Using Nintendo-game backdrops (at least, thats what they sound like) as a background for their vocals, Far Rad immediately win my heart. The vocals on “Cellar†are reminiscent of the now-defunct Unicorns and an audible Steve Lieberman. Almost breaching the wall between rap and rock, “Beteleuse†has Spike Jonze, Frank Zappa, and Atom and His Package form a Voltron-like creature, gaining strength from the noisy chorus and linear-to-a fault stanza.…
Oh, hyper aggressive hybrid of metal/punk band, do you ever tire of writing the same song over and over again? If you’re Mower, I guess so. Four albums into it, and the Mohawk sportin’ (two members at least), tattooed members of the San Diego hard rock band are releasing their grip on that template a bit. Sure, the themes of partying and violence are still front and center, but Make…
Where “A Day at The Farm With Farmer Jason†was a solid album, “Rockin’ In The Forest†even uses more complex arrangements and styles to get both kids and adults onto the same page. The tracks are oriented towards children, but even the subject material can be appreciated by both groups. The first track “The Forest Oh!†blends together Great Big Sea with They Might Be Giants into a track…
The great thing with a track like “Get Up Up Up!†is that the track is not necessarily only for the younger set. Obviously, this is what the disc is orientated towards, but the arrangements of the different instruments is fairly interesting and the overall sound of the track is much more full than many other kids’ albums. “A Guitar Pickin’ Chicken†is another kids track, but the track plays…
The sound of Falter Bramnk sounds similar to other French acts like Momus and Gong; there is an eclectic push on “Minimal Romance†that meshes well with a very spastic set of arrangements. There seems to be a raw type of sound that really is prevalent from the opening of the disc; there is a brashness about “Recall of the Souls†that should keep individuals listening, with the express purpose…
I don’t see what the big to do is with having a female singer sound like the mass of other singers out on the market. I mean, completely reminiscent of the traditional screamed-out vocals in the average technicore act are Ali’s vocals during “My Heart, The Beggarâ€. However, the backing instrumentation does some impressive things throughout the entirety of “Lights Outâ€. There are some influences present in the guitars, drum…
Creating some major disturbances in their scene (Phoenix, Arizona), as well as making minor ripples on the national scene, Fall Guy came to my attention through a few rock remixes of Twiztid songs. Compared by some to Linkin Park meeting Eminem, I fail to see that characterization beyond the fact that Fall Guy meshes rap and metal music. The riffs that Driver and Joe Dank create are remnants of metal…
There is an interesting beat to “Fall Heads Roll’s†first track “Ride Awayâ€. There is a Ian Dury type sound with the almost-spoken vocals of Mark, while the up-strumming of the guitar during the track seems to show The Fall as having a very distinct ska influence. A very unique thing to “Fall Heads Roll†is the very tangential sound of Mark’s vocals, which are given a mush-mouth treatment that…
The electronic feel that Falconhawk has through the entirety of “here’s Your Ghost†modifies the Tegan and Sara sound that was all the rage into a smoothed-out, more-sedate style. What results is something in which Kara’s vocals really become similar to Delores from The Cranberries. While there are moments on “Here’s Your Ghost†that the music starts to blend into each other, Kara’s keyboards do much in shaking up the…
Fake Problems – Spurs & Spokes / Bull > Matador / 2006 Sabot / 8 Tracks / http://www.fakeproblems.com / http://www.sabotproductions.net / Reviewed 20 January 2007 I was worried for a little bit. The opening of “Spurs & Spokes†sounds a lot like classic country, but it is only a few seconds before the band moves into a Mojo Nixon bit of bouncy country punk. During “Motion of Ocean’, Fake Problems…
Can I say that I completely misjudged The Faithfull from their CD cover? I was imagining a sullen, quiet, boring indie rock band, and I was given a up-tempo, post-hardcore verging on emo-rock band. Aside from my birthday and yule gifts, I would have to say that this was one of the best surprises I’ve gotten in the last few years. Mixing the best elements of Boys Night Out, The…
Starting off more metal than “radiohead-ish†as DallasTexasMusic.com would have it, “Forgive Nothing†is some of the cutting edge of what is now being considered emo music, in that it mixes flawlessly a generous bass along with the shrillness of Logan’s vocals just as they mix down-and-dirty rock with punk music. Each track on “Forgive Nothing†is aurally similar enough to make this album a specific blip on the timeline…
Any Otis Redding fan – big or small – already has most if not all of the songs collected on this best of album. Regardless, it’s a decent glimpse into Redding’s brief but brilliant career, highlighting songs like “Respect,†“I’ve Been Loving You Too Long†and “I’ve Got Dreams to Remember,†along with a great cover of the Stones’ “Satisfactionâ€.
4 piece band with very fast and old style Offspring sounding guitar riffs. The recording isn’t great but the SoCal sound still lives with this Canadian band. The sound of the album is one of urgency and is perfect moshing music. The guitar line for “Our new evolution” sounds a little bit like the amazing offspring song off their self-titled release called Tehran. Fade out’s songs are very catchy and…
“Ocean Boulevard†needs nothing more than a guitar to fully set the mood of the rest of the track. When Summer’s Gone immediately lurches forth with a blend of styles that uses bits of hard rock, emo, metal, and even hardcore to create something hard-edged while still possessing of a heart. Where the overall track is one that could easily make it onto rock rotation radio, I feel that some…
“Thanks for the Gametes†is a vocal-heavy track, with instruments entering into the equation during all the right places; while little more is present here than a guitar and light percussion, the resulting track is substantive and compelling. The band gives the instrumental side of things a little more time in the sun with “Far As Sky Can Tellâ€, a track that is one great example of the band’s dynamic…
“Unsure†seems to exist in a weird space between the eighties New Romantic movement and the current backing instrumentation that signers like Britney Spears and Lady Gaga. Mirana’s vocals further establish Theory of Tides as a truly special act, one that can use the widest possible swath of approaches to create the music heard here. “Karaoke†is Theory of Tides’ first bone fide hit, with cohesion abounds between the instrumental…
Shaky DeVille has a refreshing sound that uses styles that have been beaten down in the previous few decades (Irish punk, Rockabilly) and has tied them together in a new and fun arrangement. Nowhere is better to hear than during “M.V.T.â€, a splashy, fast-paced track that still finds enough time to throw in a sizzling bit of guitar work. The act may seem a bit discombobulated at points, but there…
“The Good Man†has an uptempo enough drum beat opening the track, while the guitar that enters into the equation soon after sets the stage for an odd little bit of alternative music, comparable to Cake, Devo, and Pere Ubu. There is a richness to “The Good Man†that is simply not present in any of the aforementioned acts; in that sense, it feels almost as if Audio-OK had taken…
John’s vocals provide a interesting contrast to the smooth bass and guitars found on the beginning of this track, seemingly a mixture of David Byrne and Daniel Ash. The effect one gets out of The Factory Incident’s disc is one of increasingly impressive instrumentation and a coolly detached singer laying eir vocals willy-nilly over this music. Muse and Palcebo make their ideological entrance during the beginning strains of “Said and…