Fairly formulaic punk in the vein of early Green Day or Less Than Jake, and the band has seemed to tame their entire sound down from “Henry Rollins is No Fun†and “Best Hung Carrot in The Fridgeâ€. The copious amounts of dope that the band consumed and smoked before this disc makes for some of the most tepid and boring music to come out (even in the over-filled pop-punk…
Cherry Suede play a brand of radio hair rock that blends together the sound of Loverboy, Def Leppard, and Bon Jovi. This means that the choruses that the band creates for this album are immediately catchy, and could be sung alike by young and old. “Not A Day Goes By†is the first track, and the band steps up confidently to the microphone even at the early reaches of the…
“One More Autumn†starts out with Cheron using a vocal inflection that sounds a lot like Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi†than anything that has came out in the last thirty years. There isn’t much in the way of extra instrumentation to “Goodnight Amelia†besides a guitar and a bass. Of course, the focal point of this track has to be Cheron’s voice, which is something that is never challenged…
A certain amount old, seventies-influenced rock starts off “Gang’s All Hereâ€; replete with the guitar fuzz present on all those old albums, the vocals really cut through the noise and provide for rock in the old style. This is not diminished during “Girl’s Roomâ€; if anything, the guitars assume the fuzz present on many a punk song while the vocals take on a Danzig/Jim Morrison type of feel. The drums…
Political Punk a la Rage Against The Machine funneled through a pop machine. This band is a mix of RATM with pop-punk (The Donnas), and when I say the Donnas, I mean a strong female presence at the vocals. The politics of the band are truly worn on their sleeve, showcasing them as direct action, anarchists, and as people that don’t force their listeners to believe in a specific dogma.…
Before 2005, I had never reviewed much in the way of non-punk world music. This year seems to be the year of world music, as both Raza and Cheb i Sabbah cutting albums. This time, we have a more restrained sound, allowing for more traditional song structures even as more-Eastern styles dominate. “La Kahena†is a light album, with the majority of instruments found on the disc creating a tinny…
I was just about ready to say that the style of music that Chas Mtn plays is very organic and reminiscent of the sound that one would hear if they were walking along a road, bordered by a forest. At some point, the majority of the music on the disc is related to an acoustic guitar. Whether it is the soulful acoustic opening to “Deep Safety†or the disjointed stylings…
Charlie Megira – the abtomatic misterzinger mambo chic Wow, a long title for such a short CD. This is total surf music, but surf music of a style that I can actually stand. When they try to put lyrics to this type of music, it almost never works, as the song writers for this style of music feel it necessary to place the stupidest lyrics to the music. Much like…
Finally, some no-bullshit punk rock to blow the cobwebs off the Lancaster music scene. With perennial punk rawkers Evan and Shawn manning vocals and bass on this disc, The Charlestons are here to fuck your daughters and sing about it in a Op Ivy/Screeching Weasel brand of vocals. While this was recorded by some in-town individuals (The Charlestons thank Kenny from S.B.C.), the recording on this disc could easily be…
First off, this disc was the one which the EP took its content from, so it would be much more informative if one would find a copy of my review of turn it up till your mommys screamin’ and your sisters dancin’ EP. Specifically, there are six songs that will be focused on in this review : “The Jerkâ€, “Don’t Like Youâ€, “Voodoo Meâ€, “Michelleâ€, “Catch My Driftâ€, and “Duane…
Much of what Ray Charles did in music had happened well before I was born, and the same thing can be said about Count Basie. However, that does not mean that I cannot appreciate the music that was cut on this disc. The creation of this disc has an interesting story behind it, that is for sure. Charles’ vocals were found on a soundboard tape from a thirty-odd year old…
Metal Blade Records is proud to announce the signing of Richard Christy’s new project, Charred Walls of the Damned! This newly formed outfit features some of the most talented musicians in metal. Their collective experience is colossal and their musical pedigrees speak louder than any verbal or written praise. Founder, Richard Christy comments: “To be a part of the Metal Blade family is such an honor. I’ve been a fan…
This is really just one woman, Regina Chellew, and her many faces, her many styles of music. The beginning of the CD spreads the idea that Chao is really just innocuous pop, which most of the CD would tend to agree with, but at times, Chao goes and places in influences from different genres of music. Although, this does nothing to make the CD very interesting. The whole CD plays…
While the first few tracks of “An Offer You Can’t Refuse†are fairly pedestrian, it is the ending of the disc’s second track “Death Do Us Part†that really show A Change of Pace’s worth as a band. The rapid-fire guitars present on the track, simple yet compelling really show listeners that the band is not all cute faces. “Every Second†is reminiscent of Simple Plan and Yellowcard, mixing a…
Chantal starts off “Love Needs You†in an interesting way; “Zindegi†really has an operatic feel to it that moves into a jazz influenced type of pop track. This bizarre mesh of styles will call listeners’ attention quickly, and even if it was only done for the shock value (this is not the case, as the track is very well-crafted and catchy), individuals are locked in for at least a…
It’s been a few years since I heard Hoobastank, and Chach really makes me miss them (not really); their “Monte Carlo Blues†actually sounds like what Hoobastank would sound like if they had anything in thye way of talent. Strong vocals mix it up with the confident strokes of a guitar and splashing drums to create a track that is ready for rock radio any way you slice it. The…
Starting off “Worlds of Change†with “Get Up and Danceâ€, a Enrique Iglesias/ Marc Antony-style of track replete with rich Spanish (Argentine in Cesar’s case) guitar work. The same formula holds up during the disc’s second track, “One Day You’ll Be Mineâ€. What is immediately striking about “Worlds of Change†is the fact that the songs on the disc are both radio friendly and also the repository for what is…
Mixing together the guitar lines of Bryan Adams and The Cure along with the vocals of some of the best post-nu wave bands (like The Cure and Depeche Mode), Cerulean comes out of the gates quickly with “Here is Hopingâ€. Creating an innocuous rock sound, Cerulean continues to amaze – the smooth vocals of Rick provide a perfect hiding space for hard, rocking guitar lines during “Like Fading Starsâ€. Unlike…
The harder instrumental opening to “Lizard In The Wires’†first track “Brothel really belies the more Radiohead/Muse/Placebo sound of the vocals. What is most exciting during the track is the nuanced sound of the arrangements; far from just using power chords, the band creates a full sound by having interesting contrasts (most interesting of which being the interplay of the deep bass and the much lighter guitar). The guitar noodling…
The guitar work that starts up the “Indicia†EP is reminiscent of late-nineties Christian rock music, in the vein of a Delirious? or even a Switchfoot. The fact is that The C Elliott Project is ready to take the radio world by storm, and as soon as they wrap up a video, they can take the video world by storm. While individuals might have a problem with how full of…