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| This Ep called "A Reminder"is Drake Bell's latest release since the 2006 album"It's OnlyTime". It has taken some time since he is alsoan established actor and that career has been better for him than the musical.
It did not happen much with the last album which was somewhat surprising, but it was not that extraordinary to be honest.
This new Epis a clear step forward and is well made and stylish powerpop in a singer-songwriter format. There are obvious Beatles influences and the songs smells of course Jellyfish and Bleu about the songs which is pleasing. The opening "Terrific"is brilliant with really nice harmonies that makes me think of the hero Owsley. The rest of the material is well made and competent, indicating that the new album could be really nice suprise. |
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| William James McAuley III or Bleu is one of my biggest musical heroes of the past decade. Everything he has done has been top class in which all the solo records are must haves if you're into powerpop with a modern twist.
This album entitled "Besides" is a collection of great b-sides, rarities and alternate versions. And of course, this is of good class where this phenomenon cannot write anything bad. Some of these songs here are so-called pitch songs, ie.intended for American Idol participant and also written together with other talented people. "If" written with Dwight Baker (Kelly Clarkson / Bob Schneider) and "Save it for a Rainy Day" by Eric Barao is a good example of that. Two great tracks that should have had a better fate than to be on this collection, but I'm not complaining!
However, my favorites are the funk smelling "Blow Up The Radio" that was written together with Roger Joseph Manning Jr. and the opening track "Take Cover" that would have fit on any of his studio albums. Two great tracks that shows that this great collection is well worth having if you like what he done before. However, it is only available as vinyl or digital, which I do not really understand, but Bleu is Bleu so you just have to purchase it! |
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| Jon McLaughlin is a personal favorite since he got signed to Island in 2007. The debut "Indiana" was a very nice record filled with well made piano-based pop / rock in a relatively quiet style. He sold some 100,000 copies of it, which was sufficient for the sequel "Ok Now" that was much more pop-oriented than the debut.
However, the second album “just” sold about as much as the debut, which was not enough and he had unfortunately leave label and become independent again.
On its own, he released the album "Forever If Ever" in 2011 , which once again was a nice and solid effort with a bunch of good tracks.
Razor & Tie also saw that as they signed him and now will re-release 'Forever If Ever " with a new title and some fresh songs. Most of the former album is included here, but we get some new as “Young Never Know” and Falling "in best Billy Joel style. However it’s the “older” "Promising Promises" and "Maybe It's Over" that impresses me most and will have a good run on commercial radio this year.
So If you have "Forever If Ever" in your collection I do not think "Promises, Promises" adds that much, but if not then it is a pleasant modern singer / songwriter album that is worth checking up. |
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| David Hodges with a past from Evanescene and Trading Yesterday has written a lot of hits and is for me one of the very best when it comes to melodic pop and rock.
Although he has had a great career, he has also had several setbacks and been dropped from major labels twice. So he is in an industry that is relatively ruthless and then very unpredictable where you’re hot one day and the cold the other.
He has like most realized that the music industry no longer generates the same amount of sold albums as before and that it is harder to get the music out. And although gets a number of tracks on albums each year so he sits on a lot of material that is not set for some reason. So he have now decided to open the treasure chest and regularly releasing albums with unreleased material on his label Sleepwalker Records.
This is the first taste and contains, of course a great collection of songs since he has a unique ability to create beautiful melodies. The format is relatively acoustically, but there is still some production with nice arrangements that makes it feel like a real product.
Is surprisedt hat tracks like "Never Thought To Look", "Returning To Sand" and "Tell Her Something" has not been released before, but are also very grateful that he has now chosen to release them on his own. Good album! |
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| British rockers Crimes Of Passion are back with their second album. Their debut album was released in 2008 and was a pleasant surprise and was filled with fantastic hook laden hardrock. Now four years later they strike back with a powerful follow-up. The sound has changed and gone more into melodic metal and I think one of the reasons is that they have Charlie Bauerfiend (Helloween, Hammerfall, Blind Guardian) that handles the production with a first-class result. The songs are heavy, but filled with wonderful melodies and with memorable and bombastic choruses. This new album will be loved by fans of Bullet For My Valentine, Avenged Sevenfold and Blessed By A Broken Heart. Listen to the wonderful Body And Soul with a great melodic chorus. The first single from this album Blown Away is powerful and bombastic. I Dare You To Cry is pure melodic metal heaven with brilliant chorus with stunning harmonies. On the downside is that some of the songs sounds a bit the same and the variation could have been a bit better. Bill Byford (Saxon) and Andi Deris (Helloween) has contributed vocals to the album. But there’s no fillers just right in your face metal. So if you haven’t discovered this upcoming band Crimes Of Passion yet then check them out. |
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| Black Rose is a Swedish hardrock band from my hometown and they have been around for some time now with few line-up changes. They released their latest album last year that passed my music radar. But luckily I got a copy of their album and to my big surprise Rise Again is a fine album. They deliver nine tracks that are well produced and played. The singer Peter Thederan has a good, powerful and raspy voice that sometimes reminds of Steve Grimmett of Lionsheart. What hooked me most on this album was the great harmonies and background vocals the band has come up with. Rise Again is fantastic hardrock song with a powerful and catchy chorus. Never Let Me Down is rich with melodies and the chorus hooks you up right away. We Were Winners is a strong ballad with a powerful chorus that made me think of Pretty Maids. The Bold And The Beauty is a heavy, but melodic with riffantastic guitars and a memorable chorus. The album ends with a great Pretty Maids sounding rocker called Our Wisdom. There are no fillers on this album, but maybe some of the songs sounds a bit the same and more variation for the next album would not hurt. If you have missed this nice album and are into Saxon, Pretty Maids, Lionsheart, Million and early Europe should give Black Rose a chance. |
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| There was a flood of great Modern Rock soundtracks in the early and mid 2000's. Albums like Spiderman, Daredevil and Elektra gave us a lot of candy and track that just came out of these collections.
