Bride is an interesting band for sure. Starting out with heavy metal, transitioning into funk rock, then settling into a rather bland and boring commercial hard rock sound. But even after they lost their spark, they still sometimes pump out something incredible. Something that's really funky, but also isn't shy with the metal elements. I like to go through the discography of this band from time to time, but as I enter their commercial side, I tend to lose interest. But sometimes I do go a bit deeper and find something incredible. Last time it was the thrash-funk Skin for Skin, this time it's Fist Full of Bees.

This is definitely a rock album, but does borrow the speed and riffs from heavy metal, spicing it up with very strong funk elements and some hip-hop in places. I consider this album a what-if scenario for nu metal. What if nu metal took more inspiration from funk? What if it became less associated with the Hot Topic scene and kept closer to the funk elements. The band Snot comes to mind, another nu metal band of the super old-school funky variety. Fist Full of Bees follows that line of influences.

One feature of this album, is just how relentless it is. The speed is pretty consistent, with most songs rampaging with deluges of riffs, that somehow manage to be chaotic yet groovy at the same time. The bass is not much to write home about, but there's definitely some tasty grooves, alongside some slapping which is always welcome. The album also sees heavy use in electronic effects. Plenty of effect pedals for the guitars, creating both funky wah strums, but also some of those weird dissonant riffs that nu metal bands love to do. Beyond that, there is pure electronic experimentation as well, to give the album a weird vibe and to tie together that nu metal sound.

The production is crappy and raw, but it benefits the record. It sounds like the band just erupted from someone's garage deep in the 90's, giving it a very old-school vibe, despite the experimental edge. The vocalist clearly needs to shout a little louder to pierce through the mix, but it only helps to sell the sound. It's like very aggressive rapping, bringing Rage Against the Machine to mind. No high-pitched soaring, but Dale's vocals are indeed powerful. They're also multi-layered, but in a messy way, giving it the illusion of multiple vocalists.

Most importantly, there are no slow songs here. It really seems like the band just wrote something they wanted to write. Get some things off their chest between factory made alt-rock releases. And they played their elements and influences perfectly. They did a lot of experimentation, but kept it just bare-bones enough to keep focus. Only complaint I can say, is that the songs do get a bit similar, but that is expected when you want to keep it simple. I can also see some people be turned off by all the hip-hop elements and rapping, even if they did a pretty good job marrying it into a speedy old-school metal sound.

This really is one funk rock record that will get your head banging. It will bring you back to the humble beginnings of nu metal. If you have kind of positive feelings towards nu metal, then I can highly recommend this album!
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