The Paper Champions – Weekend of Compromise / 2004 Reason Y Records / 13 Tracks / http://www.thepaperchampions.com / [email protected] / Reviewed 28 September 2004 In a school of bass playing that comes directly from Geddy Lee, Jason’s bass lines to open up “Weekend of Compromise” are intricate, setting the tone of the track as well as providing an emotive force behind the track that just wouldn’t be the same without…
The noise that starts off the title track puts The Paper Champions into a very Green Day-esque sound right off the bat that drastically changes as soon as the “Station” is turned on the first segment of the track. There are still some comparisons that can be made to Green Day, as the vocals in both bands seem to converge on one point. Billie Joe Armstrong is only one influence…
The harmony that 31 Knots create purely through the vocals of Joe on the disc’s first track “City of Dust” are perhaps one of the most inspired openings to a disc I’ve ever heard, a fact that is further verified when the second set of vocals joins in. This particularly impressive brand of harmony does not peter out when “City of Dust” ends; rather it increases to a fever pitch…
Redux, by its definition, is a thing that gets brought back, or experiences a resurgence, today on the short list is a review of an I’ve reviewed before, but not exactly. Tell you what I mean: awesome note, by Brid, came out for the iPhone quite some time ago, and I looked out unto the AppSphere, and found that it was good. Now I’m coming off like I think I’m…
The title track starts off this album, and comes out with the emotional content of a band like The Anniversary with the sincerity of a Story of the Year for an immediate hit. This mixture of a 2000 sound with something that is as fresh as a meadow will undoubtedly bring in masses of fans, and this mass will only get larger when one considers the talent in which The…
The first shock that I had when first listening to the disc is that the style of this disc had nothing to do with Pan Pipes, but with steel pan drums. Nevermind the drum is featured prominently on the front cover, I just usually stick the disc in and let it go; one thing that individuals first hear about the band is that it sounds almost like a midi version…
Pama International comes to the plate with a wave-less brand of ska that chugs away with a speed all of its own. “Float Like A Butterfly” has a distinct sound to it, which is really grounded in the slightly nasal crooning of Finny during the first two tracks. The bass, laid down by Ernie really comes through strongly on “I Found Sunshine”, even if the guitar/horns/drums on the track are…
I had no clue that individuals still listened to Rush. This is exactly how Palumbo creates eirself during the opening track to “Citizen X”, “Lost in America”. There is another type of sound that is present during “Citizen X”, and that has to be a Zevon like grimace present through each of the tracks on the disc. Couple that with a Queensryche-like paranoia and individuals have a lot to listen…
Deborah Voigt has been wowing critics and fans alike with her turn as Puccini’s quintessential New World heroine in the Metropolitan Opera’s centenary staging of La fanciulla del West (The Girl of the Golden West). The New Year soon brings another anniversary production, when Voigt embodies Puccini’s Gold Rush girl again at Lyric Opera of Chicago (Jan 22 – Feb 21). Of a December Met performance as the pistol-packing, poker-playing…
The style of music that The Pale Pacific play is a very dreamy sort of emo-influenced rock that allows for a greater explication of their tracks, manifest in the sense that the first track “Sucker Punch” breaks the five-minute mark. The band is not content in maintaining their slower tempo, as “Sucker Punch” has eddies and crests, moving towards and away from a brilliant sort of high-octane sound, all while…
