Category Archives: Music reviews

Review: Mercians ‘We Don’t Even Live By The Sea’ EP

Pre-released 1st April 2013 for free down load as MP3’s

Release date 1st May 2013

Available for free download from their website (www.wearemercians.com) from 1st April 2013 – 1st May 2013, after which it will be available for purchase from iTunes.

Short (11 minute) EP showcasing three tracks – ‘Attention All’, ‘Cry Mutiny’ and ‘We Are The Kraken’.

They’re not bad at all; there’s definitely some talent there. Their lyrics are almost punk in sentiment, but stylistically they are very similar to many other young British rock bands, like Young Guns and Don Broco. The tracks grew on me; they weren’t immediately catchy but on repeated listening I found some unusual imagery and fairly sophisticated lyrics (they get extra points for not only knowing what the Kraken is, but for using it as a metaphor in a song).

Go on, have a listen; it won’t cost you anything will it?

 Bye,

Rose

[EDIT: I got a lovely Tweet from these boys last night thanking me for my kind words. (29/05/2013)]

Go back

Your message has been sent

So, another band followed my Twitter today (still have no idea why people do that)

They’re a ‘Norwegian Band currently playing covers. self written material will soon come’, called

Rhyolite

That quote is straight from their Facebook page and is pretty much the only thing on their ‘About’ page. Their Soundcloud isn’t much more helpful either. But they do have a few tracks on it. I listened to their cover of Slipknot’s ‘Snuff’ and their own tracks (without lyrics). They aren’t too bad, but here’s the link for their stuff on Soundcloud if anyone is interested in listening:

And their other details are:

@RhyoliteOFFICIAL on Twitter

http://www.youtube.com/rhyoliteOFFICIAL

https://www.facebook.com/Rhyoliteofficial

 

Some bands follow me on Twitter…

 

And I finally got round to looking them all up. Here follows a quick summery of each band. I don’t necessarily like all of them but they might appeal to you so go check them out.

 

Dark Stares

www.darkstares.com

Facebook – Dark Stares

Twitter – @Dark_Stares

YouTube – Darkstares

Soundcloud – Dark Stares

A group from St. Albans, UK

The songs I’ve heard on their YouTube and Soundcloud pages are quite good with a fair bit of instrumental stuff. There are some live videos on the YouTube channel and they don’t seem too bad live. I’m not sure about the singer’s voice; it’s not bad but it would grate on me if I had to listen to it for too long.

The overall sound is not unlike ‘Queens of the Stone Age’.

 

 

Paper Tigers

Facebook – wearepapertigers

Twitter – @PaperTigersUK

YouTube – papertigersofficial

All their tracks are on Spotify, don’t get them confused with a Danish band of the same name who are also on Spotify and Facebook.

 

A group from Staffordshire, UK

They’re really good. I prefer them to Dark Stares. Their sound reminds me a bit of ‘Young Guns’, although I don’t like any of their songs as much as I like ‘Bones’. This band is competing for a place on the Red Bull stage at Download this year. If they win I wouldn’t object to going to see their set. I listened to their EP on Spotify and was quite impressed by it.

 

Avelyn

Facebook – Avelyn Band

YouTube – Avelyn Band

Their facebook page is in German, which isn’t surprising as this band is from Stuttgart in Germany, but I can’t read German so I have no idea what it says about them. I watched the videos they had on their YouTube channel instead. There were only two; the tracks weren’t bad but I don’t think I could listen to them all day.

 

Call Off The Search

Facebook – Call off the search

Twitter – @Calloffcalloff

http://calloffthesearch.bandcamp.com

Called it a day in February and went their separate ways, until recently when three of them got back together and formed

 

The Reason I Failed History

Facebook – The Reason I Failed History

http://thereasonifailedhistory.bandcamp.com

Described as ‘post-hardcore emo’ or as they so poetically put it in their Facebook genre description ‘Emo ya dad used to listen to’. They remind me a lot of really early My Chemical Romance, which isn’t exactly a surprise I suppose.

They’re alright.

 

Crash Midnight

Twitter – @CrashMidnight

www.crashmidnight.com

Describe themselves as ‘Boston’s bastard sons of rock and roll’.

I couldn’t actually listen to any of their music because their website is so awkward. Their debut album is supposed to be out this year; if it goes on Spotify I’ll try to listen to it.

 

Throw The Fight

Facebook – Throw The Fight

Twitter – @throwthefightMN

www.throwthefight.com

They also have Tumblr, Instagram etc, it’s all on their Facebook info page.

