Alexisonfire Special

This is the first post in about a month and a half, so to celebrate we have a super-special edition trip to Ontario, Canada to visit our good friends in Alexisonfire.

Starting most recently, I was lucky enough to see Alexisonfire at Leeds Metropolitan University this weekend. This was also the first band I've seen since moving up here (asides from 5ive, which obviously doesn't count).
In a recent interview I heard with the band, they mentioned that they had been touring with bands that were picked for them, and they didn't really like any of the bands they were doing shows with.
This time round, they took it upon themselves to seek out support, and I think they did a great job of finding two really decent acts.

First on stage was The Computers. They sounded a bit like Gallows, but they did a decent enough job of winning over the crowd, and the singer got really involved. He took his microphone and stand right into the middle of the crowd, before climbing the bannister and assaulting the people up the stairs with his gravelly vocals. They got a really good reaction for an opening act.

After a quick game of pool, we went back down to see Chickenhawk - a horribly named hardcore/technical metal band from the lovely Leeds itself. The first thing that struck me was how strikingly similar the vocalist looked to that of The Computers. I haven't looked it up yet, but I wouldn't be in the slightest bit surprised if it was the same guy. I also thought I heard him saying something about a double length set while he was performing with The Computers.
Chickenhawk were probably a bit better, their guitarist was really, really good and you could see how skilled they were. I'd even be tempted to buy their new album they were plugging, if financial times weren't so tough.
After another engaging perfomance from the warm-up, the crowd was getting excited for some good old fashionned Alexisonfire. It's the first time they've toured here in a little while, perhaps over a year?

After a longer-than-anticipated wait, Dallas, Wade, Jordan and Chris made their way onto the stage, and got a bit of a rythm going. The pace picked up gradually, and the crowd was literally buzzing with excitement. Soon, a shirtless George Pettit charged the stage, and the music burst into the beloved Young Cardinals. It took absolutely no time at all for the crowd to get into things, with bodies throwing themselves all across the room from the moment it kicked in. From here on in it was banger after banger, and Alexisonfire proved that they're still the best at what they do. They played an interesting song which I've never heard of before, but the setlist has it down as Charlie Sheen vs. Henry Rollins. I've since learned that this is taken from the Switcheroo EP they split with the band Moneen. This isn't a Moneen cover though, both bands provided an original track. This was a really good song, and actually a highlight of the show for me. I'm also embarassed to have not heard this before.
They closed their main set with new song Dog's Blood and fan favourite This Could Be Anywhere in the World.

It's worth a mention that bassist Chris Steele is playing along with Movember, and he must be winning because his tache is the greatest thing I've ever seen on a man's face, and I spent the whole night wishing I had one. I'll try and find a picture. It may also be worth mentioning he is the sweatiest man alive, and looked like there was a hole in the roof right above where he was standing, and was being rained on throughout the night.

After a bit of a pause to catch breath, we were then treated to a five song encore, beginning with one of my personal favourites The Northern. However, I was let down by the crowd here, as either tiredness had hit or it's just that the semi-fans are still adjusting to the most recent album. I've never understood this, surely if you like a band enough to go and see them, you'd make the effort to familiarise with their latest material, which they're likely to be touring?

Anyway, we were then treated to 4 classic songs from the first and second albums. This included the massive hits Accidents and Happiness by the Kilowatt.
I'm not sure how or why, but so far this tour, the Leeds show has had a bigger set than anywhere else, with a total of 19 songs in the set. Everywhere else seems to be getting 14, except for the first show which had 18. In any case, I wont be complaining.
Alexisonfire are truly an amazing band, and I left really satisfied. My only gripe is that they have too many good songs, where you'll always be missing at least one of your favourites from the show.
★★★★★ for this one, which even the support managed to help with.

It's a pretty dark picture, but this is the awesome Chris Steele.

For the second part of the review we're going back to mid-october, for a look over the Alexisonfire - iTunes Originals release.

iTunes Originals is basically a greatest hits album, except all the songs that don't feature on latest full-length Old Crows/Young Cardinals are re-recordings, performed live in iTunes's studios. Between each track, the release is laced together by some interview pieces with the band members, which are pretty insightful into their career, but not something I'd really want to listen to again.
The main course here is, of course, the re-recordings. It's nice to see a new take on some old classics, even if they aren't drastically different. Perhaps the highlight of the record for me, is the You Burn First track. The original version that features on the album Crisis is actually the only song (pre Dog's Blood) where none of the members of the band sing on it. Instead, they have a guest vocalist perform the whole song. This new version is really good to hear, as we can hear a song that I was never too keen on, but in the classic 'Dallas vs George' vocal style. And it really works well.
As a whole, the iTunes Originals is a nice purchase, and it's one of those things that shows just how and why the band continue to remain relevant and important in a musical scene that is on it's last legs now. This is like a little history lesson in why Alexisonfire are the best at what they do; their music is constantly evolving, but never really changing. Where many bands on the post-hardcore scene think they need to evolve their sound, they end up making a completely different record, often alienating their fans and never truly reaching out to the mainstream. Alexisonfire are such talented song writers, and this LP is the proof.
4/5.

For the final part of this super special bumper deluxe edition of Alexisonfire, I'm going to review their brand new four track EP - Dog's Blood.


