Zox's latest release, "Line in the Sand," showcases the same hard, driving rock and roll machinery from their previous album "The Wait" (2006) but with a bigger and funkier sound. The band comes out swinging with layers of punchy guitars zigging and zagging in all directions and the dead-on drum tactics of John Zox that single-handedly powered their earlier albums. Themes of self-discovery and the meaning of love waft in and out throughout the album, giving it a sense of cohesion. "Line in the Sand" offers fans and new listeners a reason to take Zox seriously as a talented and adventurous rock band that has yet to be boxed into any one trend, category or sound.
What separates this album from the earlier work is a grand, ambient tone that hovers over each track on the album. Everything is bigger, from the reverb-heavy rhythm guitars to the thunderous toms on the track "Towards Los Angeles." But even with the varying guitar effects and violin sounds, the musicianship remains technically adept and intricate in the way all the instruments play off one another. All the instrumentalists in the band have ample opportunities to show off their chops.
The album opens with the title track "Line in the Sand," a head-bopper with two bouncy lead guitars filtering through one another in an Arctic Monkeys/Franz Ferdinand fashion. The rhythm itself is considerably different from any of the songs off "The Wait," but it still sets the tone for the entire album as the chorus marches in with big guitars ringing out an electric violin line piercing overhead. Vocalist Eli Miller doesn't hold back and works his pipes to get that smooth but gritty tone to sound clean and natural.
"Goodnight" is an acoustic heart-warmer and the first single off the new album. Miller doesn't try to mask any of the rasp and dirt on his voice simply because it's an acoustic track. Instead, his voice textures the simple, endearing lyrics and the song emerges as one of the strongest tracks on the album. It's also the entrance of a clean, legato instrumental melody that keeps the song progressing and running away from boredom. The flute-like sound seems to appear out of nowhere, but it repeats several times over the choruses and enlivens the melody.
Zox exhibits a real knack for painting a picture, as demonstrated in this song's lyrics. "Sometimes I stand between the sidewalk and the sky and just stare into the clouds as they pass by/ You have to leave the ground to learn to fly," sings Miller.
Here, Zox gives a potentially cliché line real meaning with a rich, layered acoustic sound and a sweetly winding lead melody. They don't just say it in the words but in the music as well.
Though there are very few weak tracks on the album, at times it feels as though Zox starts to recycle certain motifs and rhythms.
"Another Attack" seems to get lost in its own disco rhythm, and the lead guitar riff seems to drone on even after just a few seconds. Despite the somewhat political message behind the lyrics, the music doesn't seem to accurately develop the theme.
The song will almost make you want to dance and almost think politically but is not strong enough to move the listener in either direction.
Right after "Another Attack" you'll hear one of Zox's most genuine songs, "The Wait Pt. 2." The finger-picking acoustic guitar persists throughout the song as the speaker fights and waits for a loved one. The song highlights one of the album's most poignant moments through the lyrics, "Maybe love is just a chance to believe in something" and a beautiful violin hook that follows.
The faint female background vocals and high male harmonies brighten the final chorus with a climactic and empowering feeling, which epitomizes the tone of the entire album.
"Line in the Sand" is Zox's most refined and musically intricate album to date.
They continue to do what they do best: play dirtier and harder acoustic rock than maybe any band around right now. They can still pull you in with their soft, sentimental acoustic tracks and knock you off your feet with their guitar craftsmanship.
Maybe their sound is getting to be too big for their own good. But so far Zox appears to have the courage and the talent to take on the task of becoming one of today's most important indie rock acts.
