Fall Out Boy Show Madness, Yet There Is Method To It

Did you know Fall Out Boy were releasing a new record on Tuesday? If you did, you seem to be in the minority. The once ubiquitous punk band have but one mild radio hit in play right now in "I Don't Care" (#22 on the Top 40 this week). It's true, Folie A Deux lacks the immediate gratification that previous FOB albums gave, but this album signals Fall Out Boy's graduation from the standard pop-punk outift into a smarter, diverse band. Give it a chance, and Folie A Deux will reward time and again.

It takes the better part of the first song "Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes" for Fall Out Boy to get into a rhythm that can resonate with listeners (I bought in right around the chanting "Detox just to Retox!"). Unlike their previous work, Fall Out Boy seem less interested in making music that gets people singing along and more interested in making people shut up and listen to what they're trying to say. Whereas other albums featured a good blend between Pat Stump/Pete Wentz's lyrics and the tight music, this one's all about Pete Wentz's take on fame, fatherhood, and politics. On "I Don't Care" Stump defiantly declares "I don't care what you think as long as it's about me". Likewise "Headfirst Slide into Cooperstown on A Bad Bet" has the band singing "I will never end up like him / behind my back I already am". Make no mistake; there's nothing stupid about this record.

That said, the emphasis on substance over spectacle makes it a more difficult listen. With no herpes-esque infectious hooks to force listeners to come back, individual tracks on the album are far less memorable. Lil Wayne helps keep things fun on "Tiffany Blews", and "The (Shipped) Gold Standard" stands out as a surprise favorite amongst the hit-and-miss later tracks. There's nothing wrong musically here, it's just not what listeners or radio programmers have come to expect from the guys who wrote "Dance, Dance".

Folie A Deux is already drawing comparisons to modern punk classics American Idiot and The Black Parade. While this record may match those in sheer ambition and scope, Fall Out Boy come up short here in regards to making something I can imagine going back to years from now when I want something representative of the rest of their career. All in all I see it more as an equivalent to Magical Mystery Tour, with a lot of great ideas and great passion in the music, but trying too hard to say something and forgetting that it's supposed to be musically pleasing too.

Final Score: 7/10
Fall Out Boy - The (Shipped) Gold Standard
Fall Out Boy - Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes
Buy Folie A Deux on iTunes today

Ringleader, Celebrity or Queen, Britney's Back for Real This Time

Finals week and a failing computer made blogging damn near impossible last week, but fear not. I plan to make up for it this week, with at least one post tonight, and more coming in the next few days. Now, to my much-delayed review of Circus, Britney Spears' much anticipated second comeback record in as many years.

After leaving listeners scratching their heads with last years rushed, overproduced Blackout, Spears returns with the record she should have come back with. Circus is an honest, enjoyable listen that proves that Britney still has some talent lying around someplace. First single "Womanizer" is unabashedly fun and a return to the sex-driven pop that made Spears famous a decade ago. Circus looks, sounds and feels like what we should be expecting from a now 27-year-old pop princess of yore. The music is still brilliantly catchy, alluring to men and women alike (for varying reasons, mind you), and yet, you can still catch glimpses of how weary Spears is from the last few years. The token ballad "Out From Under" would fit in just as well on any previous Spears record, and "My Baby", an obvious tribute to her children, may not fit in with the rest of the album quite so nicely, but its no fault of Britney since its just as powerful a song.

That said, the album shines brightest when its fast and club-ready. The title track is the kind of song that proves folks like Avril Lavigne and the interminable Katy Perry owe us an apology for half-assing it. Likewise the already controversial "If U Seek Amy" (say that title very fast) probably has Lavigne and Perry cursing their songwriters for not coming up with something so brilliant and so raunchy first. All of the latent sex appeal that made Spears such a hot topic 10 years ago comes out of hiding on Circus as she stops giving a damn what critics and parents might say; she is one now, and she's just fine with what she's doing, thank you very much.

