Release Date: July 26, 2005
Label: Equal Vision Records
well seeing as the other review for this album sucked, i decided to do one myself.
i got this cd after hearing a few songs from Chiodos. While people may tag them as "just another emo band", there's more to them than that. They struck me as kind of accessible for youth of today as well as a band that isn't afraid to experiment with their song structures and such. listening to each song, there's a sense of experimentation as well as one of familiarity. Maybe it's because of the singer's voice, with it's combined high pitched-ness(is that even a word?) and screaming. The guitarists do a good job of working together, alot of their playing is very cohesive and can encompass good riffs as well as solid rhythms. I loved the bassist's playing on "All Nerieds Beware", but with the rest of the album, he seemed unattentive, like "wtf? is this dude even here?". The Keyboardist(yes they have a keyboardist), adds the experimentation to their songs and leads the Prelude as well as the two Interludes. The drummer seems to stand out the least to me, but then again i'm not a drummer. All in all, i would definately reccomend this album, seeing as Chiodos can push boundaries as well as keep their sound. As for a rating,
i'd give this album a 8 out of 10, cause while some parts aren't as good as they could be, there's still enough to enjoy here.
Prelude-Just a short intro to the album; a piano piece. the name definately fits it
All Nerieds Beware-The intro bleeds epic. when it seems like it's about to kick you in the face, the bass comes in and halts everything. Then everyone comes in and the bands skills are shown, in music as well as melody/harmony. This is a damn good song if you want to get into Chiodos
One Day All Women Will Become Monsters-the first few powerchords in the beginning set up the whole song. This one is a little more accesible, seeing as the song structure is a little more simple and there's less screaming.
Expired in Goreville-I have a kind of love/hate relationship with this song, like i want to get into this, but i can't. it starts of hard, then the keyboard leads a good part of the piece.
Baby, You Wouldn't Last a Minute On The Creek-This might be one of their most popular songs. the guitar starts off a sort of a fingerpicking style, then the song transitions into something that's a little tried but true in a band like this. Overall a good song.
The Words "Best Friend" Become Redifined-The opening riff to this song is BEASTLY. it tells you that these guys mean business. then the piano comes in and calms you down before you kill anyone. the drums here are somewhat foreboding, then a slow, emotive guitar part takes the song up. in the middle there's a part that sounds like it should be in an R&B song.
Interlude Pt. 1-Once again the piano is the only instrument here. it's a bit more sophisticated than the Prelude, i must say.
There's No Penguins in Alaska-I really like this song. The guitar riffs are pretty catchy and the keyboard has a very good part in this song. they both work hard here.
Interlude Pt. 2-This sounds like circus music. 'nuff said
We're Gonna Have Us a Champagne Jam-The riff here kicks off the whole song. this'd be something to make you move. This song is pretty singable too, moreso than some of the other ones.
No Hardcore Dancing in the Living Room-Don't be fooled by the name of this song. This'll make you want to do anything BUT hardcore dance. The intro is very calm at first then builds up slightly. The riff here is kind of "meh" to me, but then i kind of coasts to a point where it's pretty melodic and not so bad.
Who's Sandie Jenkins-This seems more like filler than an actual song. While alot of the elements of their other songs are present, it seems like they're just messing around
To Trixie and Reptile, Thanks For Everything-For an ender, it's pretty upbeat. Once again this is more melodic with less screaming. not a bad song to go out on, with the ending that's pretty emotive and a fade out to a nice ending with the keyboard.