This week, I decided to review the relatively new Foo Fighters album released this September, since I hadn’t gotten the chance to hear it yet 

The Pretender – An upbeat, track with a very Foo-Fightersish riff.  But, Honestly I’m not really a fan – it has a sound and tone very reminiscent of One-by-One era Foo work.  As it progresses, the song picks up in my mind, but overall, nothing spectacular.

Let it Die – Like many songs in this album, it features a primarily soft, more acoustic sound, building into a more upbeat, driving sound.  There’s nothing particularly spectacular or noteworthy about the track, so let’s move on.

Erase/Replace – In contrast, this track is a driving, hard-hitting track from the very start.  Ultimately, though, cheesy lyrics and a less-than-spectacular rhythm make the listener move to the next track before the song is even done, as I’m doing right now.

Long Road to Ruin – At first impression, not a bad song – it has the same feel as other big Foo songs like “Times Like These” and “Learn to Fly” I can see this being a decent single.  It’s upbeat and yet decidedly unique.

Come Alive -  I can appreciate acoustic at times, but personally it’s not my cup of tea.  This song has a certain sound though, which is just overall pleasing to listen to.  Much like “Let it Die,” though, it features a soft first 2min. followed by about another three minutes of the same clichéd upbeat guitar that is so characteristic of this album.  The solo isn’t bad, and I always like to hear Dave Grohl screaming, but it’s decidedly mediocre.

Stranger Things Have Happened – The acoustic part at the very start of the single is very interesting – I’d even go so far as to call it a little Nirvana-esque at times.  It showcases a little bit of that grunge influence still present on the first Foo-Fighters album.  All in all a decent track.

Cheer Up, Boys (Your Makeup is Running) – Right from the start, a total contrast to the previous track.  It has that classical uplifting Foo Fighters sound, to make an excellent track, all in all.

Summer’s End – As the album begins to wind down, Summer’s End provides a slow steady tune to bring the album toward a close.  Ultimately, though, there isn’t really anything special or noteworthy about the track.

Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners – I think it’s really great that the Foo Fighters put this track on here – it has a cool, acoustic sound, and though an instrumental, is worth a listen.  The song was written for the Beaconsfield miners, who were trapped in an Australian mine collapse, and while awaiting rescue requested just an iPod with Foo Fighters songs on.  Way to repay the favor.

Statues – A nice track overall – it has a good uplifting beat, it features a cool piano part, and what I’m pretty sure is an accordion in the background – a really nice song.

But, Honestly – I consider this the best track on the album.  It has an uplifting, acoustic beat, but when listening to it, it can conjure up strong emotion and memories, like other big Foo hits like “Times Like These” and “Best of You” – it has a very nostalgic tone in some ways.  They finally got it right when building into a driving climax, though – this is truly a great track.  I’d call it one of the top ten Foo Fighter songs thus far.

Home – Not bad overall; like “Statues” it has a piano part as a main part.  It’s a good closer, but the album wouldn’t have lost anything by not including it.  It’s a little depressing to go from a great track like “But, Honestly” to this.  However, it’s not bad.  If I were sitting on a front porch in Montana watching the sun set, it’d be awesome.

All in all, The Foo Fighters have produced a mediocre album, I think.  I’d give it 3 stars.  I’m a little discouraged at the consistency in sound throughout, and their lyrics overall don’t seem to be getting much better.  Ever since their third album, they seem to have lost the fluidity present on Foo Fighters and even into their sophomore album.  I would say their previous effort, In Your Honor was better album.  Echoes, Silence, Patience, and Grace does make an interesting departure toward a more stripped-down, acoustic sound.  There is much more simplicity present overall.  What I crave however, is that genius simplicity off their self-titled debut.  That album had simple, catchy rhythms, blending what Dave Grohl had learned under the Godfather of Grunge Kurt Cobain in his tenure with Nirvana, and yet a distinctly new, different sound.  That new, different sound has been something of a sell-out to typical post-grunge sounds in recent efforts.  Still, there is still a certain individuality about this band that will likely never go away, and it’s apparent, if somewhat dimmed.

