I've been away for a long long time....

Hey there. I've been so busy over the past couple of weeks, what with finals in college, and turning in other work, trying to secure an internship, all that good stuff. I've barely had time to LISTEN to any music, let alone review it. But now, summer is here, and hopefully I will have a lot more time for recreational writing.

More reviews are on their way (at least from me.) Thanks!
Check back often.

Brand New-The Devil and God are Raging Inside Me

I know this is a few years old, and that it mainly appeals to the emo crowd...but deep down, I think we have to admit, we can all be a little emo at times, so bear with me. It's definitely a guilty pleasure, and I'm not afraid to admit it whatsoever.

The album opens with a quiet introduction, which is basically spoken word over quiet guitar. Within a minute, you are blasted by a rapid crescendo, and yelling. It is by far the most expressive, with its highs, lows, and crescendos.

The second track, "Millstone", is one of the album's ballads. It is more melodic, and has far less screaming than the other songs on the album. It uses the drums to its advantage, with the song growing quiet and only vocals and rudimentary guitar over them.

"Jesus Christ"...This song is purely aimed at getting with emo scene girls.

Track four, "Degausser", flaunts an eerie sounding chorus. The voices ring in dissonance, creating a creepy and melancholy sound.

Track six, "You Won't Know", another screaming, crescendo-ing song, gives the album back its intensity after the last three mellow tracks. It's a lot more angry than the first track, and basically the entire CD.

"Welcome to Bangkok", mainly an instrumental, fills your ears with distortion pedals, some weird background synth, and random yelling in the background, is definitely unecessary to the overall album.

Track eight, "Not the Sun", is a song about unrequited love by a scorned man. Despite its depressing topic, its sound is one of the most upbeat on the album.

"Archers" comes the closest to their older sound, still filled with anguish, but holding a lot more melody than other tracks.

The last song, "Handcuffs", is a mellow ballad that is a little pretty, with acoustic guitars, and keyboards. It's like letting out that last sigh, after you've let go of your anger and frustration, which Brand New had no problem expressing on the other tracks on the album.

Overall, their sound on this album is more dark and melancholy than on previous albums, which featured a more emo-punk sound than just plain emo. It's not their best CD, and maybe they are overrated, but I'm fine keeping this in my guilty pleasure file.


The Damage:



4 out of 5 mustaches

Radiohead-Amnesiac

Alright so I'm aware that this album has been out since 2001. But I think it would be incredibly naive for anyone to deny the fact that Radiohead has had a major impact on a wide range of artists. And the unfortunate thing is that until recently, I have never explored their music for myself. But I've finally come to realize that there is something truly astonishing about this band.

This album has been written off by many people as the band's "Kid B" album, since Kid A was written around the same time and has a similar experimental vibe. However I think Amnesiac has a slightly different feel to it and stands on it's own as a fantastic album.

The opener, Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box starts off with a subtle, yet moving electronic drum beat. Keyboards and vocals then come in. Spacey layers and digital noises are eventually added. This isn't my favorite track but I think it sets the mood for whats to come.

The second track, Pyramid Song, is in my opinion the highlight of the 44 minutes offered here. The song has a mellow beginning similar to many other Radiohead tunes. However, the buildup of the string section throughout is breathtaking to say the least. Thom Yorke's vocals add to the ethereal impression of this song as well.

The third song here is a bit of a departure from the previous two. Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors is a little more industrial and definitely has a more delirious feel to it. It's interesting nonetheless.

Next is You and Whose Army? I couldn't help but notice the jazz influences that seep through when listening to this. Everything from the delicate "ooing" and upright bass in the beginning, to the sound of the drums that come in around 1:50. It's a dark, haunting piece of music that is enjoyable but ultimately feels a bit out of place on the album.

The album picks up once again with I Might Be Wrong; another upbeat track that would have fit well on Kid A. Here, Radiohead do what they do best. Layers of guitars, keyboards, electronic beats, and other bizarre noises are added in successive layers from beginning to end until it ends abrubtely around 3:48. I personally enjoyed how the song picked up again after that point.