Now we have a new in Avengers Assemble and also offer a nice collection of the latest in the alternative rock genre right now. Bands like Shinedown, Soundgarden, Five Finger Death Punch, Papa Roach and Buckcherry all gives us unreleased tracks that are of high quality. The highlights are clearly Shindowns "I'm Alive" and Five Finger Death Punch's "From Out Of Nowhere" both of which easily could fit on their latest album.
We also get less-established acts like the newcomers Cherri Bomb that is close to break big, but Velvet Revolver guitarist Dave Kushner new band Pushersjones is another cool new act to discover.
How many of the tracks that will appear on the forthcoming album remain to be seen, but until then this is a soundtrack well worth checking out with a handful of really good songs. |
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If there is one thing you should know about Mark Tremonti, its that he's a metal head and will be, for life. Known from his two main bands, Creed and Alterbridge, Tremonti is branching out on his own this time. As if he didn’t have enough projects already, he’s taking a page from Scott Stapp and Myles Kennedy and adding his solo album to his already impressive resume.
“All I Was” is the title of his solo album and yes, he is singing lead this time. With the guys from Submersed backing him, he's doing the metal thing the way he wants to. We already know hes a great songwriter, but to hear his vocals lead is a cool change of pace. Its a good start for him and hope to hear him develop in that category a little more. Very riff heavy rock and a lot of thrash thrown in with melodic hooks. Think the music of Alter Bridge kicked up a notch with some double bass and heavier riffage. The vocals are like the backing vocals in AB songs. He has a lower register and mainly stays safe.
“You Waste Your Time” is the first single released from the album and is a nice fast head banging song. You can download the song now at on iTunes here. There are so many good tunes that you can crank on a high volume. “So You’re Afraid” is another song that displays Tremonti’s true ability to play. As a performer and talented guitar player, “New Way Out” could be the next single, as its Creed inspired guitar licks play into a big chorus of passion. "All I Was" and “Proof” are going to be two songs that you will be rocking on repeat for a while.
Tremonti shows he is a very talented songwriter (as if he didn’t before) and proves he can front a metal heavy band. I would love to see this type of music under Myles in Alter Bridge songs, so hopefully the next AB record will be beefed up a little bit. He doesn’t have the vocal range as Kennedy, but pulls out some catchy, chug heavy tunes. This is going to please any AB or just plain metal fans and gain some new ones with this release. This is a perfect album to put on to get fired up to. Great work Mark, Keep rock alive! |
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| If you like: Foo Fighters, Hole, Paramore
Description:
I have to say that the female rock scene feels very empty right now. There really is no big band and this of course gives room for newcomers to take place. Los Angeles based Cherri Bomb is one of the upcoming ones and despite their young age, they have a mature and developed sound.
There is an honest and pure rock feel to their debut "This Is The End Of Control", reminiscent of the 80’s arena rock, but also against the alternative 90's. Perhaps the best comparison is nonetheless calling them a female Foo Fighters when there are clear similarities with a lot of energy and straight rock songs.
The only weakness with "This Is The End Of Control" is the first half is clearly sharper when it comes to songs, but this is just the beginning and the band will give us many good albums for sure!
Highlights: "Raw.Real", "Shake The Ground", "Let It Go" |
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| Lit is one of the truly classic bands in the Modern Rock music. With hits like "My Own Worst Enemy," "Miserable," "Zip-Lock", "Over My Head", "Lipstick and Bruises", they have really put their mark and made ​​lots of fans worldwide.
However, this is their first album since the self-titled album, one that came out in 2004. This long interval depends largely of that the band's drummer Allen Shellenberger, was diagnosed with a malignant glioma (brain tumor) in 2008. Very tragic and he sadly passed away on August 13, 2009, at the early age of 39th
However, the band chose to continue and released earlier this year this nice comeback album. Their old fans will for sure recognize the band with their stylish mix of punk, glam and Modern Rock. It’s somewhat more polished, and with a slightly more mature and less punk influenced approach. But think the guys have really put together a great collection of tracks where the first half is really strong with tracks like "You Tonight," "C'mon" and "The Broken". The other side is slightly weaker, but still good and overall it’s as trong record that will please any of their old fans for sure! |
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| Weaving The Fate from Columbia, South Carolina is a new exciting signed to Universal Records. With a mix of Modern Rock, Alternative Metal, Hip-Hop they can be compared as a rhythmic P.O.D, but still very pop-oriented, close to Paper Tounges.
