Say Anything Review of Self Titled

By: Stephanie Figueroa

The time has come for Indie, Pop, and Punk listeners alike to unite because this latest Say Anything release might just officially create a whole new era of composing music for this amiable group.

If the first thing that comes to mind when one mentions the name Say Anything are quirky, sarcastic, smart mouthed lyrics, alongside infectious instrumentals, then you have a pretty accurately formed definition of this one of a kind band. If the second thing that comes to mind is the name Max Bemis, then you’re probably well informed of the musical impact of this symbolic frontman. It’s rare to find voices or written music that sounds even remotely similar to Max Bemis or Say Anything. It would be no surprise if his heartfelt and contemptuous lyrics have taken a hold of the lyric lover in everyone. Yes, he certainly has that power. Since formed back in 2000, Say Anything has transformed miraculously. After overcoming several public meltdowns and being hospitalized for bipolar disorder, Bemis never failed in feeding fans exactly what they craved.

Two official releases later, Say Anythings third self-titled album was released on Nov 3. As with any of their work, it is clear that Bemis used this album as a form of getting what bothers him most off of his chest. What separates this album from the rest however, is the obvious sense of self-assurance, rather than continuous self-loathing. In fact, as Bemis told AP magazine, “This isn’t pacifist music, necessarily. The anger is more directed at things you can change and do in your life, instead of hating people because they are a certain way. These people will always be like that. Let’s do something to actually change your own life, or lives around you.”

But of course, a Say Anything album wouldn’t be completed without some kind of angry number. That is precisely why the single “Hate Everyone” seems like it should have been placed in the bands previous, more raging albums. Still, one can’t help but find Max’s juvenile rant at how much he just simply hates society as heartwarming.

Moving on to one of the albums incredibly raved about melodies,  “Eloise” begins with a simple acoustic guitar progressing into slow pounding drum beats as Bemis starts to sing. Of course, only Say Anything would start a heartbreak song with the lines “Laid out, puking in the back of a fancy bar.” Nonetheless, this piece delivers Bemis’s infamous constant passionate wails we all know and love all draped over a delicate chorus.

Finalizing the album, “Ahh…Men” is as mushy and affectionate as Say Anything can get. During an interval in which most bands nowadays would typically choose to insert a breakdown, the song has a notable shift into a quieter, more melodic acoustic strumming followed by Max’s romantic plead to “lie with you in your grave.”

Genres seem to pour out of every tune, line, and pluck of an acoustic guitar here and there as tracks unfold. If anyone ever said blending genres was a mistake, they’re  the ones mistaken. Say Anything can be held accountable for much musical evolvement yet still maintain their same foundation that listeners first fell in love with. Max’s newfound yet still somewhat hazy outlook on life is evident throughout the album. It’s thoughtful and unpredictable: the definition of Say Anything. Certainly, the entire album gives off that sparkle true fans know is exclusive to Say Anything.

Ghostland Observatory Interview

By Brittany Reeber University of Texas Austin

The Monday after Austin City Limits Music Festival was a day of recovery from a weekend with little sleep and lots of noise. I had my doubts about the interview scheduled with Ghostland Observatory for that Monday night. If I was dead tired, I could only imagine how the Austin duo felt after two days of shows, blowing up both Zilker Park at the ACL Fest Saturday night and then downtown at Stubbs’s BBQ the next day. But sure enough, Thomas Ross Turner, exactly one half of the spacey ensemble and master of multi-tasking (managing synthesizer, keyboard, drums, and backing vocals), showed up on my friend’s front porch around ten o’clock.

This weekend has been crazy for you!

-Yeah a pretty intense weekend, a lot of preparation.

How did you feel about your show at ACL?

-That was really good, really large crowd, and everything went really well. The crowd response was really good and we had a good time up there.

Do you prefer playing a festival or a club show?

