Band:	Vended
Album:	Vended
Style:	Nu metal
Release date:	September 20, 2024
A review by:	omne metallum

01. Intro
02. Paint The Skin
03. The Far Side
04. Am I The Only One
05. Going Up
06. Nihilism
07. Pitiful
08. Serenity
09. Disparager
10. Where The Honesty Lies
11. Ones…
12. Downfall
13. As We Know It

Slip not

Is it plagiarism if you are ripping off your fathers? Vended pose this question throughout a self-titled debut album that approaches the Slipknot sound as if it was a genre of its own. While comparisons to the band members' famous fathers were always going to be highly likely, Vended makes it an inevitably; while they have an energy and exuberance around them, Vended are an imitation rather than a celebration of a band still very much active.

If you somehow weren't aware, Vended are the band that have Corey Taylor and Shawn Crahan's sons, Griffin and Simon, in their ranks on vocals and drums, respectively. Their debut full-length after a preceding EP and singles, Vended is the band's opening statement to a world, one that uses Slipknot as a template, though with a few lines crossed out. While nepotism in terms of getting a head start can be overlooked, Vended doesn't so much try to ride on the coattails of Slipknot as piggyback on it completely.

Still, if you are able to pull yourself away from the immediate comparisons and listen to this album on its own merits, you have an album that has an energy to it that can be enjoyable at times. The high-energy nu metal attack is a somewhat refreshing throwback to the late 90s that hasn't been done to death just yet. "Nihilism" is a raw slab of anger that is driven by some strong guitar work that demands your attention, while "Am I The Only One" has a hypnotic, reverb-drenched hook that will plant itself firmly in your consciousness.

When Vended are able to make you forget who they're related to, there are signs and hints of potential of their own. Espeland and Grodzicki imbue tracks with some memorable guitar lines, such as on "Where The Honesty Lies", that will grab your attention. While basing his vocal style on his dad's, Griffin Taylor does have the strong voice to carry the imitation, if not quite as powerful as his father.

Vended unfortunately does not have an answer to a question that will be at the forefront of your mind while listen to it: "why listen to a poor imitation of Slipknot when I could easily listen to the original?" With the band positioning themselves to slot perfectly in that pocket, they welcome comparisons that will not flatter them, but instead just highlight the preconceived notions many will have had coming into this album, and fail to silence those doubts with overwhelming quality.

Even with a blueprint to draw upon to see what does and doesn't work, the lack of songwriting quality is the biggest hindrance for Vended; too many songs go nowhere in a rage of noise. "Disparager" is supposed to aim squarely at detractors with these exact preconceived notions, but comes across as the band flicking pebbles back at people throwing stones at them, lacking much in the way of anything interesting to have you wanting to relisten to it.

Vended do have potential, but with a lack of unique sonic identity or consistent, quality songwriting, then it will be all for 'knot, I mean, not.