This EP is another way of Alexisonfire keeping relevant, and remaining on the scene that they are leading.
And these four awesome songs are a message to all the other post-hardcore bands that says "this is why we're better than you".
However, if it's Dallas Green's amazing vocal performances that you're after, probably avoid this one. Though you'll hear some of his finest lines on the title track, that's where his vocal input ends.
For me, this EP is all about the music. The band have said that this is their chance to experiment a little bit, and it's pretty risk free as you can be forgiven for a bad EP.
The guitarwork from Dallas and Wade is absolutely flawless on this, and we hear them take the sound in a new direction a little bit, with plenty of incredible solos that you'd never expect to find on a release like this. The bass plays a larger role in the grand scale of things here too, playing a key role in the songs, even having a solo groove during Black as Jet. And in Grey, we have a pretty bass-driven tune, where there is a haunting guitar line that runs in the back. It's a really great track, and culminates in a fantastic solo. Speaking of Grey, this song is really unusual, because on two occasions there are call-backs to lyrics from the song Young Cardinals. I'm not sure what the relevance is, or if they've just run out of metaphors but I hope that's not the reason. It's nice when you notice it.
The negative for me is Vex. It's the final track on Dog's Blood, and it's an absolute monster of an instrumental, at six minutes long. It's sort of like 'Alexisonfire does post-rock', but for me it doesn't work that well. It's a chance for the band members to highlight their talents on their instrument of choice, but it never really takes off. Don't get me wrong, it's a pretty decent instrumental, but coming from Alexisonfire, who have only just now introduced us to such intricate solos on this EP, to throw us this instrumental it just feels...lacking. Nowhere to be found are Dallas Green's soaring vocals, or George Pettit's trademark grunt-scream-thing. And it all seems pretty conventional, there are no surprises in there and it all feels a bit predictable. It's a crying shame because we know they can do some awesome instrumental work, as the second half of Black as Jet demonstrates masterfully.
Still, filling the gap during the wait for the next full length, Dog's Blood gives fans 21 minutes of great new material. If Vex was three minutes shorter, we'd really be onto something of a mini-masterpiece here.
4/5

Linkin Park - A Thousand Suns

The World Tour is heading back to California this week for the official review on the new Linkin Park album - A Thousand Suns.

Their fourth studio album, A Thousand Suns sees Linkin Park truly depart from their trademark Nu-Metal sound heard on their multi-platinum albums Hybrid Theory and Meteora. For their third release, Minutes to Midnight, they changed the formula a bit, branching into more of a mainstream rock sound. That album has worked as a sort of bridge-piece for their latest effort.

On A Thousand Suns Linkin Park have completely ditched their usual methods of song writing and structure. In fact, they seem to have abandoned any kind of traditional structure.

This album is a band claiming that they want to make the album they want to make, not what their label wants them to make. They want to experiment new sounds and styles. I do, to a certain degree, believe them and I think it's pretty inspiring. However, when you're Linkin Park I'm not sure how true that statement can be.

But they've certainly taken a gamble on A Thousand Suns, and while the music may still have that catchy, radio friendly pop-rock edge to it, the band have gone to great lengths to support the message they are trying to put across. In several interviews I've seen they have basically said that if their fans don't like it they should just go and listen to something else. It's one thing to believe in your art, but it's another to actively push out your fan-base - something that Linkin Park are known to be very supportive of.

On to the music then. A Thousand Suns opens with the first of many instrumental/interlude type tracks. The Requiem is a very ambient piece, with a female voice singing a lyric later heard in lead single The Catalyst.

God save us everyone
Will we burn inside the fires of a thousand suns
for the sins of our hand
the sins of our tongue
the sins of our Fathers
the sins of our young?

The Radiance follows, and is just an electronic noise layered beneath a famous J. Robert Oppenheimer speech, where the concept forthe album actually came from. Although if my research is correct, the words actually come from a sacred Hindu scripture 'Bhagavad Gita'. It's a nice way to set up the album, nonetheless, and we are then graced with our first actual song, Burning in the Skies. It's a decent song, with some great vocals from both Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda. It also seems to be one of the only songs with noticable guitarwork in it.

Speaking of songs, there are actually only 9 on the album, if we take out the interludes. However, that's not the really the point, as you can tell after multiple listenings that the only way to truly gain anything from A Thousand Suns is to listen to it fully. It's a masterfully composed and produced piece of art, something that the band should be proud of, especially considering Shinoda co-produced it, even though many of their fans are still calling out for a return to Hybrid Theory-esque rap-rock.

It's tough, because while they are changing sound and direction, they are sticking to their roots, and you can find plenty of decent rap sections here, such as in the next track When They Come for Me. It's no Place for my Head, but it's a great tune, and fits in great on the album. About two thirds in, it then switches into a melodic section, where Chester takes over the vocal duties.

After some unusual eastern-sounding vocals and beats, we then move into Robot Boy. Every time it comes on I think they're next in line to cover Don't Stop Believin', but thankfully that isn't the case. It's actually not the best song I've ever heard. It's a slow-starter, with a pretty basic lyrical flow, with a pretty standard vocal performance. When the music shifts at three minutes though, there are some pretty strong background vocals from Chester, which have been layered beneath the beat which, for me, really make the song. It adds more depth, and in a live setting could work nicely as Mike joins in lead vocals at this point. Mike and Chester are actually a great duo, vocally, and I don't know why they don't sing together more often. In previous albums they've tended to either take a song to themselves or have Chester sing while Mike raps. In A Thousand Suns, we see their voices supporting one another and it sounds great.

Jornada Del Muerto bridges the gap between the previous track and Waiting for the End, one of my favourites from the album. Mike takes an unusual approach to his rap-section, going for some kind of carribbean style rythm. Chester then performs a great vocal, which out of the album's context does sound pretty emotional, like much of their old material. I'm not sure if that's good or bad. Mike comes back in at the three minute mark and Chester takes the background. The song sounds great, and I believe it's due to be the next single.

Blackout is a real headtrip. There's this crazy, techno beat. Like the sort of thing you'd hear in an 80's arcade game. Over the top is a shouted vocal section from Chester. Then at two-minutes it goes crazy, and it sounds like a remix (which annoys me). Then at three minues things slow down, and Mike takes over on vocals, which builds up into a duet between the two.

Next up is Wretches and Kings which for me marks the beginning of the point where the album became great. Opening with Mario Savio's 'Bodies upon the gears' speech (which I'm not going to pretend to have heard before) it then breaks into a great electronic beat. It sounds huge, and since I first heard it I've been dying to see it in an arena. It has a great rap section from Mike, and then a crazy chrous from Chester, continuing with this carribbean-sounding theme I noticed earlier.
Then we go into Wisdom, Justice and Love. In a way, it's one of my favourite parts of the record. It's just a sample of Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, on top of a really basic piano melody. As it goes on, a static takes over and eventually we're left with a deep, moving and almost robotic voice, looping the last line;

Cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice, and love.

