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Build up the fire
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ire_-_Free.jpg Artiste: Bonfire Nationality: German Album: Free Year: 2003 Label: Sony BMG Genre: Heavy Metal/Heavy Rock Tracks: On and on... I would do anything 4 U What about love? Rock 'n' roll star (Born to rock) Free Preachers and whores Love CCA Give a little September on my mind Friends Chronological position: Ninth album Familiarity: "Rebel soul", "Feels like comin' home" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: On the lighter side of metal, but not quite AOR. Best track(s): Free, Give a little, Love CCA, Preachers and whores, September on my mind, Friends Worst track(s): Rock'n'roll star (Born to rock) Comments: First time I heard Bonfire I would have sworn they were American; they certainly have that sound down pat and there's little of the German accent in singer Claus Lessman's voice, and they sing like some rebel band from the Deep South, but it's from Bavaria they hail, distancing themselves from the giants of their home country (Helloween, Scorpions, Accept et al) by not quite turning their backs on their national heritage but definitely making an attempt to sound like a band from the US. This is their ninth album, and it's full of the hard rock/heavy metal they purvey so well. Straddling a delicate line between I guess what you'd call "melodic metal" --- it's not really fair to call them AOR, though some of their music does tip precariously into that area --- and straight ahead metal, they avoid the thrash/speed/power leanings of their contempories, even bands like Axxis, Blind Guardian and Primal Fear (who they cheekily namecheck). There's a nice Queen sound to the guitars in the opener, On and on... and almost Beatles rock in I would do anything 4 U, while What about love isn't a cover of the Heart hit, but their own original song. Apparently their fans didn't like this change in direction, and to be fair it's a distance removed from the other albums I've heard from Bonfire, more in the rock sphere than metal really, but I still like what I'm hearing. Often German metal bands in particular fall into the trap of sounding the same every album, with little or no progression or experimentation, so it's nice to see these guys take a chance. May not have worked out for them commercially, but that's the risk you take, hey? The title track is a nice acoustic-style ballad, and it's not the only one on the album, with surprisingly Christian overtones, though it's a bit annoying to hear Lessman's lisp on the chorus --- "Now I'm fwee/ Fwee from all the pain!" Hmm. Some great burning fretwork from Hans Ziller at the end, though his use of a sitar on Preachers and whores must have got up fans' noses, as I can't see him having used the instrument after this album. Song's a good rocker though. That sitar comes back for another of the ballads, "Give a little", then "September on my mind" is a big, epic, dramatic retelling of the 9/11 attacks (again, this plays into Bonfire's almost impersonation of an American band; though of course the WTC attacks affected us all, generally you expect US bands to write songs about them. It's almost "their" disaster...) which is fittingly the heaviest song on the album by a long way. The lyric in the chorus, though, is a little hard to take: "We're American/ Sayin' it with pride" --- er, no, you're not guys, no matter how much you might want to be: you're German. Perhaps this is why your fans give you such a hard time? Overall impression: Generally I'd think Bonfire became more a heavy rock band than a heavy metal one here, but there's no dip in the quality of the music. A brave decision which I applaud. Intention: More Bonfire albums to check out... |
Signed to the right label, anyway :rolleyes:
http://s5.postimg.org/560x0hvtj/cook...ng2andhalf.jpg http://www.metal-temple.com/uploads/...reed_cover.JPG Artiste: Raising Fear Nationality: Italian Album: Eternal creed Year: 2010 Label: Crash and Burn Genre: Power/Progressive Metal Tracks: Eternal creed The chosen one Lords of Orion Sleepless night Find your life You belong to me Amon Ra Learn to die The power of the eye Born again Holy battle Symbols from the past Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: This is one of no less than three metal bands based in Italy called Raising Fear, and one in Portugal, making four in total. You wouldn't have thought it was that popular a name, would you? Initial impression: Great instrumental opener, but then kind of descends into generic power metal for the most part... Best track(s): Eternal creed, You belong to me, Amon Ra, Lords of Orion Worst track(s): The chosen one, Learn to die Comments: When I first went looking for information on this band I could find nothing, not a scrap. Course, the fact I thought the BAND was called Eternal Creed might have something to do with it! Having corrected my search, I found what I needed and can tell you this is another metal band from Italy, but on the strength of the opener (and title track) I think I can say that they may indeed stand a little apart from the glut of power/speed/thrash/add subgenre here metal bands coming out of that country. Then again, the second track is nothing special. Hmm. Okay then, let's listen and see how this develops, if at all. A double guitar attack is always welcome as far as I'm concerned, and the guys do well here, though vocalist Rob Della Frera sounds more German than Italian to me. A rough, gruff voice but he doesn't descend into gutteral death vocals, however I think these guys may be trying too hard to be all things to all men, and not really that sure what they actually want to be. There's a broad (very broad) sense of Maiden's Powerslave to Lords of Orion and a feel of early Metallica to Sleepless night, but by and large it's pretty much the same all the way through from what I can see. Nice to see them take the tempo down with a very --- and I mean very --- nice ballad in You belong to me where Della Frera gets to display the softer side of his voice and a lower range; still get that German accent though! Nice acoustic guitar work from either Frank Rider or Alberto Toniolo, can't say which as both are just credited with "guitars". Good backing vocals too, one of the standouts, but really that's just because most of the rest is so almost indistinguishable one from the other. Very generic. Good electric guitar solo too here, then it's back to normal with Amon Ra, although to be fair there's more of the progressive metal about this, kind of a mixture of Kamelot and Sabbath. Basically, I think the best I can say about this band is that --- certainly on this album, and I've heard no others of theirs so could be judging them unfairly --- they do what they do well, but they don't do anything new and there's little about the album that sticks in my mind five minutes after I've finished playing it. Never a good sign. Overall impression: Pretty meh really. Not terrible, but I wouldn't be pushed if I never heard any more of their output. Intention: Not really bothered about checking out any of their other albums. |
Possibly above criticism
http://s5.postimg.org/al9n1gndj/cook...ng3andhalf.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ee_signify.jpg Artiste: Porcupine Tree Nationality: British (English) Album: Signify Year: 1996 Label: Delerium Genre: Progressive rock Tracks: Bornlivedie Signify The sleep of no dreaming Pagan Waiting Phase One Waiting Phase Two Sever Idiot prayer Every home is wired Intermediate Jesus Light mass prayers Dark matter Chronological position: Fourth album Familiarity: "Fear of a blank planet" Interesting factoid: This was the first album on which there was a full band; prior to this the other three albums were all more or less Steven Wilson solo efforts (though under the PT banner) with various session musicians. Initial impression: Um...? Best track(s): Sleep of no dreaming, Signify, Waiting Phase One, Idiot prayer, Every home is wired, Light mass prayers, Dark matter Worst track(s): Nothing bad. Some weird ones. Bornlivedie is a bit odd, as is Intermediate Jesus Comments: I've had this strange relationship going with Porcupine Tree for a few years now. Initially I thought they were a new band (!) but on downloading their discography it quickly became apparent they've been around for some time. 1987 in fact, although their first album proper didn't hit the shops till four years later. In that time they've established themselves as one of the most innovative and forward-looking rock bands on the planet, almost literally the quintessential progressive rock band. Nevertheless, apart from one album (as above) I've never listened to anything of theirs all the way through; it's been playlists and songs taken out of context. Time to change that. Some of the material here is purely instrumental, as in the title track, some just weird electronic sounds and tape loops, as in the opener, and then there are ballads, out-and-out rockers, psychedelic and space rock numbers, and everything in between. Through and above it all shines the undeniable presence and genius of its founder, Steven Wilson, and you only have to listen to his latest solo album, "Grace for drowning", to hear how eclectic his influences are, and how many different genres and sub-genres make it into his music. There are elements of Pink Floyd (of course) in Sleep with no dreaming, with a dramatic, threatening bass line from Colin Edwin, while "Waiting Phase One" sounds to me more like the more mellow sound of current Hogarth-era Marillion, with strong acoustic guitar and a sense of folk in the mix. Its companion piece, "Waiting Phase Two" is completely instrumental and runs for over six minutes on a funky bass and calypso-style drumbeat. It's pretty amazing that Porcupine Tree can have six and seven minute instrumentals on this album, and they don't ever get boring. Taking very much from the Floyd playbook, they use tape loops, sound effects, recordings and other gadgets to fill out the tracks, and yet they don't seem like they're just being used as filler material. These instrumentals really work as pieces in their own right: witness the pretty incredible Idiot prayer, not to mention the stunning Light mass prayers: these guys know how to construct a piece of music! The jury remains out for me on Porcupine Tree. Some of their music I love, some just comes across as too weird, but there's no doubting their honesty and integrity, and it's clear much time goes into each of their compositions. No band to write hit singles, they! I think I may just have to spend a little more time submerged in their world to get a feel for what the rest of their work is, but I have this feeling I'm going to enjoy it. Mostly. Overall impression: A varied album, with some great and innovative instrumentals, some powerful tracks and obviously a lot of heart and soul in their music. Intention: Probably going "Up the downstair" next, then may switch on the "Lightbulb sun". We'll see where it goes after that. |
Hey Trollheart, do you think it is possible if I tell you about an album to listen to and you write a mini-review to it here, or you dont let other people interfere with this? Its just an album Ive been thinking might be worth for you to review.