I felt it my civic duty to take a moment to discuss a truly talented band that just kills me every time I hear their songs, because they could truly be so much better.  This band is the much-mocked Christian rock group Creed. 

Let me first say that though I don’t like to affiliate myself with a particular religion, I respect the beliefs of other people as long as they leave me alone and don’t try to tell me what to believe.  So before there’s a cry of “Oooohhh, stone the agnostic!” and Pat Robertson and the 700 Club come busting through my dorm wall in a Panzer, let me just say that

THIS IS A CRITIQUE OF CREED AND THE CHRISTIAN ROCK GENRE; NOT CHRISTIANITY AS A RELIGION.

My main point for writing in this week is to say how awesome I think Creed as a band is, except for the fact that they’re Christian rock.  I mean, I really don’t care if a band wants to praise the Lord through head-banging and heavy metal, mostly because I never actually thought I’d find a good Christian rock band!  But then I stumbled upon Creed, and my whole life changed.  Musically speaking, they were exactly what I was looking for – the heavy, distorted alternative guitars, a powerful lead vocalist, and a balance between the negative and the uplifting.  But then I started to actually pay attention to the lyrics, and I became sorely disappointed.  Let’s be honest; they’re the Dragon Force of Alternative Rock.  Great music, cheesy words.  I could live with the Christian lyrics; I don’t care personally, but I consider myself an open-minded person in regards to such things.  When you make them ridiculously cheesy Christian lyrics, though, it all goes down the drain.  Let’s look at “One” for example.  I love the music, but if Creed songs are cheesy, this is the Limburger.  Take a look at these lyrics:

“The goal is to be unified – take my hand, be my brother.”

“Unity took a backseat sliding further into regression”

 “I feel angry I feel helpless – want to change the world, yeah.”

Please, this is bordering on “Peanut Butter Jelly, Peanut Butter Jelly, Peanut Butter Jelly with a baseball bat.”  If there’s anything more drab and uncreative than Creed Lyrics, it’s anything in the rap/hip hop genre

Whatever happened to Kurt Cobain’s poetic vagueness?  You don’t spell out the lyrics, silly!  You have to make them think about it!  Maybe we’re actually mishearing them; maybe the lyrics are genius, but we can’t make them out correctly because Scott Stapp refuses to open his mouth when he sings!  I heard a comedian make a joke about the song “With Arms Wide Open” and he parodied it as “My Mouth Won’t Open” – I nearly lost it.  What’s perhaps most interesting to me is that Creed persistently claimed throughout their career that they were NOT a Christian rock band.  Let’s look at the evidence, shall we:

“I Cry out to God, seeking only His decision,” – My Own Prison.

“Are you ready?  Are you ready?  For what’s to come?” – Are You Ready

“We all live under the reign – did you know of one King.”– What’s this Life For?

Yeah, I thought so

I’m somehow reminded of that episode of South Park where Cartman decides to make a Christian rock band, and cleverly manipulates the lyrics of other songs by just replacing words like “baby” and “darling” with “Jesus.”  He becomes so popular that he sells a myrrh album (the Christian Rock equivalent of Platinum).  As I recall, his rationale for forming a Christian Rock band was also “Why not?  It worked for Creed!”

If South Park makes fun of it, it is worthy of ridicule – nuff’ said.   

Furthermore, let’s look at some other bands of the genre, namely Stryper.  Stryper was notorious for throwing Bibles into the crowd to get the audience pumped for their shows.

Personally, I think the whole thing about biting the head off a bat was a little over the top, but I know it would’ve gotten my attention more than a copy of the new testament being slapped in my face.

You’ll also be shocked to learn that Stryper had the same, lyrical cheesiness as their brothers in spirit, Creed.

Back to Creed, though, there are a handful of songs which are either just so good that I can overlook the cheesiness, or they had a stroke of brilliance and didn’t write any to begin with.  “Higher,” “One Last Breath,” “My Sacrifice,” and “My Own Prison” are absolutely spectacular songs – “One Last Breath” is one of my all-time favorite songs, period.  It sends chills down my spine every time I hear it.