It's powerful stuff, which leads into the calming Irridescent. Mike sings the intro to the song, and it's almost beautiful. It's got to be number one contender for the third single.
The track provides some really powerful imagery for me, and I think it's the most important song on the album. It builds up towards the end, and it's the perfect example of how Linkin Park have grown into great song writers. Listen to it against a track like One Step Closer. Though it's a classic hit for them, it's a poor song and sounds embarrassing against new ones like this.

Fallout is the final interlude. It's an electronic voice, and it's a callback to the chorus of Burning in the Skies. It builds into The Catalyst. Now, The Catalyst was the first taste the world got of this new-sound Linkin Park, and the reaction was pretty poor. I sort of think that's fair enough. But in context, this song is huge. The first time I listened to the album I think I actually got chills at this point. The song demonstrates Linkin Park at their finest. It shows that they know how to write a song. It builds and builds, with some huge, awesome electronic sounds and melodies. Then about halfway it crashes into this piano-driven section.

Lift me up. Let me go.

They build again from here, with Chester's soaring vocals carrying the track through to it's departure. It feels like the end of the album, and it works great.

The real closer of the album comes from The Messenger, however. Just an acoustic guitar and a really powerful vocal from Chester. It's a beautiful final moment.

When life leaves us blind, love keeps us kind.

This is, undoubtedly, the best thing Linkin Park have ever done. Is it perfect? Not quite, but it's certainly one of the best albums this year. It sure as hell didn't deserve to be beaten to number one by The Script. 4.5/5

Karnivool - Sound Awake

For todays piece the tour heads all the way over to Perth, Australia to take a look at Karnivool's 'Sound Awake'.

I first heard Karnivool through their track Themata which I caught on Scuzz TV once, which persuaded me to put them on my schedule for Sonisphere Festival 2010. We went to see them on the bitterly cold Sunday morning, and it was probably one of the best decisions ever.
They sounded pretty decent, although the crowd never really got into it and there was hardly anyone watching them. I remember how weird their singer Ian Kenny was as he danced bizarrely to their tracks and sang incredibly all the while. The song 'New Day' was the convincer though. It sounded so good when I saw it, I looked up what album it was from when we got home and went out and got it.

Which brings us to 'Sound Awake'. Their most recent of two releases, Sound Awake was released in June 2009, so I'm quite late on the scene for this.
The album opens with 'Simple Boy' which has the deepest bassline I can think of, and is also a very fine song. This one was actually a grower, and my least favourite track for some time (it may still be my least favourite, in fact).
Then we get into the good stuff. Track two is the absolute monster of a song 'Goliath' (I really had to try hard to not say it was a goliath of a song). It's got a huge chorus and is a highlight on the album, aswell as one of the stand out songs from their set at Sonisphere.
Third is the best song of all time, 'New Day'. This is eight minutes of genius. Ian Kenny's vocal is absolutley perfect, and the entire structure of the song is flawless.

Without wanting to do a track-by-track, the album takes you through a variety of musical places, sounding creative at all times and really pushing the boundaries of modern progressive rock music. Whether it's in the heavier songs like 'Set Fire to the Hive' or the amazing, floatier 'All I Know' (which has to be my favourite vocal track on the album), 'Sound Awake' is a masterpiece of an album that needs to be listened to properly.

The other track worth a particular shout out is Deadman, which is a ten minute tune which is followed up by a two minute intro to the final track of the album. It brings the album to a stunning close, at which point you'll be scrambling for the repeat button*.

This is without a doubt the best album I've listened to this year, and I would happily recommend it to anyone who is a fan of progressive music and good singers. 5/5 here.

*so long as you are a fan of music

Avenged Sevenfold - Nightmare

Today The World Tour moves on from New York to California, where we'll be looking at the new Avenged Sevenfold album 'Nightmare'.

Let me straighten up a few things first - Avenged Sevenfold are my four (previously five) worst people on Earth. I hate their gimmicky names and their gimmicky existence and I hated their music.

However, with new album 'Nightmare' something has changed. With the sudden death of drummer 'The Rev', Avenged Sevenfold seem to have found a way of making captivating music.

'Nightmare' has significantly less Biblically themed lyrics, and songs seem a lot more real and relatable than previous efforts. Song structure is good here too; agressive verses and bridges that lead into soaring melodic choruses works really well, even if it can begin to feel a bit formulaic.

Some of the guitar solos are really impressive on 'Nightmare', particularly the one on 'God Hates Us' - that is definitely the scariest thing I've heard in music all year.

The song 'Fiction' is an interesting song - a vocal duet between M.Shadows and The Rev, which would have been the last thing he recorded before his death. Now, if Rev hadn't died I have no doubt that this would not have made the album as his vocal preformance here is the absolute worst thing ever. Also, I'm convinced there must be some sort of conspiracy going on here as one of the Rev's lines are:

"So tell everybody, the one's who walk beside me
I hope you find your own way when I'm not with you"

and then he died. Maybe his death was suicide, or maybe he just writes songs pretending to be dead. In any case, the inclusion of 'Fiction' on the album is nice in order to honor The Rev, but it's a poor song that lets the album down.

All in all, 'Nightmare' is a strong album, it's really emotional and it's really dark but it showcases some great talent that I don't like to admit these people have. This could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship between us, but who knows?
When Mike Portnoy (stand in drummer for Rev, originally of Dream Theatre) changes his name to The Priest then I'll take back all the nice things I said and the band go fuck themselves. Until then though, congrats on a good album, and I might even go and see them this November if it means I can see songs like 'Danger Line' and 'Buried Alive'.
4/5

Coheed and Cambria - Live at the HMV Forum, London

This is really late, but it's not something I'm going to be forgetting any time soon.

On June 24th The World Tour hit the road once more with both Matt and myself. Staying in New York from the We Are Scientists special, this time we caught Coheed and Cambria.

I'd been looking forward to this for an absolute eternity, it was the first time I'd get to see Coheed at their own show - my previous experience only being Sonisphere last summer.
This was also exciting because the HMV Forum is a venue that I'd never been to before, and had been wanting to go there for some time. When I found out it was in Camden I was pretty horrified.

