Having flirted with the industry since their inception, 2007 welcomes the debut full length of Tampa based Adrift with open arms. Absolution leeches from the depths of metal’s heaviest genres and intertwines itself with the candid desire to create music with a bit more direction and harmony. At its best, Absolution is a very honest album.

Born from the musings of a man with a reputation so often associated with the darker side of music, Deicide’s Jack Owen, listeners should not expect the six-string battery that is synonymous with his musical legacy. Instead, Adrift is a band with a bit more tact and a bit more taste.

Since their inception Adrift has temped fate with a few vocalists, but for Absolution the four-piece has finally settled on one man to grace the mic – albeit a man with an unpronounceable last name - Dean Pskowski. Formerly of Synapse, Pskowski joins a fabulous metal foundation of Animosity bassist Jen Parker and Resurrection drummer Kevin D. Astl.

Before giving this disc a whirl, listeners need to learn that there is more to this group than Jack Owen’s involvement. Adrift’s groove riding on the disc is hard to miss. Featuring an intelligent rhythm section and some clever guitar work, Absolution is a musically sound h’ors dourves. Unfortunately, as with most expensive meals, the appetizers generally fill you up before you can fully appreciate the main course.

Buoyed by some tireless musical support, the hammer unfortunately drops with the Pskowski’s varied vocal patterns and ultimate delivery. While the vocal versatility and range is apparent from the get-go, with ‘Betrayed’ offering up some meaty larynx and sweet crooning, the constant intervention of a pre-chorus takes the edge off of Adrift’s potentially potent musical style. The lack of ‘regular’ song construction (read: verse, chorus, verse chorus, bridge [or interlude], chorus [with appropriate pauses]) coupled with Pskowski’s anticlimactic vocals, certain tracks tend to deflate the listener and lends to tracks appearing generally defragmented throughout the 12 tracks.

What does take the cake, however, is the tune ‘You Don’t Know Me’, a Spartan rock track that that proves the compatibility of the quartet. Harnessing Pwkoski’s mid-range boom, this should-be-single is a cut above the rest of the album - closely followed by the internet released ‘Back to Square One’. Despite the pointedly frustrating vocals, you can’t fault a band who is attempting to create something different. With roots knee deep into the world of death metal and music that offers nothing but pure power and pace, Absolution is a bona fide, cogent piece of musical work from a group of people who could have easily stuck to what they do best. Astl’s chops will make your stereo purr with delight and Owen’s riffage is at times simple, yet sublime. The only downside to that is…you’ll shake your fist knowing what they’re holding back from you…

In conclusion, despite Florida’s Adrift finally coming to play some hardball, wrapping up their debut release and throwing the likes of Alan Douches and Mark Lewis of Audiohammer Studios behind its production, Absolution is still 30% away from being a “fantastic” rock album…an album that is always at arms length in one’s car. The huge positive is that there is much to build upon. The talent is there, the willpower is there, and the ability to make something special happen is there. From a 50,000 foot view, the pieces of the puzzle are on the table, it’s just a matter of getting them to fit properly. If that happens, it could really catapult this band into something more than what the general music population still sadly dubs as ‘that other band Jack Owen’s in’.

Absolution, to me, is an appetizer, and I am hungrily awaiting that main course.

Rating: 6.5/10
Label: Unsigned
Website: www.adrift.cc / www.myspace.com/adriftsounds / Official Forum

Rate this review: (8 votes, average: 3.25 out of 5)
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