Weekend WTF: Bon Jovi Is Trying So Hard to Be Relevant

This edition of Weekend WTF is brought to you by Germany. More specifically Munich, the city in which Bon Jovi played a show last weekend. Normally this event would have gone unnoticed by VLM except for the following:

1) Right now Welsh singer-songwriter Duffy is scoring a hit on the chart in the form of her first single "Mercy"
2) I got a digital copy of her debut album Rockferry, and was very pleasantly surprised by it (a more in-depth review and a comparison to fellow soul revivalist Amy Winehouse is pending)
3) After tooting his own horn for 2 minutes (and in so doing sounding remarkably like John Mellencamp), Bon Jovi broke into a cover of "Mercy", which someone caught on camera.



Speaking of bands covering songs live...I was about to put up a video of Prince covering "Creep" at Coachella since I actually did find a video of it not 12 hours ago, but lo, it was gone. Bummer. You might expect more on that coming this week.

Let me know what you think of some of the changes going on.

==TJ==

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes...

Hey everybody. You've probably noticed the site has a few subtle changes (and if you hadn't notice, you should really be more aware of your surroundings). I decided to mess around with a few things and see how it all looks. Feel free to leave feedback and such if you think something is particularly awesome/ugly. This reconstruction will be going on until I a) get bored with it, or b) settle on something I really like. In the meantime, check out the various widgets and such that are all around, and continue to enjoy your day!

Random MP3 of the day: Fall Out Boy feat. John Mayer - Beat It [iTunes]

Real posting will resume shortly.

==TJ==

PS If your site used to be in the Links on the Left column and is no longer there, let me know and I'll gladly re-add you. Likewise, if you want to be added, say so.

Drive A: Honey, I Shrunk The Rock N Roll

I've been positively dreadful when it comes to posting things that I say I'm going to. This post is prime example. I promised a follow-up on a number of Under the Radar bands (as well as introducing a few new ones) some time ago, and this entry will at last make good on said promise. A week or two back I exchanged emails with the management of Drive A. The result was me receiving a small press package that included, among other goodies, a copy of Drive A's self titled debut.

Before I dip into a review of the album, I need to point out one thing. Lead singer Bruno Mascolo is 15 years old. 15 $&#@ing years old! I don't know of many 15 year olds with the motivation and talent to go out and find a job, let alone front a rock band of Drive A's caliber. Just keep that in mind while reading the next few paragraphs.

Drive A explode into the rock and roll universe by way of bands like Motley Crue, Guns N Roses, and Velvet Revolver, with a dash of modern punk rock. Think Sum 41 with the energy and musicianship of AC/DC. When they want to rock, they will melt your face off. Tracks like "Everyday" and "Alibi" are pure rock and roll the likes of which you haven't heard in the mainstream for years. As a frontman, Bruno Mascolo shows charisma beyond his years. Even when the band misses (as they almost do on "Broken Bones", which sounds a bit too much like an early Avril Lavigne track), I can't help but listen on anyway. And thank God for that, because Drive A regains its form just as quickly. I shit you not when I say Drive A has got more balls than most of rock radio right now. Members of Daughtry, Seether, Puddle of Mudd and Finger Eleven...watch carefully and start taking notes. There'll be a quiz on your next album.

[Tangent: I originally had David Cook in that last sentence, but then I recalled the stuff I heard from his old band Axium, and he was spared.]

Drive A takes their name from "when a musician strums the note A repeatedly and creates a wall of sound". In that case, I'd say their aptly named. And with a tour record that includes appearances with the reformed STP, Cheap Trick, Avenged Sevenfold, and on-the-record praise from everyone from Tommy Lee to Don Henley to the guy from Children of Bodom, it's only a matter of time before Drive A bring an ass-kicking back to rock 'n roll. They'll be selling platinum records before they're old enough to drink. All active rock bands...ye be warned.

Drive A is giving away their album FOR FREE on their website, listed below. In case you still don't believe me, I'll give you "Rule the World". But for frak's sake, go check out their MySpace and official site. You might find something you haven't heard for awhile. REAL rock music.

Drive A - Rule the World
Drive A MySpace
Drive A ROCKS

==TJ==

Buying Music As Therapy

So it's been over a week since my last post, and that's just not cool. No excuse really, other than laziness and distraction by that little thing called real life. This'll be a bit of a wandering post, but it'll more or less get you up to speed.

I've spent the last several weeks (since I got home from college, pretty much) job hunting. Given the fact that I'm using present tense here should tell you how said search has gone. Turns out that nobody particularly wants seasonal help from college students while in a recession. Imagine that.

Pearl Jam - Unemployable [iTunes]

There is some good to be found in this though, since nothing gets my mind off the frustrations of reality like buying some new(ish) music. After a particularly unsuccessful day of job hunting I went to my local used CD shop and got 4 CDs for 8 bucks and some crappy trade-ins. Below are short and sweet thoughts on each.

