Band:	Dredg
Album:	Chuckles And Mr. Squeezy
Style:	Alternative metal, Progressive rock
Release date:	April 25, 2011
Guest review by:	Introspekrieg

01. Another Tribe
02. Upon Returning
03. The Tent
04. Somebody Is Laughing
05. Down Without A Fight
06. The Ornament
07. The Thought Of Losing You
08. Kalathat
09. Sun Goes Down
10. Where I'll End Up
11. Before It Began

"I've forgotten how to smile..."

Prior to release, updates about Chuckles and Mr. Squeezy progressively seemed more and more troublesome. There was the goofy title, the influence of producer Dan The Automator, and the description of the album having a "Dark Pop" sound. When it finally came time to listen, early judgments confirmed the worst. The band that had produced an art-rock masterpiece like El Cielo was nowhere to be found. The songs were very synthetic, slowly eating away at my insides like an ulcer with every poppy electronic noise. However, there was something intriguing about the songs that kept drawing me back for further listening. Within the apparent mediocrity were haunting melodies that wormed their way inside my ears and stayed there.

Looking back at the updates, the music sounds exactly as it was described, "Dark Pop". There were never claims that this was a continuation of some thematic element from a previous album. As stated: "this album is completely different from everything Dredg have ever done before." One cannot fault them for wanting to branch out musically. Even if it has entered a less desirable realm, they deserve credit for being honest about the change and standing behind their work.

Considering the fluctuation in my opinion about this album, I will simply not give a scale rating. I would recommend this to non-fans who enjoy inoffensive, catchy music in the alternative rock spectrum (Gorillaz, Beck, Fair to Midland). For fans of the band's prior work, I wouldn't recommend acknowledging this one unless you find the melodies worthwhile enough to stick around for repeat listens.

"Here we go, go again
Following all the trends
It's become an obsession
Yeah, it's time to accept it"