The venue was actually really nice though, which was great. After having a few pints at The World's End we headed over to the Forum with my Black Card and got in the queue. I'm gonna go ahead and say it now that I really dislike Coheed and Cambria fans. When this blog takes off and goes mainstream I may need to apologize for this, but for the time being let it be known that I dislike fans of Coheed and Cambria.
Anywho, thanks to my Black Card we got into the venue 15 minutes early and had a little look at the merch table where Matt bought a t-shirt. Then the band came onto the stage, and Claudio gave us a solo acoustic performance of 'Here We Are, Juggernaut' which was amazing.
Matt and I decided to go on a hunt for a cash machine, and the one in the venue was broken so we had to leave and once more brave the streets of Camden. This was brilliant, however, as we bumped into Chris Pennie and Travis Stever. I got my Year of the Black Rainbow...thing...signed and then we were on our way.
When we returned to the venue there was a short wait and then we were greeted by 'These Monsters' - the only support act of the night. They asked if we were fans of heavy metal, then began their set.
I actually really enjoyed them, there were hardly any vocals but the music was really good. From what I have read since and could tell at the time, though, I was the only person who liked them.
We then waited for what seemed like forever before the lights finally dimmed and the music for 'One' began playing.
Coheed and Cambria came on stage, opening with The Broken, followed straight by Here We Are Juggernaut. The next song 'No World For Tomorrow' was probably one of my highlights of the night and was strangely the only song they played from their last album.
Then they played two songs from their first album - 'Time Consumer' and 'Everything Evil' which got massive reactions from the crowd.
I've always got something to say about the crowd, and I was really mixed on this one. That's probably because the crowd seemed so mixed - there was a bit of every type of crowd member there:
There were a couple of the big shirtless men, causing trouble.
Angry people who only wanted to hurt other people
hxc kids
People who moan when they get touched by someone
Awesome people (only one)(me)
girls who hold hands and spin around in circles
backpack loser who runs into the middle and does that stupid windmill thing with his arms
a few familiar faces too - i always wonder if they recognise me
circle pit losers
Don't think I saw a Machine Fucking Head though, which is always good.

Anyway, Coheed played a near-perfect setlist, with a brilliant amount of songs from In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth:3 which is always good.

I had an incredibly good time, and even broke my personal sweat record. My favourite songs of the night were not the ones I was expecting at all - No World For Tomorrow, Made Out of Nothing and Welcome Home.

After it was over we went round the back and hung outside for a while, and Mic came out and I got my YOTBR thing signed again. We waited about an hour for Claudio but to my despair we had to leave for the train.
All in all though, I was expecting the best night ever, and it pretty much was.

Obviously ★★★★★

We Are Scientists Special

For the first stop on the brand new World Tour, we're going to New York - home of We Are Scientists.

The first part of this post is my review on their show from last night at Cambridge Junction.
This was the second time I've been able to see the band, the first time being at Reading Festival 2008, at which point I had never even heard of them.

This time round I'm a big fan of the band, and was really excited to hear great songs like 'After Hours', 'Inaction' and 'Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt' aswell as tracks from the brand new album 'Barbara'.

After a set from a pretty horrible 'The Whigs', We Are Scientists hit the stage pretty much on time, which is always nice. They opened with their new single 'Nice Guys', and the atmosphere in the room was really buzzing. They introduced themselves and had a little joke, then went into 'This Scene is Dead' from the brilliant 'With Love and Squalor' and then straight into 'Inaction' of the same album.

They played through a 17 song set with a healthy mix of tracks from all three of their albums, with the new songs getting just as good a reaction as the old.
Keith and Chris are great entertainers, and there was plenty of banter and interaction with the crowd - which I'm a huge fan of.
All of the songs sounded great, especially songs that I wasn't really familiar with, like 'Chick Lit' and 'Dinosaurs' from the album 'Brain Thrust Mastery'.
They closed their set on 'After Hours' which was brilliant, and then after a short break returned to the stage to play 'Cash Cow'.

We Are Scientists are a great live band, offering a unique show in their engagement with the crowd and their obvious genuine enjoyment from performing.

I can't wait to see them at Reading Festival again this summer, as I think that they are suited to big open spaces more than intimate venues.
★★★★★

Next up is my full review for the new album 'Barbara'.
Barbara is the third major-label studio album from our New York friends, and it's a great little effort.

Little has to be the key word there though, at 10 tracks long with a running length of just over 30 minutes it's incredibly short. But what's there is mostly great - quick, catchy and energetic tunes that makes it an exciting listen from start to finish.

Barbara opens with first single 'Rules Don't Stop', which has the funkiest bassline ever, and also one of the best guitar riffs I've heard from the band. At just over two minutes it's a beautifully sweet opening track and is a great start to the album.

The album then goes right into 'I Don't Bite', which is really just more of the same - a catchy riff and a repetetive chorus. The key is that it manages to stick with the listener, and doesn't just blend with all of the other tracks on the record.

The energy and catchiness keeps up throughout the album, not really letting out - with the exception of 'Pittsburgh' which I really dislike. It's pushing the limits of being repetetive, and I just don't like the overall sound of the track.

Closing track 'Central AC' is probably my favourite on the album, and goes out the same way it began -

Overall, the album is a great success, but there are moments where songs can feel lazy or rushed. It lacks really memorable songs like many from 'With Love and Squalor', but after seeing them live I have found a few favourites in there.
It's a solid effort, and I'd give it a good 4/5.


Thats all from my We Are Scientists Special, but stay tuned for more New York madness later this week.

Dan

The World Tour - New Look

I've decided to try again to get the blog going again, and it's also got a new look :)

Hopefully going to get a bunch of reviews up, if I can still remember how to write.

65daysofstatic - Live at Koko

Last night I saw 65daysofstatic for the third time. This time they appear to have stepped up their choice of venue significantly, playing to a reasonably sized Koko, in Camden.
The event wasn't sold out, and as we entered we were two of about 12 people in the building, which wasn't very good.

By the time the first support band 'Nedry' (Nerdy) took the stage there was a bit of a crowd gathered. Nedry had some interesting music, but like too many support bands failed to get a reaction from the crowd. They had a very unusual singer too, an asian female who didn't speak particularly brilliant english.