Overall Britney Spears delivers a shining moment in pop music in a year that's been marred with a bunch of would-be's trying to take her place. Katy Perry was just keeping the throne warm for a little bit, and Spears takes her place once more. Long live the queen.

Final Score: 8/10
Britney Spears - Circus

Back later this week with a much more timely review of the new Fall Out Boy record, plus my take on last week's GRAMMY nominations.

==TJ==

Kanye Gives Us his Broadway Moment

Re-posted with streams instead of links

In theater we describe musicals as being scenarios where the stakes get so high that characters can't express themselves through words anymore; they feel so strongly about the given situation that they have to sing. That same idea is what drives Kanye West's new album, the remarkably divisive 808's & Heartbreak. Released less than a year after the death of West's mother and breaking up with his fiancee, 808's presents a drastically different side of the self-proclaimed voice of this generation. While purist rap fans will scoff at West's turn toward unfiltered emotion and honesty, those willing to let Kanye pour his soul out on his terms (and really, after the hits he's given us, don't we owe him that much?) will find an arresting, albeit flawed listen.

808's and Heartbreak features none of the ego and spectacle that's made Kanye West a household name. The album opens with West letting his barriers down to show that he's really hurting on "Say You Will". Between the warbling "hey, hey, hey, hey"s and the admissions that he misses the mystery girl, it's hard to suggest the hurt is anything but genuine. On the first single "Love Lockdown" 'Ye switches gears and becomes the one dealing out the hurt, declaring "Where I want to go / I don't need you". "Paranoid" and "Heartless" are the two songs closest in style to the West of old, with bouncy choruses and a touch of self-confidence, while "Amazing" lets Kanye's ego out for a little sun, while letting Kanye get to work his pipes (and Auto-Tune). The heart-wrenching closer "Coldest Winter" brings the record full circle, offering an emotionally charged tribute to Kanye's mother. Across the board 808's and Heartbreak is an honest record, immortalizing West's feelings in a style far different than anything we've heard from the man before now.

Kanye's feelings and passion are palpable throughout every track, and for the most part that carries this record a long way. Moments where other artists would sound cringe-inducingly bad are forgiven here because it's accepted that Kanye must be really commited to a song if he's willing to sing rather than rap it. That said, West is still a rapper first and foremost, and he's not ready to make the jump completely on this record, which hurts the product in some spots. "Amazing" sounds like it belongs, but its message doesn't fit the theme of the rest of the album, and his collaboration with Lil' Wayne "See You In My Nightmares" feels forced into this album, not really belonging in any sense. I applaud Kanye for taking a sharp turn out of his comfort zone and being fully committed to that turn for the most part, but this is by no means a perfect album.

808's and Heartbreak will likely be remembered as Kanye letting off steam in the wake of an unimaginably difficult year. it's very much a product of what Kanye was feeling in this present moment, and I don't foresee West continuing this path on the next album. Having said that, Kanye West has taken a jump with his music that few artists in any genre dare make, and for that it's only fair to give Kanye massive amounts of credit for his effort.

Final Score: 6.5/10

Kanye West - Heartless


Kanye West - Street Lights



==TJ==

At Long Last, A Chinese Democracy Review (And I'm Not Kidding This Time)

I have a much different angle on Chinese Democracy than most of my blogging peers. When Use Your Illusion came out, I was probably sitting in front of a TV watching Sesame Street at the tender age of 2 years, 11 months (This is where I duck while my peers throw things at me for making them feel old). I haven't waited 17 years, endured the countless broken promises and trainwrecks that led to yesterday's unimaginable final chapter. I came into this story far later, as a music fan who discovered GN'R well after the original lineup abandoned ship, when the mythical album had already become a punchline. So for me Chinese Democracy's release is much more of a historically significant event, rather than the emotional release that Guns N' Roses fans of old might be feeling right now. But I digress. The point is, Chinese Democracy is real (the album anyway), and while those waiting 17 years might feel a bit let down, it's still a damn fine album, and certainly not lacking in anything fans want in a Guns N' Roses record.