-They’re all pretty surprising because say you have your mind set on how a certain show is gonna be or a certain city…in the beginning when we were touring, it’d be like ‘Oh this is gonna be the best ever… it’s this city or its this festival,’ and then you’re kind of let down. Or sometimes it’s the opposite, you go in to some town you’ve never been to before and you’re like ‘Oh I wonder how this is gonna go,’ and it end up being insane. So you never know what you’re gonna get, they can both be fun.

Have you always had the whole light show?

-No, because in the beginning, like right after the Paparazzi Lightening record, we’d go on tour and play a show in Los Angeles for like ten people. After we got home, I was like, ‘yeah this may not work, we may have to think of something else.’ Because you know we’d go up to Seattle and there’d be like eight or nine people there. We played some coffee shop in Bellingham, Washington and people were trying to study and we were trying to rock out. And then we’d have to drive all the way home from Bellingham and have to think about that. Like, ‘okay we just did a string of shows that maybe equaled up to fifty people total and things are not looking to good.’ We did a lot of shows like that in the beginning but we just kept going and eventually it worked.

How did you find the motivation? That seems pretty deterring.

-Well we’d come back to Austin and get rejuvenated. We’d play a crazy show at Emo’s or something and there’d be a thousand sweaty, hot people and a lot of energy. It would be so fun and we’d be like ‘Oh alright let’s try it again.’ We’d go back out and more people would be at the shows and it just started to grow like that.

It all seems to very be connected, the music and the lasers, do you guys work it out a lot beforehand?

-Yeah I mean that’s part of our partnership, being together for three years. It’s like a whole unit now: the sound, the lights, the performance, and the lasers. It’s all the show, the whole thing, so everything works together. I guess it’s sort of choreographed in a way to where it’s like nothing should be out of place.

Do you feel like it really enhances everything?

-I think so…with the lighting and the lasers and the different feelings and climaxes and parts of the set. I think it enhances everything because not only are you hearing it and feeling it, you’re seeing things happen. If there’s an exciting point in the set and the lights are going nuts, you see the crowd reacting and it helps.

Your whole setup on stage, you’ve got your keyboards and everything, what’s going on over there? It just looks like you’re doing so much all at once!

-Yeah I’ve got my synthesizers and my sequencer and my mixer and the drums. I’ve kind of got tunnel vision, I don’t really look out too much to the crowd cuz I try to make sure everything keeps moving along and everything is right. I get to groove out back there, but I can’t move around. That’s why I sport the cape, so I can just be back in my little control station.

I read online that your wife made your cape.

-Yeah and she made me a new one for ACL fest and it had lights on it so that’s pretty cool.

That’s a big deal! You never change from the other cape, right?

-I had the original and I wear the original still, and then she made me another one for ACL fest two years ago, but I threw that one in to the crowd.

Was she mad?

-No, she was alright with it, but she made this one and she was like, ‘no throwing this one.’ She spent a lot of time on this last one so I wasn’t gonna do it.

What’s it made out of?

-Hmm, I don’t know materials and things, but it’s some kind of material and she hand sewed it. Then got these lights and got this engineer to help her get all the lights connected to this thing in the back that has a switch and it runs off batteries.

Do you think you’re gonna catch on fire?

-No I don’t think its got enough juice to light me on fire, but it does get hot in there.

Aaron is your other half and he’s out front singing, do you ever get jealous and want to stretch around ?

-He does what he does and I do what I do. He’s more like live and loose and entertaining and I’m just like: ‘Okay, we need to be here at this time. Alright, what are the lights doing? Okay perfect.’ So he’s perfect for what he does and I kind of stay back in my little area.

The sound that Ghostland Observatory has is really unique, in Austin and in general. How did you guys come to find that sound together? Did you have something in mind or did it just happen?

-I think what we were trying to do when we first started creating was just push it out there, you know, be different. We really wanted to make music that was either loved or hated and not just kind of middle of the road. Same thing with our live show, we either want people to be like, ‘oh yeah I love those guys,’ or they show up and are like, ‘I can’t stand them, I would never go to see that ever again.’ It’s either or, you know, and that’s just all we try to do.