The second support act, 'Loops Haunt', was much more interesting, providing some good tunes and even a few cheers from a very still crowd. I watched these two acts from the comfort of a leather sofa with a very expensive drink, as is standard in Koko.

In the final wait for 65daysofstatic I blew the rest of my money on one (yep, one) last drink and made my way towards the stage.

Not too long later, the band hit the stage, opening with new track 'Go Complex'. From where we were stood the crowd seemed pretty still for this track and the next couple, so we made a move towards the front of the stage and bundled in with an increasing number of people dancing. By the time it got to 'Crash Tactics' I was absolutely loving it, and it went straight into 'Dance Dance Dance' which was amazing. By this point there was a big group of us dancing at the front. Things kept on going right through to 'Retreat! Retreat!', the highlight of the night, and then the crowd seemed to simmer down a little. This was OK though, as we'd worked up a bit of a sweat, and it was a nice opportunity to watch the band, who apparently never tire.

65daysofstatic are such brilliant performers, which is what makes their live shows so unmissable. Watching any member of the band is completely mesmerizing, and I'm certain they must all be using some kind of drugs. The drummer has the best endurance I've ever seen in a human being, while the rest of the band are just being absolutely mental throughout the set.

The show was great for me because I knew more songs off of the set than I ever have before, which made me feel a lot more comfortable throughout.
However, I couldn't help but feeling all night that the band are better suited to smaller venues, such as Heaven, where the whole thing is more intimate. Koko is really spread out, and every time I looked around me I could see that most of the crowd were standing still. Which just feels strange at an event like this. It must have been weird for the band to see aswell.
With that said, what was going on behind me did not detract from my personal overall experience of the night which was, as usual, incredible.

65daysofstatic remain one of the top live acts in the country, and I'm already excited for my next opportunity to see them again.
★★★★★

Album Reviews

I'm going to try and review a few albums at once here and keep things in one tidy post, rather than get things cluttered up.

First up is 'Option Paralysis' by The Dillinger Escape Plan.
Option Paralysis is the 4th studio album from the New Jersey band, and the first that I've ever listened to. I've never even heard a song by them before, and never knew what they sounded like. I bought it thanks to the heaps of critical praise it has received since it's release.

The first 31 seconds are the worst part of the album, sounding like it's being loud for the sake of being loud. I suspect it is their set opener for live shows, which is probably quite the kick-start for their audiences, but not the best way to open the record.
Just checked, turns out I'm wrong, it's actually their closer. Which is really unusual.
Anyway, once the song finds itself it's absolutely incredible, displaying a diverse range of talent from all members of the band.

This is what the whole album seems to be about to me, each member showing off their talents as individuals, while remaining key in the band. Special mention has to go Dillinger's vocalist, Greg Puciato, who has to be one of the best vocalists I've found in recent times (the best since Claudio Sanchez, without a doubt). His singing voice is highly reminiscint of that of Trent Reznor, but I feel that Puciato is far more accomplished in terms of vocal range.

Option Paralysis is a very aggressive record, but has several melodic moments scattered throughout, and what's important is that none of them feel like the token 'slower songs' you get on almost every rock album these days.

Highlight tracks include the horribly titled 'Gold Teeth on a Bum', Chinese Whispers and the incredibly haunting and incredibly awesome 'Parasitic Twins'.I think it's pretty easy to get lost during the middle part of the album, but given a few proper listens each track begins to stand out on it's own. It's currently spinning in my car, which is always a good sign.

There's plenty of exploring to be done with Option Paralysis and I'd recommend it to any fan of heavy music. I consider this to be the best album of 2010 so far, and am going to award it 4.5/5.


Next up is the new release from Bullet for my Valentine - 'Fever'.

'Fever' is the third album from Bullet for my Valentine, and I have to say I'm pretty disappointed by this one.

That's not to say it's bad, though - it's fine. I'm a big fan of their first two albums 'The Poison' and 'Scream Aim Fire', but 'Fever' feels like the band is really pushing their luck.

It would seem like the album is going to be something incredibly refreshing and exciting as opening track 'Your Betrayal' begins to play, with blasting drums starting off the album in a great way. This is the best song on the album.

Fever doesn't do too bad a job following this, with a pretty strong chorus. But then it lets itself down with the hideous

"Come here you naughty girl, you're such a tease. You look so beautiful, down on your knees."

Things go down and down from here onwards, and you can really see how lazy the song-writing (in terms of lyrics) is. Pick it apart some more and you can see how lazy the entire album is, each moment as predictable as the next.

Bittersweet Memories is one of my favourites, but I can't say it's a good song. It paints a pretty good scene which isn't too bad, but it's let down by the fact that the lyrics are weak and it's so damn predictable. As Matt Tuck sings "We get so complicated" you know exactly what is coming. On my very first listen to this song I did, so I'd be surprised if other listeners didn't.
What's coming is the always predictable, horrible scream-attempt from Bassist Jay (?), mimicking the last word of the previous phrase. This happens on so many occassions.Matt Tuck has never been known for being a great vocalist, but when I saw them live he did a pretty good job I thought. On 'Fever' though it sounds like he's worse than ever. It's lucky he plays guitar really. 'Dignity' is probably his best vocal performance on the album.

I don't think I've ever been so bothered by an album. For existing Bullet fans you'll have one of three reactions to 'Fever';
1. 'Awesome, I love Bullet's sound, this is more of the same and therefore I love it' - great.
2. 'Hang on, didn't I hear this riff on 'The Poison'?' - Yes. You did.
3. 'This is rubbish, when are they going to learn to evolve their sound?' - There's always next time...
If you don't like Bullet for my Valentine, I'd have to suggest you stay clear from this.
As it happens, I like them, and I enjoy a bunch of songs on the album, like 'Your Betrayal', 'The Last Fight', 'Bittersweet Memories', 'Dignity' and 'Begging for Mercy'. The rest feels like filler, and I don't think that 'Fever' feels like an album at all. More like 11 songs thrown together.
3/5 because I think it's okay.


Next up, 'We Were Exploding Anyway' by post-rock band 65daysofstatic.

