The Apex Theory recently released its debut full-length album, Topsy-Turvy, which earned high critical acclaim. The album is the follow-up to an EP that was released earlier this year and is an impressive introductory piece of work.
The Apex Theory - Andy Khachaturian on vocals, Art Karamian on guitars, David Hakopyan on bass, and Sammy J. Watson on drums - comprises three-quarters Armenian descent and one-part American white bread. This sound of the Mediterranean is suffused within the melodic, rhythmic and temporal textures the band uses while still tipping its hat to the current rock genre.
The group is very tight. It shares a collective knowledge and identity that allows it to perform and compose with such elasticity that its sound and integrity are as strong as anything I have heard in rock music for the past few years. This becomes so apparent at points that it seems as if the band were one instrument and the group one person.
Unfortunately, the band is saddled with a fair amount of stylistic clichÇ. The vocal style never really transcends the Incubus level. The guitars are guilty of the same when playing rhythm, and no matter how refreshing the leads are, all of their novelty dissipates into the same old neo-grunge hardcore. It is pretty disappointing. It even includes a chorus in the track "That's All!," during which Khachaturian sings the melody for "Living the Vida Loca" by Ricky Martin with almost exactly the same vocal inflection as Martin. The song, as a whole, is interesting technically but carries the same tone as "Living the Vida Loca" while aspiring to be serious.
If The Apex Theory cut some of the fat from its efforts, it would liberate its creative process and they would be a much better band. These guys are very good at communicating what they have to say musically. The lyrics are all stream of consciousness put to verse and Khachaturian requests that they be interpreted subjectively. The only problem is that these guys are playing with G.I. Ricky Martins in the kiddie pool when they should be swimming the Thames. They rely on a number of different formats in which to convey their own subjective experience and it becomes very old. But to paraphrase Mick Jagger, time is on The Apex Theory's side.
The idea behind the group's name is that, as Hakopyan said, "the apex is the highest point of something, but the journey of getting to that point is what's most important. I feel like right now we're in that journey. I really do believe that if you put your heart into something, you can accomplish anything you want. That's what it comes down to -- that's The Apex Theory."
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