Introduction first: Inner Surge best fits under the rubric of
\nnu-metal, with a lot of punk infused. It is what System Of A Down
\nwould sound like if Dexter Holland lost his way and hitched a ride
\nin System Of A Down’s car, which is on its way to the hospital to
\nsuccor the badly injured Chester Bennington, whom it accidentally
\nran over just before it picked up Dexter. It is literally a one-man
\nband — singer, rapper, songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, etc.
\nSteve Moore pretty much
\nis<\/i> the band. So, this band is not “nu-metal” when it comes
\nto having six members, with at least two of them obese.<\/p>\n
\nMatrika<\/i> is as nu-metal as it can be. The opening track,
\n“Driven,” one of the best in the album, is probably the only
\nstraightforward grunge song in the album — it is a Nirvana with
\ntrimmed edges. There are, however the odd polished keyboard and
\nguitar-work, making their way into quite a few number of songs in
\nMatrika<\/i>, pacifying the effusing anger that spews out so
\nshamelessly. The refreshingly refined acoustic riff of “In Code,”
\nand its subtle guitar-craft that are ruthlessly and unnecessarily
\nsquashed when the song decides to speed up a little bit, with the
\npossessed Steve screaming “We all stand in code” do show a bit of
\nthat “overdone” angst of the band.<\/p>\n
The writing is typical of a nu-metal outfit, and surprisingly
\nthe band doesn’t swear — kudos! The lyrics are smart and cheeky in
\na lot of instances, making the album even more enjoyable with the
\nlyrics-booklet as an accompaniment to the listening experience. In
\nthe cleverly written “The Fall,” Steve sings, “temptation tickles
\nyour finger and rips off your arm” about those times in our lives,
\nwhere we so easily wander off into the wrong path, which somehow
\nseems so hard to resist, and (we) “see the fruit but not the
\npoison,” according to Steve.<\/p>\n