Do you believe in life on other planets?

-I’m sure, I mean, you can’t even chart how large the universe is, right? It’s like ever expanding, so how would you even know? You’d be taking a guess either way. There’s no telling what’s out there.

Well because your music is so spacey, how do you think aliens would receive your show if they saw it?

- Haha, hopefully they’d want to groove out. Especially the light set up we had at ACL fest; it was designed to look like a mother ship.

That’s how I felt when I saw it! I could see the show all the way from the other side of the festival.

-Yeah so hopefully they’d be like ‘these guys know what’s going on.’

What are you plans for the future? What do you hope to happen with the band?

-Just first get through these forty shows from now until January, take a little breather, and then start creating again and try to push it even further.

Dashboard-New Found Glory CANCELLED TOUR

CANCELLED!!!

Due to family circumstances Dashboard Confessional has cancelled their tour with New Found Glory, Never Shout Never and Meg and Dia.

Our student press conferences with the above bands has been cancelled!

Still on:

November 18th with AFI at the Pompano Beach Civic Center at 4PM.

December 6th All American Rejects and Taking Back Sunday at The Fillmore Miami Beach 4pm.

email us info@therockstarstories.com for your invitation to both of these.

THANKS AND SEE YOU THERE on the 18th!

Win a Weezer Snuggie!

Enter to win a Weezer Snuggie and a copy of their new release Raditude.

Send us an email  info@therockstarstories.com and you will be entered to win. Ends 11/18!

A review of “Found” by Push Play! by Matt Glodz, Chicago

“FOUND” by PUSH PLAY!

by Matt Glodz

The Jonas Brothers have some new competition: Push Play. Hailing from Long Island, the quartet is yet another addition to the boy bands that are starting to make a comeback on the music scene. Push Play’s new album “Found” brings listeners what they expect from a boy band, but is unique enough to keep their fan base growing.

“Our individual personalities really click,” lead singer CJ Baran says on Push Play’s website, “and the fact that the four of us have distinct tastes in music, it seems to really work.”

Baran’s observation is right on point – Push Play’s music ranges from upbeat to somber, and the lyrics follow suit.

It makes sense that “Midnight Romeo” is the album’s first single. The song is energetic, its lyrics flow well, and teenagers are likely to dig its scandalous content. “Show me yours and I’ll show you mine / Gonna make you sweat / Gonna feel you head to toe / You know, I’m your midnight Romeo,” Baran sings. “Midnight Romeo” is the most stereotypical mainstream boy band song on the album, and it is likely to hit the airwaves soon as a result.

In “Heart Attack,” Baran sings about walking in on his girl making out with another guy and the event’s aftermath. Its lyrics lack depth as far as content is concerned, but for a breakup song, it is quite upbeat and catchy.

As its title may suggest “This Is Us Breaking Up” is another breakup song. Its frequently changing tempo and melody that incorporates futuristic synthesized sounds keep it from sounding sad and depressing, and also set it apart from “Heart Attack.” While the two songs share a similar theme, they are by no means redundant musically.

“Where I Belong” is one of Push Play’s more somber songs, but it is one many high school seniors can relate to. “The days we spent together / The nights would last forever
/ But all good things must come to an end,” Baran sings. The song is reflective and has the slowest melody on the album, yet Push Play still pulls it off, showing their musical versatility.

The remainder of the album does not disappoint. “Found” is also one of those albums that can be listened to straight through from start to finish, so grab a copy and Push Play.

Mumiy Troll Interview

by Diana Ciuca

Breaking the bonds of Soviet Rule, Mumiy Troll emerged as an incredibly successfull Russian rock band.  The animated band members of Mumiy Troll are now traveling 40 cities in North America. I got the luck opportunity to interview the front-man, Illya Lagutenko, as the band traveled across Montana to preform in Canada. With a refreshing rock sound and unique history, this band is definitely worth checking out.