The Eagles - Hell Freezes Over
I have a bit of a take-it-or-leave-it relationship with The Eagles. They can either be really freakin' good, or just boring to listen to. Hell Freezes Over is par for the course. The opening four studio tracks are forgettable, save for "Love Will Keep Us Alive", the only real hit the band had in the 90s. The live tracks are where the meat of this album is, with awesome, energetic performances of most of their big hits ("Tequila Sunrise", "Life in the Fast Lane"), and mediocre renditions of some lesser tracks. All in all I would feel bad trading it back in, but it's not going to have much shelf life in my rotation.
Final Score: 5/10

Fuel - Sunburn (Original 1998 release)
Any Fuel fan I talk to has told me that Sunburn was by far their best album, and the remaining Brett Scallions-era LPs paled in comparison (and don't get them started on the misfire that was Angels & Devils). I never took too much stock in the sentiments, since I thought Something Like Human was serviceable, and also probably their peak as a band. If Jill, Mike Newsham, or any other aforementioned Fuel fans are reading...you were right. Sunburn is a spot-on blend of the radio-friendly post-grunge casual listeners are used to and the heavier, headbanger rock that they never pursued after this album. Their might be more awesome tracks on this album than on the other two albums combined. Most of this album is lined up for immediate addition to the iPod. Even if the other albums I bought were to suck, this keeper would've made the venture worth it.
Final Score: 8/10

Gin Blossoms - Congratulations I'm Sorry
Two things made me pick up this one:
1) The essay of a comment Matt from Addicted to Vinyl left here discussing the first two Gin Blossom albums made me want to hear it for myself.
2) Wanted something to bide my time while I waited for my eBay purchase of the deluxe version of New Miserable Experience.

So there you have it. At $3.99, I had few qualms about paying for a potentially craptastic album. All in all it's not a great album. The seeds are all there for what might have been a really good album (thus dispelling the notion that the late Doug Hopkins was the genius in the band), it just doesn't really follow through. The choruses aren't as energetic and it just makes for a much harder listen. There are good points to be found, but nothing on this disc holds a candle to "Hey Jealousy" (now my most played song on iTunes).
Final Score: 4/10

Chris Cornell - Euphoria Morning
Few people in the music world are above the regard in which I hold Chris Cornell (I think it's Dave Grohl and John Lennon, and that's it). I knew that the general consensus said that Cornell's solo debut flat out sucked. But I bought it anyway. Memo to the general consensus: Euphoria Morning doesn't suck. It takes work to listen to, and sounds more like Radiohead than it does Soundgarden or Audioslave. But that sound worked best for Cornell when he was with Soundgarden and Audioslave. Here Cornell gets to write songs that have some weight and meaning and not have to worried about it getting lost behind the amped-up guitars. Euphoria Morning is a good album, just not what you'd expect in a Chris Cornell album.
Final Score: 7/10

Chris Cornell - Can't Change Me [iTunes]
Gin Blossoms - Follow You Down [iTunes]
Fuel - Bittersweet [iTunes]
The Eagles - Love Will Keep Us Alive

That's it for now. I'll be back in a couple hours with more.

==TJ==

Top 5: Album Openers

As I mentioned yesterday, I finally saw High Fidelity yesterday when it randomly showed up on cable at a time I could watch it. Admittedly I missed the first 20 minutes or so, but it was still effing brilliant. If you haven't seen the movie, all you need to know for this new series of posts is that while John Cusack and Jack Black sit around their vinyl shop they come up with all kinds of Top 5 lists. In that same spirit, I present the first of Viva La Mainstream's Top 5s. This topic for this one is taken straight from the movie, but my list is way different:

Top 5 Side 1, Track 1s (Or just track 1s, because CDs don't have two sides)

5. Foo Fighters - The Pretender [Echoes, Silence Patience and Grace]
Leave it to me to kick things off with the Foo Fighters. The role of the opening track is to come in firing, give you a track that you'll a) remember, and b) like enough to continue listening to the rest of the album. This is why a lot of albums lead off with the first single. "The Pretender" pulls off both jobs with extraordinary ease and fun. It's openers like this that show off why the Foo Fighters are great, and why Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace is the best Foo Fighters album to date. Only thing keeping it from being higher is its young age and future potential.

4. Audioslave - Cochise [Audioslave]
Once again, an explosive track that demands inclusion in a list like this. The opening rumble builds an enormous suspense until Tom Morello's guitar riff breaks down the wall. From there it's all Chris Cornell and his raspy scream unmatched by anyone who dares try. And once you hit that final scream in the bridge ("And put the blame on me so you don't feel a thing"), the whole thing is sold. An incredible intro to an incredible album from a band that sadly peaked about a year later.

3. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit [Nevermind]
The first 9 seconds of this song alone warrant an appearance on this list. Enough has been made of this track that I don't think I really need to justify why it's on here. In fact, I'm sure someone out there is going to comment and tell me that this deserves to be nearer the top. Respectfully disagree; time has not really been kind to Nirvana as far as critics go. Looking back, Nirvana was a really good band, and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" a really great song, but I sincerely doubt it holds up as well as things that have come since it, and certainly doesn't hold a candle to the remaining two songs on this list.