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^Steven Wilson is one of the few artists (with Devin Townsend) that I am always eager to hear new material from. Admittedly, I find his solo work to be a little boring, but I love PT and Blackfield a lot. His recent collab with Opeth's vocalist is pretty great as well.
Have you checked out any Blackfield yet by chance? Not as proggy as Porcupine Tree, but still worth listening to. |
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Blackfield are on my list, as is Storm Corrosion, and isn't there a new No-Man due out, or am I falling into another alternate dimension?
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Sabbath hit their nadir
http://s5.postimg.org/b88jqzk9f/cookierating2.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...er-Say-Die.jpg Artiste: Black Sabbath Nationality: British (English) Album: Never say die! Year: 1978 Label: Vertigo Genre: Heavy metal Tracks: Never say die Johnny blade Junior's eyes A hard road Shock wave Air dance Over to you Breakout Swinging the chain Chronological position: Eighth album Familiarity: "Paranoid", "Sabbath bloody Sabbath", "We sold our soul for rock and roll", "Black Sabbath", "Heaven and Hell", "Born again", "Master of reality", "Vol 4" Interesting factoid: I think it's the only album Bill Ward sings on...! Initial impression: Rocky, uptempo, but is that not...? Best track(s): Never say die, A hard road Worst track(s): Shockwave, Over to you, Breakout Comments: This is something of an oddity in the Sabbath canon. I wanted to listen to it (and review it) for several reasons. Firstly, it's the last album to feature Ozzy, and presages the rich Dio years. Secondly, it's an album that's not too long after classics like "Vol 4" and "Master of reality", and thirdly, Ozzy has gone on record to say he hates the album, and thinks they never should have recorded it. Not that he was there for much of it... I have to say that the opener, and title track, bears a striking resemblance to a well-known Lizzy track. Let's see who had it out first... oh dear! "The boys are back in town" was released in 1976! The guitar riff is very similar. Well, let's go on. Johnny blade has a rather disconcertingly proggy warbly keyboard intro, but then settles down into classic Sabs, powerful and grindy and then gets the door kicked in with a real blistering Iommi solo near the end. Sweet Geezer Butler bassline to open Junior's eyes, kind of a funky feel to it, while A hard road sounds almost celtic with a shot of Status Quo twelve-bar blues thrown in. Some nice almost classical piano from Don Airey in "Air dance", which more or less qualifies as a slow song, perhaps ballad for most of its run, but then goes both rocky and jazzy near the end, quite confused really. Almost like listening to Santana on speed... "Over to you" reminds me of the main melody from, um, Chris Rea's "Deep water", though I think that was a later release --- yeah, 1983. So fair enough then. But a lot of this album is quite derivative, and even here I can detect influences from bands as diverse as ELO and already-mentioned Thin Lizzy. I'm not sure really if the piano/organ works on this album; it certainly softens the expected heavy Sabbath sound and makes the music a little hard to assimilate: it's just not what you imagine you're going to hear when you rack up an Ozzy-era Sabs album. Even at that, although I would rate this down near the lower end of Black Sabbath's work, I don't think it deserves the epiteth "disgusting" that Ozzy later labelled it with. If he didn't like it, fine, but I think he went a little overboard there. Oh dear though: brass just does not work on a Sabbath album, and the sole instrumental Breakout is just awful! The closer, Swinging the chain says it all really, when Bill Ward on vocals growls "We're so sorry/ We're really sorry.." And so you should be guys. Overall impression: Very disappointed. I almost can see Ozzy's point... Intention: Hey it's Sabbath: I have more albums to listen to. Chalk this one up as an aberration, yeah? |
Funnily enough, I'm actually a big fan of certain aspects of Never Say Die! -- it's easily the most progressive record of the Ozzy era in some ways next to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, with kudos in particular to 'Air Dance' -- really unusual song, yet I feel like the contrast between Ozzy's delivery and the piano and how the guitar sits in an uneasy place between them to be rather endearing. :D
It's definitely not among the best of the band's records from start to finish my dear Troll, but I think you should give it more time to...sink in, so to speak. :pimp: |
A promising start
http://s5.postimg.org/560x0hvtj/cook...ng2andhalf.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...nd_Friends.jpg Artiste: The Adventures Nationality: Irish (Northern) Album: Theodore and friends Year: 1985 Label: Chrysalis Genre: Rock Tracks: Always Feel the raindrops Send my heart Two rivers Don't tell me Another silent day When the world turns upside down Love in chains Lost in Hollywood These children Chronological position: Debut album Familiarity: "The sea of love", "Trading secrets with the moon" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Pretty much what I expected/hoped, though the production is a little rough Best track(s): Always, Send my heart, Two rivers, Don't tell me Worst track(s): Another silent day, Lost in Hollywood, These children (maybe) Comments: Ever since hearing "The sea of love" I've been a big fan of the Adventures, and yet I can recall being recommended this album by someone back a long, long time ago, and never took up the offer. Even to today I've never thought of downloading it. It's the one that started it all, so it should be good, although of course bands do make bad debut albums and then go on to make much better second, third and so on. (Note: any loyalist readers may chafe at the fact that I've selected the tricolour when the band are from Belfast, to them I say, tiocaidh ar la! (PoorOldPo will know what I mean!) To me, any band from the island of Ireland is considered Irish, so that's just how I see it.) Well there's a big energetic guitar start to get us underway, and those by-now familiar to their fans vocal harmonies and that tinkling piano that so typify the music of this band. Production doesn't sound so hot I must say: one of the big selling points of "The sea of love" for me was the crystal clear production, even on vinyl. This sounds a little empty, a little echoey. As ever though, Terry Sharpe's vocals are spot on and he's ably backed and assisted by Eileen Gribben, in an almost Deacon Blue/Beautiful South melding, while her husband Pat does a great job on the guitar. Jonathan Whitehead plays the piano and keyboards, and I think it may be him that does the theme music for comedy series "Black Books"? So opener Always is a great rocker, and there's a sense of Big Country in the guitar to Send my heart, with again great vocal harmonies. There's a definite indication of the heights they would scale with "The sea of love" on tracks like Two rivers and Love in chains. The first ballad comes with Don't tell me with elements of their to-come big hit, Broken land, lovely tinkling piano from Whitehead and soft percussion for most of the track. I could probably do without the African/Gospel-style Another silent day, shades of Peter Gabriel or Labi Siffre in parts. Some nice guitar work though. Sitar-like opening to When the world turns upside down, which rocks along nicely, then Gribben's guitar is very introspective on Lost in Hollywood, with almost ELO-style synth. The song is a little plodding though. Strange closer, with a military drumbeat and lots of samples, a very spare vocal line, I'm not so sure about These children; may have to listen to this again. Interesting if nothing else. Overall impression: Pretty good, but you can see how they made a major leap forward with the next two albums... I think had I taken up that offer initially I may not have been too interested in checking out their further albums, which would have been a pity, as they're both far better than this. Intention: Need to hunt down their fourth album now! |
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Decent rocker, sadly defunct now
http://s5.postimg.org/al9n1gndj/cook...ng3andhalf.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...eaker_2005.jpg Artiste: Starbreaker Nationality: American Album: Starbreaker Year: 2005 Label: Frontiers Genre:AOR/Melodic Rock Tracks: Die for you Lies Break my bones Crushed Days of confusion Transparent Light at the end of the world Cradle to the grave Underneath a falling sky Turn it off Dragonfly Save yourself Days of confusion (Acoustic) Chronological position:Debut album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Good solid AOR with a real hint of metal to it. Best track(s): Lies, Days of confusion, The light at the end of the world, Turn it off Worst track(s): Dragonfly Comments: A side project for TNT singer and frontman Tony Harnell, Starbreaker had just the two albums, this being their first. It starts off a bit confusing with various instruments going, almost like an orchestra tuning up, but quickly develops into a rocking opener with a great hook, and Die for you starts us off on the right foot. Sitar-like guitar metamorphoses into a blazing solo from Primal Fear's Magnus Karlsson, and there's a certain Thin Lizzy sound to his fretwork on Lies, with some effective keyboards added by him too. There's definitely a harder edge to this short-lived band/project than other AOR acts I've heard, and I'd place them more at the metal side of things than melodic rock really, but then with the singer from TNT and the guitarist from Primal Fear that's not really that big a surprise. Add in the drummer from TNT, who has also played with Yngwie Malmsteen, and it's a pretty heavy troupe you've got here. That said, this album is chock-full of hooks and memorable melodies, so I'd put it above the average metal album, where in some cases melody and structure can be sacrificed in favour of speed, power, noise or all three. Starbreaker can pull back on the throttle too though, as they do in the semi-ballad Days of confusion, a song we get two versions of, with the closer an acoustic offering. Very powerful and dramatic but featuring really sensitive and engaging piano work from Karlsson, it's one of the standouts certainly. There's some real guitar virtuoso display here from the PF man, though it's Harnell's voice that controls proceedings, and man is it equal to the task. But then, you probably knew that anyway. Again we hear that tinkling piano in Underneath a falling sky, but it's hardly a ballad. I have to say the instrumental Dragonfly is just totally overblown and self-indulgent, the only reason it gets onto the "worst tracks" list (the only one there, to be fair), and it sounds very Malmsteenesque to me (ie indulgent and overblown) but at least it does give drummer John Macaluso a chance to shine. Other than that it's the low point of an album which really has none. I pretty much like every track here, and I'll be listening to this album again at some point certainly. Overall impression: Very impressed; sorry there were only two albums from this band. Intention: I'll have a listen to the second album, then maybe check out TNT... |
Abandon all hope (of stopping listening to this album) all ye who enter here!