I think 65daysofstatic are becoming one of my favourite bands ever. Massive respect to The Chief for dragging me over to the Festival Republic stage to see them at Reading Festival 2009, and even more respect to the band for being excellent.

'We Were Exploding Anyway' is the 4th full length from the Sheffield group, and could be the best.
The album opens with 'Mountainhead' and builds and builds, adding new layers all the time, making for a non-repetetive and brilliant opener. Building is what 65dos do best, it keeps all of their songs sounding fresh and never boring, while sounding absolutely massive at the same time.
It then moves into 'Crash Tactics' which has got to be my favourite on the album, which is swiftly followed up by 'Dance Dance Dance' - my second favourite. These two songs are huge, and sound like they were written to ensure that when they play them live it's the best thing ever. There's no way I'm passing up the chance to see them at Koko in May.
Each song brings a different style to the table, which makes it in many ways a lot more successful than their debut album 'The Fall of Math'. Where 'TFOM' sticks to one style, though it sounds brilliant, you get the feeling there is more to come.
'We Were Exploding Anyway' shows the band 6 years down the line, having evolved into technically brilliant musicians, experimenting more now than ever before and making better music because of it. They've learned how to make good songs, and they feel like a statement against anyone that says they're boring because they don't have a singer.
Speaking of, there is a bit of Vocal action to be found on 'Come to Me', which features Robert Smith of 'The Cure'. So there you go.

My least favourite track on the album, is the disappointing 'Tiger Girl' which builds up over the course of 10 minutes, and all the way through you're expecting it to absolutely explode into something incredible, but it never does, leaving you feeling a bit unsatisfied. Maybe this effect was intentional, but it hasn't worked for me, and it's a shame to let the album finish in this way.
Asides from this, 'We Were Exploding Anyway' is an outstanding release, and I think I'm justified in recommending it to anyone who likes music. 4.5/5.


Last, but certainly not least, is my re-review of 'Year of the Black Rainbow' by Coheed and Cambria.

My previous review of this was totally unjustified, because I forgot that every Coheed and Cambria album needs at least two weeks to be completely dissected.
Now I've listened to it tonnes, and the following review is fair.

Opening track 'One' is better than I gave it credit for - it creates a chilling mood, and feels like the start of something new, which is exactly what it represents.
It then builds up and blends seamlessly into 'The Broken' (the one with the rubbish video floating around Scuzz TV). This is still one of my favourite tracks, and I love hearing the Coheed 'theme tune' in the solo. 'Guns of Summer' - initially my worst ever Coheed song is now one of my favourites. The drums are absolutely insane, and the vocals are spot on. The solo is fantastic, and watching Claudio Sanchez record the part in the studio with an electric drill is one of the coolest things ever.

The production on the album is a major talking point amongst fans, but I have to say that I love the industrial feel that Atticus Ross and Joe Barresi have given the band. It's a shame to see the back of the unconventionally structured, 7 minute epics like the Willing Well songs from 'Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness' but if that means we get short but brilliant tracks like 'World of Lines', 'In The Flame of Error' and 'When Skeletons Live' then there'll be no complaining from me.

Reading the 'Year of the Black Rainbow' novel also made re-listening to the album an absolute pleasure, and makes the entire experience so much more rewarding, from a listeners perspective. I have a few problems with the album, which include 'Far' (the whole thing), the last 30 or so seconds of 'Pearl of the Stars' (which could have been one of the best songs without it), and the sometimes repetitious feeling that some songs have.
Year of the Black Rainbow is probably ranked 3rd amongst the Coheed and Cambria discography, maybe even 2nd which is great. I'm going to finish by saying that the bonus tracks are absolutlely incredible and they are totally worth paying a little extra for the deluxe edition.
I'm giving this album my third 4.5/5 of the day.


Reviews coming soon:
Blue Sky Noise by Circa Survive
St. Jude by The Courteeners
The New Fellas by The Cribs

Bullet for my Valentine Special

It's been a long time since my last post (over a month I think?) but hopefully I'm going to try and get back into writing again. Anyway, today I've got a bumper post on Bullet for my Valentine.

On Monday 26th April the band released their new album, 'Fever'. To go along with this, they played a secret and very intimate show at London's Islington 02 Academy.

Although the World Tour appears to be on a break for a while, that doesn't mean I can't go to a good gig. I managed to get a ticket for the show along with Ben, and so we went down there in the hope that Bullet had stepped up their game in the 9 months they've been away from tour.

First up though was Rise to Remain, and I've finally found out why I know who they are. The singer/screamer is son of Bruce Dickinson, of Iron Maiden fame. So they cheated.

In actual fact, they weren't particularly bad at all. The crowd seemed to enjoy them a lot, and they had a really decent guitarist. The set was a bit boring but I thought they sounded pretty decent. I probably won't go out of my way to listen to them again from here.

After a short wait with the worst crowd ever (if you had endured the god-awful queue you would understand) Bullet took to the stage, opening with track one on 'Fever' - 'Your Betrayal'. This was absolutely brilliant and it was great to see that they had improved as musicians. They played through a 12 song set that was really great, and very convincing. Matt Tuck has also beefed up a lot, and for some reason I found that this made him a much more convincing frontman. It was great to see Bullet put on a five-star show, as this always seemed like something they just couldn't do.
It may also be worth adding that I saw two acts of ultimate violence in the crowd.
1. What appeared to be a Viking performed a finishing move that any WWE star would be proud to land on an unsuspecting victim, rendering him dead.
2. An angry man beating the life out of a pierced-up, flat-cap wearing kid for reasons I'm not too sure about, although I have a good guess (see description of victim).
Also worth mentioning is that this is the first gig I've been to that required some crowd-participation since that fateful night at the start of March (Underoath). Turns out I've lost all dexterity I once had, and need to work on getting my ankle back into shape if I'm to enjoy 65daysofstatic in May.
Asides from this, Bullet for my Valentine did a great job performing new and old songs alike, and deserve five stars for their show.
★★★★★

The second part of my Bumper Bullet for my Valentine Special (BBFMVS if you will) is my first impressions on the new album, 'Fever'.
This part isn't so positive. I've listened to the album only two or three times now, so a full review isn't really fair at this point (although you can certainly expect one). What I've heard is typical Bullet, and this far it's felt totally familiar, and really predictable. This is, I suppose, good and bad. It's good because it's a successful formula - I like the previous albums, so I like what I'm hearing now. But there is nothing that feels dangerous here. It gives an impression of laziness in song writing (in fact, lyrically I think it's pretty weak throughout) and no sense of experimentation. Though I'll welcome new songs, I'd love to hear them push and evolve their sound in new directions. Otherwise they've peaked at where they are now, and until they change it up, they shouldn't expect to find any more fame than the surprising amount that they already have.
Full review to come soon.