2. The Beatles - Come Together [Abbey Road]
"Come Together" doesn't really pack the kind of punch that the previous tracks do, but it most certainly begs to be heard again and again. The Beatles took a turn into Eric Clapton territory to start off Abbey Road, and in so doing, started off one of the most memorable (though not necessarily the best) Beatles albums. It's subtle and subdued, and yet utterly arresting. If this song comes up on shuffle, more often than not I end up just letting the whole album play.

1. The Who - Baba O'Riley [Who's Next]
Takes the allure of "Come Together" and matches it with the combined explosive force of the remaining 3 tracks on this list. This song is everything that a opening track should be, and on top of it, it's just a great fucking song all around. This could have been buried near the end of Who's Next and it'd still be worth waiting to hear. The fact that this album is riddled with classics just means that hearing "Baba O'Riley" is a gateway into one of the best albums of the 70s. If I ever get around to my top 100 songs of eternity, you'd look for this at least in the top 20, if not higher.

That's it. Plan for these to happen about once a week, maybe every other week. If you think I'm full of shit on any of these albums, I invite and encourage you to tell me so in the comments, just know I'm going to back up my choice and may tell you you're wrong. Nothing personal, it's just about the music.

==TJ==

Because I'm Too Lazy To Post Anything Original Today...

The meme below has been circulating around one of my music forums, and rather than be the millionth person to post it there, I decided to transport it over here. I only do these when I think a good one crops up, so enjoy it.

1. Song from the last record bought/downloaded [legally]: Michael Jackson - Billie Jean [iTunes]
[yes, the last album I legitimately paid money for was Thriller]

2. Blues: The Animals - House of the Rising Sun [iTunes]

3. Romantic song: Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars [iTunes]

4. One of the earliest records from your collection: American Hi-Fi - Flavor of the Weak [iTunes]
[This question was originally earliest record you remember listening to, but this works better]*

5. Song discovered from a film: Tomoyasu Hotei - Battle Without Honor or Humanity [iTunes]
[First heard in Kill Bill, Vol. 1]

6. Song from a favorite band/artist: Foo Fighters - Big Me [iTunes]

7. song from an artist/band that you otherwise don't like, but this one: Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc. [iTunes]

8. Song that makes you laugh/ you find funny: Nickelback - Rockstar [iTunes]
[Hooray for unintentional comedy!!]

9. Really good cover version: Bedlight for Blue Eyes- Jumper [Third Eye Blind] [iTunes]

10. Song that reminds you of high school: Dashboard Confessional - Hands Down [iTunes]

11. Funky: Earth, Wind & Fire - September [iTunes]

12. Song for those quiet rainy days: Jars of Clay - Worlds Apart [iTunes]

13. Feel good song: Jimmy Eat World - Chase This Light [iTunes]

14. From a member of the "Dead Rockers Society": Janis Joplin - Me and Bobby McGee [iTunes]

15. Your favorite Elvis song: A Little Less Conversation [iTunes]
[Actually the only Elvis song in my collection]

16. Wildcard: Train - Meet Virginia [iTunes]
[First song up on shuffle]

*American Hi-Fi's Debut was the first album in my current collection. You have till the end of this sentence to finish judging me.

Well, now. Wasn't that fun? For the record I finally saw High Fidelity earlier today, so you might expect a few Top 5-based posts in the near future. Back soon.

==TJ==

3 Doors Down Make the Album Rock Fans Knew They Could

Today marks the release of 3 Doors Down's self-titled fourth album, already making waves with the radio hit "It's Not My Time". The follow-up to 2005's Seventeen Days is a return to form for the band that started out as a straight-arrow rock band and really never should have tried anything else.

The band's previous two albums, 2002's Away from the Sun and Seventeen Days were both worthy efforts, but weren't the balls-to-the-wall rock you'd expect from the band that ripped listeners a new one with "Kryptonite" back in 2001. The biggest hits from those two albums ("Here Without You", "Landing in London") fared best on the safer, ballad-heavy Adult Contemporary charts. Scoring a hit on any chart is nothing to sneeze at, but I always thought 3 Doors Down could do better. Thankfully, they prove me right on the new album, and damn is it good to hear some crunch back in their sound.

This album comes in with their guitars at 11 for the first three tracks, with "Train", the previously raved about "Citizen/Soldier" and "It's Not My Time" offering an incredible first impression not heard since The Better Life eight years ago. The remaining nine tracks put up a similar urgency and strength that wasn't really there on previous albums, only stopping one or two moments to let the acoustic guitars do their bit. "Let Me Be Myself" is a decidedly been-there-done-that track, while "Your Arms Feel Like Home" is about as country-twinged as the title would suggest. Aside from these blemishes, every other aspect of this album is what you would hope for. "It's the Only One You've Got" would make a hell of a single, with a near-perfect blend of subdued (but still rocking) verses and explosive shout-worthy chorus. Lastly, album closer "She Don't Want the World" is a different 3 Doors Down in that it doesn't ever reach that high point in the chorus or bridge a la "It's Not My Time" or "Kryptonite", but even though it stays pretty static, it's got an indescribable allure to it that demands you stick around for the whole album.