Knives Out, the sixth song on Amnesiac, instantly reminded me of older Radiohead because of the chord progressions and atmospheric nature. The way the guitar and bass are intertwined creates a very spacey mood similar to that found on tracks such as "Subterranean Homesick Alien" and "No Surprises" off of OK Computer. Once again, Yorke's voice is stunning and compliments the overall vibe of the song.

Following this is Amnesiac/Morning Bell which is an alternative version to Morning Bell off Kid A. It's a very eerie tune that definitely induces a feeling of paranoia. Lyrics are another story. The majority of the lyrics on this album are not easily interpreted, but this song is particularly strange. When Yorke sings "Cut the kids in half", it's anyone's best guess as to what he is referring to.

Dollars & Cents is another favorite of mine. A groovy bass line is repeated in the background while a restrained, echoing drum beat drives the song. Guitars are frequently added and the string section picks up near the end . It appears as if Yorke intended to use his voice as another instrument on this one. Other than the string section, the vocals are really the only melody that is carried.

The next two pieces of music, Hunting Bears and Like Spinning Plates are mostly instrumental but are decent additions to the album. The former is a short, but strange track. If you listen closely, wind is blowing in the background and random pick sliding on the guitar can be heard. It also sounds like it is running through a tape loop. Like Spinning Plates is an equally strange track in that it kind of sounds like wings are flapping in the beginning. I also noticed that a backwards effect is used on certain parts but the vocals are normal. It provides a very creepy sensation when listening to the song in good headphones.

Last, but certainly not least is Life in a Glasshouse. This song is probably my second favorite track among those on Amnesiac. A variety of different instruments are used including a trumpet, trombone, and oboe which all sound great. It's a suitable closer to a great album.

I wouldn't call this a classic and it's certainly not as cohesive as Kid A. However, I do think it has a lot to offer and it has a number of songs that are strong individually. Whether you are a new or old fan of the band, I would highly recommend Amnesiac.

The Damage:



4 out of 5 Mustaches

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!

For the The Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ fans who were anxiously awaiting another raw art rock album, It’s Blitz! will not deliver. On their third studio album, released on March 31, 2009, Guitarist Nick Zinner has traded in the raw garage band riffs for electronica. It was to be expected that eventually The Yeah Yeah Yeahs would turn to the dancey indie pop genre, but I was not prepared for this quick split from their usual dirty and unprocessed sound. Nothing lasts forever, as you can see songs like “Bang” soon became Show Your Bones’ “Turn Into.”

The first track, “Zero” has a catchy hook, and is what radio singles are made of. “Heads will roll” is a great dance track, as well. Track 4, “Skeletons”, paints the image of little drummer boys in your head, but in a good way. It makes you feel the urge to do something epic whenever you hear it.

“Dull Life” is the gem on this album. Its sound is the closest to that of Show Your Bones. It still grasps the ear of the electronic fan, but thrusts some of that raw power of their previous albums in your face.

“Runaway” begins with a really delicate piano, and eventually crescendos with a string section, and then ends with a more powerful, and somewhat redeeming, percussion section.

The album ends on a downbeat, with the final two tracks being neither raw nor dancey. The tracks are pleasant, but not impressive.

I won’t say they're selling out yet, but “Runaway”, the seventh track on It’s Blitz!, is being featured on the episode of Gossip Girl premiering on April 20th. I believe this electronic change was the right idea for the fans of the band, but I find it a disappointing one. This is a good album for the genre it was reaching towards, but unfortunately, not the genre that the fans are used to.



The Damage:



3 out of 5 Mustaches

Channel Theory - These Things

These Things, the debut album of Chicago-born Channel Theory is an insightful, refreshing experience, all printed onto a disc. The group seems to pull influence from bands such as Something Corporate and Death Cab For Cutie. The sound of the record itself isn't too different from most singer/songwriter albums, but a small sense of individualism is present in this release.

