Team Sleep -- Team Sleep

6/10

Here's one of the meaner 6/10's I've given:
Team Sleep's 2002 leaked demo is so dark and weird and outside the box, it gave me really high hopes for their major label debut in 2005. Since I'd only heard the demo in January of 2005, the demo was extra fresh in my head that May when the self-titled, major label full-length was released. This compounded my disappointment when I listened to 2005's Team Sleep and found it to be completely run of the mill.
Team Sleep is fronted by Deftones frontman, Chino Moreno. Considering Team Sleep is still their only officially released album of original material, I think it's safe to call Team Sleep a side-band at this point. Since Deftones, at least during this period, mainly trafficked in heavier music, namely alternative metal, Team Sleep gave Moreno an opportunity to explore his other musical interests. While the demo featured acoustic work, dance songs, and all matter of variety, all of the songs held a nocturnal vibe, which gives the demo cohesion. Team Sleep is cohesive, in that all of the songs have the same, sleepy vibe, and essentially, the same sound. This is essentially mid-tempo soft rock, without any edge or attitude...54 minutes of decent melodies, and decent instrumentation.
It's just...decent. Pinback's Rob Crow shows up and sings on a few tracks, and his voice is pleasant. Chino's voice is pleasant. Zach Hill's strangely progressive, yet attacking drumming is somehow...repetitive and pleasant. It's all just wallpapery pleasant. Of the few songs that made the cut here from the demo, none escape without their edges smoothed up but the weird, Mary Timony-sung "Tomb of Liegia," which, with its creepy melody and lyrics, sticks out like a sore thumb. There's nothing per se "wrong" with the album, it just does nothing exciting, save the explosive third track, "Your Skull Is Red," which is the climax of an album that has 12 more tracks. Listening and reviewing the demo, then coming straight to this feels no different than it did 15 years ago...Team Sleep disappoints, unless it's just used as 54 minutes of background listening, in which case, it's quite pleasant. It takes all the dark and exciting possibilities a night could hold, and in opposition to the thrilling demo, just turns them into one long nap.
I bought this album on its release date, strangely the week before I bought System of a Down's Mesmerize...on its release date. Since I just reviewed Mesmerize, that's some weird synergy. As with Mesmerize, my main memory of this time is driving around, listening to this music, and wondering "What the hell do I do with my life?"...however, in Team Sleep's case, I was also trying to figure out "How the hell do I get into this album?" Still haven't figured out the latter...not sure if I ever actually figured out the former, either!

2005 Maverick Records
1. Ataraxia 3:17
2. Ever (Foreign Flag) 2:51
3. Your Skull Is Red 3:41
4. Princeton Review 5:09
5. Blvd. Nights 3:08
6. Delorian 1:34
7. Our Ride to the Rectory 4:40
8. Tomb of Liegia 4:56
9. Elizabeth 3:47
10. Staring at the Queen 3:05
11. Ever Since WWI 3:30
12. King Diamond 3:45
13. Live from the Stage 5:29
14. Paris Arm 1:43
15. 11/11 3:18