Extreme Behavior

In the liner notes to their major label debut, Oklahoma City's Hinder endorse tequila, Belvedere, Crown Royal, Jägermeister, and Mr. Watson 540. In "Get Stoned," photogenic Austin Winkler (who sounds tougher than he looks) rasps, "Let's go home and get stoned." Later, he adds, "The break-up is worth the make-up sex you're givin' me." In "Bliss (I Don't Wanna Know)," the lead singer laments, "The vodka's running on empty." This is a problem because, "I can't stay sober/if it's over." But things pick up in "Room 21" where he meets a "b*tch" with "red lipstick and pale pink boots," who shows him a good time (yes, he said boots). And he doesn't even know her name! The days of big hair-and-spandex metal may be long gone, but in songwriting terms, Hinder's music is a throwback to the politically incorrect Sunset Strip days of Guns N' Roses, LA Guns, and Faster Pussycat. For some hard-rock aficionados, they will surely come as a breath of fresh air. For those with more refined tastes--a blast of stale cigarette smoke. That said, "Homecoming Queen" is surprisingly tender ("She never walked on water/'cause no one really saw her"), proving that way down deep inside, the frisky fivesome does have a teeny, tiny, little beating heart. Overall though, if the platinum long-player, which was cowritten with producer Brian Howes, has a message, it's this: Girl, you broke my heart and I hate you for it. Oh, and alcohol is good. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Customer Reviews:

The Times just gave Extreme Behavior a mere two word review calling it...
Sh*t Sandwich
--2006-12-11

Maybe your judgment is hindered
So what if it sounds like Nickelback? I LIKE Nickelback. A person can't expect all bands to not sound like any other. That's why we have genres of music, because they sound alike. If anyone is suprised that this band sounds like others it isn't because they are unoriginal, it's because mainstream music these days tends to have lots of qualities in common.

Overall, I like this band. Some of the songs are a little bland, but the sound is great.
--2006-11-28

Hindered By Nothing At All
First off, please ignore the spotlight reviews. Hinder opened for Nickelback during their summer tour. They're both part of Universal Music Group. So if Nickelback had a real problem with their music, I'm sure they wouldn't have allowed them on tour. There are definitely similarities, but that's not a bad thing in this case. If you like Chad Kroeger's rough, raspy voice then Hinder frontman Austin Winkler's voice is an even bigger treat. Winkler's voice is even more raw and distorted. It sounds more like a special effect, but it's not. It's the real thing. That's where you'll probably hear the big difference besides song selection. Nickelback's Chad Kroeger has a unique talent for writing catchy Rock/Metal songs that get tons of radio play. Hinder is just getting their footing on this record, but you can hear the potential for similar success. And also, I'll agree with others that Austin Winkler is reminiscent of Aerosmith's Steven Tyler. If you go to Hinder's website [...] you'll see that they're actually opening for Aerosmith on a few dates of their tour. But I think "Extreme Behavior" is a good starting point for this band. I have to disagree that they're "hindered by unoriginality." Both Hinder and Nickelback are more 80's style Rock bands. There are a lot of good songs on Hinder's album that require repeat listens. Beyond what most have heard on the radio "Lips of an Angel," there's my personal favorite "Better than Me." Although, this album was released over a year ago, radio and the general public really didn't catch onto it until late summer. So this album is still new for most people. I'm definitely looking forward to a second album from them. I love the voices of both Austin Winkler and Chad Kroeger. So if you like Nickelback, then I would give Hinder a chance also. There will be many bands along the way that want to be and try to sound like Nickelback. But the only one worthy of being considered a compliment, understudy, apprentice, follow-up, or heir apparent is Hinder.

Favorites: Get Stoned, How Long, By the Way, Better Than Me, Lips of an Angel, Homecoming Queen, Shoulda
--2006-11-20

Wanna be a rock band? learn fron this
Ok , remember the 1980's rock area and how most bands looked and sounded alike.Well now its happening again.Everyone wants to sound like Nickleback.Thats a bad thing.Hinder comes off as a well studied group.They studied the right lyrics and guitar sounds to sound cool.Wow so they admit to getting stoned and drunk.How cool.If you ever seen their video for "lips of an angel" you'd understand were i'm coming from.The singer tries to look and act like Steven Tyler and actually looks like he ate some bad food instead.This cd is a pure rip off and this is another 'were are they now' group.Save your money people.
--2006-11-18

A solid rock album.
Extreme Behavior is quite a good album. They are like a derivation of Nickelback and Staind and maybe some Stone Sour. If you're a fan of those bands, Extreme Bahavior is for you. Maybe you will find a little generic touch in a few tracks, like the magic of experimentation has run dry in one or two tracks (I'll let you decide that), but strong instrumentalization and deep vocals make up for whatever is lacking. This band stands out among the many. The hit songs Get Stoned and Lips of an Angel deserve every inch of respect given to them.

For Hinder's next release I hope they are way more experimental with guitar effects which will give them more of an atmospheric sound. Adding some keyboards will be a good addition too. Overall, out of 5 stars they get a 4.55. Pick this up for sure!
--2006-11-15

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