The album in itself is instrumentally light, using a normal bass/drums/guitar/vocals setup, with several appearances by piano. This isn't a bad thing however, as most of the songs are vocally driven. The album never gets too fast, most of the songs are relaxing and easy on the ears. The vocalist's voice reminds me of another singer, who I can't think of right now, and the bass guitar throughout this whole release is very captivating.

These Things gets off to a good start, with the opener Figure It Out, followed by A Theater of My Own and Press Start to End, which effectively carry the album on. Things slow down a bit when acoustic The Pressure of Silence hits, but begins to regain its momentum when the fifth track I'm Still Here plays. The seventh track (Work of Art) brings back a positive feeling to the album, and Hold Tight boasts guitar lines similar to older Circa Survive. The album would not be what it is though, without the closer Paint the Sky.

This release pulls through successfully as a debut release from a new artist, but may not effectively stack up against similar styles unless a sense of uniqueness is added into the next release. Not all bands need to be different, but it seems like something is missing from most of these songs.

Keep your eyes peeled for more from Channel Theory in the near future.



The Damage:



3 out of 5 Mustaches

Suidakra - Crogacht

The ninth studio album from Suidakra, titled Crogacht, comes off as a sheep among the flock in Metal albums. These German rockers have apparently been going strong for over a decade. I guess you can tell by the lack of anything exciting on this release. It seems that they borrow a lot from already-been-popular Cradle of Filth on this album, or maybe it was the other way around. Don't judge, I'm not too familiar with Sudakra's work. Either way, within the first two songs of the album, a "been there, done that" vibe is clinging to my brain, aside from the bagpipes toward the end.

I'm going to start off saying that first off, I didn't know that using bagpipes was "metal." I mean, anyone can use whatever instruments they want to in recordings, but it sticks out like a sore amputated thumb. By the fourth track, there's already enough bagpipe. Yet, they still decide to open the fourth track with a bagpipe-ridden intro, after which guitars repeat the bagpipe's part. For some reason, it's not sounding as good as the bagpipe just did. Okay. This is a serious problem. The GUITAR isn't sounding as good as the BAGPIPES just did. Problem #1.

That's enough about the bagpipes, I shouldn't beat a dead horse. In all, the album's effort seems to be best defined as "tired" and "overdone." The vocals, sung by "Arkadius" (if that IS his real name) are very boring and monotonous. The fifth track, "Feats of War" features some very oddly placed female vocals. This is really not doing it for me. I think the best part about this band is the drummer, who still doesn't really add much style or flair of his own to the performance. It seems like there's too much ride cymbal use on here for it to be considered a great Metal drum performance. Everyone has their own choices and styles, which is why this is MY personal review, and not the review of the world.

So, take this review into consideration or leave it, but personally, I'm going to leave this one on the shelf. The overall unenthusiastic performance and "cut-and-dry" style of Sudakra's Crogacht is definitely a turn-off for me. As mentioned earlier, I'm not familiar with the band, and they may have been known for being pioneers of metal by incorporating Celtic folk songs into sections of their Metal performances, but it's not flying with me.



The Damage:



1 out of 5 Mustaches.
Recommended if you like the sound of Metal. Not recommended if you don't like hearing the same thing in Metal all the time.

The Weakerthans - Reconstruction Site

Play the video at the bottom of this post to read along with the music!
Reconstruction Site is a bold, painfully honest release by Canadian group The Weakerthans. This album embodies the encounters of a grown man with the occasional train-of-thought of a child. Lyrically, Reconstruction Site delivers a message that anyone can relate to.

The first track, (Manifest), contains a tangled bunch of words with meaning to those who look for it. The song is an excellent album opener, complete with a horn section and the feeling of sarcastic optimism towards the end.