So the moral of this story, if Christian rock is what floats your boat, go for it – but as for me, I’m going to leave rock and roll to Nirvana, Ozzy Osbourne, and Ronnie James Dio.  But if Creed gets back together, I’d still go see them…as long as they don’t throw bibles.

   Guns N Roses fans have waited patiently for over a decade now for the release of new Guns N Roses’ material, in the form of the mythical Chinese Democracy album.  In the time since their last release, The Spaghetti Incident? Axl Rose has managed to take one of the greatest bands in the history of rock and roll and slowly but surely wrench it apart.  With rumors of the new album stringing all the way back to 1999, it seems that the Chinese Democracy will never become a reality.

   However, as sad as this might be, it also provides an excellent lesson in outsourcing.  Yes indeed, if silly Axl had taken an economics class or two, maybe he’d know that sending your production elsewhere is a bad thing.  Instead of keeping things as they were circa Appetite for Destruction, Axl decided he had to have his way, and damn all his band-mates and anything they might think.  Instead of sticking to the hard, gritty sound that won over so many fans (myself included) off their debut album, Axl wanted to appeal to a broader public audience, and so the byproduct was a softer sound on the Use Your Illusion albums.  This was not bad – “November Rain,” I’m ashamed to say, is a great song, and “Don’t Cry” (the original version) and “Patience” are two of my favorite GNR songs.  But in his quest for public appeal, and ultimately, more money, backfired in that he failed to realize that his band-mates weren’t on-par with his way of thinking, and in the end, Guns N Roses was made into much less than it once was.  Such is the case with so many good American businesses, and so I find GNR’s naming this new album Chinese Democracy just a tad ironic.  Think about it – how many corporations started off small, enjoyed success, and then screwed over their workers to move to China.  It makes me mad that Axl Rose, who is still a great musician in spite of all of this, treated his band in such a way.  In the same sense, it makes me mad that corporate CEO’s screw over their workers just so they can buy a gold toilet and gold-plated toilet paper to wipe their asses with.  Below, I’ve given this a more simple representation:

Outsourcing

1.) Small company – focuses on quality.

2.) As company gets bigger, looks for cost-cutting techniques to increase profit.

3.) In effort to make more profit, work is shipped overseas for cheaper labor of lesser quality.

Axlsourcing

1.) Appetite for Destruction = amazing

2.) Rise to Fame – Axl gets an ego, looks for new appeal to broader audience and money.

3.) Axl continues to search for new public appeal and money.  Quality declines as he ships away all former members of the band who disagree with him.

    As you can see, Axl Rose has completely outsourced, or as I like to call it, “Axlsourced,” his band.  When the rest of Guns N Roses began to dislike Rose and his inflated personality, he simply sent them away.  He sent Slash and his top hat packing faster than they sent production of Hershey chocolate to Mexico.  And we can see the results: GNR members Slash, Duff McKagan, and Matt Sorum went on to form the band Velvet Revolver with Stone Temple Pilots’ Scott Weiland on lead vocals.  Velvet Revolver has produced two albums to good critical praise, and toured with a reformed Alice in Chains this summer.  Guns N Roses has produced no new albums to no critical praise, and toured with Axl Rose sporting cornrows and baggy football jerseys, sniffing oxygen every twenty minutes, because he smoked enough cigarettes in the 90’s to literally be the chemical equivalent of the Marlboro Man.  In addition, let’s take a moment to look at Slash’s replacement – the current guitarist, Bumblefoot.  Like Slash he does have an alias, but it is immensely inferior.  Bumblefoot – what, did he step on a bee?  Actually, I looked this up, and it’s really an infection on the foot of a bird of prey, but who gives a flying fudge!  Nobody’s going to mess with a guy named Slash.  Secondly, Bumblefoot uses a Gibson Les Paul, but only because SLASH did first!  He was actually required to switch to the Les Paul to be allowed to play in the band.  Third, and most importantly, Slash has a top hat, and Bumblefoot does not, which automatically makes Slash about ten times more amazing.

   So what’s the moral of this story?  Don’t send work to China because outsourcing is bad!