The title track takes a full minute to get going, but by the 61st second guns are blazing. It's fast, it's dirty, and Axl isn't interested in easing people in. Rose may be 46 years old, but you couldn't tell from his voice. The song sounds dangerous, ballsy; like the GN'R of old. From there we get "Shackler's Revenge", which keeps things fast and rocking, but former guitarist Buckethead's avant-garde texturing bogs the track down. If someone wants to pick apart Chinese Democracy, they'd do well to start with Buckethead. His work is admirable standing alone, but on this record it takes songs that could be humongous rock songs and sucks the hook out of them, turning them into artsy, atmospheric sludge. Think Radiohead cranked up to 11. The worst example is "Sorry", a 6-minute would-be opus that has Axl bearing all, while the rest of the band does little more than mark time.

Rose, on the other hand, is in top form. The two ballads "Street of Dreams" and "This I Love" let Axl pour his heart out while the strings and keys play on. On the other hand "Riad N' The Bedouins" is a gem, a sign that the Guns N' Roses that rose to the top with "Paradise City" isn't gone forever. Second single "Better" gets better with every listen, the kind of track that modern rock needs to hear right now (take notes, Three Days Grace). The whole record feels very precise, as though nearly two decades of work went into every note, line and phrase of the album (wait...). More often than not Rose's perfectionism pays off, as the record manages to balance sounding clean and professional and being truly rock and roll. "Better" is a very polished affair, but still makes room for Axl's gut-wrenching growl to show through. "Madagascar"'s sampling of speeches in the bridge is pure production, but is among the best songs Chinese Democracy offers. As a whole, as Axl goes, so goes the album.

The simple fact that Chinese Democracy is on store shelves makes it a memorable release. The fact that its so excellent is just an added bonus. People who've waited 17 years might not find it to be all they hoped for, but that's a result of the lack of Slash, Izzy and Duff on this record. If you go in accepting the fact that you're not hearing the explosive lineup that sold millions of records in the 90s, you're bound to hear something truly enjoyable. Axl Rose can sleep soundly tonight knowing he's done well. Let's just hope I'm not 37 when the next Guns N' Roses album comes out.

Final Score: 9/10

==TJ==

The Killers Lay Tribute At the Altar of All Things '80s

[Hey Hype Machine readers: Most of my posts aren't being picked up anymore as a result of me trying to dodge Blogger's anti-DMCA iron fist. If you're reading this on hypem, bookmark me the old-fashioned way (Ctrl+D) and check back regularly for mp3 goodies and some awesome music stuff.]

The Killers are many things, but bashful sure as hell ain't one of 'em. The Las Vegas band's debut Hot Fuss was pure 80s glam worship at its finest, making it one of the surprise hits of 2004. After letting Brandon Flowers indulge his Springsteen fantasies on their slightly misguided Sam's Town and blowing off steam with the Sawdust compilation, The Killers come back reaching for the sky and ready to work this year with the bombastic Day and Age. This new record is a recognizable third step in the band's progression, taking the best elements of the two previous records and creating a monster of an album that is nothing if not grand, fun, and completely lacking in apologies.

Day and Age comes in with full '80s bombast in the form of "Losing Touch", a track that mixes the synthesized wonder of Hot Fuss's "Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine" with the brass-band, blue-collar rock that permeated Sam's Town. From there the album doesn't skip too many beats, offering loud, sing-with-the-windows-down fun rock music. Flowers' lyrics make about as much sense as they always have (read: not too much, but who cares?), but when the melodies touch the sky and the music forbids you to listen sitting down, the indulgent musing is forgivable. First single "Human" gets better with every listen, and matches nearly every single The Killers have ever released (except maybe the epic "All These Things That I've Done"). "Joy Ride" is another bouncy, unwavering classic in the making. If you get the leaked version that I snagged or the iTunes release, bonus track "Forget About What I Said" is the kind of song you put on repeat for an hour and just enjoy however you choose. The only false note on the entire album is the closer "Goodnight, Travel Well". For some reason The Killers seem to think they need to announce when they're done playing with a song saying just that. The sooner Flowers and co. realize they can just leave the stage with a final bang, the better their records will get.

