Fuzzy synths mix with a less-hopped up version of The Red Hot Valentines, Communique incorporates Geddy Lee-intricate bass lines to make a thumping, eighties-themed booty shaking track in “The Best Liesâ€. “Evaporate†adds what could easily be a Vangelis track underneath a Hot Hot Heat / Killers / Dead or Alive rocking-type track. Ryan’s vocals and the infectious keyboards laid down by Ryan work together, each taking the place of…
For all the different opinions I’ve heard about this band and this album in particular, I still find it easiest to completely shuck all pre-established thought about the band and start completely fresh. So, I sat in my room and put the disc on repeat, and I am currently writing this as the disc plays through for the fifth straight time. At first listen, I noticed a lot of similarity…
Combat Wounded Veteran have compiled all the tracks that have found their way on umpteen seven inches and compilations, only interspersing these pieces of histories with movie quotes. The ultimate fact about “Neon Body†is the fact that these 42 songs blast past the listener’s ears in less than a half-hour. Combat Wounded Veteran play a brand of indecipherable thrash/noise punk that tries its best to stay away from any…
The introductory beat to “Ex-Girlfriend in a Coma†is pretty much essential to understanding the full appeal of “Songs About Musicâ€. While the vocals provide a little more of the spontaneity, the instrumental blueprint is much more functional and formal. What results is something that resembles slightly Temper Temper and the shoegazer pop of the early nineties. The vocals get into slight hints of Conor Oberst, but Coltrane Motion does…
Coltrane Motion and I know each other. Yup, their performance at one of my shows a year or so ago was one of the more memorable times I’ve had, and this is the first time I’ve really had the chance to hear anything studio-wise. “Pi Is Exactly Three†uses a strong synth presence to push forward the track, but the sedate nature of the track really holds back the achievable…
A cleaned-up version of all the grunge music to come out of the Pacific Northwest in the early nineties, Color Wall infuses that style with British synth-pop to create a sound that is perfectly in-between the limits of alternative rock. Switching things up for “My Winger Teeâ€, a Weezer and They Might Be Giants-esque piece of perfect pop power is created, mainly due to Jeff’s vocals and guitars. The fuzzy…
Colin comes forth on eir “Sessions Down the Shore†with “Ideaâ€, a track that keeps up a bouncy flow even as little adorns the track besides a guitar (with bass accompanying) and vocals. The production is nothing special, but the nuance of Colin’s vocals are captured perfectly. I could completely see a song like “Idea†having a second life on rotation, something that would be made all the more impressive…
A number of artists are coming out with albums that have to do with love. Many of them are not very good (Diana Ross’ “I Love Youâ€), but that should not influence the review of Natalie’s own batch of love songs. Immediately, one just needs to listen to the digital duet of “Unforgettable†(where Natalie’s vocals are patched in to the original Nat King Cole track), and will know that…
So, Danny started eir musical career in 1961, almost 45 years ago. Maybe that is why “We’re All Gunna Die†is so hard to pigeonhole. The simple fact is that eir has had the chance to hear everything that has came out in the meanwhile – from the heights achieved by Kraftwerk and The Replacements to the lows of The Beatles – and has incorporated everything into this disc. What…
The veteran Cohen is back for another round. Individuals might be familiar with eir last full-length, “We’re All Gunna Dieâ€. This is Cohen’s fourth full-length playing solo, after a career making music with the act Charleston Grotto. The disc starts out with “Prayer in the Black and Whiteâ€, a track that has a set of vocals that are not quite unlike a blend of Mick Jagger and Warren Zevon. The…
“How I Want to Die†is a mixture of Cookie Monster, Bon Jovi, and a Broadway singer, along fairly impressive instrumentation. I put on this disc expecting drek (like Mizar and Steve Lieberman), especially with Catman’s braying on about the “Yahweh chord†and get something that is fairly soulful and catchy. Seriously though, however, Catman needs to stop singing completely; this Cookie Monster, Barry White after 2 packs of cigarettes…
“How I Want To Live†is really at the nexus of funk and gospel; the soulful female lyrics that are so dominant on the track really take listeners back to the days of disco for the track’s five-plus minute runtime. The triple-vocals present on “Water Is Blood†really add a controlled chaos to the track, something interesting that really gives individuals a reason to look at the liner notes. The…
I liked Shabutie, I liked Second Stage Turbine Blade, but all the times I listened to Coheed and Cambria are much in the past. It is almost as if they are a new band I am discovering for the very first time. While the opening track may seem a little pretentious and overblown, the entrance seems a little off – the gothic keyboards weave a tale that seems to be…
Good eye, Coheed, you make, we love… The story picks up where the last disc closes, and I’m not even talking about the amazing story line/comic book series that is one of the most intelligent bands of our generation. I’m talking the beauty that is the new Coheed and Cambria album. Musically and lyrically Claudio Sanchez (vocals/guitar), Travis Stever (guitar), Michael Todd (bass), and Josh Eppard (drums) provide yet another…
Imagine the Ramones, add a little bit of the earliest gothabilly put forth by 45 Grave, and throw in just a hint of the Misfits to come forth with “Frankensteinâ€, The Coffin Lids’ first output on “’Round Midmightâ€. The Lids have a minor hiccup in the repetition that drags down “Teenage Shakedownâ€; the guitar solo on the track is almost long enough to erase all memory of this rut. Place…
The very sedate sound of “Sole Provider†has an 80s sheen to it that taps equally the Mr. Mister and John Tesh feel; something that is equally innocuous and dulled-edge in impact. “More For You†continues the 80s feel by bringing a little Huey Lewis and the News to the general sound of the disc. There seems to be a weird set of production values on this disc that make…
For an ambient/landscape type of album, this self-titled first collaboration between Eno and Cluster is tremendously short in a temporal way. However, the instrumentation present on the disc is rich enough and logical to such a degree that one will be utterly immersed in the music after a mere three minutes of the opening “Ho Renomoâ€. The electronic violin that starts off “Schon Hande†makes for a small bit or…
12 song CD,2000. 35:45, practically 3 minutes a song. They are a 4 piece band from some East European nation that play some extremely catchy clear punk music in the vein of the first wave of punk bands to wash upon the U.K’s shores. The album is surprisingly clear with clean vocals and guitar. In “Saturday Night†the guitarist pulls off an amazing solo aside from his great axe work…
The Clock Work Army is an interesting band. The band is able to create a distinct style that is still very salient and catchy for the current era. The band is able to throw in a dance-punk backing beat (mainly drums) with a strong female voice and alternative-infused, swirling guitar eddies. There are only five tracks on “A Catalyst For Change†but the band confidently crafts their own sound here.…
The shouted-out vocals that start out “2,4,6,8†bode well for Clit 45. The style of punk music that hits listeners’ ears are quick and streetpunk influenced, with guitars that are influenced by the Bad Religion school of music. There are few times that individuals can breathe on this disc, and this is not because Clit 45 is obnoxious, but rather that the band kicks it into high gear whenever they…