    And don’t mess with Slash, or his top-hat.

   I felt it my civic duty once again to follow up last week’s album review with a list of my top 10 favorite songs to trim Christmas trees to, for any tree farmers out there who like to spruce up their trimming day with a little music.

   I’ll begin with a little background for those of you who are unfamiliar with the art of Christmas tree trimming; to get the nice, shapely, beautiful tree you buy every year around the holiday season, somebody needs to trim it up (the best jobs are done by hand with a pair of shears - it gives the tree a more personal job, as opposed to the mass-produced sickle-bar trimmer jobs which save time.)  That’s where I come in.  I go out with a ladder and a pair of shears to trim up what has now probably reached nearly a thouand trees over the course of the years I’ve been doing this.  And then you, the consumer, come by with a bow saw and tears the life out of it for about three weeks’ time before throwing it out for the garbage.

   Anyway, it’s about as boring a job as you can imagine, and I like to keep occupied with some music.  To keep from going insane, you need a certain type of music to keep the mind sharp – so here’s a list of some of my favorite tree trimming tunes.

“Evil Woman” – Electric Light Orchestra.  This song wins because unlike the rest of the songs on this list, it actually makes me want to be out in the field with a pair of shears, trimming.  I love a song with a nice, “dancy” feel to it for trimming, and there’s something about the tune that just puts me in a trimming mood.  I’ll admit I’ve even broken out a few disco moves while working on the firs.  I actually trim to the beat. 

“No Way Back” – Foo Fighters.  Another good, upbeat song with a catchy tune.  This is one of my favorite Foo Fighters songs, though it’s either hit or miss if played at the beginning of the day.  Sometimes, it can be inspiring and give the drive needed to propel yourself through the rest of a boring day trimming trees, and sometimes, it just makes you depressed that you have eight more hours of this.

“Come As You Are” – Nirvana.  Well first off, this is about as “dancy” as Nirvana gets, and this is pretty much my favorite song of all time.  I love the deep, watery bass part.  The whole song is just really well done; if they had played this at my high school Homecoming or Prom, I would’ve danced to it.  It gets me into that tree-trimming “groove,” if you will, especially during the guitar solo.  Great for trees that need a little extra precision.

Do Ya – Electric Light Orchestra.  Like “Evil Woman,” “Do Ya” just has something in the beat that makes it a good work song.  I even think some credit card company used it in a commercial for small businesses.  “Do ya Do ya want my shears?”

“Beast and the Harlot” – Avenged Sevenfold.  This is a great song overall – kinda’ somewhere between Guns N Roses and metal.  It’s catchy, and great for any tight trimming jobs.  I get a lot done on this one.

“Bullet with Butterfly Wings” – Smashing Pumpkins.  The chorus is where you really get going on this song – when he starts screaming “Despite all my rage / I am still just a rat in a cage.”  The song isn’t particularly good for productivity, but it’s fun for trimming nonetheless.  For just a general trimming, a good tune.

“Vinum Sabbathi” – Electric Wizard.  This song is really heavy.  It has this slow, pondering beat and massive distortion that just throbs in your head if you crank it up.  That, combined with the low, barely audible growling of their vocals, and you have a song that’s perfect for medium-heavy trimming, or if you want to saw the whole tree down.

“Sex Type Thing” – Stone Temple Pilots. STP is amazing for starters, but this is one of their best, if not their best song.  I love the massive, hard hitting riffs – it just sounds like it’s spiraling downward as the song goes on.  The drum beat is simple but nicely done, too.  A good song to start the day moving fast.

“Blitzkrieg Bop” – The Ramones.  It’s quick, fast paced, and full of that punk-rock energy, and it’s just plain catchy.  A good tune for trimming stuff down about medium length, or if you want a close trim.

“Fall to Pieces” – Velvet Revolver.  This one surprises me as a good tree-trimming tune, but the guitar solo really is great – it sends shivers down my spine every time.  I like to crank the volume the whole way up – you really get a lot done in the chorus.  Plus Scott Weiland’s vocals are really great – I like the song a lot to begin with.  Best for a light to medium trimming.