Day and Age resembles what would happen if The Police and Bruce Springsteen got into a marching-band style war, each trying to outplay the other. The winner here is whoever's listening. The Killers sound like they hit their mark in full force this time around. There's no hesitation whatsoever on this record, and certainly no shame. Day and Age is a sweeping, unapologetic tribute to the glam, the goof, and the ego that the 80s embodied. And damn it if Day and Age isn't the best job the Killers have ever done to pay homage. By putting forth significantly less effort, The Killers have put together their finest work to date, an album that rewards with every trip through.

Final Score: 9/10
The Killers - Human
The Killers - Joy Ride
Pre-Order/Buy Day and Age on iTunes

==TJ==

PS: Check out the poll question in the sidebar at the top of the page.

David Cook's Record Everything We Thought Nickelback's New One Would Be

Finding a copy of David Cook's self-titled record proved much harder than I initially thought. My usual seedy sources came up short, and the leak that was circulating above ground was of poor quality. So it was only yesterday when I finally got to listen to the bugger. In truth, knowing what I know now, I probably could've stood to wait a bit longer.

David Cook's post-American Idol record is exactly what so many feared it would be. The rock influence that won Cook so many fans on Idol is virtually nonexistent on the album. In its place is shlocky, paint-by-numbers radio fare that has a decent shot on radio, but is utterly devoid of the balls that Cook displayed earlier this year. "Declaration" sets the stage for the rest of the album with a below-average anthem in the vein of Collective Soul and Nickelback. Except its nowhere near the quality of either. "Permanent" is as dry and boring as a ballad could possibly be, and "Life on the Moon" is an awkward, unimaginitive affair. Nothing on this record, not the songwriting, not the music, not a damn thing matches up to Cook's work with Axium or the oft-bootlegged Analog Heart.

The album is saved from completely crapping the bed with glimmers of hope like "Bar-Ba-Sol" which actually shows off some testosterone in its up-tempo pace and less than pristine drums. "A Daily AntheM" is perhaps the most honest moment we hear on this record, a slightly better than expected tribute to Cook's brother (the capitalized letters spell lil' Cook's name). But even that doesn't match up to "AC", the song he did with Axium. And Cook gets his growl back on on "Kiss on the Neck", perhaps the finest overall track in this set. There's one problem though; "Kiss on the Neck" is the hidden track, appearing ten minutes after the last song. David Cook feels mismanaged, overproduced, and ultimately underwhelming.

As I tend to do in moments like this, I blame the label. Cook's label wanted so badly to score some cash in the form of radio play that they abandoned what made him popular in the first place in favor for their tired, established method. The songwriting, which Cook helped with, is good, but not nearly as good as anything Cook has written by himself (see: Analog Heart). The extra 'help' on the record makes it sound less like Cook himself and more like the people who got to put their hand in the cookie jar. It basically comes down to there being too many "Cooks" in the kitchen, when in reality one could've done a much better job. I can only hope that Cook gets another record and take the few successes from this botched, forced attempt and use them as a new foundation.

I can't believe I'm about to type this next sentence, but here goes. If you find yourself with 10 bucks to burn on music tomorrow, skip over this and pick up Nickelback's new album. It's far more consistent, and believe it or not, it's much better written and performed than anything on this abortion of a record.

Final Score: 4.5/10

==TJ==

Review: Nickelback - Dark Horse

Chances are not many folks are going to take the time to review the new album from Nickelback and will instead just give it a categorical thrashing. So when the album leaked earlier this week I allowed my curiosity (and yes, my casual fandom) to get the better of me and I grabbed a copy of Dark Horse, the band's sixth record.