http://s5.postimg.org/w8ylbwnrr/cookierating4.jpg https://sites.google.com/site/woodys...=400&width=400 Artiste: Dante Fox Nationality: British (English) Album: Lost man's ground Year: 2012 Label: Self-released? Genre: AOR Tracks: Who stole the innocence Go where your heart is Secrets I can't sleep Lost man's ground This world Goodbye to yesterday Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: None Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Brilliant AOR record Best track(s): This world, I can't sleep, Goodbye to yesterday Worst track(s): Not a one. Comments: Sometimes the old sayings are true, and in this case it certainly is correct that good things often come in small packages. The only thing I find annoying about this album is that it's so short, only seven tracks in total (eight if you count the radio edit of the title track, which I don't) but every single one is gold. With a very eighties-style acapella vocal start, Who stole the innocence opens proceedings and it's pure AOR Heaven, like the best of Heart and Pat Benatar, even though the verse melody is closely modelled (whether intentionally or not I don't know) on Dio's Rainbow in the dark. It really gets you in the mood and vocalist Sue Willets has a strong and pure voice, perfect for AOR edging into heavier rock at times. Dante Fox certainly give some older, more established AOR bands a run for their money with this mini-album, as songs like Go where your heart is, with its hooky keyboard melody and tough guitar, and the soft ballad Secrets show, and seem to only hint at the potential of this band who were unknown, at least to me, up until now, despite apparently having two albums prior to this. One of the best tracks on the album, I'm reliably informed, originally appears on their debut album, and if so I need to check it out, post-haste, as I can't sleep encompasses everything great about Dante Fox: great melodies, powerful guitar, punchy singing, rolling keyboards and a hook that won't let you go no matter how hard you wriggle. The sort of song you'd expect to come from the pen of Desmond Child or Diane Warren. Perfect. The title track comes across more as a progressive rock piece, with some pretty heavy guitar from Tim Manford almost pushing it into metal or at least hard rock territory, but retaining the AOR sensibilites that have so far characterised the album. There's a great anthemic feeling to it too, a real fist-in-the-air song, while the total standout for me comes in This world, which deserves to be a huge international hit, but of course won't. It's got the kind of catchiness some bands can only dream of achieving in a song, with another somewhat dreamy, progressive intro and a certain sense of darkness about it, juxtaposed perfectly with an upbeat, hooky chorus. Essentially then the album ends on Goodbye to yesterday. another ballad, and a very fitting closer with some lovely acoustic guitar and some fine vocal harmonies. There's also the radio edit version of the title track, but as you all know by now I generally tend not to include extended, edited, remixed or other versions of tracks already on the album, or bonus or additional tracks. Overall impression: Completely blown away by how great this album is, considering I knew nothing about the band beforehand. Superb. Intention: I'm already searching now for their first two albums! |
Buckethead may not be God, but he's up there beside him
http://s5.postimg.org/w8ylbwnrr/cookierating4.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ectric_Sea.jpg Artiste: Buckethead Nationality: American Album: Electric sea Year: 2012 Label: Metastation Genre: Instrumental/classical Tracks: Electric sea Beyond the knowing Swomee swan Point doom El Indio La wally La Gavotte Bachethead Yokohama Gateless gate The homing beacon Chronological position: Thirty-fifth album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Where's the mad shredding? Hey, this is nice! Best track(s): Swomee swan, La Gavotte, Yokohoma Worst track(s): Negative on that one, son! Comments: You can all laugh at me, but after suffering through Neal Schon's indulgence-fest "The Calling" recently I swore I would never listen to another guitar instrumental album, yet this one was on my ipod and I'd heard good things about Buckethead from among others, Mrd00d, so I decided to give him a chance. Truth to tell, I wasn't expecting much: I mean, how good can a guy who calls himself Buckethead and wears a Kentucky Fried Chicken bucket on his head (hence the name) be, really? To say I was stunned by what I heard is a total understatement. This album is full of gentle, introspective, almost classical (in some cases literally) music played by the guy on a succession of guitars, and yet despite there being nothing else but guitar music --- no keyboards, no percussion --- it never once flags and never sounds in the least boring. Mr. Schon, please take note! Every track is great, and yet most of them while quite similar are very different. The title, and opening track, is a mixture of lovely acoustic and smooth electric guitar, while Beyond the knowing (apparently an instrumental interpretation of one of his earlier songs) is pure classical guitar played in a laidback yet intense way. I love the way this is such an intimate album that you can hear Buckethead's fingers sliding along the strings; there's no other instruments or heavy production to overshadow his playing, and you really do feel like he's almost in the room playing right beside you. Swomee swan, one of the standouts even if I don't know what the title means, leans a little more into the harder end of the spectrum while still remaining relatively calm and gentle, while Point doom has an almost medieval tint to it, before it takes off into some quite incredible displays of dexterity on the Spanish guitar. There's a real sense of the Mexican and those old western cowboy style movies to El Indio and he even tackles good ol' Bach, not once but twice, with La Gavotte and the cleverly-named Bachethead, though essentially they're both pretty much the same piece of music, just played a little differently. I'm not that naive to think this is how all of Buckethead's music sounds: I know he works in various genres, and some of his albums could be not to my liking at all. But I'm definitely more open to listening to his music now than I was before I hit "play" here. Overall impression: Surprised, delighted and much more impressed than I had expected to be. Blown away, in fact. Another four-cookie album! Intention: I need to hear more... now! |
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Yep, I read that and had this been a normal review like in my main journal I would have referred to it, as it's interesting and relevant. However the idea of "Bitesize", as you know, is to do short, concise reviews without going too deeply into the background of the album. Big disappointment though, other than "A hard road", and one track can't save an album, no matter how good it is.
It's a good point though: what were the original vocals like? Guess we'll never know. Bit mad that Ozzy rejoined and then left after this album. Guess that's ego for you: couldn't stand the idea of anyone else singing with the band. I heard he doesn't even rate Dio! :yikes: |
Old school metal: hop on board!