I felt it my civic duty to announce my top five favorite albums of all time to anyone out there with a taste in rock and roll, so here it is, along with an explanation of why I hate Styx, and why you should too.

 1.)    In Utero-Nirvana.  What?  No Nevermind?  It was hard for me to not give the top spot to Nevermind because that one album killed 80’s Glam Metal as we know it, and that is why I’m sure Kurt Cobain is in heaven right now.  I love every album Nirvana ever made, and they all display incredible musical genius because, well…it’s NIRVANA and they’re just the BEST BAND EVER!  The reason I place this as their best album, and the best album of all time, is because of its overall meaning.  After the Nirvana craze of the early 90’s, Kurt Cobain grew uneasy with his fanbase, thinking they weren’t really understanding what his songs really meant…in came In Utero.  Songs like “Rape Me” and “Heart-Shaped Box” unapologetically touched on issues that no artist would dare touch, much less touch in such a way.  The lyrics can be sick and disturbing, and they’re meant to be that way; this is Nirvana’s heart and soul. Kurt’s lyrics are embracing; they make the listener live in the song.  To the critical eye, In Utero is to social issues what Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle was to the meatpacking industry.  Not to mention that it delivers classic Nirvana genius – the lyrical sarcasm in “All Apologies” is so thick it makes you want to laugh.  Top Tracks: “All Apologies,” “Heart Shaped Box,” “Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle.” 

2.)    Sixteen Stone-Bush.  Bush’s first album was without a doubt their most genius.  In a time when the grunge scene was being dominated by American bands, Britain finally produced one of its own, and Sixteen Stone proved to be a fantastic breakthrough.  Obviously hits like “Comedown,” and “Glycerine” helped propel Bush into the heart of mainstream American rock, but the beauty of the album is that it never tires.  From “Everything Zen” to “X-Girlfriend,” the album keeps you listening to the album, a rarity in today’s crap.  Too many groups simply have a 12-track album with one or two tracks as pillars.  Sixteen Stone is consistent – massive guitars, distortion everywhere, and above all, raw talent.  Top Tracks: “Comedown,” “Glycerine,” “Little Things” 

3.)    Dopethrone-Electric Wizard.  I never even knew this group existed until college when one of my classmates opened my eyes to the world of Doom Metal.  This album is so heavy it should be illegal – if Lucifer has an iPod, I’m sure he’s got Electric Wizard on there, and probably some Michael Jackson, too.  The album is just genius – a slow, pondering, doom opus.  Not to mention the fact that the vocals are so low in the album that it sounds more like an unintelligible, rabid growl than singing.  Top Tracks: “Vinum Sabbathi,” “Dopethrone,” “Funeralopolis.” 

4.)    Appetite for Destruction-Guns N Roses.  Remember the days when Axel Rose didn’t suck?  I do!  Without a doubt one of the greatest albums of all time, from one of the greatest bands of all time.  It took hard rock and wrested it from the grip of Poison and their horrible 80’s Glam Metal lackeys.  This album delivered hit after hit; the gritty, in-your-face guitars of Izzy Stradlin and Slash conjuring up images reminiscent of Grand Theft Auto.  At the same time, however, songs like “Sweet Child of Mine” “Paradise City” and the two-part “Rocket Queen” showcase more roses and less guns, but it’s not enough to detract.  This tone would show up more in later GNR hits like “November Rain,” and “Patience,” as the band was slowly ripped apart by Axl’s ego before reaching the tattered state of affairs the band is in today.  I guess every rose really does have its thorn.  In short, though, the album paints a beautiful picture of the low-life scum of America, and is from my experience also a great listen while trimming Christmas trees.  Top Tracks: “Mr. Brownstone,” “Rocket Queen,” “Sweet Child of Mine.” 