The Reasons kicks things off to a start, describing the relationship between two companions. The chorus repeats “I know/you might roll your eyes at this/but I’m so/glad that you exist”, and the ending of the song really opens the gate toward the rest of the album.

Reconstruction Site (song) embodies the deep thought process of a man in the world, citing memories of his. This is the ultimate storytelling song, bringing back memories throughout his life. The instrumentation displays these references very well, with several riffs reminiscent of Barenaked Ladies.

Psalms For The Elks Lodge Last Call seems to depict an older man’s thought process as he sits inside of an Elks Lodge, thinking about the inevitable. The guitars in this song are very well-written, and the vocal harmonies and auxiliary percussion bring a new feeling towards the end.

Plea From A Cat Named Virtute is one of my personal favorite tracks on this album. The lyrics are written through the eyes of a cat. The cat notices its owner dwelling in depression, and offers suggestions on ways to quit being down in the dumps. The chorus in this song is exceedingly catchy.

Our Retired Explorer briefly describes the story of an explorer in Antarctica who dies while on an expedition. Several references to exploration authors are made here.

Time’s Arrow is a nice break from the preceding high-strung tracks. It serves as a very nice breath of fresh air. The lead guitar in this song really helps make the song, and the drum pattern during parts of the chorus help to keep the listeners’ attention this far into the album.

No song has represented the service in a hospital like (Hospital Vespers) does. The lyrics describe a man staying with a companion of his while under treatment, as the treated person’s life comes to an end.

Uncorrected Proofs seems to tell the story of two people who can’t hold a relationship together because of colliding interests and life interfering. Listen to the chorus in this song, this band has a way with being catchy.

A New Name For Everything seems to depict a person who never has fully lived their life in the way they’ve wanted to. A lot of cool little guitar parts are in here, some sound like a slide guitar, which has never sounded so good until now. The Weakerthans continue the formula that they’ve perfected.

One Great City! seems to be a personal insight of Winnipeg. Several situations around the region are described in this song. It’s a really good song to relax to, and provides a chuckle or two at some points.

Benediction is more of the same classic Weakerthans formula, with some flashy female vocal duet parts, this song didn’t really do too much for me.

The Prescience of Dawn wraps up a lonely man’s struggles into a four-and-a-half minute song. These lyrics can get hard to decipher sometimes, but they make sense when they’re listened to, it seems.

(Past Due) is a rendition of (Manifest), with a more electronic sound to it, and it wraps up the album nicely by introducing the end as similar to the beginning, but with a little room for change. Maybe the lyrics have shown this too.


Overall, The Weakerthans’ Reconstruction Site provides a good listen. It occasionally trails on, especially toward the end, when some of the songs start to sound the same. The lyrics and vocals are probably one of the best parts of this band. Personally, I think it makes good driving music, mostly for longer car trips.


The Damage:

3 out of 5 Mustaches

Dance Gavin Dance-The Death Star Album

Oh Dance Gavin Dance...What happened? I really wanted to like this album. I really really did.

I didn't even hear about this band until I heard the song Uneasy Hearts Weigh the Most, a song from this album which features the controversial new singer Kurt Travis. After hearing this song, I began listening to the album Downtown Battle Mountain. Simply put, I fell in love. The music was extremely creative and really stuck with you. Some time passed and the band began to post new songs on their Myspace from The Death Star Album and I continued to be impressed. I really like Kurt Travis' voice and melodies. They are much different from former singer Johnny Craig's, but they are equally as good.

Now to get down to the actual review. I'm going to do this a little differently. Instead of going through the songs in order, I'm going to review the songs that I think actually deserve to be called songs. In my opinion, everything else on this album is just so bad it can be lumped into one category: Noise.

And on that note, let's get started...

The album starts out promising with Alex English. This song is very impressive and seems like the natural next step the band should take in making music. It maintains that "controlled mayhem" feeling of Downtown Battle Mountain, while introducing the Circa Survive-esque vocal melodies of Kurt Travis which mesh well with Jonathan Mess' screams.