Dan

The World Tour

The World Tour is currently approaching day five, after a busy March. Reading Festival 2010 has been added to the schedule tonight.

Editors - Live at Brixton Academy

Pictured Above: Editors watch their career as a live band go up in flames.

This was night four of The World Tour, and once again I wasn't expecting alot. Indie bands are pretty boring live, and I expected as much from Editors. Before I get there though, I'd like to briefly mention the dire support band.

Fujiya & Miyagi, as they were called, have finally shown me that Biffy Clyro do not write the worst lyrics ever.

"Vanilla. Strawberry. Knickerbocker Glory. Vanilla. Strawberry. Knickerbocker Glory..."
"16 shades of black and blue. 8 shades of black. 8 shades of blue. 16 shades of black and blue..."

Hopefully that is enough for you to understand the one star rating they have recieved.

Editors came out to track one of the new album 'In This Light and On This Evening'. It was pretty good. They played through a setlist with a really decent balance of songs, probably about a third dedicated to each album (the way it should be).
After expecting them to be pretty poor I was actually surprised at how good they were. Their songs sounded great and Tom Smith was greatly entertaining.
The main problem I had with tonight was the crowd. Probably the most boring crowd I've ever seen. There were moments where some hands were in the air, and sometimes a few people jumped. But for the best part of the show everyone was stood still, waiting for them to play the singles that they bought tickets to see.

I think Editors are aware that indie bands have to suffer this, and they went really out of their way to make the show good. The light show was top notch, probably one of the best I've seen. They even had pyrotechnics (something I've never seen in Brixton) and confetti. But despite their best efforts they didn't really win the crowd over properly. Every non-single was met with a still and silent crowd, and it was a terrible shame.

I was going to give Editors three stars but considering it really isn't their fault and I think they played well I'm giving them four.
★★★★

Frank Turner - Live at the Camden Roundhouse

Frank Turner at the Roundhouse marked night 3 of the 'Dan and Chief World Tour 2010'.
The event began with Crazy Arm, who performed a few songs which failed to really do much for me. They weren't bad at all, but they did nothing but make it difficult for me to talk. Their music wasn't too bad at all, but they had a really awkward stage presence, which I could feel really strongly. It also reminded me that I don't like bass players.

Chuck Ragan was up next and had a little more to offer. Mostly in the violinist (?), who was the second coolest man ever (more on that later). Chuck Ragan had some pretty good songs and the crowd seemed to enjoy him, especially when Frank Turner joined him on stage for a song.

After a short wait, Frank Turner came on the stage. I was a little doubtful for the show, in all honesty. Even though I was amazed by his performance at Reading 2009, I didn't expect too much from him. He came out and went straight into 'Photosynthesis', one of my favourite tracks. The crowd absolutely loved it, and immediately all of my doubts for the show were gone.
Frank plays his songs brilliantly, and to me they sound identical to how they come on record. This is where my doubts were formed, as this is what I expected. However, Frank Turner offers a lot more than sound at his shows. It's a really atmospheric, and very visual experience. The crowd are great, everyone is having a brilliant time and you don't see any angry men running around. 'Jet Lag' is one of the songs on the 'Love, Ire and Song' album that I think is "alright". But live last night, it was my favourite track. It had so much feeling in it, and I think you can hear the words with so much more meaning than when listening on iTunes.
Frank stormed his way through a set consisting of twenty-something songs, with plenty to offer fans of old and new songs alike. It also helps that Frank Turner is the first coolest person ever.

It was a really great night, and I think everyone there must have had a brilliant time. I'd recommend his Brixton show in December to anyone. Although maybe not a blind person, as most of the enjoyment comes from the visual experience.
★★★★★

The Used

Times Seen Live: 2
First Seen: Taste of Chaos 2007. 28th November 2007
Last Seen: Sonisphere Festival 2009. 1st August 2009
Best Show: Taste of Chaos 2007. 28th November 2007
Best Live Songs: All That I've Got, Hospital
Live Rating: ★★★
Notes: I've seen The Used live twice now, and have to say they have disappointed both times. It's a shame really, as on record they are one of my guilty pleasures, providing some really catchy tunes and also some really powerful ones. Their songs are pretty synth-heavy, and live it honestly feels like they've just left that behind and play the songs in a really raw, demo-sounding state. And it really doesn't work very well. And for a band that don't sell many records and need to tour heavily in order to promote their music, this is really unfortunate.

Nine Inch Nails

Times Seen Live: 1
First Seen: Sonisphere Festival 2009. 2nd August 2009
Last Seen: Sonisphere Festival 2009. 2nd August 2009
Best Show: Sonisphere Festival 2009. 2nd August 2009
Best Live Songs: The Wretched, Lights in the Sky
Live Rating: ★★★★
Notes: I saw Nine Inch Nails at their last ever UK show (what a shame) and had been really excited about the show. The show we got was totally unexpected though, and I think a lot of people went away from it pretty disappointed, because the setlist was basically full of their slower material. I remember afterwards Trent Reznor posting on Twitter that he wanted to be controversial. However, the set was absolutely full of emotion, and you could see how much he (Reznor) was putting into it, even adding a few tears at the end of Hurt. The songs they played were great, just maybe not what I wanted from my first (and last, sadly) Nine Inch Nails show.