1. Being from a communist country, how have the strict regulations on rock music affected Mumiy Troll’s growth?

First of all, it was not anything like Music “traffic code” or an amendment in the constitution treating Rock n Roll as pedophilia…it was more like adultery:)   You actually can do that if you find a right partner who agrees to conspire a little affair together. But if you wanna spice up your hot nights there is only you and no toys:) Its pretty filthy comparison. I guess but that was exactly the thing. Slightly risky, cool  includes smuggled records and black market blue jeans. It was so easy to become a rebel in Soviets time.

2. What made you and the other band members rebel from societal constraints and form a band?

Funny thing is we were never considered rebellious , we just wanted the music on our terms, our outfits on our terms.  It was more like teenage angst.  But when you grow up in totalitarian society, strange things can happen.  Only for having strange band name MUMIY TROLL (which is actually play on letters from moomintrolls, scandinavian fairytale characters) they’ll put you on pedestal of Most Dangerous Band in the world together with Sex Pistols and Black Sabbath. How cool is that? Never made an album and to already be in a same league, at least among your schoolmates?

Were there any musical influences which aided in the band’s development?

We did not have music stores. Soviet TV was not like anything western, so our musical tastes formed as combination of Italo Pop Festivals, DIY made Iron Maiden tshirts and smuggled new wave records. I was really open to any kind of new music.  I guess I still can be good at Pop Quizzes regarding 80s music.

3. The band temporarily broke up because of the draft to the Soviet Army. Are there any other notable difficulties that the band members have encountered through the years?

It was mandatory. So we did not really suffer in the end. I just had two years to think about lots of things in my life. Soviet Union collapsed soon after that. So it was very discovering times for me. Just imagine – your life and your country changed almost overnight when you’re in early 20s. No more old doctrines, you’re free to go anywhere, feeling of total freedom. Many people could not handle that. However in my life searches it was close to perfection. I studied Mandarin and Chinese Economy.  I went to China and saw with my own eyes how the Dragon grows, got a job in a City of London where a company’s bankruptcy sendt me on the street in a perfect time to witness Britpop all that cool Brittannia thing.  So many great liife experiences only to prove that music is the only thing which I do really enjoy doing.

4. Mumiy Troll is a pioneer in Russian music because of its unique sound. What impact do you think that your music has had on setting trends in Russia and influencing society?

I guess we were just in a right time in a right place. In general my idea of rock n roll band has not changed since I was teenager, however life and music experience gives you a special intuition how to guide yourself in this world where everything been invented. If I’m not mistaken, there are the words “Honesty and freedom” describing rock n roll at The RNR Hall of Fame.  This is what I was doing, always.  I would not write about things which I’m not familiar with and I’m not trying to copy anyone else. You can not be Pink Floyd if you’re not actually Pink Floyd.  Rock band is a combination of music tastes, abilities, characters. The moment you realize you just do your best at what you do, then there always people who appreciate that.

Every single label in Russia hated our first self-funded album; they said that “westernized pop rock approach” never sells in Russia.  We had a hard time proving to distribution that they had nothing to lose, as they did not really have to invest anything  - only to prove in year time that our record became a most significant record in modern Russia not only for sales figures, but also for the fact that it is not a niche thing.   Everyone from ex-military pilots to teenage girls found something for them in my songs.  I guess because it was time of new hopes in Russia (late 90s) so we kinda sang everyone’s hope on our own terms. That things really can be different and it works…

5. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, how do you think things have changed in Russia? What things do you like about it now that were not in existence before the fall of the communist regime?

Russia became oh so different – in its own way of course. I mean, you hardly recognize that Moscow in 1980 and Moscow in 2010 is the same place.  But nothing really changed visually in many places.  It’s quite difficult for people to absorb new way of life, new modern “capitalist” values.  I do understand that.  When you live for 60 years when they said right is right, and suddenly they told you right is left, it’s a bit surprising isn’t it?  It was kinda safe and easy life – if you of course appreciate that someone controls you and actually tells you how to live your life.  The moment you have a slightest idea that things can be done differently – goodbye Soviets. Then, welcome to real world jungle.  But life is full of contrasts and I’m lucky to actually live many of them, not only read in a book.

