“Poppy Fields & Pearls†is the second disc released by Los Angeles’ own Mark Gothard. For being in one of the largest urban cities in the United State, the fact that “Poppy Fields & Pearls†starts out with a folksy track in “The Skywalker Blues†is interesting. The unique style of Gothard’s vocals provides a little bit of richness to the traditional and typical acoustic guitar that is present. Despite…
Tab the Band start off their “Long Weekend†with “Backseat Loveâ€. “Backseat Love†is an interesting type of track, which showcases a band that ostensibly is in the current period, but comes forth with a sound that links the angular sound of acts like Franz Ferdinand with a classic rock style that is reminiscent of Rick Derringer, older Aerosmith, and even Ted Nugent. “Looking Pretty, Pretty†continues with the sharp…
“New Maps of Hell†was the album that really showed that Bad Religion had a fire left that was stoked back up by “The Process of Belief†and “The Empire Strikes First†after the absolutely dismal releases that marked their Atlantic Records recordings. This deluxe edition has a little something for everyone, as Epitaph has really delved into the depths of the Bad Religion vault to find some interesting tracks.…
Kansas’s “Two For The Show†was originally released in 1978, and Sony Legacy has decided to re-release the CD right, adding an entire disc of new tracks – 9 in number – that were originally recorded for the album but were ultimately dropped due to time constraints. Of course, the classic live sound of Kansas comes through on the original tracks, whether the band is going through their hits (“Carry…
Gerald Albright has sold over 1 million copies of eir albums since ey debuted all the way back in 1987. “Sax For Stax†is a collection of tracks that continue to cement eir place as an important part of current jazz history. This is due to the fact that the album consists of eight covers of Stax classics, featuring tracks such as “What You See Is What You Getâ€, a…
John Mayer has slowly grown on me in the years since debuting on radio stations all across the country. “Say†was the track that really clinched that, being a perfect blend of soulful rock and honest vocals. Now, “Where The Light Is†gives me an idea of the live allure that Mayer has, placing listeners in three different positions – seeing Mayer acoustically-based, as a trio, or as a full…
“Terminate on Sight†was produced by 50 Cent, and one would be pretty dense if they did not hear eir distinct style permeating every pore of this album. The disc starts out with “Straight Outta Southsideâ€, and as one can expect, the track pays homage to the N.W.A. classic “Straight Outta Comptonâ€. The track would be better if it did not follow forth from one of the best rap songs…
Night Ranger has always seemed to be a band that never got to that highest level of popularity, despite having such hair metal classics as “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me†and “Sister Christianâ€. “Hole In The Sun†showcases the band’s ability to create good hard rock. This is first evidenced during the introductory track to “Hole In The Sunâ€, “Tell Your Visionâ€. The grit and grind that is present…
Fans of Foals’ former acts, The Edmund Fitzgerald and Face Meets Grill, should immediately be fans of Foals’ work. This is not because the work on “Antidotes†is just copying what the individual band members have done in the past, but rather that the work put forth by Foals here is heads and shoulders above the body of work of either predecessor act. “Antidotes†begins with “The French Openâ€, a…
Wikipedia puts G.G. Elvis and the TCP Band as a nardcore act. While I had no idea what nardcore was (essentially, it is a brand of punk rock that originally was present in acts from the Oxnard city of California. Saying that, the G.G. Elvis and the TCP Band is an all-star band in sorts, as it consists of members of Ill Repute, Aggression, Nofx, and the Bad Samaritans. The…
Definitely, Maybe is a film that shows the difficulty that individuals have in trying to explain the twists and turns of a parent’s past life to a child, that may not understand exactly what that parent is talking about. Clint Mansell previously of Pop Will Eat Itself was tapped to do the score of the film, and while individuals may not be familiar with too many of the films with…
Curt Smith, individuals may know, was the individual (that along with Roland Orzabalâ€, founded the act Tears For Fears. “Halfway Pleased†is the latest solo album from Smith, and Europeans have actually had to pleasure of familiarizing themselves with the album for well over a year after American audience began to have a shot. To put this is in some kind of chronology, the tracks from “Halfway Pleased†are those…
It’s been a long, strange trip for Motley Crue. They have been dead, doing their own things, blasted to their gills on panoply on drugs, and have made some of the most memorable hard rock ever. So, with all four original members back, what the hell type of music are they capable of? “Face Down In The Dirt†is the first song on “Saints of Los Angelesâ€, and it starts…
There are two distinct styles that are struggling for dominance during the early reaches of “Orange Days On Lemon Streetâ€. There is a folk sound that reaches out to fans of Vetiver and Devendra Banhart, but there is a decidedly pop influence here that plays on female artists that range from Natalie Imbruglia to Alanis Morrisette and Tori Amos, even touching a little on Amy Winehouse before the track ends.…
Between The Trees has been around since 2005, and despite their relatively new founding, each of the tracks during “The Story and The Song†showcase a maturity that few acts are able to bring forth to their music. The act smartly links together the electronic-pop of acts like The Red Hot Valentines with current emo acts like Coheed and Cambria and A Static Lullaby. “The Forward†is the first track…
The first track on “Moon is the New Earth†is “Sneak Outâ€, and the overall sound of the band sounds like a mix of The Vines and Queens of the Stone Age. The act is able to throw in intense guitars and draw them back masterfully for the vocals to reach prominence at all of the right times. “Sneak Out†continues to plug at the same points throughout the entirety…
Individuals may remember who Jesse James Dupree is from eir stint as the lead singer / guitarist of Jackyl, a hair metal band that may be best known for “The Lumberjackâ€. “Rev It Up and Go-Go†is Dupree’s second solo album, and is full of fun rock that will keep individuals listening in through the entirety of the track. This means that the introductory track plays very heavily on Dupree’s…
The Love Guru is a Mike Myers-focused film that centers around eir character, who is left at the doorstep of an Indian ashram (holy teacher) as a young child. Fast-forward a number of years, and a grown-up Myers is attempting to break it big in the field of self-help and spirituality. Eir ticket to the big time is punched when Myers gets a major client – Darren Roanoke (played by…
“Machine†is the first track on “Snitches Get Stitchesâ€, and it shows that Rahway is an act that really appreciates 80s metal, with hints of “Dog Eat Dogâ€-era Warrant, Motley Crue, and even a little bit of the stoner-metal put forth by acts like Corrosion of Conformity and Fu Manchu. The result is something that is heavy as hell, catchy as all-get-out, and is current as well. A number of…
Saiah has been in the rap game in one form or another for about a decade. It has been in the last few years that Saiah’s star has rapidly started to rise, growing from a Richmond attraction to an East Coast phenomenon seemingly overnight. It is on this wave of success that Saiah comes forth with his “Evolutionâ€, a fourteen track tour-de-force that accurately describes the effect that Saiah’s album…