Pendulum

Times Seen Live: 3
First Seen: iTunes Festival 2008. 28th July 2008
Last Seen: Download Festival 2009. 13th June 2009
Best Show: iTunes Festival 2008. 28th July 2008
Best Live Songs: Blood Sugar, Slam
Live Rating: ★★★★★
Notes: I won tickets to see pendulum in summer 2008, which I was really pleased about as InMe were supporting, and I liked two Pendulum songs. I was a bit skeptical about seeing them live though. I got into Pendulum through Motorstorm, Slam being my favourite song on the soundtrack. When I saw Pendulum at Koko for the iTunes festival, I said afterwards that it was the best gig I'd been to, and looking back now it probably still is one of them. Seeing them at Reading (2008) and Download (2009) was also awesome, although we were pushed to the sidelines at Reading because they were just too popular for the tent they were in. I think as a live act Pendulum are really accessible, and would recommend them to anyone who likes live music.

Limp Bizkit

Times Seen Live: 2
First Seen: Download Festival 2009. 12th June 2009
Last Seen: Sonisphere Festival 2009. 2nd August 2009
Best Show: Download Festival 2009. 12th June 2009
Best Songs Live: Break Stuff, Faith
Live Rating: ★★★★★
Notes: Limp Bizkit probably sold me my download ticket last summer. In 2001 they were everyone's favourite band (that has to be a fact, right?). After the greatness of their only good album (Chocolate Starfish...) wore off they eventually disappeared. Now they're back and, love them or hate them, if you caught their set at Download and/or Sonisphere in the summer there is no way you could admit to not being amazed. They're bound to be doing at least one UK festival this summer, and there is no excuse for missing them.

Bullet For My Valentine

Times Seen Live: 5
First Seen: Reading Festival 2008. 23rd August 2008
Last Seen: Islington Academy. 26th April 2010
Best Show: Alexandra Palace, London. 15th November 2008
Best Songs Live: Your Betrayal, 4 Words to Choke Upon
Live Rating: ★★★★
Notes: Bullet are one of my top rated bands, and pretty much all of their music is decent enough, meaning that they don't disappoint with setlists. Sometimes they disappoint with the songs they choose to open and close their shows on, but that's just personal taste. I don't really count seeing them at Sonisphere 2009 either, because I was just watching them from the back, because the second stage sound was so awful. And Linkin Park were up next.
Bullet are a solid live act, but to be honest they don't live up to their sound on record. They're known for missing a few notes live, which is pretty poor for a band of their status. However, since the release of their new album and a long time off the road they appear to have improved at this, and the show they put on for the release of 'Fever' was really really good. Looks like they might be onto something now.

Billy Talent

Times Seen Live: 4
First Seen: Give it a Name 2008. 11th May 2008
Last Seen: Brixton Academy, London. 1st November 2009
Best Show: Reading Festival 2009. 28th August 2009
Best Live Songs: Devil on my Shoulder, River Below
Live Rating: ★★★★★
Notes: Billy Talent were one of the first bands I liked (I started liking music in 2006) and it took me ages to finally get to see them. And 3 of the 4 shows I've seen have been festival performances, so I was thrilled when I got to see them at a headline show last November. That was a great show, and it was only edged out in terms of quality by their headline set at Reading in the summer. The crowd was probably the best I've ever seen, and they performed a really decent set. Seeing them live is also a reminder of just how many really good songs they have. Singer Ben Kowalewicz is also one of the best frontmen around, highlights include enjoying the orchestrating of a 'Fuck the Kings of Leon' chant throughout the Lock-Up tent at Reading in 2009.

Rise Against

Times Seen Live: 3
First Seen: Taste of Chaos 2007. 28th November 2007
Last Seen: Brixton Academy, London. 21st November 2009
Best Show: Brixton Academy, London. 21st November 2009
Best Live Songs: Prayer of the Refugee, Blood to Bleed
Live Rating: ★★★★★
Notes: When I first saw Rise Against I had never heard of them. They were playing beneath The Used at Taste of Chaos in 2007, which I would now say is an absolute crime. I remember when I was there I was stood at the back watching and the entire crowd was going crazy for them before they came on. Not so much for headliners The Used, which is I guess is a plus (not for The Used). I was impressed by their set, but I didn't get around to listening to them until probably a year later. By the time Reading Festival 2009 came around they were up there with my favourite bands, and when they were announced to be headlining the Lock-Up stage I was thrilled. Rise Against were one of my favourite bands of the weekend, and they absolutely packed out the tent. In November last year I managed to see a headline show at Brixton, which was not only amazing, it also showed me how much better they are now than they used to be. I made this decision based on the fact that Blood to Bleed is one of the best live songs ever, but on their 2004 album 'Siren Song of the Counter Culture' it sounds a hundred times weaker. As far as I'm concerned, if you don't listen to Rise Against you are a bad person.

65daysofstatic

Times Seen Live: 4
First Seen: Reading Festival 2009. 29th August 2009
Last Seen: Sonisphere Festival 2010. 30th July 2010
Best Show: Heaven, London. 18th November 2009
Best Live Songs: Retreat! Retreat!, Crash Tactics
Live Rating: ★★★★★
Notes: I remember when I first saw 65daysofstatic, I had gone because Matt (AlbumSwap) wanted to see them at Reading and Alex (AlbumSwap) and I said that we would go too. I remember standing at the back and watching in absolute awe of them, watching a true spectacle - with Placebo beach balls flying throughout the tent. It was probably the most hard-hitting live show I'd ever seen. That was until I got home, got the first album, then saw them again. Literally immense. Now I've seen them a few times, and they are just one of the greatest live experiences ever. Have to say though, the smaller venue, the better the crowd.

Underoath

Times Seen Live: 2
First Seen: Astoria, London. 12th September 2008
Last Seen: Koko, London. 11th March 2010
Best Show: Astoria, London. 12th September 2008
Best Live Songs: In Regards to Myself, It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door
Live Rating: ★★★★★
Notes: I've seen Underoath twice, and they've been great both times. It seems that they don't have a bad crowd at all. They perform their songs (in my opinion) better than they do on record, which always makes it a good spend. The fact that I sprained my ankle last time I saw them is irrelevant, that wasn't their fault and it was still awesome. Only one complaint with Underoath is that they seem to think that by going to see them live you are willing to be forced into religion, and I believe they are now infamous for spouting out praise for Jesus and his cohorts. Even if I were religious I wouldn't want it at a gig - there's a time and a place.