System and Station
A Nation of Actors
Latest Flame Records
Release Date: Aug 19, 2008

When we say "veterans of rock and roll" we normally think of bands that have endured the 60s and still rocked our faces off. But experience can also deem veteran status. The Portland band System and Station has seen it all and are no newbies to the rock lifestyle. Four line-up changes, four full albums, four EPs and eighteen national tours give them years of experience under their belts without ever coming into mass prominence as many rock veterans do. For ten years RFK Heise has lead System and Station on many an adventure. But is there a point in a band's musical career where they should go out in style, or does it matter when you're doing something you love?

System and Station's ninth studio recording, A Nation of Actors, is a testament to their love and determination to make music. The album sounds almost like modern British rock music, but maintains their indie rock influences throughout. "Rainy Days in Future Cities" has that softer, classic guitar sound that's becoming more popular through bands overseas and the two more constant members of System and Station, Heise and Palmer Cloud, have a pretty little ditty on their hands. "Out on the Wall" is a better example of their rock and roll songs, with a tight guitar solo and some good angsty lyrics. All the tracks on A Nation of Actors embody this peppier, classic sound that's in right now. It's the perfect album for System and Station to rise to the main scene with.

But therein lays the problem with A Nation of Actors. The album as a whole sounds great but commercialized. Opening track "The Magnetic North" sounds like every other song that belts out of the indie rock stations on iTunes radio. It's not a bad track at all, and Heise's voice is enough to hold interest throughout the song, but at the same time it's nothing that would stand out in a line-up of other great songs. It just can't compare to some of the great bands that have come out in more recent years. Does it mean that System and Station should quit while they're ahead? Not necessarily. Their sound is something that will definitely sell. A Nation of Actors is a catchy rock album. Is it the most creative endeavor that they could do? Probably not.