Billy Talent

Nowadays, it's not so common to come across originality, or anything even remotely resembling it, among major label recording artists. Thankfully, though, Billy Talent's self-titled Atlantic Records debut provides a great little genre-defying breath of fresh air.

It would be easy to stick the band with any number of labels: screamo, punk, indie, perhaps even hard rock, to name a few. But what's beautiful about them is that none of these exactly define them. Yes, front man Benjamin Kowalewicz does his fair share of screaming, but BT doesn't fit in with the likes of Thrice, Thursday, or The Used. While there are certainly indie aspects in the band's songwriting, they're still catchy enough to appeal to most.

A fair deal of Billy Talent's greatness lies in the strength of its individual members. Most impressive is the guitar work of Ian D'sa, whose style somewhat resembles that of a younger and less experienced Jade Puget (AFI).

This is no easy feat, considering Puget's seemingly inimitable, not to mention prodigious, abilities. D'sa, to his own credit, has an impressive way of interweaving distorted and clean guitar parts to the point where they blend seamlessly. (Check out the various guitar tracks on the album's first single, "Try Honesty.")

He's the type of player who proves that a single guitarist can still carry a band. Drummer Aaron Solowoniuk's style is perfectly complementary to D'sa's guitars: he manages to be tremendously imaginative while still churning out solid and catchy beats.

In fact, it is Solowoniuk's performance that makes some of the album's songs, such as "Lies" and "River Below." Bassist Jonathan Gallant more than competently serves as the glue that keeps D'sa and Solowoniuk together. Truly, Billy Talent is so tight it's scary.

Moreover, Kowalewicz is without a doubt one of the more unique rock singers to come along in awhile, though his voice may grate on some. Think Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys) meets Craig Nichols (The Vines) meets Bert McCracken (The Used), with a little bit of Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden) thrown in for good measure.

Kowalewicz may not be the best lyricist, but he manages to sell all of his lines, however silly they may be. Somehow he manages to make "Don't think that you're so great,/ 'cause being great must suck!" not sound idiotic.

The band's somewhat formulaic songwriting is the only other fault, if it could even be called that. Nearly all choruses consist of call-and-answer parts between Kowalewicz and backing vocals provided by D'sa and Gallant.

Still, this doesn't affect the album's greatness as much as would be expected. After all, this is the band's debut album. Billy Talent have an insanely bright future ahead of them. Get this album so you don't have to jump on the bandwagon later on.