A word about Jonathan Mess. I think his screaming is absolutely horrible. I think it was horrible on Downtown Battle Mountain as well. What made it work though is that the band knew how to use it and made it more of a background noise than a lead vocal. They seemed to screw that up on the majority of this album though.

The next song that is actually good is Caviar, which features Chino Moreno of the Deftones. The band takes a bold new direction with this song. The music is much slower and ambient than usual. Travis' vocals are haunting and Mess' screams do well to fill in the gaps. Moreno's cameo, while minimal, is also very welcome here. This song is just really well written and it seems like they put a lot of thought into its composition.

Another great song on this album is Me and Zoloft Get Along Fine. As with Alex English, this song keeps the "controlled mayhem" feel that Dance Gavin Dance is known for. Travis really shows what he can do here. Everything comes together so well on this track that you can't help but sing along.

The Robot With Human Hair Pt. 3 is also fantastic. It's Dance Gavin Dance showing off their more melodic side, while still keeping things chaotic. They stick to their guns here and keep the screams to a reasonable amount and focus more on the melodies of Travis' clean vocals. The song starts off frantically, but it becomes a much more melodic affair after about the first minute. The high notes Travis hits at the end are also really impressive.

Finally, we come to Uneasy Hearts Weigh The Most, the most melodic song I've ever heard the band play. This was the first song I heard by Dance Gavin Dance and I absolutely love it. It's so incredibly catchy, it's scary. Will Swan really shreads on this track too. His licks are just straight up awesome. The gang vocals in the pre-chorus are catchy and the appearance by Nic Newsham from Gatsby's American Dream is a welcomed one. This song only has one breakdown that uses Mess' screams. It's a perfect fit to break up the melodic pace of the song and it's really cool. Why couldn't the rest of your album be this good Dance Gavin Dance?

You may be asking yourself: "Wait a minute Jake, it sounds like you really did like this album." Unfortunately this is not the case. Remember earlier when I said Mess' screaming is absolutely horrible, but the band knew how to use it well? Well on the other eight tracks of this album, they really blew it. These eight tracks include: Buffalo!, Burning Down the Nicotine Armoire Pt. 2, Hot Water On Wool (Reprise), Hot Water On Wool, People You Know, Reprogramming Mental Preprogramming, Rock Solid, and Skyhook. Come on Dance Gavin Dance, you're way better than this. It's as if on they recorded these songs thinking that Travis wasn't going to be their full time singer, so they gave him minimal parts. People You Know is just Mess screaming random sentences. It's hard to listen to. It ends with him screaming for about thirty seconds without any music behind it. Why? I can't think of anyone who enjoys just listening to someone scream. Mistake number 1. Also the music is completely uninspired on these tracks. I think the band just got kind of lazy and wanted to get the album out in time to do some touring.

The first five tracks that I mentioned all have something in common. These were the songs the band put on their Myspace to show off the new album. There's a very good reason for that. The other songs are just so bad I think they were embarrassed to post them on the internet. Since this album Mess has left the band. They have a new album coming out this June, so keep your eye out for my review of that. Hopefully they are warmed up now and can really show us what they can do.

The Damage:



2 out of 5 Mustaches

The Strokes-Room on Fire

Room on Fire is, in my humble opinion, The Strokes at their finest. Everything just comes together so well on this album that it becomes one of those CDs where you’re just always in the mood to listen to it.

This album begins with What Ever Happened. As soon as the track starts rolling, you instantly find yourself snapping along with the beat. Yes…snapping. The song becomes unforgettable as soon as Julian Casablancas’ vocals come into play. A quick-side note about Casablancas’ vocals: I happen to love his “I just woke up and had a cigarette and coffee for breakfast” style, but I realize it’s not for everyone.