6. You have gained international popularity through tours and even by participating in the Eurovision contest. Are there any specific places or events that you would consider to have made a huge impact on the band?

I guess its all coming in the future.:)   Really we did not have anything special – we simply work hard, because to live this rock n roll lifestyle is a special reward which is more valuable than any chart position or awards ceremony.   It’s just a lot of people dreaming about it, but not too many fulfill that dream. You gotta be realistic, have common sense but have enough courage to admit that every rose has its thorn.

7. Speaking of all these tours, how was your first tour in North America, and what made you come back again?

We’ve played selected cities like New York or San Francisco before, simply because they have significant Russian communities.  However to go on 40 dates across whole of US Canada and even Mexico was quite a challenge not only from the booking agent standpoint also from the band’s point of view.  Imagine Lou Reed goes on tour in China in 2012. Kinda start all over again to explain who you are to people who do not really care about your Velvet Underground background…pretty rock n roll-ish, uh?

8. How would you describe your fans, and how do you think they have changed through the years and through various social revolutions?

Our fans are sweet. And funny. You look at them in audience and you have absolute picture of modern Russia. People so different. This is what I really like. They are different breed of people.  Maybe they’d never communicate in real life, but they come to see us. I guess it’s a quality of music and personal things. My band mates are totally devoted musicians; however, they will never bore you with their techniques etc.   They’re fun people to go and play.  We’re rather realistic, intelligent and GSOH about music industry truths . We were old enough to get success not to be starstruck.  In russia being rockstar never paid as oil-mine ownership.  So we’re still the same boys on the road. People like that attitude. We’re honest with them. To sing about outer space – you should spend some time there at least. We do.

9. Finally, what is the uniting force that has kept the band together for so many years even in the face of political danger?

I guess I’m a naturally born diplomat…in other life I’d lead UN or something like United Galactic Peace Corp.  I’m sure I can handle that.

For more info, you can check out their site: www.mumiytroll.com, their myspace: www.myspace.com/mumiy, or the myriad of articles about their shows.

Fefe Dobson Interview

Fefe Dobson Watch me Move Video

by Alison Sikes NYU

Alison Sikes: How is it going? How were the VMAs?

Fefe Dobson:  I’m doing great. The VMAs were great. It was fabulous. I did a MTV pre-VMA show with Cobra Starship. We judged a couple bands. Cobra guys were really nice and super chill. They seem like they have a good time.

AS: It’s really funny because I went to Fashion’s Night Out the other night (http://www.fashionsnightout.com/) and I saw both you and Gabe Saporta (of Cobra Starship) that night. What events did you go to?

FD: I went to Kiehls. It was awesome. Everyone was doing karaoke. So much cool energy. People were dancing. “Single Ladies” came on and everyone was on the floor, doing the dance, getting down on the ground. I was like “I love Kiehls. This is great.”

AS: Going with the whole fashion thing, how would you describe your style?

FD: I would describe my style as whatever I see and tickles my fancy, I put it on and go. I’m a vintage gal. I really love finding special little pieces and rummaging. In Toronto, we have a huge vintage/thrift store scene. I got a faux-fur jacket for ten bucks and that is what it’s like in Toronto. Vintage is vintage and that’s what I love about it.

AS: Do you think you’ll visit any thrift stores in New York City during your free time here?

FD: I am going to try to for sue. I love street shopping in New York because people make original pieces like jewelry. I find it really pretty.

AS: You new album, Joy, comes out in the upcoming months. How is it different than your previous albums in terms of your sound, inspiration, etc?