‘What doesn’t kill us’ (2012) and ‘The Vault’ (2013) are available on Spotify

These gentlemen describe what they do as metal-edged hard rock. They also have the most helpful Facebook page I’ve found so far. I listened to a few of the tracks from ‘What doesn’t kill us’ and all of ‘The Vault’ and I really like this band. They’re good. ‘Not so Hollywood’ is a very catchy tune; I can see what all the fuss on Twitter was about last summer. I think they sound very similar to Avenged Sevenfold.

 

Ready, Set, Fall!

Facebook – ready set fall

Twitter – @ReadySetFall

YouTube – readysetfallchannel

An ‘Alternative/Melodic Death Metal’ outfit from Genova, Italy.

Err, right, for a start I generally don’t go in for this end of the metal spectrum, I prefer songs to have more singing than shouting, but out of fairness I decided to give them a chance to prove me wrong about death metal and I listened to a few songs. Some of them were okay, but were all an awful lot like most of the genre that I’ve heard. If that’s your things, they might appeal. I’ll leave it to those with a greater knowledge of the genre to say whether they are any good or not.

 

Mercians

Facebook – wearemercians

Twitter – @mercians

www.wearemercians.com

www.reverbnation.com/mercians

YouTube – wearemercians (not to be confused with the Australian band also called Mercians – they sound quite different)

http://wearemercians.tumblr.com

 

 

A new addition to the list of my followers (I still can’t work out why people do that, I’m really not very interesting), this quintet formed last year in Staffordshire (so they really are from Mercia). They have all been in other bands. They describe the genre of their music as ‘Alternative rock, heavy rock, ambient rock’. They have an EP available for free download on their website until the beginning of May.

I listened to a couple of their tracks and they’re not bad at all. The tracks I heard on reverbnation were quite accomplished. The singer is capable and the rest of the band seems to know what they are about. The videos of their live performance in Birmingham last month on their YouTube channel certainly suggest they are quite good live although I did think the singer’s voice is weaker than I expected from the tracks I’d listened to. They definitely have something and considering how popular some of their influences are getting they should do well. They sound a bit like Don Broco, who they list as one of their influences.

 

And that concludes the tour of the random bands that follow my Twitter account.

 

Bye!

 

Rose

 

Band from Grimsby, Hollow Days, not bad

My cousin shared this band’s Facebook page on his, and of course I had to go and have a listen. They have a couple of videos on the their page and this one track on SoundCloud. I quite like them, who know the locals could produce decent music? (I swear I’m joking, nobody from Lincolnshire/Yorkshire/the Humber lynch me )

Rose

Review: Fall Out Boy ‘Save Rock and Roll’

Fall Out Boy
Save Rock and Roll
Island Records
Producer: Butch Walker
Released: 15th April 2013 (UK), 16th April 2013 (USA)

After disappearing for four years to have a rest from each other and work on other projects (including other bands, solo albums and novels) Fall Out Boy return with their 5th studio album.

Clearly they were having a laugh when they named the new album ‘Save Rock and Roll’; which is fine because they were also clearly having fun when they made this album. The time apart has been good for them; they have made an album which clearly sits in the tradition they established with their other albums – catchy pop punk with electronic influences. Very obvious pop and electronica influences in this case; it has a tendency to drown out the guitars and drums. But this fusion of genres works for them. It suits their lyrical and vocal style.

The lyrics are occasionally corny – see ‘Just One Yesterday’ for a fine example. I’m not too sure about some of the collaborations – I can’t like ‘Rat a Tat’ no matter how much I try, sorry. My favourite songs are ‘The Phoenix’, ‘ My songs know what you did in the dark (Light ’em up), ‘Young Volcanoes’ and ‘Save Rock and Roll’. None of the songs are quite up to the standards they set with ‘This ain’t a scene, it’s an arms race’ and ‘Tnks fr th mmrs’, although the title track gets close. I can definitely see it being popular live; the line ‘No, No, we won’t go, we don’t know how to quit oh, oh’ could really get a crowd going.

They aren’t going to save rock and roll, but they might improve pop music a bit (besides, it doesn’t need saving, being very much alive and well) but this album is a catchy addition to the pop punk canon. It’s good to see them back.

And that’s my review,

Rose

I just realised something…

I still can’t get hold of Sacred Mother Tongue’s new album. I have realised however, after looking up details of the new album, that the EP I bought last month is made up of four of the songs from the new album. This realisation, and looking at videos on their youTube channel, has made my day.