Next up is the familiar tune of Reptilia. This song is just so imaginative and wonderfully written that you can’t help but enjoy it. When the chorus builds up one instrument at a time, you’ll find yourself overwhelmed by goosebumps.

Moving right along, we have Automatic Stop. This song is a little different. When the song opens, the guitar has a sort of uplifting rhythm to it, but once the song kicks in it goes in a very unexpected direction. It caught me off guard the first time I listened to it. I admittedly didn’t like it at first. But after the poppy, upbeat, almost “techno-rhythm” chorus kicks in; you start to understand it. By the second verse, you really get what they were going for and begin to love the creativity of it.

The next three songs (12:51, You Talk Way Too Much, and Between Love & Hate) all Stroke along with catchy Strokes-esque choruses and genuine “The Strokes” goodness.

The next song to really grab my attention was Meet Me in the Bathroom. Nikolai Fraiture’s bass line in the hook really steals the show here. This is one of the songs that definitely stuck out in my mind and really set the tone for the entire album. Bravo, The Strokes.

Under Control is also pretty awesome. It’s one of the most laid back/enjoyable songs I can think of. Those who know me know that I enjoy going on long, leisurely walks, and this is the perfect song for such an activity. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and you don’t have a care in the world….this is when you listen to this song.

The Way It Is takes you from the slow pace of your leisurely walk to the high speed cruise of the open road. It’s an up-tempo jam with an unapologetic amount of distortion coming at you from every direction.

The End Has No End is kind of a blend between the rockin’ side of The Strokes and the poppy-radio friendly side, but it all meshes together beautifully.

To end Room on Fire, The Strokes send us off tappin’ our toes with a catchy lil’ tune that makes you want to reminisce about something that brings a smile to your face, whether it be it be your glory days of high school or that time you found a 20 in the pocket of those jeans you haven’t worn in a while (Score!).

While this album is fantastic, it is not for everybody. The music is very straightforward. While it is very well written, you won’t hear anything too technical here. Also as mentioned before, the vocals are very stylized and to some, may sound uninspired if you don’t understand what Casablancas is going for. But if you’re in the mood to chill with some good friends, talk about the good ol’ days and just let it all hang out, then Room on Fire is for you.

The Damage:

4 out of 5 Mustaches.

Meshuggah - obZen

So I know this album is so totally last year as far as progressive / technical metal goes, but frankly it's one that I haven't been able to get out of my head since the first few spins on WONY last year. Meshuggah's obZen, released in March of 2008, is the latest effort from the Sweedish five piece who bends both bar lines and minds at concerts. I'll go through each track and list my favorite bits and least favorite bits of each.

Don't ask me what the mutilated, bleeding, three-armed meditating guy actually means. I don't know.

1) Combustion: In the running for best track on the album, for sure. Starting off with a classic picked octave Thordendal riff that sounds simple (but is a bitch to play). Haake devolves into his punk roots, bashing out a fast and strong beat that drives the band like rhinocerous on a runaway locomotive. This is definately a nod to the almost mainstream, thrashy sound on Contradictions Collapse, and something that most people who like metal but not necessarily tech can get into. The solo riff gets a bit boring after a while, but the good intent of the buildup is there.

2) Electric Red: Much more a riff that belongs on Catch Thirty Three, almost sounds like Disenchantment at first. If you're into the older, classic Meshuggah this track will probably be in your running. It isn't in mine simply because I don't think it fits the rest of the album very well for some reason. Don't ask me to put my finger on it, because I can't.

3) Bleed: Oh dear Jesus, that kick beat. I still haven't figured it out, what with the million versions of it put on youtube. Of course, Haake's is closest...


The mind-bending combination of polyrhythms and tremolo picking makes me warm and fuzzy inside... Bleed is therefore also nominated for best track.

4) Lethargica: Another nod backwards towards Catch Thirty Three. This song really returns to the band's roots as a groovy drone band, staying on the same lick, but still absolutely KILLING it. These vocals are some of my favorite on the album - I think Jens Kidman's incredible range really shows here. Also, Fredrik and Mårten Hagström really outdo themselves with the riffs after the "clean" breakdown around 3:03.