FD: As persons, we all grow. If you stay the same person, you have to worry. When I made the first record entitled Fefe Dobson,- very creative name- I was just hitting my teens and now, I am in my early twenties and have evolved from that point. I have gone through different experiences and so, my writing is going to come from a different place. I’m going to feel differently, dress differently, and look at people differently. That comes across [in my music] because that is your art and just like a painter or a poet, they grow and their work becomes a little bit more of a picture.  I think that there is more beauty when things get older and things grow up like my work. I feel like it’s becoming more beautiful to me because it’s growing up for me.

AS: What parts of your life did you draw inspiration from for this particular album?

FD: I drew a lot from love. I always do. I love love. All you need is love. I draw a lot from love and loss. For some songs, like there is a song called “Paranoia” on the record now and that was me being bit paranoid over odd things. I love this song “People are Strange” by The Doors and he describes how he feels how people are always lurking around. I kind of feel that way with cameras. I always think when you’re changing in the changing room that there is going to be a camera in the room. I heard a story about a man that used to put a camera on the tip of his boot and when he walked, he’d look under girls’ dresses. I kind of went there a little bit on that a paranoid feeling as being a women and never really knowing what is lurking behind you or in the changing room. I write about things I’m feeling.

AS: I have to ask the corny question, what kinds of things bring joy to Fefe Dobson?

FD: What brings joy to me? Some good food. I love a good meal. I dance when I eat. I’ll be on the street and if I eat something that is good, I’ll say “Oh” and my foot starts to twitch. Just some good food and I’m in heaven.

AS: It just so happens that Mike Myers is also from your hometown of Scarborough, Ontario. Seeing that he is a funny guy, do you consider yourself to be a funny person?

FD: I try to be. I can make my friends laugh. I can make my best friend crack up. I think she is lying to me. She laughs at everything I say.

AS: When you first came out, I can remember your music being all over the Disney Channel. Now, current Disney stars like Miley Cyrus and Jordin Sparks are all covering your songs. What is that like for you?

FD: It’s pretty wild. It’s hard to describe because they’re not songs that have been out for year and I’m like 55 years of age.  I just made theses gonad n they were on the record, it’s pretty crazy.

AS: What are your plans for the future?

FD: Making more records, making more music, producing. I hope one day I can be like Tina Turner. Be 60 years old, still rocking out with great legs and not feeling like I’m going to fall apart or break.

Teenage Bottlerocket-A Review of They Came From the Shadows

Proclaiming the use of Walkmans and running over cops in front of doughnut shops as cool again, Teenage Bottlerocket is back with another Punk Rock album titled, They Came From The Shadows. Veterans of the post-millennium Punk scene, Teenage Bottlerocket has been around since 2001 with four full albums and five EPs.  The band consists of 5 Neo-Punks: Ray Carlisle, Brandon Carlisle, (Brandon and Ray are twins), Kody Templeman, and Miguel Chen. Since their formation in Laramie, Wyoming, the band has “label-hopped” with 4 different record labels, and are currently with Fat Wreck Records. Although Teenage Bottlerocket has been veterans of the Punk scene for nine years, they haven’t blown up on the mainstream like Rancid or Screeching Weasel. Still, they have a devout fan base, similar to a cult following. Teenage Bottlerocket is fighting for Punk Rock with loud chords and angst ridden lyrics, but at the same time is being submissive to the Punk Pop movement in their most recent album.  Punk Pop is more easily sold than hardcore Punk, and Teenage Bottlerocket is switching over to the Punk Pop-side.

by Carly Shea

The very first track on They Came From The Shadows starts off with a heavy drum beat which you can’t help but tap your feet to. Soon after is the rhythmic guitar shredding and in addition to the feet tapping, you are now bopping your head to the chords. As if this track couldn’t get any catchier, Ray Carlisle comes in pumping out lyrics saying that the band is “making skate a f**king threat again”. Only their first track, Skate Or Die has set a high expectation for the rest of They Came From The Shadows and the survival of Punk Rock.