5.)    Wolfmother-Wolfmother.  In my opinion, this is one of only two groups formed since 2000 that don’t sound like crap.  Not only do they not sound like crap, they sound great!  Wolfmother’s debut self-titled album hearkens back to the days of psychedelic grooves and flower power.  Add in Andrew Stockdale’s high flowing vocals, and you’ll think you’re being sung a ballad by a medieval minstrel…a medieval minstrel with an electric guitar.  Come to think of it, he sounds a little like Claudio Sanchez of Coheed & Cambria, only…he doesn’t sound like crap.  AND his hair is ten-times more amazing – afro beats curly mop any day of the week.  But enough of last week’s ramblings – this album just plain kicks butt.  Every song caught my attention; I actually heard each track play – they don’t simply run together like every other album made by every other new band in today’s musical realm.  I also have to mention that the instrumentation is simply epic – “Woman” is a 3-minute bomb explosion…with an organ solo to boot.  The album itself is also very heavy in sound – the riffs in the chorus of “White Unicorn” are so low you think you’re listening to Black Sabbath.  All in all, some great creative vibes from some great new talent.  I really hope their next album is just as good if not better.  Top tracks: “Woman,” “White Unicorn,” and “Love Train.”  

AND NOW, for your reading pleasure… 

Five Reasons Why I Hate Styx and Why You Should Too

Not enough people in this world hate Styx, and so as a public service announcement, I’ve compiled a list of the Top 5 reasons to hate the most overrated group in the history of mankind, Styx…

5.) Tommy Shaw is overrated – enough said on that, let’s move on, shall we.

4.) Dennis DeYoung is a wimp – I would love to see a cage match between Claudio Sanchez and Dennis DeYoung – they both have annoying, high pitched voices and try sooo hard to make good music.  They just can’t make the cut though.  I hate to say it, but I think Claudio would win-the guy is “built like a lion” to quote my good friend Hydraduck.

3.) Kilroy Was Here following the trend of other concept albums I hate, Styx decided to make their album into a futuristic scenario where music has been outlawed, and the mythical “Kilroy” must escape the prisons of the MMM and their notorious leader, Dr. Righteous.  Oh how I wish Kilroy wasn’t here.  Like virtually every other concept album ever made, it is overbearing in its creativity to the point where the listener is suffocating on ridiculous content.  The Wall is the only half-decent album in that genre I’ve ever heard – I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – if you want to tell a story, write a book.  

2.) They use Synthesizers.  Any band who uses 80’s style synthesizers is pretty much crap, but Styx is a master of screwing up any semblance of music in a song.  I almost cry when I hear the synth. break on “Come Sail Away” – it actually sounds kinda’ good until this point, and as soon as that feathery whining comes through, it drops faster than Rosie O’Donnell with a sack of lead.

 And the #1 reason I hate Styx and you should too: 

MR. ROBOTO

If it were my decision, I would condemn Styx to hell for even thinking of writing this song.  It is without a doubt the most obnoxious, aggravating piece I’ve ever heard.  I’m not sure if they were under the effects of cannabis when they wrote this, but I’d believe it. It mixes two of my least favorite things, emo rock and synthesizers.  Even though this was the 80’s DeYoung’s whiny voice and vocals lean more towards a Hawthorne Heights album than Styx.  I mean, come on…“I’ve got a secret / I’ve been hiding / under my skin / My heart is human / my blood is boiling / my brain IBM.”  If that doesn’t scream “emo” I don’t know what does – the guy thinks he’s a freakin’ robot!  Ding ding ding, there goes my “emo metaphor” alert.  Don’t even get me started on the video.

I’m not normally one to raise a fuss, but I feel it my civic duty to complain about a decline in quality of the rock genre, particularly in the form of Coheed & Cambria.  Yes, fans of Coheed, stone me, because I’m about to tear into Claudio Sanchez (and his hair) with no remorse.

First of all, Claudio is the closest thing to a grown man singing Soprano that I’ve ever heard.  Never mind the fact that he could probably smuggle several illegal immigrants across the border in his hair.  Where I lose all respect for Coheed, though, is their 5-album saga detailing the fictitious Amory Wars, telling the fictitious story of their band.  Basically, they’re trying to rip off The Wall and The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars but the difference is that Pink Floyd and David Bowie actually have talent.  If that weren’t enough, there is actually a comic book dedicated to telling the story of Coheed and the Amory Wars.  I think Claudio needs to stop playing D&D and worrying about his hair and focus a little more on making music.  Critics seem to hail these “storytelling albums” as revolutionary and breakthrough, but to be perfectly honest, I thought that even Pink Floyd’s The Wall was mediocre at best. 