Anyone who heard The Better Life knew 3 Doors Down had to be just messing around on the two albums between that one and this one. This, of course, leads to the age-old question, "What the hell took so long?"

Final Score: 7/10
Highlight Reel: Citizen/Soldier, It's the Only One You've Got

==TJ==

Troubleshooting and Whatnot

I've been fiddling around with iTunes and last.fm a lot in the last few days, trying to stretch its limits in the name of getting cooler content from it which could in turn give cooler stuff to this very blog. Haven't had too much success, but gonna post it anyway and see if someone has a genius solution.

I've been trying to find a way to make iTunes give me a weekly chart; that is, I want iTunes to tell me what songs I played most frequently in the span of a week or a month. It'll tell me my all time most played and it'll tell me what I played in the last week, but I can't get it to combine the two in the way I want it to. Easiest way to do this would in theory be a smart playlist, but the parameters for that are limited and can't do it. Went searching on various forums and the like to see if anyone's figured it out...no luck. The best anyone suggested was last.fm, but their system is at best flawed; it told me I listened to Paramore's version of "My Hero" 11 times in one week, but it failed to acknowledge that 10 of those 11 times were actually in the same 3 minute period and thus was only 1 listen. All the other patches and such haven't worked either.

Paramore - My Hero [iTunes] (via YouSendit)
[and now SaveFile is on the fritz...why is nothing working?]

(One more thing about last.fm: has anyone else noticed that it's not scrobbling everything that gets played? Last night I played through the entire new 3 Doors Down album, but it only scrobbled 4 of the 12 tracks. Anyone else notice this problem?)

I'm also trying to fill in all the blanks for the info on all my songs, ie year, genre, etc. I've gotten all the years down, save for the weird stuff (TV themes, drumline stuff), but I'm finding genre to be an issue because there are too many options. Wondering if anyone has any way to make that job easier.

And lastly because as I type this my brother is IMing me about it, my bro's computer crashed and he's trying to get iTunes to work again. iTunes still thinks that his computer pre-crash is authorized to play stuff, and when he authorizes it now, its counting it as a second computer (I hope that makes sense to someone besides me). I told him to contact Apple and make them fix it, but if whoever reads this knows something we don't, drop a comment and you'd have both our thanks.

Expect a review of that 3 Doors Down album next week, as well as a follow-up on one of my Under the Radar bands.

==TJ==

New Music From The Crash Motive Streaming on MySpace

First, apologies to my normal readers for the Idol themed tangent this week. I'm past it now and giving you more normal posts. Thanks for indulging me.

Over the last week Newark, Delaware based band-that-more-people-need-to-know-about The Crash Motive released five new tracks that will comprise its new EP. The EP, entitled Just Because It Never Happened Don't Mean It Won't, is slated for a late summer release, and marks the second offering from the band in the last year.

The songs on Just Because It Never Happened Don't Mean It Won't (tangent: Yes, I am going to write out the full title every time, because I think it's fantastic.) are a continuation of the best material from their debut album Consequence. The Crash Motive are at their best when they're trying to fill an arena, and that huge rock sound is all over this new EP. They show off the slower, piano-based stuff a little bit as well, but even that's got a grander, more epic touch to it, drifting away from the mishmashed tracks of old. The biggest problem on Consequence was when TCM wasn't sure what they were doing on a given song, i.e. the tready "Home to Home". Everything on Just Because It Never Happened Don't Mean It Won't has a purpose, and it serves that purpose; nothing more, nothing less.

Opener "Walk All Over Me" starts things off with swagger, with a drum groove worthy of a fist pump and a chorus that mixes the attitude of Maroon 5 with the balls of early Green Day. "You Can't Know It All" lets frontman Derek Fuhrmann show off an awesome guitar line and another brilliant chorus. If TCM know how to do anything, it's how to write a chorus that'll get people screaming and jumping along (and maybe get an appearance on ESPN). "You Can't Know It All" has the potential to be a hell of a live track in the right circumstances. Easily the highlight of this EP.

"Heavy", oddly enough, brings in the piano and offers up the closest thing to a ballad that The Crash Motive will provide. Fuhrmann channels some Bryan Adams (in the best possible way), and the result is a solid power-pop track on par with anything else they've done. This may be the weakest thing on Just Because It Never Happened Don't Mean It Won't, but that's in no way a negative. "Don't Shut Your Eyes" is another slowed down track, with instrumentals in the same ballpark as Snow Patrol, and another notch in the uplifting alternative rock category. Closing out the EP is "The Sound Of Our Lies", which lyrically might be the best song The Crash Motive have ever written. They take the Maroon 5 falsetto formula and infuse it with some rock and roll, and make it far more palatable than the former ever have. I hope Adam Levine is taking notes.

