Incubus - Morning View

Artist – Incubus
Album – Morning View
Released – October 23, 2001
Genre – Alternative/Hard Rock
Reviewed By – Mr. Rastafarian

Morning View was 4th album released by Incubus. I heard the album completely when one day I let the playlist run after "Wish You Were Here (not a Floyd cover), and I was blown away. Especially 11Am. It's one of their mellower albums with a lot more experimentation. People who are used to their new hard rock sound may find this album a little mellow for their tastes, but it's a very good addition to their discography. Very mature song writing make this a very good listen.

The album starts of with "Nice To Know You", a typical 'hard' Incubus song. It moves onto Circles, a similar track and then a gem of a track "Wish You Were Here". "Wish You Were Here" is the typical Incubus masterpiece on albums such as "Glass" on the album S.C.I.E.N.C.E. and "Drive" on the album Make Yourself.

After Wish You Were Here, the best songs have to be Mexico and 11Am. Then comes Blood on the Ground. A typical Incubus "hard" song, which makes you headbang along. It features some nice effects by DJ Chris Kilmore. Mexico comes after that and is an acoustic song which grips you immediately. Also, 11Am with it's vocal chanting and lyrical theme shows how the band has matured in song writing and as a band. "Warning", "Echo" are very mature sounding tracks, which move slow and steadily, keeping the pace of the album on the low. Then comes "Have You Ever" and "Are You In?" which showcase the ability of bassist Dirk Lance. Then comes "Under My Umbrella" which has to be the darkest Incubus track. It features a dark riff which keeps to it's style with good backup by drummer Jose Pasillas II.

The album ends with Aqueous Transmission. It features relaxing sounds and the Pipa (a traditional Chinese instrument) which would make the listener pee his/her pants in relaxation (as said by Brandon Boyd) :P.

As a whole, this album performs wonderfully, and is in my top-5 alternative rock album lists of all time. A must listen to any Incubus fan and a must listen even if you're not an Incubus fan.

Rating - 4.5/5

1. "Nice to Know You" – 4:45
2. "Circles" – 4:11
3. "Wish You Were Here" – 3:36
4. "Just a Phase" – 5:33
5. "11am" – 4:16
6. "Blood On The Ground" – 4:36
7. "Mexico" – 4:22
8. "Warning!" – 4:42
9. "Echo" – 3:36
10. "Have You Ever" – 3:16
11. "Are You In?" – 4:26
12. "Under My Umbrella" – 3:33
13. "Aqueous Transmission" – 7:46