Musically speaking, all of Coheed’s songs sound more or less the same, and have much the same feel – they try to sound epic and modern at the same time, but fall horribly flat within seconds.  It’s truly disappointing when I can flip through an album and not find a single song that holds my attention.  Plus their album titles have huge, epic-sounding titles that take a day and a half to read.  At first it wasn’t too bad, their first album, The Second Stage Turbine Blade wasn’t too bad.  No, however, we have Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV, Volume I: From Fear through the Eyes of Madness.  What’s next?  I’m thinking something to the tune of: Dear Hippolyta, the Third Phase B-Thrust Inducer is Maintaining the Underlying Principles of the Quiet Planet, Volume XXIVCDE: We’re Stringing As Many Big Words Together As We Can to Sound Big and Important, but This Album is Actually Crap, so Don’t Buy it.  Come on Coheed, you can (probably) do better than this; cut the crap and make some music instead of trying to put your Final Fantasy adventures into song.  I think that if Coheed & Cambria truly is the experimental, progressive band they are hailed as, they should experiment around and find a better sound.

When Velvet Revolver released its debut album, Contraband, few would have guessed, given the short longevity of super-groups in today’s industry, that Libertad would not even be made.  Not only was it made, but it shows a new degree of musical sophistication above its predecessor.  Velvet Revolver’s sophomore album picks up where the first left off with a refreshing, in-your-face hard rock opus.

The first track, “Let it Roll,” kicks the album into high gear right from the start,  utilizing a hard-hitting riff that will leave you feeling like you’re in the middle of a 1000mph tailspin straight for the ground.  “Get out the Door” shakes all the lead out at the beginning of the album, Scott Weiland’s choppy vocals bringing a sassy, almost Aerosmith-like sound.  “She Builds Quick Machines” turns it up another notch; break out the air guitars and crank it up, because this hard-rocker will leave you floored.  There’s something about it that is almost reminiscent of being in an old muscle car, mashing the pedal, and listening as the engine pounds harder and harder.

With “The Last Fight,” Velvet Revolver shows its Guns N Roses roots with a power ballad.  It lacks the power of “Fall to Pieces” off Contraband, but still displays the musical versatility of VR, one of the reasons they have lasted.   Perhaps one of the best tracks on the album, though, is a remake of Electric Light Orchestra’s “Can’t Get it Out Of My Head.”  Scott Weiland’s amazing vocal range shines through on this piece.  It takes a soft ballad, and with a little innovation, hardens the sound without losing the power.  In fact, I personally would call it stronger than the original.  The final track, “Gravedancer,” ends the album on a soft note, in a style very reminiscent of Weiland’s days as lead vocalist of Stone Temple Pilots.

Libertad without a doubt shows a great deal of musical genius on Velvet Revolver’s part.  In the face of the much punk-based, screamer/emo rock that dominates the airwaves these days, it’s good to see that some true masters of the business can still rock, and produce an album worth listening to. 

Seattle, Washington is known for many things: The Space Needle, The Seahawks, and Starbucks to name just a few.  To rock and roll, however, it was the cradle of the grunge movement.  The music of this time moved away from the teary-eyed power ballads and synthesizer-driven “glam metal” of the 1980’s, digging into the social issues that plagued American society, and doing so intimately and unapologetically.

            At the helm of this musical revolution was Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain.  Growing up in Washington, Cobain saw through his own two eyes a darker side of America – he himself was raised in a broken home and a heavy heroin user.  Through his experiences, though, he developed a unique perspective on the world that translated into his music.  What made Cobain’s music so influential is that he was among the first to touch on a darker side of the world, dealing with issues such as isolation, religion, and abortion to name a few.  Though the lyrics of many Nirvana songs are vague at best, it is this poetic obscurity that somehow makes the message all the clearer: America itself was confused about where it stood socially.  Kurt may have been branded a spokesman for “Generation X,” but a chronicler of the social face of America may have been a better description.  One can hear the almost sick sarcasm in Cobain’s lyrics.  “You Know You’re Right,” features, for instance, the lines “Things have never been so swell, and I have never felt this well.”  Ironically, this was Nirvana’s last single, recorded just months before Cobain’s (supposed) suicide.  The chorus in “All Apologies” reads “In the sun / In the sun I feel as one / in the sun / in the sun / I’m married / buried” also conveying a contradicting sarcasm of sorts.

