There is nothing bad that can be said about this music. Nothing. The set itself it probably the best compiled on the metal spine series, all the takes are in the right place and there is plenty of ‘new’ content. Probably the only thing that can weigh down is having all the alternate takes right next to each other and the chronological order takes things out of the sequence I’m used to them being in. This is about as good as these mixes are going to get. I prefer the studio material to the live work at the end but still solid playing all throughout.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Monday, May 16, 2011
Children Of Bodom – Blooddrunk
Review# 133After the huge success of Are You Dead Yet? expectations were high for COB. I remember being in high spirits when I brought Blooddrunk home for it's first spin... And I so wanted to like it. Musically it's good and has a distinctly Bodom sound. The main problem is that the tunes aren't there, the pace has been slowed across the whole album and the hooks have disappeared. The album comes across somewhat lacklustre, especially in comparison to their back-catalogue. I have know idea why Bodom decided to cover Stan Jones Ghost Riders In The Sky but for a band who usually do good or interesting covers this was quite disappointing.
Blooddrunk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUmS9TVspAU
City Of Fire – City Of Fire
Review# 132City Of Fire was a bit of a grower. With the exception of opening track Carve Your Name it has taken a few listens to really get into it. I can still do without the three bonus tracks - they really don't stand up, but on the whole COF is a pretty decent album. It has a good mix of Rock, Metal and Industrial. Burton C Bell's voice is great as always and Byron Stroud, while being lower in the mix than I would like, has some great bass work.
Carve Your Name: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHC98ZBe2Vs
Gravity: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9zRpAzSEpk
Devin Townsend – Ziltoid The Omniscient
Review# 131ZTO is a concept album of awesome proportions. In short it tells the tale of the alien Ziltoid (The Omniscient) on his hunt for the ultimate cup of coffee and his rivalry with Captain Spectacular the man who steps up to defend earth from Ziltoid after he decides to blow it up after being served a fetid cup of coffee.
While it may not have been as well received by the media in comparison to previous efforts the fans have rallied behind it with almost cult appreciation. So I makes me a little sad that Devin is currently auctioning off old equipment and album progress charts to make some cash to do a Ziltoid II - but then again the fans are helping hugely there too. This is a super fun album, Devin performs as all characters and interweaves them all into songs. All the while the musicianship is still well up to scratch and works well with the speaking parts. It's almost like listening to a musical. You really need to listen to the whole album to get the full story but here are some highlights.
By Your Command: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CggKmuiY198
Ziltoidia Attaxx!!!: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtSnXU8DfCA
Planet Smasher: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65gsQucAsfE
Trivium – Ascendancy
Review# 130Erupting from obscurity into the limelight, Trivium's Ascendancy hit like a bolt of lightening. I remember listening to this album for the first time and thinking "wow, imagine what their (third) follow up to this will be like - then came the Crusade...see my review from earlier in the year for my take on that album!
But in fairness Ascendancy is a strong solid album. Trivium wear their influences on their collective sleeve but in their own colours, not in Metallica's. Musically it's great and Matt Heafy's voice is fantastic. When I saw them at the Big Day Out a few years back they were amazing.
I hadn't listened to Ascendancy for a long time until now, I am pleased that I still enjoy it - Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr is still my favourite Trivium song, it is an immediate and satisfying track.
But in fairness Ascendancy is a strong solid album. Trivium wear their influences on their collective sleeve but in their own colours, not in Metallica's. Musically it's great and Matt Heafy's voice is fantastic. When I saw them at the Big Day Out a few years back they were amazing.
I hadn't listened to Ascendancy for a long time until now, I am pleased that I still enjoy it - Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr is still my favourite Trivium song, it is an immediate and satisfying track.
Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fpAFOSPKDs
A Gunshot To The Head Of Trepidation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhhxmcJ9DfQ
Pink Floyd – Soundtrack from the Film ‘More’
This album is the soundtrack to some absurd hippy movie. I’ve never seen it but I’m sure it’d be right up my alley. This was the first Floyd album to be completely void of Syd Barrett’s presence. It’s one of those bad transitional albums where the band has left where they’ve come from and no idea how to get back to it with no idea where they’re headed.
It’s a hard album to digest. There are some cool experimental tracks like Up the Khyber and Quicksilver, but the folky ballads are kind of a drag and weigh the album down. The most suprising tacks are the hard rock The Nile Song and Ibiza Bar. The best material from this era however is the single Point Me At The Sky/Careful With That Axe, Eugene. Skip this album and listen to Careful With That Axe, Eugene.
Machine Head - The Blackening
Review# 129This album is epic. Large dramatic tracks, full of aggression and emotion with a full dynamic range. Machine Head climbed back from near obscurity, dusted off the Nu-metal ish cobwebs and comfortably blew everyone away and settled in to rule the roost. The blackening is chock full of awesome riffs, great songs and epic moments. It's good stuff.
Now I Lay Thee Down: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQLQC4ln05o
Slanderous: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc2HH-nGpvc
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