The album review will have to wait but I can give my initial opinion based on the EP.

If the EP is representative of the whole album they I think I’ll have to get it. I really like the tracks I’ve heard; the singer is competent and the guitarist is spectacular. I saw them live, they’re really quite good.

It’s metal but I like it 😀 there’s next to no shouting. Which is always a good thing. I listened to their first album, I don’t like it nearly as much. They have definitely improved in the last couple of years.

Going now, busy watching dodgy vampire films, good night,

Rose

Review: Nerve End EP’s Axis/This State of War

I mentioned it last night but I’ll re-cap for those who haven’t read the post.

Yesterday afternoon I was wandering around Facebook when a post by some random Finnish metal band appear on my timeline. I suspect because they had tagged a band I like – ‘Reckless Love’ – in the post. Anyway, I thought I’d go and have a look at their website:

http://www.nerveend.com/

I like some metal but I’m not over-fond of the tendency to shout that some metal bands seem to find essential.

Nerve End describe themselves as ‘a four piece metal act from Joenssuu, Finland’ and their genre as ‘metal/progressive/alternative’. They played their first live show a year ago and have since played over twenty shows across Finland, several in some of Finland’s most well-known venues.

Their EP Axis (2011) is available to stream and download for free on SoundCloud. As is their 2010 EP ‘This State of War’. So I did.

Since I was awake stupidly early and got everything else done first thing, I thought I’d give them a listen.

And my opinion?

They’re not too bad. I couldn’t understand what the vocalist was singing a lot of the time; he doesn’t seem to enunciate very clearly, or the rest of the band were playing too loudly.

I was trying to decide who they sound most like but I couldn’t. The sound is familiar but different enough that I found a comparison hard to make. I think it’s more that their vocal and musical style is a part of the same milieu and so there is a continuity in the sound with other metal bands. Does that make any sense? I don’t know, this sleep deprivation is beginning to get to me.

They have one of their videos on youTube, ‘The Squid’ from the EP Axis. It’s pretty representative of their sound.

I don’t dislike them, and I certainly don’t find listening to this band objectionable. The guitars – at least to my ignorant and untrained ear/brain – are cool, the random tinkly bits in the instrumental sections (I think they must be from synths?) are an interesting contrast, and the vocalist really is quite good. Little too ‘shouty’ for me to be able to listen too all the time, but that is what ‘shuffle’ is for.

The tracks aren’t what I’d call catchy but they have the potential to become earworms. The tracks vary between 3 and 6 minutes with more instrumental passages than I was expecting. They were unexpected but pleasant moments; the musicians are certainly talented.

Finland is supposed to have more metal bands per capita than any other country; it could be said that metal is their forte. Nerve End are a capable edition to their ranks.

In addition to their website they also have facebook (like most people) and twitter. From what I can see, someone tries to reply to comments/posts made.

https://m.facebook.com/nerveendband

Their Twitter is @NerveEnd

Check them out. They might appeal to you.

That’s it, I’m done for the day. My brain hurts from lack of sleep.

And I still haven’t had anything to eat.

Bye

Rose

Review: Stone Sour ‘House of Gold & Bones Part 2’

Stone Sour
House of Gold & Bones Part 2

Roadrunner Records
Producer: David Bottrell
Recorded @ Sound Farm Studios

Released
3rd April 2013 Japan
8th April 2013 UK
9th April 2013 US

• Corey Taylor – Vocals, piano and also wrote the associated short story
• James Root – Guitar
• Josh Rand – Guitar
• Ray Mayorga – Drums, synthesisers, piano

And in addition to the band
• Rachel Bolan, of Skid Row, filled in on bass
And the following added strings to ‘The Conflagration’
•Kevin Fox – Cello
•Karen Graves – 1st Violin
•Kate Unrau – 2nd Violin
•Anna Redekopt – Viola

I had to do a bit of reading when I decided to review this album. I’d heard of Stone Sour, obviously, but had never listened to any of their music. It made interesting reading.

Corey Taylor and Joel Ekman formed Stone Sour in 1992, several years before Slipknot formed. In 1997 they went on hiatus during which Taylor concentrated on Slipknot. In 2001 they got back together and produced the first of their four (if you count House of Gold & Bones as a single album) albums. There has been some line-up changes, with Ekman leaving in May 2006 (replaced by Ray Mayorga)and bassist Shawn Economaki leaving in May 2012. For the album he was replaced by Rachel Bolan, of Skid Row.

