Sell the Lie

As befits a group comprised of veteran castoffs drawn out of the deepest Los Angeles rock scene gutters (guitarist Jason Womack and drummer Ed Davis backed up former actress Juliette Lewis, while guitarist Alex Kane did time in both Life, Sex & Death and Marky Ramone's Blitzkrieg), Venrez wear their Tinseltown influences like patches on denim. Factor in the Weiland-like tin-can baritone of frontman Steven Berez and you'll hear the ghosts of both Stone Temple Pilots and one of their own primary influences, Alice in Chains, splattered all over Venrez's debut album, 2012's Sell the Lie. The latter band's style also helps modernize, or at least synchronize, Venrez's post-alternative hard rock style with the times, specifically the early third millennium's love affair with Nickelback, Shinedown, and all of their corporate rock ilk, whose album sales (not critical support) leave no doubt as to which of grunge's big four most influenced chart positions in the ensuing decades (no, not Nirvana, AIC!). Of course, this characteristic won't exactly endear Venrez to better informed listeners, but even these may find a few redeeming moments in the memorable guitar solo of "Insanity," the more upbeat, classic L.A. rock hallmarks of "Ants & Sand" and "Messenger," or even the title track's initial country twang. What Venrez sadly lack, however, is the biggest shared trait between successful acts in any genre: a hit single. That rare beast is sadly nowhere in sight on Sell the Lie, and when compounded with Berez's limited technical and emotional range (utterly exposed on flat-lining ballads like "Melting" and "My Only Light"), it likely guarantees Sell the Lie's, shall we say, selective appeal with consumers.