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.
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
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