Feeling Punk Rock while wearing my Chucks, I eagerly pushed play on the next track, Don’t Want To Go. Expecting more rapid drum beats and snarky lyrics, I eagerly listened on, but the second the lyrics started, I felt that the entire album changed. No longer were the lyrics full of rebellion, but were a fast paced Punk- Pop-formula used on many Green Day albums.  I was majorly disappointed.

Maybe their record label just wanted to throw in a few Punk Pop songs amidst the Hardcore Punk ones to appeal to a broader audience. But the more songs I listened to, the more disappointed I became.  Songs like Do What? and Tonguebiter mirrored the pop-ish styling’s of Don’t Want To Go, and the CD lost it’s hardcore roots. The songs were full of Emo lyrics about relationship problems with a Punk backbeat. Where were the songs about moshing, hardcore drugs, and graffiti? What happened to God Save The Queen? Next time anyone tells you Punk Rock is dead, rest assured, it’s not. It’s just been drowned in the heavily marketed Pop that true Punk Rock once rivaled.

Converge-Axe to Fall

by Diana Ciuca

THE first song on the album, Dark Horse, initially comes as a surprise yet finally slows down midway through the song. Then tension is built up through the gradual increasing magnitude of the guitar and drums which culminates with ‘metal-core’ screaming. The next song, Reap What you Sow (2), consisted of even less audible screaming, with more musical force than before complemented by a ridiculously fast tempo. However, the issue with music like this is that if you’re not a fan, you can hardly appreciate the subtleties in each song (such as the difference between chords and variety of screams). I’ve been to local screamo shows, and they don’t have the energy that Converge exhibits, especially in the first few songs. Their album is absolutely mind-blowing, in a scream-guitar-scream-drums kind of way. Nevertheless, the band proves their malleability throughout the rest of the album.

At times I feel that Converge should stop ‘attacking me with music,’ but I would be mistaken to contend that the band would want to do anything less than roll with the punches (or high tempo guitar chords, in this case). The album sometimes progresses like a machine gun of noise, yet eventually slows down towards the end of the album and of several songs like Axe to Fall (3). That slow tempo is idyllic (relative to the rest of the songs). Furthermore, the high pitched guitar sounds unexpectedly add another facet to the band’s overall sound in the song Effigy (4) . But then again, the addition of yet another pitch is like spreading mustard on a hot dog of music which is already saturated with ketchup, relish, mayonnaise, soy sauce, onions, and raspberries.

In song Worms to Feed (5), the lead finally slows down with an almost angry Led Zeppelin-like guitar. Finally, this song exposes a more experimental side of the band with a spectacular ending. Worms to Feed, my personal favorite, it more variety to the typical rip chords and machine gun drums, but maintains generally the same feeling of heavy metal. The song Damages (7) probably doesn’t do as much damage to your hearing aids as you might expect; it seems almost refreshingly different. The feedback juxtaposes you in the “cliffhanger” stage of the whole album where you’re wondering if the band will soften up their style or keep pounding the guitar. To my joy, they eventually let go of the incessant noise saturated chords but only after songs 8-12 of more repetitive rip chords. They definitely are stimulating, yet it leaves you expecting something more.
Since I’m such a sissy when it comes to music that makes my speakers tremble constantly, Cruel Bloom (12) strikes me as a relieving break from the rest of the album. The muted voice (a legitimate voice, not screaming!) with the dreamy guitar sounds like the original Heavy Metal of Ozzy Osbourne. With a pendulum rhythm, the intro to Wretched World, the last song (13), represents the beginning of the end. With a slight resemblance to Smashing Pumpkins, the album eerily finishes with extended chords instead of the pounding ones we were introduced to at the beginning of the album. The energetic, electric discord which fades into a soft harmony parallels the overall structure of the album.

Music videos added 10-9

Just added:  The All American Rejects/”the Wind Blows”, MetroStation/”Kelsey”, Five for Fighting/”Chances”, Glasvegas/”It’s my own cheating heart that makes me cry” and The Avett Brothers/”I and Love and You”.

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