http://s5.postimg.org/al9n1gndj/cook...ng3andhalf.jpg http://www.devilstrain.com/images/album.jpg Artiste: Devil's Train Nationality: Unknown Album: Devil's Train Year: 2012 Label: Edel/Ear Music Genre: Hard rock/Heavy metal Tracks: Fire and water Devil's train Roll the dice To the ground Forever Sweet devil's kiss Find new love Room 66/64 Coming home Yellow blaze The answers American woman Chronological position: Debut album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Great harmonica to start off, then the guitars kick in and the ride begins! Best track(s): Devil's train, Roll the dice, Sweet devil's kiss, Room 66/64, Coming home Worst track(s): Nah, no passengers on this train, hombre! Comments: Sometimes you just decide to try an album because the title is cool, yeah? And who would not be impressed by a metal band with a name like Devil's Train? The only real problem I have here is that I can't tie down an actual nationality for this brand new band: seems it's made up both of former members of Mystic Prophecy, who come from Germany, and Stratovarius, who are of course Finnish. Either way, they actually sound American, something of a common trait with many new metal bands coming up these days. Not a bad thing --- you can get a bit tired of the harsh German accent, let's be honest, and these guys sound, on this first outing, like they could give some of the bigger US bands a run for their money. Others have commented that the band fall between the stools of hard rock and heavy metal, and indeed I'd agree. Were you to meet them in a bar, they'd probably be stretched out lazily across both, occupying both the bluesier, heavier end of the former with the cutting edge of the latter. With people like Jorg Michael and Jari Kaneulainen of Stratovarius and of course founder member and vocalist of Mystic Prophecy R.D. Liapakis in attendance, you probably know what to expect. You'd be wrong. Whereas both those bands practice essentially power/speed/thrash metal, Devil's Train hurtles along on rails of classic hard rock and the kind of metal typified by bands like Saxon and early Tygers of Pan Tang. There's a great bite in the guitar work of Laki Ragazas, and RD's vocals while not screaming definitely punch your face in, in the most enjoyable way possible. Power rockers like the title track, Roll the dice and Room 66/64 (see what they did there?) ;) are pretty much the order of the day, and the pace hardly slackens at all right through the album. You really do feel like you're on a headlong ride to the sweetest hell imaginable! There are the metal crunchers too, like To the ground and Yellow blaze, and if anyone thinks that the opening guitar riff from Forever sounds like Bryan Adams's Run to you, I agree, although this song is nothing close to that big rock hit. Great vocal performance from RD and soulful guitar from Laki, and there's almost a tinge of AOR to this, which is no criticism of Devil's Train, just shows how versatile they can be. They also get a superb anthem in Coming home as well as a ballad ... nah, just kiddin'! No slow song on this album. THIS train don't slow down for no-one, man! Ain't that how we like it? ;) Overall impression: Powerful debut, blows some other major bands away and I reckon these guys have a really bright future ahead of them. If you like old-school hard rock mixed with some serious metal you better climb on board while there's still room! Already booking my ticket for the return trip! Intention: Nothing I can do but wait for the next album, and keep playing this one. |
Needs a little bit more bite
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...5/The_Hush.jpg Artiste: Texas Nationality: British (Scottish) Album: Hush Year: 1999 Label: Mercury Genre: Rock Tracks: In our lifetime Tell me the answer Summer son Sunday afternoon Move in When we are together Day after day Zero zero Saint Girl The hush The day before I went away Chronological position: Fifth album Familiarity: "White on blonde" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Continuing on... Best track(s): Summer son, Move in, Saint, Sunday afternoon Worst track(s): Not one Comments: I only own the one Texas album; you'll no doubt be unsurprised to find it's "White on blonde", certainly their most successful in terms of commerciality, with five hit singles taken from it and heralding something of a renaissance and rebirth for a band who were, prior to that album, known for "I don't want a lover" and that was about it, outside of their fanbase of course. Now I enjoyed "White on blonde" very much indeed, but just never went any further with them. I loved the single "Summer son", which is on this album, the album itself the followup to "White", but I never made the decision to buy the album, can't tell you why. Now I'm listening to it streaming, for the first time, and I have to say it sounds pretty damn fine. I really don't know Texas output prior to that big album, so I can't say if this one follows or deviates from their usual sound, whether "White" was a change in direction for them (though I think it may have been, introducing something more of a pop sound into their mostly harder rock songs) but this one certainly builds on the success and sound of that album, and it's almost a direct continuation of "White on blonde". There's a great sense of summer about this album, and that's not just because of the hit single Summer son, because the opener and the next track both conjure up the same images, with a real boppy, almost light sound that's as easy on the ear as singer Sharleen Spiteri is on the eye. Seems like Texas found the winning formula with "White on blonde" that had been evading them for six years since their debut. Riding on the resurgence in interest in the band engendered by that million-selling album, "The hush" got to the number one spot again and gave the band two top ten singles. Another thing they explored on the previous album was a great affinity for soul music, and here it is in evidence again, especially on songs like Sunday afternoon and When we are together. A lot of the album is lazy in the very best way, the sort of thing you throw on your ipod to take to the beach or the park; doesn't bear up to close scrutiny, the lyrics ain't that deep but damn is it good to listen to and chill out to. Of course, most of us could listen to Sharleen sing the phone book, and she's definitely the lynchpin of the band, but it would be unfair to label her as fluff, cos she really can sing, and make you listen. Pure honey. There's hardly a bad track here. Move in is smooth as silk, while When we are together is pure motown soul, and there's even another little instrumental interlude as on the previous album. It's actually hard to pick out ballads, as much of the album is soft and laidback, but Saint is a little more relaxed than other tracks, with some really nice expressive soft guitar and tinkling piano, and the title track is dreampop at its best. Overall impression: A great successor to "White on blonde", maybe a little too laidback without any real punchy tracks, but a great album nonetheless. Intention: May dig further. Maybe. |
Warning! Could be habit-forming!
http://s5.postimg.org/al9n1gndj/cook...ng3andhalf.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...Adrenaline.jpg Artiste: Lacuna Coil Nationality: Italian Album: Dark adrenaline Year: 2012 Label: Century Media Genre: Progressive Metal Tracks: Trip the darkness Against you Kill the light Give me something more Upsidedown End of time I don't believe in tomorrow Intoxicated The army inside Losing my religion Fire My spirit Chronological position: Sixth album Familiarity: "Karmacode" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Didn't like this at first, but definitely grew on me Best track(s): Give me something more, End of time, Intoxicated, My spirit, Losing my religion Worst track(s): Nothing Comments: Lacuna Coil are one of those bands I've heard of but not heard much from. The only album of theirs I've listened to all the way through is "Karmacode", and while I did enjoy that I wasn't impressed enough to seek out the rest of their catalogue. I bought this more to see really if they had improved much from that album. At first I didn't think so; initially this sounded very much like "Karmacode", but as I listened and let it wash over me the thing improved in leaps and bounds, to the point where I had no hesitation in pushing play again once it had run the once, and have listened to it several times since. I like the combination of vocalists Andrea Ferro and Christina Scabbia. Unlike many acts that utilise this sort of setup Lacuna Coil don't really subscribe to the idea of having one sing the lead and the other join in at the chorus; the vocals seem to be shared equally and equitably between the two, resulting in a sound that, though it should really end up lost in the flood of similar bands, manages to stand out and be somewhat unique in flavour. One other thing that characterises Lacuna Coil's music seems to be hard, banging guitar and a sense almost of anger in the lyrics, or if not anger then maybe passion. They certainly seem to throw themselves into their music, mind, body, heart and soul, and it comes through especially in tracks like the standout End of time and My spirit. They also avoid the trap many progressive/goth rock artistes fall into, of writing epic songs that are too long: only one track here is over four minutes, while the closer is the longest by far at almost six. On "Karmacode" they covered Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the silence", and there's another cover version this time out. They've chosen REM's Losing my religion and manage to breathe new life into the song. Perhaps a strange choice, given what they could have taken from Michael Stipe and the boys, but it's a great reinterpretation of the old classic. Overall impression: Much better than I had originally thought it would be. Definitely improves with repeated listens. Intention: May look further into this band now. |
Short, scary and certainly not sweet
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://dark-music.org/wp-content/upl...12-300x300.jpg Artiste: Theatres des Vampires Nationality: Italian Album: The Cult of Lamia Year: 2012 Label: Aural Genre: Goth metal Tracks: My winter storm The lost grace Apart Chronological position: Ninth album Familiarity: Ze-ro Interesting factoid: This is shown as a movie soundtrack, but I can find virtually nothing about it. Initial impression: Very cinematic, very dramatic, reminds me of Kamelot, Edenbridge, Within Temptation etc. Best track(s): I wouldn't really try to pick out favourites when there are only three tracks. All very good though. Worst track(s): See above. Comments: As a fan of Anne Rice's vampire novels I couldn't pass up the opportunity to check out a band called Theatres des Vampires, but the album I chose, being their latest, is quite an oddity, even for them. First off it's apparently from a movie soundtrack, though I can't find out anything about the movie. Second, it's got a mere three tracks on it, and we're not talking two at twelve minutes or more, or anything. Total running time is just over ten minutes! Mind you, they pour a lot into those ten minutes. Very epic, very dramatic, very effective. Great grinding guitars and some spooky keyboards with the sort of operatic female voice you expect from most of these bands and a growling, not quite gutteral (but nearly!) male voice accompanying her. You have to love the female singer's name --- Sonya Scarlet --- though the male voice I can't get any info on; both keyboard player and bass player, and indeed drummer, are all credited with backing vocals, but as I say there is very little information on this album so I can't confirm too much. What I hear I like: very gothic, very dark without being black metal (which is apparently how TdV started out), quite progressive in places. Great guitar work allied to some laidback piano and of course violins, though probably made on the synth. Apparently they've just been banned from Venezuela for unknown reasons, which I assume is something to do with how they dress and the fact the sing about and act like vampires --- just shows you how difficult some people find it to separate fantasy from reality! They're not actually vampires, senor! As for the album, I'd say it's a good if short introduction to this band; just a pity there's not enough tracks on it. Even most EPs have more than three... Overall impression: Certainly live up to their name, if the lyrics are a little hard to make out at times. Intention: I'm intrigued enough to go look for a few more of their (hopefully longer) albums. |
Another Irish band just on the cusp, and yet...
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ay,_We_Say.jpg Artiste: Royseven Nationality: Irish Album: You say, we say Year: 2011 Label: Roadrunner Genre: Alt-rock Tracks: We should be lovers I need to know your name You say, we say Channel 103 on my TV No romance The big blue Dance, dance, dance Killer You can't hide that Every line's the last one Walls We march on Chronological position: Second album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Lots of power and punch, very upbeat and very commercial. Best track(s): We should be lovers, No romance, The big blue, Dance dance dance, Walls, We march on Worst track(s): Killer, I need to know your name Comments: Another Irish band I know little or nothing about. It's somewhat interesting that they're a sextet, with singer Paul Walsh concentrating only on vocals, so there's a lead and rhythm guitarist, bass player and drummer and keyboard player. What I hear so far is a little so-so, a little generic, kind of the Script meets Snow Patrol, but without the solid individuality of either really. It's not bad music, I just don't see anything too much to get excited about just yet. There's a slight sense of Slade about the title track, with a touch of Doctor and the Medics thrown in, and there's a ton of energy in No romance with some serious keyboard action then everything slows down for the ballad, and it's a good one. "The big blue" is a beautiful, fragile little piece that successfully breaks up all this uptempo, high energy rock. But soon we're back to it, and if I have a criticism of this album it would be that a lot of it sounds quite similar. But it's not a bad album, not at all. I like Walls, it has real character and sounds different to most of the rest of the album, but it's a small divergence in an album that's a little short on ideas, or at least has the ideas but doesn't really seem to know what to do with them. The seeds of some great songs, certainly, just not properly cultivated, I feel. Maybe their third album will be better. Overall impression: I feel they could have something, but have not yet realised their true potential. Intention: Keep an eye on these guys. |
Bon Jovi go Country? Sorry?