You know you've made it to the big-time when you can pose for a PR shot and wear your OWN band t-shirt.

5) oBzen: Title track of the album (duh). I love this track because it is probably the heaviest. At least the intro is. The quintessential Meshuggah riff, in fact: the intro is low tuned, aggressive, kick following odd-rhythm guitar picking, snare on odd beats, and features a squiggly solo over top. The rest of the song continues in this fashion, a real crowd-pleaser for the more technical minded fans.

6) This Spiteful Snake: The track came off to me almost as filler material. Its much more ambient than the rest of the album, until around 2:46 in when Haake starts drumming out a real beat (as much as any Meshuggah song has a recognizable "beat") instead of doing tom rolls and cymbal accents. Good for a groove, but not highest on my playlist.

7) Pineal Glad Optics: Carry-over track from Spiteful Snake. They blend pretty well, and now we're getting back towards the incredible continuity of Catch Thirty Three. Again, this features some disjunct riffs and loose, airy drum beats with some really awesome atonal shredding.

8 ) Pravus: What "Bleed" is to kick drum, "Pravus" is to snare. I feel like Haake got tired of people admiring his footwork and wanted to show that his high school marching band days are still with him. The rhythm he taps out during the first 30 seconds of the piece is easy by itself, but mind-bending when you listen to what the rest of the kit is doing. Tomas Haake, you are master of off-beat accents. I bow to you. The other stand-out part of the song is around 3 minutes or so when they bust into a "breakdown" with some sort of modal guitar harmony thing going on. I love it.


UPSIDE DOWN ORB OF POWER!

9) Dancers to a Discordant System: HOLY ATONAL, BATMAN! Guitars = something out of a ten year old slapping around on the fretboard. But the weird thing (and this is why I love Meshuggah), is that they make it sound melodic. I am continually fascinated with how a band can be so atonal and so anti-4/4 and yet be melodic and perfectly rhythmic. Yes, I know half of Haake's beats are in 4/4, stop yelling at me all you closet time signature counters. This song has a blend of all the elements - the atonal riffs, the classic Haake beats, the vocals... and then towards the end goes into this breakdown that slays anything in its path (right about 7:30).

And that, my friends, is oBzen, my nomination for best tech/prog metal album of the year, with Bleed, Combustion, Pravus, and oBzen taking their rightfully earned places at the top of my Meshuggah playlist.

The Damage:



4 out of 5 Mustaches

Coheed and Cambria - Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV: Volume I - From Fear Through The Eyes of Madness

I love this album. Everyone else seems to be obsessing over No World For Tomorrow though, and I still can't get into it as much. This is my #1 favorite album of all-time, and it has been since it came out. I know this sounds shallow, seeing as it only came out in 2005, but it's true. I'll go to listen to other albums, and eventually, I'll always come back to this album. I never get sick of this one.
Keeping the Blade is a nice opener, I love the band's explanation of the merging of the intro tracks from In Keeping Secrets, and Second Stage. They say that merging two beginnings (said intro tracks) can only mean that all that's left is the end. It was a successful transition, and I like the newly written part in this track as well.

The fade into Always and Never seems almost Broadway-esque, but I think that might be why I like it so much. The second half of the opening riff in Always and Never seems to invite the listener in to hear the story that this band wants to tell you. I'm not raving about the noises of small children's laughter in this track, but it's obviously story-related.

Welcome Home makes me feel like an army is marching through my dorm room/car/headphones/wherever I am when I'm listening to it. It's such a great song, and the solos are really fitting, not seeming out of place at all. Though the end does get a little repetitive, I feel like they ended it just in time.

