The Saint Alvia Cartel – STOMP Records

When The Saint Alvia Cartel released their first single, Don’t Wanna Wait Forever, with the accompanying Blonde Kryptonite track, my jaw dropped. The sound was energetic and stuck out immediately, so much so that I treated the release of the band’s Self-titled debut with great anticipation. However, when the day finally arrived and The Saint Alvia Cartel graced us with more than just the two song single, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

While yes, the rest of the CD follows in the same train of thought as the introductory tracks, it just becomes a bit repetitive after a while. For you see, even though Greg Taylor’s (formerly of Grade and Jersey) vocals are the perfect punk rock vocals as they are rough, worn and harsh but with a melodic edge to them similar to the one and only Tim Armstrong, they also tend to be too low in the mix and ultimately lacking that punch that it so very much needs. The extra vocals from former Boys Night Out singer Ben Rispin suffer from the same problem, they work but are too flat in the mix when they should be taking the forefront.

Still, the album has it’s highlights – and the listener can’t help but love the unique style that is The Saint Alvia Cartel. Merging the punk rock attitude from some of the member’s former bands with a reggae flare, they blend a wide variety of genres together without ever becoming too complex or busy. With a sound like Hostage Life, some light organ use similar to Social Distortion and reggae like The Aggrolites,The Saint Alvia Cartel is a colorful combination of sounds with a little bit for everyone.

It’s just that it ultimately falls short and feels long. It’s an album where you want to pick and chose the songs, play one here and one there and not listen to the album in it’s entirety because when you do, it loses its allure and becomes moderately monotonous. But even through those slightly repetitive moments, there’s still a unique spark embedded within them – the same spark I heard when the first single was released; and while the album may not end up in many year end lists, I’m positive a live performance from The Saint Alvia Cartel would be a difficult one to forget.