Produced by Mutt Lange, Dark Horse is in many ways a far cry from the band's 2005 monster All the Right Reasons. The tone is nastier, slightly more reminiscent of the band's breakthrough Silver Side Up. Leadoff track "Something In Your Mouth" is a stripper anthem a la Buckcherry's "Crazy Bitch" that's about as raunchy as the title suggests. The band goes even more balls-out on "Burn it to the Ground", a riot-inducing track that would make even Rage Against the Machine proud. On top of those is the album highlight "Next Go Round", which takes the hair-metal influence the band failed to get right on the last record ("Animals", anyone?) and puts a shotgun to its head. Let it be known here that the common complaint that Nickelback lacks spine is irrelevant. But Nickelback (and Mutt Lange's) greatest success here is getting Chad Kroeger to remove the pole from his ass. For the first time it sounds like Nickelback are actually having fun with these songs. Few moments here feel forced, and where Reasons album closer "Rockstar" quickly became the biggest joke in rock music this decade, this time around "This Afternoon" has a low-key, everyman quality to it that lends itself better to a drunken singalong.

That said, the Candian quartet is still very much interested in getting people to hear the music, hence the smattering of radio-friendly cuts here. "I'd Come For You" has some glaring comparisons to Mutt Lange's last production effort, Shania Twain's Up!. First single "Gotta Be Somebody" will rear its head once more in time for prom season, and Tim McGraw probably deserves a writing credit on "If Today Was Your Last Day" (the lyrics positively wreak of "Live Like You Were Dying"). But even these songs are nothing like the recycled tuneage of All The Right Reasons or the stinker that was The Long Road.

In spite of its successes, you can't help but remember once in awhile that this is indeed still a Nickelback record. The chorus to "S.E.X" is a takeoff of an old joke that every college frat boy has heard or told a thousand times "Sex is always the answer / It's never a question / 'Cause the answer's yes". Groan. Likewise "Never Gonna Be Alone" is a straightforward, boring affair that sounds like it was piecemealed together from "If Today Was Your Last Day" and "Gotta Be Somebody". And overall it just feels a bit too polished. Lange's production is good on the singles, but a bit overdone on the real rockers on the album. It kind of feels like a college dorm that got febrezed a few dozen times before the parents came over. It's clearly dirty and raw, but there's a layer of cleanliness designed to distract you from that. Ultimately it's that distraction that takes away from some of Nickelback's best work to date.

On Dark Horse take an incremental step forward from their past angst-ridden melodramas. It's a very small babystep and the band is still in their comfort zone, but listeners should take their victories where they come. That said, in a year where Coldplay grew up and filled out, Kanye West is channeling 60's soul, and Guns N' Roses are putting a steel toed boot to rock & roll's neck, Nickelback's growth is coming up just a tad bit short.

Final Score: 6.5/10

Nickelback - Burn It To The Ground


Back later with a look at the new Kanye West material and hopefully a look at the newly-leaked David Cook record.

==TJ==

Review: Snow Patrol - A Hundred Million Suns

With the success of 2006's Eyes Open, Snow Patrol backed themselves into a corner. The album went platinum primarily on the strength of "Chasing Cars", and that song saw a lot of its success as a result of an appearance on Grey's Anatomy. So you can understand the potential pressure for a successful follow-up. But this Tuesday the Irish rockers (with normal names) release their fifth studio album A Hundred Million Suns, and anyone willing to take the time to hear the record out in full will walk away greatly satisfied, if slightly caught off-guard. Take note; this is not Eyes Open Part II

A Hundred Million Suns starts out with "If There's A Rocket Tie Me To It". The titles of the songs on this record are about as grandiose and epic as the songs themselves. Snow Patrol have succeeded where some of their Irish comrades have failed; A Hundred Million Suns is a record that not only sounds larger than life, but it's also interesting to listen to again and again. Gary Lightbody's voice soars both in pitch and in scale. While no song here matches the immediate draw that "Chasing Cars" had, across the board this album matches the high-stakes, textured beauty that song brought forth.

