Reviewing Centershift's EP 'Of...' Currently Out Now
People reach a certain age and often have an unexplainable yearning for twenty years ago. It could be shoes or a specific fashion design, but it often comes back to music.
Adulthood is chaotic, and I grasp the idea of falling back into a song or album from the years of teenage angst. For that moment, one can remember exactly how the night air smelled as songs like "Rearviewmirror," "Stinkfist," or "In Praise of Bacchus" thumped through the Rockford Fosgate speakers.
Centershift is a new project from Jasan Radford, who was the vocalist and guitarist of Onesidezero, who released Is This Room Getting Smaller in 2001. VH1 listed the release as one of the most underrated albums of the 2000s.
I had to go back to and listen to Onesidezero to see if I ever had the band on a self-created Winamp playlist. Is This Room Getting Smaller did not ring any bells, but I did recall the genre – a prog foundation with crunchy guitars, some lightly emotional lyrics, and a distinguishable, heavy bass line. For a brief moment, I could remember being 20 years old, a flip-flop-wearing young man who rarely landed a date and was trying to find a place in the world.
Centershift released their new EP Of… on August 26, 2022, and I was provided an early listen to the entire album. Joining Radford in Centershift are Ryan Shane Stuber on guitar, Ted Wenri on bass, and Stefan Storace on drums.
"From Where We Are continues a story we're building that connects 3 of our albums that include A Different Shade, our upcoming EP and a future release coming in late 2022," said Radford. "There is a message within all 3 of these collections of songs that bring us all together, and I can't wait for everyone to hear 'From Where We Are' and our upcoming new music."
The Onesidezero sound is still entwined in Centershift, notably the driving bass and deep lyrics. What's slightly different are the melodic and thoughtful guitar riffs, especially in the second track, 'From Where We Are.' Much like the gathering waves in a storm, there's a lovely rise and fall of higher notes that complement Radford's vocal, "From where we are/we can see the water rise."
The intro to 'Falling Into' immediately reminded me of the riff from the Deftones' Root.' I don't know if it was intentional, but there's a subtle Deftones influence throughout Of…, minus the intensity and rage that comes from Chino Moreno's vocals.
'Everything and Nothing' is the slightly slower song on Of… . Radford's softer vocals and touching lyrics break up the album's edgier sound. I immediately pictured burning this onto a CD before a date to prove to my special lady-friend that my musical tastes were not all Pantera, Dying Fetus, and Meshuggah.
The final track, 'What If,' opens with a swinging guitar riff making it a perfect song to close out a live show.
Radford's lyrics painted a picture in my head: a couple lying in bed as the sun spilled through a lightly covered window. They were going back and forth asking 'what if' questions: "What if you said, 'I'll be awake for awhile’./What if you said, 'Baby, I can't wait to see your smile.'" The song continues with the couple asking one another these questions and abruptly ends, leaving the listener wondering what happened with the pair.
Centershift is typically not a band I would listen to or currently have in my collection. Frankly, I thought the early 2000s not-quite-nu-metal, not-quite-alternative-metal sound had died out almost as quickly as it was born.
However, Of… is a fantastic trip back to two decades ago but listening through the ears of a 40-something. More importantly, Centershift reminded me of what was good about that era. Their sound is far more complex than Limp Bizkit and Saliva, less whiney than Taking Back Sunday, and a better listen than Thrice or Thursday. Stuber, Wenri, and Storace give help give Centershift a harder edge to Radford's complex, emotional lyrics.
Be sure you take time to listen (and purchase!) Of.. via Spotify, Apple Music, or YouTube.