Just Because It Never Happened Don't Mean It Won't is a big step forward for The Crash Motive. I can't wait to hear this in full CD quality instead of the craptastic MySpace streaming bitrate. TCM find their niche with this EP, and with any luck future albums will carry the same mix of swagger and emotion that they're showing off now.

Just Because It Never Happened Don't Mean It Won't is streaming on The Crash Motive's Myspace page right now, and will be released sometime this summer.

The Crash Motive on MySpace

==TJ==

The Train Wreck That Was/Is AI Season 7

So I'm looking back on my notes from the running diary of last night's Idol...and I hate it. I don't know how Idolator managed to make theirs interesting, but mine's pretty lame. So in lieu of that, some rumblings from last night's episode, as taken from said diary.

-Number of times a contestant cried during the hour broadcast: 3 (all during the going home montages). David Cook did the best job of hiding it, but he squirted some too. Syesha was remarkably steadfast in her final song, which leads me to believe that a) she was determined to go out with some dignity, or b) she knew as well as everyone else that she was done this week and got her tears out last night.

-Estimated number of montages: 5, including that positively absurd one with the shameless Ford promotion in it. Are we really so shallow as to believe that Archuleta is gonna have piano by a reflecting pool and Cook will own a dozen cars?

Oh, wait...we are? Right. This is American Idol.

-Just once I'd like Ryan Seacrest to introduce himself as "your Captain Obvious for tonight's show." At least we'd know that's what his purpose was, beyond standing there looking only slightly less awkward than David Archuleta.

-Speaking of which, if Idol gave out points for personality, it'd be a whole different ballgame. Syesha had the advantage of not only being articulate on camera, but actually having some degree of presence when she's on TV. Archuleta was a goofy, plastered-on smiling dork who couldn't get three words out at a time. Cook probably has some real personality, but the whole rockstar image won't let much of it out, which is kind of a shame.

-David Cook definitely had the coolest coming home segment. Private jet, concert in front of a bazillion people, cheerleaders, and he threw out the first pitch at a baseball game (so what if it was the Royals?).

-Fantasia's performance = (Mary J Blige + P!nk + Janis Joplin) - Sexy

-Estimated number of potential movie plots from this season of AI: 2. One for David Cook being the guy who auditions on a whim and wins it all, and oh yeah, one for the whole thing being fixed. Maybe a third that ties the two together?

-On a scale from 1 to 10, how excited is Jason Castro about the summer tour? If this video is any indication, I'd say about a -32.

-You have to love how Seacrest blatantly plugged next season's subplot when he asks if we'll see David Cook's brother next year. Also noted is his mother's adamant head-shaking in the foreground as lil' Cook answers.

-By my count there have been 3 uses of material by Chris Daughtry on the show in the last two years; "Home" as the kicked-off song last year, his appearance on Idol Gives Back and "What About Now" during one of the montages. I can't decide if the obvious use of Daughtry's success is Idol's retroactive apology for showing him the door, or a backhanded "You're Welcome". Leaning toward the latter.

-Having watched just this one episode, I kind of feel bad for Syesha. She definitely got shafted, and she's a hell of a lot more interesting to watch than Archuleta, and has at least as much talent as Cook.

I think that's the best of what I got. In closing, running diaries are good for long events like the Grammys, but I don't know how to make an hour long show worth the trouble. As for the season, we all know what's gonna happen. Sit back and watch the carnage, or just go on with your life as usual. Six months from now when Spygate: Idol Edition breaks, look for me to be leaning against a wall, arms folded in self-satisfaction.

And yes, I am rooting for David Cook, despite the fix. (Memo to iTunes: PLEASE get his studio version of "Baba O'Riley" up)

David Cook - Let's Go

==TJ==

Pissing Off The FOX Execs...And Having A Damn Good Time Doing It

So I've been thinking about trying to do a running diary of tonight's American Idol results show when we prove once and for all that the whole damn thing's rigged, but I haven't decided yet. Over the course of all seven seasons of Idol, I estimate I've watched about 20 minutes of the show (about 15 of those minutes came when I discovered the awesome that is Chris Daughtry...and no, I'm not ashamed to say that). Furthermore, I question how much I really want to help FOX keep its chokehold on America with this dreck. And lastly, I'm currently in the middle of my second play-through of David Cook's independent release Analog Heart, which popped up on one of my forums after being pulled from AmazonMP3.

Let's get one thing straight; nothing on Analog Heart is particularly original. If it were, Cook wouldn't be trying to garner success on a reality show right now. Snarky comparisons to 90s post-grunge bands are in fact accurate. But with rock and roll music increasingly catering to either a) looks and aesthetic (See Also: Seether), or b) overall weirdness and rejection of the expected (See Also: Vampire Weekend...ugh), it's good to see David Cook focus more on the crafting of a song and making something has some tune and fun, even if it means some blatant worship of Collective Soul, Soundgarden, and the like. If you're willing to take a look at it, there's actually some potentially great material on Analog Heart.

