Greta Van Fleet’s ‘Anthem of the Peaceful Army’ is stale
IMAGE / Grant Sterling
Hunter Squires, 16, holds Greta Van Fleet’s latest release.
Michigan band Greta Van Fleet is one of the most talked about rock bands in the business.
Made up of vocalist Josh Kiszka, guitarist Jake Kiszka, bassist Sam Kiszka, and drummer Danny Wagner, the band has released two EPs since they formed in 2012.
The band’s album, “Anthem of the Peaceful Army,” was released Oct. 19 and quickly went to No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200 chart.
Greta Van Fleet has gotten criticism for being unoriginal since its sound draws on classic rock clichés, especially those of Led Zeppelin.
“When The Curtain Falls,” the album’s lead single, is generic and meant to appeal to baby boomers who are feeling nostalgic.
The lyrics throughout the album are, at best, pandering and, at worst, baffling.
In the song “Brave New World,” Kiszka sings, “Turn back the clock within your glass of sand—To a time of love within this blackened land—A silent child climbs a mound of char—Where he plants a seed that grows beyond the stars.”
I find these lines to be synthetic and shoddy.
The music the band is playing is acceptable, but Danny Wagner is no John Bonham and Jake Kiszka is no Jimmy Page.
Josh Kiszka sounds like Robert Plant with a head cold.
It may seem unfair to constantly compare Greta Van Fleet to Led Zeppelin, but with the effort Greta Van Fleet has put into sounding exactly like Led Zeppelin, I don’t have any qualms about it. Greta Van Fleet and Led Zeppelin are inextricable.
Some young people can appreciate Greta Van Fleet. Cole Zemore, junior, likes the band.
“I like classic rock, and they sound sort of retro,” Zemore said. “Reviews can be unfair to Greta Van Fleet just because the band doesn’t fit into the critic’s personal taste.”
For me, it’s hard to talk about Greta Van Fleet. They’re a boring band, and I have a strong suspicion that they won’t be around in a few years.
Greta Van Fleet is interpolating the classic rock sound and trying to give it to a new generation, but it butchered it in the process.
I give the album two out of 10 stars because it is unoriginal. The band is trying to punch above its weight, and it’s only appealing to uneducated consumers.
The question is, then, is Greta Van Fleet self-aware enough to emulate Led Zeppelin by portraying their worst qualities along with their best?
I doubt it.
Birthday: July 13, 2002
Hobbies/Interest: Music, film, books.
Favorite Quote: "Pictures must not be too picturesque." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Gracen Nelson • Nov 21, 2018 at 11:30 am
Not a BIG advocate of the band, but this is more of an insult piece rather than an opinion. 🙂
Dylan McIntire • Nov 19, 2018 at 5:49 pm
I would also like to mention that you should provide facts that prove to your audience that you are not an uneducated consumer yourself.
Dylan McIntire • Nov 19, 2018 at 5:43 pm
You are welcome to your own opinion but in this article you make statements that tell me that this band is stale or boring without an ounce of evidence to prove why you believe so.
“the album’s lead single, is generic and meant to appeal to baby boomers who are feeling nostalgic.”
You say this in the article but leave me wanting to know why you believe so. Throughout the article you have similar statements leaving me in the same train of thought. I would love to hear back from you and possibly a revised post on your initial claim.
For reference I haven’t actually heard any music by the band yet these are just my opinions on the wording of the article.