Dictionary.com says mediocre is, "Moderate to inferior in quality; ordinary." In accordance with this definition, Mashlin is very mediocre. Their music lacks originality, which is more evident due to being a part of an already crowded genre. Some will claim that Mashlin's brand of pop rock is indie inspired, but such a statement gives them quite a bit more respect than they deserve since it implies that their music is different from generic pop music on the radio... which it is not.
Their biggest problem is their vocals. They don't ever really go out of tune, but they are quite nasal. Although the vocalist is not nearly as bad as the singer of Simple Plan or Michael Bolton, he comes close at moments. The most annoying thing about his voice is that it's not bad; he just sings too much out of his nose. Until he undergoes vocal training, Mashlin will never be good. The reason for this is that the music isn't very dynamic so there really isn't much to carry the songs aside from the vocals. Needless to say, the best song on the album, "An Evening Underwater with Alex Cross," is a short instrumental piece.
Until Mashlin decides to replace their vocalist or he gets vocal training, they'll be a grade D band.
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