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...st_Highway.jpg Artiste: Bon Jovi Nationality: American Album: Lost highway Year: 2007 Label: Mercury Nashville Genre: Rock/AOR (with jest a sprinklin' of Country...) Tracks: Lost highway Summertime (You want to) Make a memory Whole lot of leaving We got it going on Any other day Seat next to you Everybody's broken Till we ain't strangers anymore The last night One step closer I love this town Chronological position: Tenth album Familiarity: Everything; I have all their albums Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Country? I don't hear it... Best track(s):Lost highway, I love this town, Seat next to you, (You want to) Make a memory, Whole lot of leaving, Everybody's broken, (Why are you surprised I'm listing most of the album? I'm a Bon Jovi fanatic: if you know me, you know that!) The last night, One step closer Worst track(s): We got it goin' on Comments: Surprisingly, given my devotion to this band, there is one album of theirs that I have never listened to all the way through, and it's this one. Partly that's because of the country influence on the album, which many Bon Jovi fans have jeered, and partly it's just because I only got it relatively recently, to complete my collection. I've heard a few tracks off it, in rotation on a playlist, but never played the whole thing through. I don't see a huge country influence on it as it opens with a big hard happy rocker in the title track and it continues in Summertime, big punchy drums from Tico Torres, a sort of half-rap style but not so much that you'd call it such, kind of more the sort of thing The Script tried on their third album recently. Great ballads as ever, as in the orchestrally-driven (You want to) Make a memory, as well as the usual good-time songs such as closer I love this town which just brims with energy and enthusiasm, and Any other day, which rocks along nicely in the usual Bon Jovi territory. This album is however unique in the Bon Jovi canon in having not one but two duets on it, the first of which comes in We got it goin' on, where they enlist the services of Big and Rich, featuring country superstars Big Kenny and John Rich, and here you can really start to hear the country sound coming in, not surprisingly. Can't say I love it though; probably the first track on the album I haven't loved. So far. I kind of hear the ghost of country again in Seat next to you, but come on! The guys aren't breaking out fiddles and steel guitars and singing about farms and ranches and horses. I don't see a massive difference between this and their usual output (stow the usual "yeah it's all the same ****" jokes please) --- not sure who that is on the female vocals, but as Hillary Lindsey co-wrote the song maybe it's her? I hear more country in Till we ain't strangers anymore but then again that's not surprising, as Jon's dueting with LeAnn Rimes here, so she's bound to bring something of herself to the song. By and large though, it's still a recognisable and basic Bon Jovi ballad. As indeed the entire album is totally recognisable and categorisable as a Bon Jovi album. Country? Pfft! They're a long way from going down that route. Overall impression: Country? I don't see it... Intention: Waiting for their new album. Roll on ... ooh! Ooh! It's out now! Excuse me... :D |
Enchant fail to impress again
http://s5.postimg.org/b88jqzk9f/cookierating2.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...nt_Wounded.jpg Artiste: Enchant Nationality: American Album: Wounded Year: 1997 Label: Magna Carta Genre: Progressive Rock Tracks: Below zero Fade 2 grey Pure Broken Hostile world Look away Armour Distractions Missing Chronological position:Second album Familiarity: "Juggling 9 or dropping 10" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: So-so and then gets better Best track(s): Fade 2 grey, Pure, Look away Worst track(s): Nothing's bad, per se, just that apart from the above tracks it's all pretty boring Comments: I tried out Enchant last year sometime in the not-recently-repeated "Unwritten" slot, and have to say I was less than impressed with the album I chose, the one noted above. Well, that's not quite fair. It was okay, but I felt it could easily have fit into the "Meh" section. Just didn't grab me as anything special. Maybe it was a bad example, so here I am giving this band another chance. I have to say I don't jump up and down at the first track, but the second is a lot better, with some atmospheric opening guitar and an impassioned vocal, touches of early Rush in there I feel. Maybe a bit overlong at eight minutes, but then, many of the tracks here exceed seven. Pure is a nice acoustic ballad, though I wonder at again over seven minutes will it come across as stretched too far? Nice so far though. Seems to have lasted the course. The next one though just kind of drifts by, another seven-minuter but it fails to grab me. I'm probably being unfair to Enchant, but I usually expect something in the music to get a hold of me and take my attention, and here I'm just not feeling it, the same almost as the other album of theirs I reviewed --- and that was a full review. Trouble is, there's nothing here that's under six minutes, and most of them are well over that. No short songs can make it very hard to keep the interest, unless the long ones are VERY good. Even Marillion learned this lesson with their second album, great as the debut was: they shortened their songs down and were able to connect better with sections of their audience. I also feel the production here is very raw and muddy, either that or the vocalist isn't very good, and I'm prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt. But there's definitely times when the solidity of the sound is impaired, and it just sounds very skeletal. Nice guitar solo in Look away, but overall I'm not seeing anything that really marks this album out from the huge slew of prog rock bands out there. It just doesn't stand out. I don't know what it is. The music is decent, the singing's good but I'm just struck by a sense of deja vu: when I was reviewing "Juggling 9 or dropping 10" I felt the same sense of apathy and a desire to get to the end of the album. It's the same here. Just not keeping my interest. Overall impression: I have to say, overall pretty much meh. Intention: Not sure if I want to give them a third chance now. |
Honest hard rockers from Canada don't do much to fly the flag
http://s5.postimg.org/b88jqzk9f/cookierating2.jpg http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...pL._SY300_.jpg Artiste: Coney Hatch Nationality: Canadian Album: Outta hand Year: 1983 Label: Anthem Genre: Hard rock Tracks: Don't say make me Shake it First time for everything Some like it hot To feel the feeling again Too far gone Love games Fallen angel Music of the night Chronological position: Second album Familiarity: By reputation only Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Good old-fashioned hard rock: honest if a little dated Best track(s): First time for everything, To feel the feeling again, Music of the night Worst track(s): Shake it, Some like it hot, Love games Comments: One of Canada's forgotten exports, Coney Hatch were one of those bands you heard a lot of in the eighties, yet they never really made it big, while people in generally the same arena as them, such as Bon Jovi and Foreigner, were having hits all over the place. Perhaps coming from Canada worked against them; there weren't too many hard rock acts coming out of there at that time that were making it. April Wine were another; great band but got little in the way of coverage. Actually, vocalist Carl Dixon would later go on to work with that band when Coney Hatch broke up. They only had the three albums, their last coming out in 1985, but none of them seem to have made too much of an impression, despite their debut being touted by many as being the next big thing; just never happened for them. Maybe they just weren't different enough to stand out from the clutch of similar bands who were around at the time, some making it, some not. Everything on this album is solid, but in fairness it would be hard to point to anything completely memorable or anything that really stands out. They could rock with the best of them, as in the opener, Don't say make me or Fallen angel, while at the same time capable of dialing it right down for ballads and semi-ballads like First time for everything and To feel the feeling again. Most of the time though their music sounds just too lame and dated, music that does not stand the test of time. I've been trying to place Dixon's voice, because it sounds very familiar to me, and I now know why. He's almost a dead ringer, voice-wise, for the late Andrew "Mac" MacDermott, erstwhile vocalist for Threshold. Still, as the album winds on towards its close I must admit there's not a lot here that impresses me or that I'll remember. Maybe there's a good reason why they only lasted three years and never made it... Good closer in Music of the night, maybe hinting at what they could do if they put their minds to it. Trouble is, most of the time they seem to just have taken the path of least resistance here, leading to an album that's about as generic as they come. Overall impression: Pretty generic really. Not a lot to write home about. Intention: Not really interested in checking out any more from them really. |
Pyrrhic victory?