Ruling on the Field: 6.5/10

David Cook - Straight Ahead

Eat that, FOX. In the words of the newly revived Pretty Much Amazing..."Yeah Bitch."

==TJ==

PS: In all likelihood there will be a running diary of tonight's Idol

Why, God, WHY Do I Like Metro Station??

In the interest of being in touch with some of what's been making waves in the pop/rock world whilst I was lost in other realms, I downloaded a metric ton of albums off Ruckus. You'll get quickie reviews of a lot of those later this week (I'll do 'em all at once since I'd be gypping you guys with a bunch of entries that have no MP3s to boot), but one of these albums I felt needed it's own review for any number of reasons.

I've heard the name "Metro Station" tossed out a number of times over the past few weeks, but knew little to nothing of their music. While on my Ruckus rampage, I downloaded it on a whim before learning anything about who they were. Looking back, by all accounts I should hate, loathe, and despise Metro Station for any number of reasons, among them:

-They owe their existence to Hannah Montana (I don't care how gloriously catchy her music is...just NO).
-Their nearest musical neighbors are Hellogoodbye (bleck) and exclamation-point-era Panic! At the Disco.
-Their first tour experience was the "Really Really Ridiculously Good Looking Tour" with Cobra Starship. Seriously? Why don't you just change your names to "Nondescript Talentless MySpace Band"?

In theory, those marks should have been strikes 1-13 against them, and the album would have gotten at best a formality of a listen. The thing is...I kind of loved it.

On the surface Metro Station’s eponymous debut is a teeny-bopper album for vaguely rebellious high school freshmen. The shameless use of synths and drum machines reek of Hellogoodbye's immaturity, but lyrically Metro Station scores points in that, unlike many of their apparent influences, they make sense. Beneath that Disney Channel surface, there's a real urgency in the music; Metro Station sound like teenagers trying to convince their parents to let them take the car out by themselves for the first time (I mean that in the best possible way). The subject matter seems pretty firmly rooted in boys and girls and the relationships thereof, but there's a maturity in it that lends itself well to wildly inappropriate statutory jokes. Leadoff track "Seventeen Forever" sets the carpe diem tone well, and follow-up "Control" straddles the line between "adult" themes of alcohol and cigarettes and that ongoing teen romance.

(Tangent: "Control"'s bridge goes "I'm coming down/Bring me up/Take it off/Let's just touch". Everytime that last line was said, I was holding my breath for the time the word "touch" was something different. Judging by Trace Cyrus's delivery, its pretty easy to hear he wanted it.)

Lead single "Shake It" is par for the course for Metro Station; a song that you feel like you should hate, but find yourself loving for its youthful musings on sex and romance. The downside to Metro Station is that it is very much on one note emotionally. By the three-quarter mark on the album, you kinda get the point; "We're still young, but not for much longer, let's make out and maybe do a bit more". The short track lengths--only one track breaks the 3:30 marker-- keep things simple for the attention-deprived among us and also make things all sorts of club-ready, but leave you wanting a bit more by the time the last track ends.

Overall, this is still a solid first outing for a band that doesn't need much talent to sell records. There's plenty of room for growth here, and I'd love to hear Metro Station's first LP as legal adults, but Metro Station is a thoroughly enjoyable listen for just about anyone, except maybe the paranoid mothers of 16-year old highschoolers.

Ruling on the Field: 7.5/10

Highlight Reel: Shake It

(Only track I could MP3, but I still fantastic)

==TJ==

Viva La Mainstream's Obligatory Idol Post

Anyone who reads Idolator, or any other music blog, is aware of the fact that there is overwhelming evidence in favor of the notion that this season's American Idol is gloriously rigged. The benefactors of this fix are former Star Search contestant David Archuleta and grunge-worshipper David Cook, whose album Analog Heart hit #1 on AmazonMP3, only to be squelched by Fox execs wanting to keep the popularity of contestants secret and untainted (read: make sure their guy wins). I've never bothered to watch the show, but if I had to guess how the rest of the season plays out, it would be as follows: Syesha goes home this week, setting up an all-male finale with a million subplots (both have already had success elsewhere, both named David, two totally different styles, and now Archuleta's father is banned from the backstage). Archuleta wins the contest, as hoped for by the Powers That Be, with Cook coming in second. Both get their inevitable record deals, and in a snafu remarkably similar to the Ruben Studdard/Clay Aiken situation (Ruben one, but Clay outsold him by miles), Cook's debut album is a runaway success, while Archie's fizzles out.

Best case scenario, however, has David Cook sent home this week. That way, Cook can still sign a decent record deal where he actually gets to write some of his material on his debut, and isn't stuck with crappy songs that may have been tossed around a few different times. Don't expect me to watch any of the finale, but at least now you have my thoughts.