Unlike its predecessor, A Hundred Million Suns is a much more introverted album. Snow Patrol take the time on this record to create a texture and atmosphere on every song. That isn't to say that Snow Patrol is getting experimental on us; first single "Take Back The City" is a textbook rock number whose chorus begs to be sang out loud on the nearest rooftop available. Likewise "Disaster Button" is pure fun, no-holds-barred rock and roll, or at least as close as Snow Patrol has ever gotten. But conversely Lightbody & company offer up the acoustic singalong "Lifeboats" and the tribal "The Golden Floor" alongside the sweeping "The Planets Bend Between Us". While it might not be the radio-pandering record that people might expect or hope for, this album is fantastic, alluring, and demands to be heard over and over.

I can't end this review without mentioning the closing track, the epic 16-minute "The Lightning Strike". This is actually three songs melded together in a form that lands somewhere between The Who and Rush. I'm not sure I understand why Snow Patrol combined these songs onto one track rather than just have three gapless tracks, but it doesn't matter, since in the three times I've listened to the record, I haven't once been bored. Suffice it to say the track is aptly named, as the song appears to be the moment of pure, unadulterated brilliance.

When it comes time for me to prepare my Best Of '08 list, expect A Hundred Million Suns to be in the conversation. I feel like Snow Patrol's career is starting to mirror that of Jimmy Eat World. Both bands had massive success on one song ("Chasing Cars" and "The Middle") resulting in a platinum record and worldwide acclaim. Jimmy's follow-up Futures was a brooding, introverted affair that couldn't have been more different from its predecessor. But regardless it was a decent album that led to a continued great career for the band. Based on the marginal impact "Take Back The City" is making on radio right now, it looks like A Hundred Million Suns will be a disappointment in comparison with Eyes Open. But like with Jimmy Eat World, Snow Patrol sound like they've hit their comfort zone on this album, and when all the cylinders fire on this album, as they often do, the results are positively captivating.

Final Score: 9/10

==TJ==

Exploring the Other Side of the Rainbow: A Brief Profile of Radiohead

Music blog A Reminder astutely acknowledged that today marks the one-year anniversary of the biggest fuck-you moment any record label has ever had to endure; October 10th, 2007 was the day Radiohead released In Rainbows to the web, allowing fans and curious observers alike to name their own price. It was a brilliantly innovative thing to do, and it turned the internet upside down for about two weeks and got every music-based website to drop whatever else it might have been covering to pour on the praise every time Thom Yorke so much as covered his mouth when he coughed.

Radiohead - Reckoner [iTunes]

Those who've stuck with ¡Viva La Mainstream! for a while know that my first impression of In Rainbows was not a very good one. I thought it was the same pretentious, gratuitously artsy music I started this blog to rail against. After a couple listens and some encouragement from friends, I grew to truly enjoy In Rainbows and jumped on the Radiohead bandwagon after hearing their back catalog.

Myself and fellow music geeks Justin and Peter were discussing Radiohead's merits the other night, and Justin brought up something that just sort of sums up what can sometimes frustrate me about the band, and yet also always draws me in further; unlike other alt-rock bands which place emphasis on the lead singer and his presence, Thom Yorke treats his vocals as though they were another instrument in the band. You could listen to a Radiohead song and ingnore or flat out replace the lyrics with nonsense syllables, and you'd still have some damned good music. That's the fantastic part about it. What's frustrating is that Yorke's lyrics are so fucking great that the fact that they tend to be imcomprehensible when listening (unless you're listening while looking at the lyrics, a lesson I learned when I bought In Rainbows on CD) becomes a negative thing.

