Even though the game is third in its series (being preceded by Valkyrie Profile and VP 2: Silmeria), players do not need to be familiar with the previous efforts to enjoy Square Enix’s latest offering for the Nintendo DS. The title, which was released only in November of last year for the Japanese market, surrounds Wylfred, which has been given a bad lot in life. Rather than merely accept that,…
It’s hard to overplay the importance of 1989’s Paul’s Boutique to the success of the Beastie Boys. The follow up to the band’s sophomoric, party album Licensed to Ill, the Dust Brother produced Paul’s Boutique took the band from novelty white rappers to a legitimate musical talent, pushing the boundaries of a still new genre at the time. There is still plenty of humor, just much less chauvinistic posturing with…
To celebrate the March 24th release of their major label debut album, Where It Ends, 16 Frames and neufutur.com want to hook up one grand prize winner with a shiny new iPod Nano. The decked out iPod will be loaded up with the new Matt Serletic (Matchbox 20, Santana) produced album featuring the single “Back Again” and engraved with the band’s logo on the back.
It’s a little surprising that the religious right, usually front and center, picket signs and bull horns in hand at any movie even vaguely touching on Christianity, never bothered to turn out in force to picket Bill Maher’s wickedly funny, and powerful documentary on religion. Judging by the early rumblings against the soon-to-be-released sequel to the Da Vinci Code, it can’t be that they have finally learned that this is…
Long Island’s Danny Rocco aims pretty high with his debut The Future is Now, going beyond the staid and routine songs his peers have been churning out. Unfortunately he doesn’t always reach the intended heights. The acoustic strumming, singer songwriter (backed by the band End the Stars) starts the album of with the strongly original, addictive title track “The Future is Now,†but the rest of the album tries, and…
With a new lineup backing up the only original member Erika Wennerstrom and a new surrounding city in Austin, Texas what’s the newest release from Heartless Bastards going to sound like? I’m a long time fan of Heartless Bastards so when I was handed their latest release I was pretty excited to find out just that. Known for their no frills rock and roll sound and the blasting vocals of…
At 75 and with a legacy as a national musical treasure already firmly cemented, you’d think Willie Nelson would at least take a little time off to relax. On average, the prolific cowboy churns out at least two or three releases a year. This year looks to be no different.
Art Brut one of the better pop driven indie-rock bands out there’s newest album Art Brut Vs. Satan, available April 21,2009, is another assshaker all the way. From songs about growing up to an ode to the “record buying public” and a great song about finding the greatness that is The Replacements, Art Brut Vs. Satan is another great album by Art Brut. Over eleven tracks they once again turn…
This debut recording, from the introduction that Wild Beasts give listeners with their “Vigil For a Fuddy Duddyâ€, is one of the best ways to get to know a band that I have ever heard. Where it seems that a number of bands start off slowly and gradually introduce potential fans to the band’s mystique, the Wild Beasts lay everything out on the table from the get-go. What the band…
My Pet Shop should be the next big thing for kids to harass their parents about until they receive. This is because the game surrounds a cutely-rendered character and a number of animals. The animals are all crafted in a cute but realistic type of style, allowing players to rapidly differentiate between the different breeds and types of animals present. The fact that this title is for the DS ensures…
Let’s face it: with the exception of a few acts and a few labels, modern R&B is in a dire state. Most artists that have been in the game for a few years find it impossible to reinvent themselves, and acts that are first coming out are not exploring much in the way of new territory. For fans of R&B, there is one singular hope: Brutha. On their self-titled introduction,…
It’s always nice to see a musician enjoy success from Ohio, and Marianne Kesler has just done that with her “Pear In The Pink Thingâ€. What she has done with this album has, while touching on some common threads, really defined what it is to be a woman and a musician in the current music scene. Whether it is during the disc’s first track “Mysteryâ€, or even the last (“The…
At the very least, the Maestro Dobel Diamond Tequila is the most experience spirit that we have ever had in the NeuFutur offices. Retailing at anywhere between 70 and 90 dollars, the Dobel Diamond is a majestic creature. A heavy stopper keeps the top orderly, while etched glass and a metal base tie everything together. Pulling out the dense and heavy metal and rubber cork gives imbibers their first impressions…
Growing up, I was aware of a number of different “types†of alcohol. For drinkers, there were tequilas, rums, vodkas, and gins. Of course, there were liqueurs, but they really weren’t seen as something that one could get a good buzz going off of. After opening the NeuFutur alcohol section, the alcohol scene became much more nuanced, with different efforts pushing the boundaries. Boca Loca Cachaca, my first experience with…
It seems that some of the best RPGs are those that are developed and released for foreign markets (particularly Europe) then transferred over to the United States. For example, Gothic (and in particular, Gothic III), is critically underrated. Despite the fact that a number of these titles gain a pretty hellacious layer of dust on United States store shelves, THQ has decided to bring out Drakensang: The Dark Eye for…
When I was doing research for this title, I stumbled upon the fact that Papa Docomodake is actually a Japanese cell phone mascot, making Docomodake DS into a game on the same wavelength as a Yo! Noid or McKids. However, unlike the aforementioned titles, Docomodake is a funplaying puzzle type of game that will please fans of side-scroller and puzzle titles alike.
For awhile there it looked like U2 were finally back on track. Starting in 2000, when the band atoned for their past sins and, in Bono’s words “Reapplied for the job… of the best band in the world†with the fantastic All That You Can’t Leave Behind, followed by 2004’s almost as stellar How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, the Irish stadium rockers had nearly made up for past experimental…
For those individuals that feel that they have already bought the title over a decade ago, The King of Fighters ‘98: Ultimate Match represents a re-make of the original game, which of itself was a culmination of the yearly titles that SNK created (King of Fighters ‘94 to ‘97). However, aside from the graphical improvements, there have been a few major changes made to the game to make the title…
So, let’s get down to business, All the While by Frances is one of those catchy Indie-Pop discs that everyone seems to have two or three of laying around for their hipper crowd of friends to enjoy. It’s a disc you can pop in the car and drive too, have a conversation with and sometimes even get out on the dance floor and shake your ass to. With some really…
New Found Glory has always been a band that has not gotten the respect that they deserve. When they first came out, I felt that a lot of individuals ignored them for acts like Unwritten Law and New Found Glory. When they changed up their sound slightly a few years back, individuals still tended to flock to acts like Thrice and Alkaline Trio. “Not Without A Fight†is an album…