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://www.soundofviolence.net/Revie...mic%20Muse.jpg Artiste: The Divine Comedy Nationality: Irish Album: Victory for the comic muse Year: 2006 Label: Parlophone Genre: Pop/Chamber pop/ Whatever you're havin' yerself! Tracks: To die a virgin Mother dear Diva lady A lady of a certain age The light of day Threesome Party fears two Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World The plough Count Grassi's passage over Piedmont Snowball in negative Chronological position: Ninth album Familiarity: "Casanova", "Liberation", "Promenade", "A short album about love", "Bang goes the knighthood", "Fin de siecle" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Quite similar to his early work such as "Promenade" and "Liberation" Best track(s): Mother dear, A lady of a certain age, The plough Worst track(s): Count Grassi's passage over Piedmont Comments: Despite touching on this in my "Beginner's Guide" some time ago now, it's one of the few Divine Comedy albums I haven't listened to all the way through. As I say above it reminds me of his earlier works, certainly the opener, which bops along nicely, mind you that changes (and of course if you're a fan of Hannon you get to expect this) with the second track, a sort of country/bluegrass bopper with banjo and accordion, and then piano leads in Diva lady with a certain soul/funk vibe, with elements of early Santana in there too. Oh yeah, you get something for everyone with the Divine Comedy! Whether he's playing uptempo chamber pop, the likes of the opener or relaxing ballads as in A lady of a certain age or The light of day Neil gives everything he has, and you never get any less than one hundred percent from him. I can't think of any of his albums from which I've come away disappointed. I like the variety, though some of his, shall we say, more comedic songs like Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World can be at times a little wearing. Still, it's good to know that in general you can pop on a new DC album and expect to like it. Great characters populate the songs of the best songwriters, and Neil Hannon is no exception. The disenfranchised wife in A lady of a certain age, the man trying to find his place in the world in The plough and the eponymous Count Grassi all bring his songs to life and invest the listener in them, even if I don't like the last one. His quirky sense of humour comes through in Threesome when we all expect a little risque, cheeky song. What we get is a delightful little upbeat piano solo, then recalling Tonight we fly and Going downhill fast his version of the Associates' Party fears two is barely recognisable from the original hit. That's how to do a cover! Trilling piano and labouring tubas and trumpets throw the old pop song into a chamberpop setting, while The plough is almost cinematic in its scope and breadth. Not, to be fair, one of the best Divine Comedy albums I've ever listened to, but even then, Hannon's worst can often be better than some of the best work of other artistes. Overall impression: I've heard better but it's a decent album. Intention: Ah well I love the Divine Comedy, so nothing will stop me listening to them. |
A national treasure that was almost lost forever
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://www.progarchives.com/progress...79242011_r.jpg Artiste: The Enid Nationality: British (English) Album: In the region of the summer stars Year: 1976/1984 Label: EMI Genre: Progressive Rock Tracks: Fool The Tower of Babel The Reaper The Loved Ones The Demon King Pre-dawn Sunrise The Last Day The Flood Under the summer stars Adieu Chronological position: Debut album Familiarity: Zero, but I've heard about them Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Mystical, magical, relaxing. Best track(s): Fool, The Reaper, The loved ones, Pre-dawn, Sunrise, The last day Worst track(s): None Comments: Would it be overreacting to say that to compose an album based on the Tarot could be an exercise in bad luck? Of course it would, and yet this album seems to have been dogged by the worst luck possible. The debut album from the enigmatic band known as The Enid, it was supposed to have vocals but then their singer took his own life just before the album was due to be recorded, and remaining members had to quickly make the decision to release it as an instrumental one. Then, after failing to generate great sales, EMI deleted it from their catalogue. In 1984 The Enid re-released it themselves, and after poor quality bootlegs had been circulated they convinced the label to allow them re-record and update it in 2010. So essentially there are three versions of the album; the original one (which if you have it is a collector's item now) the re-released 1984 version (which I'm using here) and the remastered 2010 effort. Based as I say around the idea of the Tarot, the original song titles were changed for the 1984 release, making them less obviously to do with the Tarot, with the original seven tracks being extended to ten and substantial changes made to the arrangements of the 1976 songs. I like the opener with its mystical sound, and The Reaper doesn't really sound as ominous as you might think, with some nice acoustic guitar and some tolling bells, some nice fluty sounds and a powerful guitar solo. As might be expected, The loved ones is a sumptuous but simple piano piece that really reminds me of Rachmaniov, one of my favourite composers: just beautiful. It's quite amazing how Robert John Godfrey can make the piano such a heartfelt instrument, a thing of beauty in that track and then on the next make it almost demonic! That's real talent for you. I'm not completely familiar with the Tarot --- I know of it, and my sister can read it --- but I did previously review a slightly similar project by Dark Moor (imaginatively called "Tarot"!") so I can appreciate what The Enid are doing here, symbolising various cards and aspects of the Tarot through music, somewhat similar to what the great Gustav Holst did back at the beginning of the last century. Sunrise is the first track wherein I can hear proper progressive rock elements; prior to this a lot of it has been what I would term classical/prog really, but here the keyboards really speak in a Yes/Genesis/ELP way. Going back to that, there's again an almost "Bolero" feel to The Last Day, quiet soft marching drumming and gentle horns until some powerful guitar and a rising background melody punches the whole thing up to a real cinematic level. It breaks into some fine progressive work then and finishes really well with an explosive title track which then slips into a little piano piece aptly titled Adieu. Overall impression: Very accomplished, very impressive. One hell of a debut! Glad this wasn't lost forever, no thanks to shortsighted EMI executives! Intention: I'd certainly be interested in hearing more of their music now. |
Guess even God can have an off day!
http://s5.postimg.org/560x0hvtj/cook...ng2andhalf.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...EveryCrowd.jpg Artiste: Eric Clapton Nationality: British (English) Album: There's one in every crowd Year: 1975 Label: RSO Genre: Blues/Rock Tracks: We've been told (Jesus is coming soon) Swing low, sweet chariot Little Rachel Don't blame me The sky is crying Singing the blues Better make it through today Pretty blue eyes High Opposites Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: "August", "Behind the sun", plus of course the hits everyone knows. Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Gospel and reggae? Not really what I had set myself up to expect... Best track(s): The sky is crying, Better make it through today, Pretty blue eyes, Opposites Worst track(s): Littel Rachel, Don't blame me Comments: I have to admit, I'm not at all familiar with Clapton's repertoire. Oh of course I know the hit singles and I've seen the odd concert, but the two albums listed above are the only two I've heard all the way through, and to be honest they were good, but hardly good enough to have this man labelled as God, I thought. Mind you, they're more recent albums, so perhaps this, as the successor to his breakthrough "461 Ocean Boulevard" may change my mind on that. It's interesting to note that of the ten tracks on the album Clapton only writes half himself, and most of (well, all of) his solo contributions close out the album. There's a somewhat eclectic mix of blues, rock, reggae, even gospel here, with the opener firmly in the latter category, a cover of Willie Johnson's traditional arrangement of We've been told (Jesus is coming soon), and another gospel favourite in Swing low, sweet chariot given a reggae treatment. Was Clapton finding religion on this album, like Dylan on "Saved"? Ask a fan, I don't know, but it certainly has religious overtones. Of course the man's guitar playing takes centre stage, and who would deny Clapton is a master of the instrument, but I'd rather hear some more hard-edged stuff along the lines of Layla or even Forever man, but we're back to reggae (suppose I should expect that since I read the album was recorded in Jamay-ka man!) with Don't blame me, which is all very fine but I could do without Eric trying to sound like Marley! I mean, wtf? Does every reggae singer sound the same? :confused: Kind of sounds like it might be meant to be a sequel to his big hit from the previous album I shot the sheriff. Hmm. At least a great version of Elmore James's The sky is crying makes a better impression on me, though I have to say I'm listening more to the piano than the guitar: how can that be? Basically, as regards this album I'm not feeling like I missed out on anything. I know Clapton is great and I do like him, but I'm not having a "you-never-listened-to-dark-side-of-the-moon?" moment. It's okay this but nothing special. Oh hold on: just got a lot better with the lovely slow blues ballad Better make it through today, ironically the first Clapton-penned tune on the album. The next one's pretty good too, and I get a bit of solid rock out if it as well as finger-pickin' guitar, so I like that. Yeah, got better towards the end, but still not an album I'd revisit any time soon. Bit of a disappointment. (Howling mobs with burning crosses and pitchfork please form an orderly queue...) Overall impression: Had some good spots but a lot of it was meh. Not what I expected to hear from God, I have to say! Intention: Clapton being Clapton I do have to familiarise myself with his material, but this one just didn't do it for me. Maybe I picked a bad one to start with? |
Air pocket the prize
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/i...O0jLrbPpXaqSPg Artiste: Air Nationality: French Album: Pocket symphony Year: 2007 Label: Virgin Genre: Electronica Tracks: Space maker Once upon a time Hell of a party Napalm love Mayfair song Left Bank Photograph Mer de Japon Lost message Somewhere between waking and sleeping Redhead girl Night sigh Chronological position: Fifth album Familiarity: "The virgin suicides", "Moon safari" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Pretty much what I expected, though the vocals threw me. Best track(s): One hell of a party, Mayfair Song, Left bank, Somewhere between waking and sleeping, Lost message, Night sight Worst track(s): Napalm love, Photograph Comments: Air were the first band I got into outside of Vangelis, Jean-Michel Jarre and the like in terms of electronic music. I've never been that interested in electronica/ambient music, but thanks to Air I've since moved on to Carbon Based Lifeforms and, er, that's it for now, but I intend to seek out some similar bands. Problem is that electronica is such a loose genre and is one with a wide-ranging (and wildly different) sets of bands in it. I don't like trance, dubstep or some other forms of electronic music, but CBL have suited me fine. This is the third Air album I've listened to, and I'm a little surprised to hear vocals on the second track, though I know Air are known mostly but not completely as an instrumental act. Jean-Benoit Dunckel is the singer, one half of the band, whereas on the next track it's a guest vocalist, Pulp's Jarvis Cocker who takes One hell of a party. He puts in a powerful, bleak performance on a song whose execution completely belies its title. It's stark, empty and morose, and is also written by him, while Napalm love, with Dunckel back on vocals, is very eighties new-wave in feel and style, another slow song. There are, it would seem, more vocal tracks on this album than instrumental, and in that it differs from the previous Air albums I've heard. I'm not sure about Jean-Benoit Dunckel's voice: sounds very feminine to me, not that that's a bad thing, but I do prefer the purely instrumental ones like Mayfair song with its rapidly-descending piano line and echoey drums and pads, and Lost message. I'm delighted to hear my old friend Neil Hannon also guesting on vocals on Somewhere between waking and sleeping, which has a beautiful orchestral setting. There's a nice mix on this album, from slow ambient to mid-paced electronica, instrumental passages and vocal passages, and a few guest vocalists that really makes it quite a varied album. It wouldn't to be honest be the worst place to begin your exploration of this band, should you be so inclined. Overall impression: Another great album, expanding on what I already know about Air and making me like them even more. Intention: I like Air: I'll be listening to more of their albums, and they've become a gateway to finding other electronic/ambient bands. |
No interesting factoid? F THAT!