This Ep, "WTF The Ep" is a first taste of what will come later this year and considering what they provide here, the full-length will be very exciting.
The first single "Str8 To TheBottom" is a fantastic song with a somewhat strange verse, but that changes into a magnificent chorus. The band mixes between different genres here, but it works and they really finds an own and unique style here. "Rack City" with a ragga rock flavor like Skindred is also cool and also has the potential with its bangin’ chorus.
The only down point on the Ep'n is the closing "Drink and Party" that does not fit all. It is a fun and catchy summer tune, but sounds like a completely different band with its soft Ska style. No, take away that one from the upcoming record and add some more alternative Mother Rock tracks as "Str8 To The Bottom" and we will get a great record from Weaving The Fate. |
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| Really like the new Hoobastanks album "Flight or Fight". The record gives us a slightly new sound from the band with a richer sound with less pop melodies. They feel more serious and personal this time, which is step forward for the band. Ok, sure, they have lost a bit of his own style, but think they were quite boring on the last album "For (n) ever" on Island Records and therefore welcome this change.
Tracks like "This Is Gonna Hurt", "Sing What You Can Not Say" and "Can You Save Me" stand out should give the band a lot of airtime. However, there is no "The Reason" and the band will not come up close to the buzz that was in 2003 where they were on the charts worldwide. But "Flight or Fight" is a good comeback album, even better than I had expected actually. |
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| It seems more and more bands are taking the snyth route on their albums these days. The Temper Trap debuted their chill indie rock vibes on “Conditions” in 2009. With the success of being featured on commercials and movie soundtracks, the band readies their sophomore self titled release, “The Temper Trap” on June 5th. The band is back but with a new sound with hints of the old.
From the very first single “Need Your Love” the band comes in full swing of happiness with the synth keyboard lines. This is by far the catchiest song from the band to date. I would love to meet someone that doesn’t have this song stuck in their head by the end or even just humming that melodic line. You will hear reminisces of this throughout the album as it’s a beautiful opener. The vocal style is a little different on song songs but the falsetto is still there. “This Isn’t Happiness” has a ‘Dan the Automator’ feel good vibe. Flow is what get the band going on these tunes and makes you move a little more than the first. Electronic elements in the slower ballad-like “Dreams,” takes us to a time in from the eighties. “Where Do We Go From Here” is another upbeat song that can easily make the singles chart.
Repetition is the key for them on this record as many choruses are stuck in your head solely based on the repeating hooks, a great follow-up to their debut album. "I'm Gonna Wait" is the perfect definition of this. Now this album is different, don’t expect the first album on this one. The guitars are less present and no “Edge” style guitars like I was looking for like “Sweet Disposition” or "Rest" but growth is what they display. You actually don’t miss their old sound as this new sound suits them perfectly as you can tell the band is getting more comfortable with their sound. This album may take you a little while to get into. I wasn’t blow away at first, but give it time as those hooks will be stuck in your head after a few listens. Great follow-up album and this is a must for any indie rocker. |
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| Morten Harket is best known for his time the supergroup A-Ha and especially the song "Take On Me" that set Norway on the musical map in1985. However, he has managed to release three English albums where the debut with "Wild Seed" from 1995 is a great album with stylish and smart melodies. The sequel "Letters From Egypt" from 2008 was good, but somewhat quieter and not as sharp in the material. His latest album then "Out Of My Hands" is a good complement to these other two and has a much more pop-oriented sound, not far from A-ha's most commercial moments. Songs like "I'm The One" and "Scared Of Heights" is on the verge of being dance tracks and generally is "Out Of My Hands," distinctly more commercial than I had expected.
Might think that this is a bit too light overall and prefer the slightly more complex sound of the fantastic debut, but still, this is a good album and Morten sings as usual tremendously well. Check out! |
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| It is a bit strange how some people just go huge at one while others remain virtually unknown for a very long time. Matthew Perryman Jones (MPJ) has been around for a while and he keeps bringing us quality albums. He now returns with a brand new album, entitled Land of the Living. As always we get treated to a good variety of songs with a laid back, moody sound. The quickest reference I get is Augustana, there are many similarities with their music. It starts off with the trademark MPJ song Stones from the Riverbed a nice song that builds from slow to a crescendo that is really nice. He has that potential to build songs like that, almost like post-rock songs. The majestic closing song is a prime example of that. There are a lot more strong songs on here than there are weak ones. I do think this is MPJ’s best and most consistent release so far. O, Theo is another favorite of mine along with Canción de la Noche MPJ has started to get songs picked for American television shows. With an album like this in the books, I can see more of that coming. I like the darker tone to the songs and the album feels like one for the late nights. If you like Augustana or similar acts, this might be one of your favorites for 2012. A fine album! |
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Did you know that?
In ´83-4, budding impresario & producer Rick Rubin became the 1st DJ to work w/ the Beastie Boys when he appeared w/ them as D.J. Double R.
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latest reviews
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