There was much anticipation and speculation about Mike Portnoy's first project since departing from Dream Theater. The inclusion of Symphony X vocalist Russell Allen generated excitement, while the comparisons that band members offered to bands like Disturbed and Godsmack elicited much consternation from the Internet Metal Nerd (IMN) community. When they released their first EP, reactions tended to lean towards the latter. "How DARE people as talented as Mike Portnoy and Russell Allen play this type of music? It's BENEATH THEM and ME!"
Reviews started flying completely destroying this album and the music it contains. A lot of the people that abhorred Omerta seem to have the viewpoint that one of the things that makes them a special snowflake is that their musical tastes are different from most peoples' and that they listen to "real music" while the mindless horde listens to generic rock, pop, country or hip-hop. The thing is, an album like Omerta should be taken at face value rather than criticized for what it is not. This is not progressive metal. The sooner that people accept that (most will not be able to) the sooner that they can appreciate this for what it is: really good, straightforward hard rock.
A comparison can be made to the reaction to Metallica's Load and Reload . Those two had some amazing songs that were overlooked because the sound was so different from what people associated with Metallica. Even then, while both of those albums were remarkably inconsistent, Omerta is a solid listen throughout. Also, it is not like this was released as a Dream Theater album. This is a separate project that makes no false claims towards what should be expected. People are so angry that musicians like these would play this type of music that they would hate it even if it was the greatest album ever in this style.
While this certainly is not the greatest hard rock album ever, there are some really good things at work here. The songs contain muscular riffs, tough-guy singing from Russell Allen and some deceptively good drumming from Mike Portnoy. While there are no crazy drum patterns like in, say, "6:00", there's something to be said for keeping a solid rhythm and enhancing the music rather than trying to overpower it. There are so many drummers out there who can play the tricky stuff, yet lack the ability to be cohesive when the music is so straightforward. Portnoy actually gained some respect from me for his performance here because he knows when to step back and he is able to be part of the band rather than trying to be its focal point.
Russell Allen is the best part of Adrenaline Mob. He gives the music muscle and writes some really killer choruses. The lyrics are sometimes cheesy, but his vocal performance is so good that he can even make the most cliched of lines work. He can sing sweetly on the ballads (like the fantastic "All on the Line") and go right back to kicking ass on the next song (like the energy-infused and moshable "Hit the Wall").
Mike Orlando is a bit of a mixed bag. He writes some killer riffs and definitely has an ear for arrangements. He writes some cool solos on "Undaunted" and "Psychosane", but seems to have a bit of a one-dimensional approach to his guitar solos. Sometimes his solos are just sort of "there" rather than commanding the attention of the listener like the best rock guitarists can do (Dave Navarro, Slash, Mark Tremonti, Joe Satriani etc). Some of the songs could really have benefited from better lead work.
Considering all the bad press leading up to Omerta's release, this sold surprisingly well, at least in America. One of my biggest fears for this album was due to the horrible production on the EP, which did not really do the songs justice. The more professional job on Omerta really brings out the best of these songs. Even the Duran Duran cover is actually really good, thanks to Lzzy Hale's (of rock band Halestorm) electrifying performance. I really hope this project continues because there's a definite chemistry between the members and the potential is even there for airplay on radio stations and opening slots for the big American rock bands. Those looking for technical, progressive metal will be disappointed, but those able to accept Adrenaline Mob for who they are will find much to appreciate.