Simon Says is a heavy-metal band from Sacramento (California) that started in
1993.
Vocalist Matt Franks and guitarist Zac Diebels lead the quartet into
sets of hard-hitting
that predated the generation of Staind and
Limp Bizkit.
The band debuted with the cassette Little Boy (Almost-Core, 1995).
With lyrics devoted to psychological devastation and music that sounds like
granite, Perfect Example (Almost-Core, 1997) conquered them a
faithful following.
Jump Start (Hollywood, 1999) introduced them to a broader audience,
although the collection is terribly uniform.
Lead-track Sever sets the pace for the rest of the set, that hardly
ever changes tone, pace or melody
(Life Jacket and Seamless being the notable exceptions).
Shut Your Breath (Hollywood, 2001) is no less
bombastic, emphatic, melodramatic and ultimately derivative, although
the melodic grade is decisively augmented.
Hey You, Silk Moth,
Limousines and Penthouse Suites
Psychic tornadoes like the lengthy apocalypse of Dead Weight
or the dilated and noisy Tourniquet
or the dreamy and lisergic EL ESS
may best represent the quartet's skills.
This is one long agony.