            All that changed on April 8, 1994, when Kurt Cobain was found dead in his home, the cause of death a (supposedly) self-inflicted shotgun wound to the head – the date of death was placed at April 5, 1994.  Whether or not his demise was murder or suicide still remains the subject of a great deal of controversy, but it seems that with Cobain’s death, the grunge movement began moving in different directions.  While groups like Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains still carried on a critical eye in their music, the foundation fell unstable, and soon began to give way to a softer period both lyrically and musically speaking.  Groups like Foo Fighters (featuring Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl on lead vocals and guitar) and Stone Temple Pilots still held to their grunge roots, but took on a more radio-friendly sound that has only continued to grow more and more watered down over time.  There were still screamers, there were still heavy beats, and even the punk groups Nirvana drew inspiration from came back into style.  Some groups such as Rise Against show promise by still holding a magnifying glass to society, but in general the flair had left.  The spark had faded.  Grunge had become alternative, alternative into another animal completely.

Every once in a blue moon, a great person is put on this earth to make waves.  Kurt Cobain, a hero to the questioning young teenager, and demon to the overbearing parent, was one such man of charisma, and though his life was cut short, his music and his legacy will live on well into the future. 

On September 25, 1980, John Bonham was found dead, putting to an end one of the greatest bands in the history of rock and roll.  Led Zeppelin was no more.  With a reemerging interest in classic rock (and, consequently, Led Zeppelin) among the nation’s youth, it is disappointing that this younger generation will never be able to enjoy Led Zeppelin live in their prime.  However, a 3-disc compilation of live tracks from several 1972 west coast shows allows a new breed of Zeppelin fans to get as close to the real thing as possible.  How The West Was Won shows how Led Zeppelin truly won the hearts of its fans, by being masters of the live performance.

What is immediately striking in the opening tracks “LA Drone/Immigrant Song” is how heavy the band sounds live.  The studio version of “Immigrant Song” pales in comparison.  Jon Bonham’s thundering drums, paired with guitar virtuoso Jimmy Page’s driving guitar instantly stuns the listener, begging for more.  If “Immigrant Song” was heavy, the blues-driven “Heartbreaker” takes it one step further, it’s main riff dragging like a sack of lead.  Of course, to have a Led Zeppelin compilation without “Stairway to Heaven” is an unforgivable sin.  Break out the lighters, for this album delivers, Robert Plant’s soft crooning and Page’s guitar pairing for a song that still holds its potency over thirty years later.

Disc 2 opens up with a Led Zeppelin fan’s dream, a 25-minute rendition of “Dazed and Confused.”  This bluesy-groove shows how Zeppelin’s song writing prowess enabled them to create a song that reflects emotion not only lyrically, but musically.  The slow, pondering mood of the song fits the title perfectly.  In contrast, “Dancing Days” pays homage to the hippie days, but still shows an undying musical genius.  Disc 2 ends with an extended version of “Moby Dick,” an instrumental piece showcasing nearly twenty minutes of John Bonham’s drumming prowess, and why he was such an integral part of the band’s longevity.

Disc 3 features the hard-driving “Rock and Roll,” only ten times louder and heavier than any studio version.  Page’s guitar cuts through riff after riff like a saw-blade, John Bonham and John Paul Jones keeping beat in flawless perfection.  A 9-minute version of “Bring it on Home” ends the album with the listener begging for more. 

In the end, nothing can truly replace hearing Robert Plant’s shrill scream live, but How The West Was Won does the next best thing by bringing a set of amazing lost tracks to the ears of a new generation of Zeppelin fans.