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Hey, reviewing albums isn't always as glamorous and interesting as I make it, you know. Interesting factoid: there is no interesting factoid about this album.
:) |
From such trees mighty oaks grow. Or something.
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://d1at7s7ng1pn0k.cloudfront.net...5.original.jpg Artiste: Nina Nesbitt Nationality: British (Scottish) Album: The apple tree Year: 2012 Label: Universal Music Group Genre: Folk Tracks: The apple tree Seesaw Hold you Only love Make me fall Chronological position: Debut album -- well, second EP but the first one was all live so I'm treating this as her "studio" debut. Familiarity: One track, the title Interesting factoid: Despite great interest in her, Nina has only released EPs to date, no full album. Initial impression: Very upbeat, classy folk feel and a lovely voice. Best track(s): The apple tree, Hold you, Make me fall Worst track(s): Nothing Comments: I stumbled across Nina Nesbitt on the web and liked the song I heard, which is the title of this EP, so I thought I'd have a listen to the whole thing. It's only short, five tracks in all but from the start there's a sense that this girl is going places. Discovered by Ed Sheeran after her self-made videos on YouTube were seen by the world, she plays guitar and piano, as well as flute in addition to being a fine singer in the mould the likes of Kate Bush or Stevie Nicks. A great folk flavour peppered with some pop sounds and acoustic rock too, the opener and title track is a great little song with a lot of optimism and energy, as is Seesaw with an edge of early Pretenders in it, while Only love puts me very much in mind of Suzanne Vega, and to a lesser extent, our own Lisa Hannigan, with a nice steady beat and some sparkling keyboards. Hold you showcases her considerable skill on the piano, a lovely, soft ballad and surely should have been released as a single, while the other ballad, Make me fall battles it for standout of the (very short) album. This has a bit more punch about it, with strong, almost hissing drums and a passionate vocal line. Overall impression: Surely she's destined for great things soon? Intention: Wait for the release of her next EP, due this month. |
Judging by your review, I thought I would dig this, but I hear some kind of hyper Enya with cheesy lyrics. :( She's quite cute in a way and her voice is great, but not my thing. :) Lovely review all the same, thanks for it!
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Viva Espana!
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://www.spirit-of-metal.com/les%2...e%20Guerra.jpg Artiste: Saratoga Nationality: Spanish Album: Vientos de guerra Year: 1999 Label: Aspira Genre: Heavy metal/Power metal Tracks: La iguana Vientos de guerra Mas de mil anos Solo un motivo Aprendiendo a ser yunque (Para llegar a ser martillo) Heavy metal Charlie se fue Extrano silencio Hielo liquido El ministro Estrellas las del cielo Manos unidas A sangre y fuego Si te vas Ruge el motor Chronological position: Fourth album Familiarity: "Nemesis" Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Christ! Something bad is coming for me! ;) Best track(s): Vientos de guerra, Solo un motivo, Heavy metal, Charlie se fue, El ministro, Manos unidas Worst track(s): I liked everything on this album. Comments: It's always fun listening to metal in another language. The burden of deciphering lyrical themes is taken away and you have to just concentrate on the music, and the talent of the singer without knowing what he or she is singing about! I first heard these guys on their latest album, last year's "Nemesis", and I loved it, so here I am checking out one of their older albums. I haven't heard too much Spanish metal, the only others being the old campaigners Baron Rojo and more recently Cain's Dinasty, but the more I hear the more I like. There's an ominous yet exciting sound of hammer-drumming with single beats, like the stomping approach of some huge metal beast, then some guitar shredding before a Sabbathesque groove cuts in leaving the echoey drumming to fade out and we're into track two with all the power and bite these guys can muster. They're not quite as thrash-oriented as the aforementioned Cain's Dinasty, more often along the lines of the likes of early Sabbath or some of the older NWOBHM bands like Saxon and White Spirit, though in fairness this album is almost fifteen years old now. I am however constantly surprised by how easy it is sometimes to translate the titles of songs by Spanish bands: Solo un motivo is surely "only one motive" (or something close anyway) while Estrellas las del cielo certainly refers to stars in the sky, though I'm not sure what "las" means. A sange y fuego is "blood and fire" and even the title track looks to translate into something like "year of the war" or "time of the war". Still, the titles are not important nor are the lyrics. I don't speak Spanish so can't tell you what the songs are about, but what I can tell you is that Saratoga (one of the larger metal bands in Spain, by all accounts) speak in the universally understood tongue of heavy metal, and they speak loud and clear! Great guitar work, without being showy or "wankery", solid, powerful drumming and a vocalist who really knows how to get the attention. What more could you ask for? They play mostly at close to top speed, again though without descending into breakneck farce, and you can hear the expertise in their playing. It's quite amusing to hear the only song whose title is in English, the appropriately-named Heavy metal is in Spanish --- wonder if the phrase means the same the world over? Nice to hear that the vocalist can tone it down when required too, as on the grinding ballad Charlie se fue with a really fine guitar solo thrown in for good measure. Arriba! I also like the acoustic Manos unidas; shows what these guys are capable of. Overall impression: A great metal album, credit to Spain. Who needs to be able to make out the lyrics, anyway? Intention: Got to listen to a few more of their albums. |
Young guns go for it
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._means_war.jpg Artiste: Tank Nationality: British (English) Album: This means war Year: 1983 Label: Music For Nations Genre: Heavy Metal Tracks: Just like something from Hell Hot lead, cold steel This means war Laughing in the face of death (If we go) We go down fighting I (Won't ever let you down) Echoes of a distant battle Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: "Filth hounds of Hades", "Power of the hunter", "War machine", "Still at war" Interesting factoid: This was the first time Tank became a quartet, with the addition of Mick Tucker, who also wrote some of the songs, giving the band a more melodic approach than they had on previous albums, and softening the raw edge that had characterised those two outings. Initial impression: Keyboards? ****ing KEYBOARDS??? On a TANK album??? Best track(s):Just about everything Worst track(s):I (Won't ever let you down) Apart from sounding like a slushy love ballad (which it's not) it's a little cheesy. Comments: This is one of the Tank albums I didn't feature when I focussed on them for the special I did on the NWOBHM some time back, and I must say I'm more than surprised to hear keyboard leading the line on the intro to the opener, though it soon settles down into the sort of music I expect from Tank, indeed most bands from the NWOBHM era: big grindy snarling guitars, gutteral vocals and thundering drums. Heavy metal as it was meant to be! Mind you, the opener, Just like something from Hell is over eight minutes long, something that would not have been typical for a British metal band of the time. Works well though and doesn't seem forced or overlong. As you would probably expect with a band who call themselves after a fighting machine, many of the tracks on this and other albums of theirs concern war and conflict, with tracks like Hot lead, cold steel, the title and the closer, Echoes of a distant battle, but that shouldn't be taken to mean that they put no thought into their songs. All the tracks here are well composed and flawlessly played, and to be honest I would have thought, listening to this, that it should have been the album that allowed Tank to break into the big time. It just has that sort of professional feel on it that would have made it stand out. Unfortunately though it never happened to them, and they disbanded in 1997, though reformed in 2002 and have been putting out albums sporadically ever since, although founder and vocalist Algy Ward has since left the band. There's plenty for metalheads to get their rocks off to on this album, as the twin guitar attack of Tucker and Peter Brabbs drives everything along, and Ward's growly vocal, while never descending into death vocals territory, is the perfect metal voice to snarl these lyrics at you. The pace of the album is pretty breakneck, it doesn't slow down for a moment to allow you to catch your breath, and if you're headbanging to this, well all I can say is have some Voltarol ready for your neck cos it is gonna be sore! Oh, and no ballads. No, seriously: I know it's unexpected, but no slow songs at all. No, really! Overall impression: Unpretentious, hard-edged, kick-your-face-in metal that reminds me what it was like to be young! Oh, so long ago... Intention: I think I still have a few Tank albums to listen to, but I really should devote a little more time to them. |
Good review of the Tank album, I always remember that they made one hell of a racket on that album.
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Yeah, but what country are they from?