For years, due to Slipknot’s musical ascendancy, Stone Sour has been known only as Corey Taylor’s side-project, despite the fact that the band had been together longer than Slipknot. This double album (Part 1 was released in late October 2012 and contains the first 11 tracks) finally puts that fallacy to bed once and for all. A concept album, with accompanying comic book (first issue released 17th April 2013, Dark Horse), the tracks are a mix of melodic hard rock tunes and Mr Taylor’s shouting – toned down quite a lot.

The albums were recorded simultaneously in mid 2012 and tell a coherent story, although the storyline does not overwhelm the songs and they can be listened to out of ‘context’. It’s more like a theme that runs through both albums. I had to listen to both Parts 1 and 2 to see it.

Unusually, the full album was available for streaming from the band’s official website from the 2nd April 2013. I wonder how many people have been encouraged to buy it after listening for free? It is now available to buy on DVD or vinyl, and is still available for streaming on the website, as well as Spotify, iTunes and Sound Cloud.

My Opinion

I really enjoyed this album. Definite 5/5. I might even buy a hard copy when I have a bit of spare cash (sorry but if you give it away for free I’ll take it, I’m broke).

They’re at Download on Sunday 16th June, I have every intention of going to see them there. Might give Slipknot on the Friday night a miss though. Stone Sour’s more my thing.

Random Information if you want to know more about Stone Sour:

http://www.stonesour.com/

Corey Taylor was in Kerrang! magazine this week discussing Stone Sour, Slipknot, the many facets of his personality and how the two bands express him differently. Also, an explanation for those horrendous costumes he’s worn to the Kerrang! Awards.

And there’s always his book ‘Seven Deadly Sins’ (yes, I read it when it was published last year; our library has some interesting books, someone must have ordered it). It’s quite an interesting book. It could easily be subtitled ‘all the stupid shit Corey Taylor did before settling down a touch’. Interesting structure as well. There’s not much in it about the formation of the bands he sings in but it does seem to explain all that anger.

Ha! I’ve just been to check the details on http://www.amazon.co.uk and it looks like he has another book being published this year, called ‘A funny thing happened on the way to heaven’ (Ebury Press, 20th June 2013). I might have to read that.

Well, I’d best be off, I want my breakfast. See how dedicated to you all I am? I get up stupidly early on a Sunday morning to listen to music and write before I even consider necessities like food, and a cup of tea. I definitely need tea.

Bye

Rose

A band I’ve never heard of, but the EP was free.

A band I like, Reckless Love, were mentioned by another band I’ve never heard of called Nerve End. Facebook does that sometimes. I went and had a quick look at their website and their EP  ‘Axis’ is free to listen too, so I shall. And then I’ll get back to you.

In the interests of fairness though, in exchange for free music I thought I’d share their web address and a link for the EP.

http://nerveend.com/

I found their EP from 2010 on Sound Cloud, so I’ve added a link to it as well.

I’ve got a few things to listen to tomorrow I can tell. And then there’s that ebook I’m reviewing for Book Hub. And then I have that short story to type up…oh, I am going to be busy.

Rose

In none writing related news…well, actually…

I have a job interview next week.

If I get the job I’ll probably be working twelve hour shifts, which means I’ll have less time for writing, but more money to do the things I like to write about. It’ll work out somehow. I’m not going to stop writing just because I finally get a decent lab job.

That’s it, that’s all I was going to say.

Hang on, no it’s not.

I was reading ‘The shifting price of prey’ by Suzanne McLeod, but I couldn’t get into it, despite enjoying the earlier books in the ‘Spellcrackers.com’ series. It’s going back to the library. I might take it out again in the future.

Books I’m looking forward to reading this year include:

The Science of Discworld IV by Terry Pratchett, Jack Cohen and Ian Stewart
Published 11th April 2013

The Long War by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter
Published 20th June 2013

Albums I am looking forward to hearing this year:

Fall Out Boy
‘Save Rock and Roll’
15th April 2013

Sacred Mother Tongue
‘Out Of The Darkness’
15th April 2013

HIM
‘Tears on Tape’
29th April 2013

30 Seconds to Mars
‘Love, Lust, Faith + Dreams’
21st May 2013

I intend to review them all.
And now I must go, I’ve got a computer booked at the library in ten minutes.

Bye Bye

Rose