In keeping with the AI theme of this post, I present to you an EP of stuff from Absent Element, the band fronted by former contestant-turned-rockstar Chris Daughtry. From the looks of it this is pretty exclusive, since nowhere else I know of had it (I got it a year ago from one of my music forums and have sat on it till now). This stuff is much harder than anything on his debut, and a hell of a lot less radio friendly. This might've been what we got had Daughtry not done as well as he did on the show. I'll let you decide whether we're better off or not. For what it's worth, "Break Down" and "Conviction" from this set ultimately became "Breakdown" on the full album. Anyway, have at it, and I'll be back later. Expect a slew of reviews this week now that I have free time again.

Uprooted EP
Absent Element - Break Down
Absent Element - Conviction
Absent Element - Weaker Side
Absent Element - So I Lie Awake
Absent Element - Seven4
Absent Element - Let Me In
Absent Element - Keep Me Close

==TJ==

PS This entry is a test of Blogger's future-post function. I'm typing this 12 hours before the timestamp on this entry. Um, yeah...woohoo!

EDIT: Fixed the goofiness with the links. That'll teach me to be so liberal with my shortcuts :).

Weekend WTF Is Back for A Limited Engagement

Posts will be a bit more frequent now that I'm out of school, starting with this one-off return of the Weekend WTF.

About a year ago an artist billed only as Sad Kermit dropped a video of Kermit the Frog performing Johnny Cash's version of (Band who's name I can't say due to a previous restriction)'s "Hurt". Earlier this week some more tracks popped up to the surface, including this take on Radiohead's "Creep". The voice is so uncanny it makes the whole damn thing funny, and its all topped off by a guest appearance by Animal for the bridge.

Sad Kermit - Creep (Radiohead Cover)
Sad Kermit's Official Website

==TJ==

Jimmy Eat World Goes For A Double Dip, and Actually Succeeds (Mostly)

So I have no idea why the font went all crazy in the last post; for some reason Blogger decides to screw things up whenever I try to use blockquotes. Anywho.

I tend to have mixed feelings about the whole notion of deluxe re-issues of albums. When I'm a casual fan of an artist or I don't have a particular album, they're a great way for me to get lots of new material from the band and help decide if it's worth buying more stuff (Such is how I found myself to be a fan of The Who). But when I already have the album, it's frustrating to see a whole bunch of potentially exciting new material available for an outrageous price. Then there are the times when I see a "Deluxe Edition" for an album that really doesn't need it; in my mind this new wave of 2-Disc sets should be reserved for classic albums (Tommy, Legend, and the like) that have achieved some kind of significance. Sorry, but 3 Doors Down have not reached a point where a 2-Disc edition of The Better Life is warranted. Nor have the Gin Blossoms deserved a re-up of New Miserable Experience.

With that in mind, you can understand my ambivalence toward the re-issue of Jimmy Eat World's 2001 hit album Bleed American (re-named Jimmy Eat World after 9/11, it's now being billed by its creative title for the re-up). The album's not even a decade old, the band has an album with a slew of singles that they're just letting die (not sure that's all their fault though; I suspect foul play on the part of the label wanting another "The Middle" caliber hit), and I already have the original album (albeit a digital rip on my computer from my brother, a big JEW fan who bought the CD on its original release). At the same time, the 21 bonus tracks on the new version are, just by looking at the listing, are well worth it. Furthermore, Jimmy Eat World did what other bands aren't doing and releasing the bouns tracks a la carte and not them "Album Only" tracks (though the volume of tracks compared to the price make it cheaper to just buy the whole thing). Thanks to a little help from some friends online, I managed to get the bonus tracks through illicit means, bypassing the "buy what you already have" quandary.

I wasn't in love with Bleed American the first time I heard it, most likely because I was taken aback by something so intelligent from the same band that scored a hit off "The Middle" and the ensuing video. But after a number of listens I found a love for it. Jimmy Eat World broke the stereotype of pop-punk bands being juvenile and thoughtless with this album. For every "The Middle" and "Bleed American" there is on the album, there's a beautiful, well crafted tune like "Cautioners" or the tearjerking "Hear You Me" to balance it out. On top of that, single-worthy album cuts like "The Authority Song" and "Your House" make the album a fun listen from front to back. Even when things slow down near the end, that's all it does. Boring moments in the core 11 songs are few and far between on Bleed American.

The bonus tracks tell a similar tale. The 3 B-sides on the first disc fit in seamlessly, particularly "Splash, Turn and Twist" and "No Sensitivity", tracks that easily fit in among the best of the band's canon. The demos are especially interesting, for no other reason than hearing the original draft of lyrics for certain songs ("The Authority Song" demo leaps to mind). The live tracks, on the other hand, are a mixed bag; when JEW plays acoustic or in a small setting, they sound great, exactly how I'd want to hear them in concert. But on some of the bigger, full-band tracks, they falter, especially in Jim Adkins' voice (the live version of "Bleed American" is a tough listen, and the live "Sweetness" is saved by the stellar instrumentals). To put the bonus disc over the top, the band added some fan favorite B-Sides previously hard-to-find in America, like the cover of Prodigy's "Firestarter" and "Last Christmas".