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://www.heavyharmonies.com/cdcove...ENRAIN_AOT.JPG Artiste: Frozen Rain Nationality: I don't know for sure but I think they may be Belgian. Despite sounding German (band member names) almost all their official websites have a "be" suffix, so I'm assuming they're from Belgium. Album: Ahead of time Year: 2012 Label: Avenue of Allies Genre: AOR Tracks: Believe it or not Forever Breakin' out We're gonna rock Too late Turn it on Ahead of time The last dance ain't over Not at home The way that you Voodoo party Chronological position: Second album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Good eighties-sounding AOR. Um... Best track(s): Breakin' out, Forever, Too late, The last dance ain't over, Not at home, The way that you Worst track(s): We're gonna rock (Only for the overly cheesy lyrics) Comments: I know absolutely nothing about this band, and was only attracted to them by the poetic sounding name. I've since found out that they're Belgian (maybe) and seem to be following in the footsteps of some other bands they admire, including Drive She Said, Boulevard, Fair Warning and Heartland, none of whom I know anything about. Hmm. Good start though and it's punchy, catchy AOR from the off, with some mesmerising keys work and stomping guitar: I'm already interested! Breakin' out has a definite Bon Jovi feel, circa their debut 1984 album, shades of a slower Runaway in places, very catchy. Mind you, whether it's a good or bad thing that an album should recall the sound of one nearly thirty years its senior is a call I'll leave to you. Great keyboard work and some scorching solos, and though most of the members are mentioned as being supposedly big names in the AOR world I'm afraid I don't know any of them. Despite its corny title, We're gonna rock has more than a touch of electronica in it, while The last dance ain't over is pure rockin' fun. Frozen Rain will never be accused of deep lyric writing with lines like "Come on baby/Come on girl/ We're gonna rock/ Around the world" but the songs have a fine sense of honest and simple fun about them, and they certainly get the feet moving if not the heads banging. I'd say you'd have a great time if you went to one of their gigs. They don't seem to be held back by trying to be one thing or another, or attempting to be too clever or deep. They're just here to enjoy themselves, and so they do. Of course, being an AOR (or Melodic Rock, take your pick, they mean the same thing as far as I can see) band, they have to have ballads on their albums, and Too late again sounds very Bon Jovi to me with maybe a touch of Foreigner, with the singer making a good attempt at an impression of Rod Stewart. Good stuff. The squealing guitars are probably a little overdone, but I'm not going to worry about that. Nice atmospheric introduction to the title track, some lovely guitar work, a little laid back really, then it more or less rocks its socks off to the end, despite the decidely odd closer with its mechanical vocoder introduction. Still, screaming guitars soon blast that away and we end as we began, poundin' and rockin' hard, though Frozen Rain have one more surprise up their sleeve, as the closer is a powerful instrumental, not something seen too often on an AOR record. But then, it would appear clear by now that this is not just another AOR band. Overall impression: Good, enjoyable AOR. I wouldn't rush out to buy their other album, but I'd certainly get it at some point, and would listen to this a few more times for sure. An interesting blend of generic AOR with some different and unexpected elements. Intention: Add to the list of AOR bands I never knew existed but now quite like. Score one for Belgium! If they are Belgian... |
Relaxing and inoffensive ambient wallpaper
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://www.liquidmindmusic.com/slow/lm2cov_over.png Artiste: Liquid Mind Nationality: American Album: Slow world Year: 1996 Label: Real Music Genre: Ambient Tracks: Mirror veil Blue seven Slow world Chronological position: Second album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Drifting away, eyes sliding shut ... oh wait! I have a review to write! Best track(s): n/a Worst track(s): n/a Comments: Liquid Mind is the professional recording name of Chuck Wild, a composer based out of LA who apparently specialises in slow, relaxing, meditative music. After the albums I've been reviewing today and which have been published over the last week I'm ready for a bit of relaxation, so let's try this. There are only three tracks on the album, but each runs to over ten minutes long, with the longest, the closer and title, coming in at a whopping twenty-eight! That's more than some of the longer prog rock compositions I've heard! It certainly starts off relaxing enough, with soft, low, whooshing synth and gentle voice on the keys, little twirls of what might be oboe or clarinet colouring the tune, and moving at a very sedate pace indeed. Of course, there are plenty of albums that claim to be "sleep music" (and more than one or two I've heard which, though it's not their claim or intent, fulfil that purpose, if unintentionally) so why should this be any better? What? Look, I don't know. Stop talking to me, will you? I'm trying to relax and enjoy the music! And that's the nub of it. I could write a full review of this for my main journal and go into the ins and outs of the music, but this isn't really made for that sort of anaylsis. You don't dissect this music, you just listen to it and drift, drift, drift... whaaa? Go away I said: I'm enjoying this! Overall impression: Zzzzzzzz (In the nicest possible way) Intention: I will definitely put this on if I can't sleep or need to relax or calm down. |
Come on ye boys in green!
http://s5.postimg.org/r7r7ajgbb/cookierating3.jpg http://www.israbox.com/uploads/posts...h-sun-2010.jpg Artiste: God is an Astronaut Nationality: Irish Album: Age of the fifth sun Year: 2010 Label: Revive Genre: Post rock/Instrumental rock Tracks: Worlds in collision In the distance fading Lost kingdom Golden sky Dark rift Parallel highway Shining through Age of the fifth sun Paradise remains Chronological position: Fifth album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Best track(s): In the distance fading, Golden sky, Dark rift, Age of the fifth sun, Paradise remains Worst track(s): Nothing Comments: I've only listened to one other Irish instrumental post-rock band, and that's ASIWYFA, reviewed here as I think the very first in this series. I was very impressed with that album, and am looking forward to their new one. GIAA seem to follow the same sort of lines with their music, alternating from ambient to fast hard rock and throwing in other influences along the way. There's certainly a lot of passion in this music, and it's great to listen to. Great piano work and some fine growling guitar that can just as easily cut back into a nice introspective strum or pick, as in In the distance fading, whereas there's a real sense of dark ambience to the suitably-named Dark rift, like something out of a science-fiction movie. The title track kind of brings it back to this sort of idea, slow squealing guitar and swirling synth before it breaks into a real almost metal track, just showing how diverse these guys can be, and why I'm proud they're Irish! Overall impression: Like this a lot, will have to hear more. Intention: Let's go check out their previous four albums then, shall we? |
Pick an idea, and stay with it, is my advice
http://s5.postimg.org/560x0hvtj/cook...ng2andhalf.jpg http://www.metal-archives.com/images/2/9/5/4/295455.jpg Artiste: Images of Eden Nationality: American Album: Rebuilding the ruins Year: 2011 Label: Nightmare Records Genre: Progressive metal Tracks: Crosses in the sand Human angels Tribal scars Dreams unbroken Sorrow's end Rebuilding the ruins My stigmata Native to his land Children of autumn On elevated ground Sunlight of the spirit part IV - Images of Eden Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Good start, pretty dramatic and please don't be a death-growler... Best track(s): Human angels, Dreams unbroken, My stigmata, Children of autumn Worst track(s): Tribal scars, Sorrow's end, Native to his land Comments: An oddly atmospheric keyboard opening then the guitars and drums kick in , and you know you're in metal land. My biggest worry when listening to a metal band I've never heard before is, is the singer going to be a "grunter"? You know, those death growls I hate so much and that will turn me off a band even if I like their music? Well luckily, though I have to wait a little while before the vocalist comes in on the first track, the answer is no: if he reminds me of anyone, Gordon Tittsworth sounds like Bruce Dickinson, though not so much as to appear to be a cheap rip-off of the Iron Maiden frontman. Checking, I see that Tittsworth not only sings but plays rhythm guitar, bass and keyboards too! A real all-rounder. Apparently, he's become disillusioned with not getting enough of a result with progressive metal, so for their next album he'll be taking the band in more of a standard metal direction. Whether that will mean saying goodbye to the keyboards or not I don't know, but if so it'll be a pity, as they really anchor the sound here and give it extra punch. I wasn't totally blown away by the opener, but second track Human angels is a lot better. Some great guitar work here. Nice powerful ballad in Dreams unbroken, but the album's becoming a bit hit-and-miss. I didn't think too much of Tribal scars (though that was released as a single; maybe that was a mistake?) nor Sorrow's end, but then the title track does grab me. There's a change in the vocals for My stigmata, so much so that I'm not even sure that's our Gordon singing: don't like the change. Also not crazy about the song though it has a good effective grindy guitar part in the middle. And a truly beautiful slow piano piece which reminds me of something but I can't remember what. You know something? I've changed my mind: I really like this track! Yeah but then Native to his land is nothing special. See what I mean about being hit-and-miss? And then Children of autumn is a beautiful piano ballad, until it gets kicked up the arse and becomes even better! Ah yeah, but then it ends poorly. The closer is twelve minutes long, and really, on a patchy album like this you had better hope it's a stunner. Well, it's not. It's okay but doesn't keep my interest; a twelve-minute epic is asking a lot as a closer, but if you're not going to pour your heart and soul into it, don't expect me to enthuse about it. I'm not enthusing about it. Overall impression: There's definitely a grain of something here, but it's almost like an idea not properly thought out or a plan not realised correctly; it's kind of all over the place. Intention: Not really sure to be honest. I might give this another spin. Then again, I might not. |
That song by Tank has a combinations of Ac/Dc, Pearl Jam, Green Day, and Rolling Stones into one beautiful sound. I love that song. I have to admit that the song is very good. Just beautiful melody. I am not a rock person but I have to admit this song so classic in my opinion.
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