BITE SIZED: All that Remains - ...For We Are Many

YOU ARE NOT STRUNG OUT, ALL THAT REMAINS.  STOP TRYING TO BE STRUNG OUT.  Really, this is a step up from the (to quote Shaq) horrawful Overcome, but they're still fucking up everything they are good at.  The ripping solos, the occasionally hardedged riff, catchy choruses, there are plenty of things All that Remains does just fine.  The problem lies in their unabashed blandness and formulaic songwriting.  Those particular problems still have yet to be addressed, and why should they?  They keep making money, they retain popularity, there's no reason for them to innovate.  As a music fan, that pisses me off, but that's business.  "Dead Wrong" is surprisingly very heavy and one of the better songs they've ever done, "Hold On" is a really light Strung Out ripoff but it's at least catchy and somewhat listenable, and the title track also kicks a surprising amount of ass reminiscent of "This Calling" from The Fall of Ideals.  The formulaic verse/chorus structure and vocal cliches have yet to leave but they're at least moving in the right direction.  Despite that, two good songs and one okay one out of twelve is pretty shitty.  This band could be so much more, but for now I'll stick with Blackhawks Over Los Angeles, and you might as well as well since All That Remains has been continually ripping off Strung Out while just adding harsh vocals and hoping nobody would notice for years now.