wondering, I still wear my tour t-shirt every chance I get! -- Review by Jason