Ten Speed (Of God's Blood and Burial) is an incredibly catchy song, with an interesting explanation of story material. This song is about the main character's battle between himself and his subconscious self in his head, which takes the form of a bicycle (named Ten Speed, obviously.) Ten Speed is trying to encourage the character to kill off the main love interest in the story, and the positioning of the lyrics in this song really makes the listener envision a conversation going back and forth between the character and Ten Speed, especially in the chorus. (Claudio's different vocal tones are most likely used to designate two separate characters.)

Crossing the Frame always comes off to me as Ten Speed II. But that doesn't make it a bad thing. It doesn't quite carry the momentum of Ten Speed, but it's still fun to listen to, and carries along the same tempo and mood as Ten Speed, which really prepares the listener for a dynamic change just in time for Apollo I: The Writing Writer.

Apollo I: The Writing Writer has a sadistic mood to it, and I love the lyrics. The bass groove in the verses are really inexplicably fun to listen to, and the whole song, even though it repeats a little bit, is still really well-written, and you can taste a tinge of prog in this song.

Once Upon Your Dead Body is the Orange to Apollo I's apple. It seems a little out of place, but this song picks up a little bit, and towards the end of this song, it becomes fun to listen to. At this tempo, and in this mood, you can pick out Josh Eppard's skillful drumming, with which he is gracefully modest.

Wake Up is one of my least favorite songs, and I think that this song is the Cloverfield of the album. It's great the first time, then it kinda descends after that. It seems to carry on for just one chorus repetition too long, but it doesn't necessarily ruin the album for me by any means.

The Suffering is #2/3 of my least favorite songs, just because this song is incredibly out of place in terms of mood and structure. But, I guess every band needs a catchy single that they can spam the airwaves with. It's too bad that this had to be the result of that, especially since this song still really only serves as filler as far as the story goes.

The Lying Lies and Dirty Secrets of Miss Erica Court is a very subtle song, until it gets going, but I like the mood that it starts in, slowly building until it gets to the chorus. Once the chorus comes along, Claudio wails on his vocals, and the emphasis of the song sits in the chorus and later sections. Nothing too technically interesting here, but still a good song to build tension with, for the conclusion of the album.

Mother May I is #3/3 of sore thumbs of this album for me. It starts out a little oddly, then it starts to switch back to normal. I'm not sure that Josh Eppard's syncopation was what this track needed at the beginning, but the chorus or refrain section is interesting. The tempo is good for Claudio's 'Heed-ish style of guitaring, though.

The Willing Well I: From Fear Through The Eyes of Madness. YES. I love this song. This is one of my three favorite songs on this album, and this song is also a major contributor to my love for this album. I think Coheed excels on technical parts, and I think that might be a reason why I didn't enjoy the new album as much. The guitar lines in this song fit the cool time switches well, and I love some of the vocal processing and general sound modifications that they use in this song. So creepy and neat to listen to, at the same time.

The Willing Well II: Fuel For the Feeding End SEEMS out of place at first, but I think it's supposed to, because within the story, this song takes place in a completely different setting/mindset of the characters, which is why it goes from a happy-go-lucky mood to a strangely sinister, sick progression.

The Willing Well III: Apollo II: The Telling Truth isn't much different from Apollo I, besides the bridge section and on. I will say that I've never heard a repeated section of an album pulled off so well. I think this song sits here with good reason, establishing the plot of the story, and once again pounding the plot into the readers' heads, before something drastic happens in The Final Cut.

The Willing Well IV: The Final Cut is one of my three favorite tracks on this album for so many reasons. Seeing them play this song live is even better, because they just keep going on a jam-session sort of escapade. On the Last Supper DVD, this song goes on for upwards of 10 minutes, but I love how jazzy/bluesy it is. The solos are great, and I couldn't have asked for a better closing track.

I HAVE to give this album a 9 out of 10. I won't say that this album is PURE prog, because honestly, it's not. The influence is definitely there however, and the small pieces of prog thrown into here and there are definitely true works of art.

The Damage:



5 out of 5 Mustaches.