Overall the re-release of Bleed American is excellent, and everything I'd want in a deluxe edition. This would have been a perfect release were it to come out 10 years from now, when we're all looking back on the albums that mattered in the early 00's. The thing is, Jimmy Eat World still have plenty of steam left in them, and I feel like doing a deluxe edition in lieu of a potential monster hit of a third single past Chase This Light (I still think that releasing either the title track or "Dizzy" would give them the biggest hit of their career) is a huge momentum killer.
So while I'm glad I heard these tracks, and will probably shell out 20 bucks to buy the CDs, I can't help but ask, why?

Ruling on the Field: 8.5/10
Highlight Reel: The Authority Song (Demo), Splash, Turn and Twist [iTunes]


==TJ==

NIN, Offspring Buy A Round for Fans

As expected by just about everyone, yesterday Nine Inch Nails released their newest album entitled The Slip to their website, free to fans. So read a statement from Trent Reznor on nin.com:

(thank you for your continued and loyal support over the years - this one's on me)

The album is available in every digital format imaginable, and in true NIN style, all 10 tracks are available for remixing. For the fans that enjoy holding music in their hands, a CD release is expected in the summer, but like with Ghosts, the digital version and CD are identical in sound quality, so the only difference is the ability to hold it in your hands.

Contrary to speculation by myself and other blogs, The Slip is NOT Year Zero 2.0. It is a completely separate entity combining the best of With Teeth (such as it was), Year Zero, and Ghosts I-IV. Musically this might be the best thing I've ever heard NIN do. It packs the same angsty, emotional punch of previous work, puts it behind a manic blend of grotesquely danceable hooks and drum beats (as best heard on first single "Discipline") and grinding synths and guitars (see also "Letting You") that would make unsuspecting listeners' ears bleed. Lyrically this is a different animal than Year Zero. I think I'm one of the few people who at least liked for the songwriting, and those strengths came through on this album. And then there are the two surprisingly chill instrumental tracks near the homestretch that lead into the final punch of "Demon Seed". Overall in the last three months Nine Inch Nails has released two quality albums that bloggers would be remiss to let slip by unnoticed when it comes time for the Best of '08 revues. It's too early to hand the prize to Trent for The Slip, but there's no denying the mark NIN has left on this year.

Ruling on the Field: 9/10
Highlight Reel: Echoplex, The Four of Us Are Dying
(The downloads are really just a formality so I can get picked up by Hype Machine. Go get the full album from nin.com. It's free and amazing. You have no excuse.)

And with that I am delcaring a one-month moratorium on NIN-related posts, barring Trent Reznor announcing his candidacy for president between now and then.

Also joining the free music party yesterday were The Offspring, following Coldplay's footsteps and releasing "Hammerhead", the first single from this summer's Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, as a free download. "Hammerhead" is classic Offspring with a bit of a twist in the style of new Green Day. Those soaring harmonies are still there (one of my favorite things about the Offspring), and it's still fast paced punk rock, but there's something bigger about it. "Hammerhead" is a bit more arena-ready than I've ever heard The Offspring, and more power to them for it. I don't think that means we should expect a new take on American Idiot with the new album, just a broader sound this time out. I've never actually bought an Offspring CD, but at this rate I just might give Rise and Fall, Rage And Grace a shot.

"Hammerhead" is still available for download at theoffspring.com

I will be back sometime in the next 24 hours with reviews of some traditionally-released stuff from the last week or two (namely the Jimmy Eat World re-issue).

==TJ==

Second Verse Same As The First: NIN Drops A New Song

Weekend WTF is on hiatus until I find another track worthy of the name.

In the meantime, the first of two NIN-related posts this week. While randomly searching around Facebook today, I came across ANOTHER new track from NIN. It appears that Trent dropped a second song, "Echoplex" by way of the Facebook application iLike. It should be noted that there is precedent for this, as U2 debuted new music from its Joshua Tree re-issue last November. The track has the same cryptic message in the tags, urging listeners to visit nin.com on May 5th (that's just over 23 hours away as I type this). Since word of a presale is already available on the website, I am now convinced that the sequel to Year Zero will drop on the 5th. Hopefully the whole shebang runs smoother than the mess that trying to download Ghosts was. Ladies and gentlemen, call me excited.

My roomate's weird-ass music is getting in the way of me hearing "Echoplex", so I will give it a shot tomorrow, but I'm posting it below in the interest of giving it to those without Facebooks. I'll be back in 24 hours when nin.com updates again.

Nine Inch Nails - Echoplex
(c) 2008 Nin

NIN official website
NIN on iLike

==TJ==