Another interesting schism as I continue listening: the band is constantly irritated by the fact that their music becomes what Thom Yorke calls "fridge buzz", which is to say ambient sound that just becomes background noise. And yet Radiohead's music is so atmospheric and lends itself to letting listeners' minds wander and just enter the world the band creates with their sound that there's a certain inevitability to the "fridge buzz" effect. I think the fact that the music has the potential to inspire me to drift into another place and time like that is a great thing. It shows a connection with the music that goes beyond just singing along to the words or something equally superficial.

Also, Radiohead albums aren't something you can listen to once and claim to have really heard. Not by a long shot. There are so many layers of meaning and substance that one listen carries with it so little that of course the average music listener (read: me this time a year ago) won't see the appeal. Peter pointed out that thematically Radiohead is brilliant; note that the beginning and ending of OK Computer are both about a car crash.

Radiohead - Airbag
Radiohead - The Tourist
OK Computer on iTunes

Again, showing that Radiohead are significantly more intelligent than so many of their contemporaries. I'm not certain I'd say their better musicians; I think that title gets tossed out too freely just becuase the band does things musically that others don't immediately think of. That's not good musicianship necessarily; that's innovation. And Radiohead has enough of that to spare.

Another interesting schism as I continue listening: the band is constantly irritated by the fact that their music becomes what Thom Yorke calls "fridge buzz", which is to say ambient sound that just becomes background noise. And yet Radiohead's music is so atmospheric and lends itself to letting listeners' minds wander and just enter the world the band creates with their sound that there's a certain inevitability to the "fridge buzz" effect. I think the fact that the music has the potential to inspire me to drift into another place and time like that is a great thing. It shows a connection with the music that goes beyond just singing along to the words or something equally superficial.

I'm trying to decide if it was fate or a clever accident that I listened to OK Computer while at work last night and came up with the idea to blog about them on the anniversary of In Rainbows. I'm not even sure if it's worth trying to explain away, so I'm just going to accept the way it was and offer one final thought. I like every single Radiohead album; even Pablo Honey. To those who claim the first two albums "aren't really Radiohead", I offer the following counterargument. Pablo Honey and The Bends needed to happen in order for the band to get to a point where they could write OK Computer and the subsequent albums. Radiohead's evolution has been a very natural one, and you can indeed sense the change in sound coming; without the early stages of that shift on The Bends, I don't think an album as great or influential as OK Computer could have existed. Metallica's James Hetfield recently said that the much-maligned St. Anger needed to happen before the far superior Death Magnetic could take shape. Same idea applies here. Sometimes you need to get the cliche and less inspired out of the way before you can do something extraordinary.

Radiohead - Anyone Can Play Guitar [iTunes]

That's all I've got.

Get all of Radiohead's albums and then some on iTunes

==TJ==

Review: Ben Folds' Way to Normal

Since 1995 Ben Folds has been best known for quirky piano-based pop rock first and foremost. His work with Ben Folds Five (really only a trio) highlighted that goofy, tongue in cheek nature, and his solo material took it to a new level. On his new record Way to Normal, Folds starts to take off the oddball mask and reveals a true human being underneath, without sacrificing the quirkiness that's been his mark of trade for so long.

Way to Normal leads off as strange as ever with "Hiroshima (B B B Benny Hit His Head)", which has about as much homage to Elton John as you'd expect with that title. From what I've gathered the track is semi-autobiographical based on Folds recent journey to Japan (someone can gladly prove me wrong there). The album stays on that left-of-center note through "Dr. Yang" and "The Frown Song", which is fine because that's Folds bread and butter, but Folds is most definitely at his best when he lets his guard down for a little bit and let's some of his humanity and artistry show. Lead single "You Don't Know Me", a duet with Regina Spektor, is the first step toward that transition, a trip that's well on its way as Folds laments his way through "Cologne", and as Folds ends the album with the reminiscent "Kylie From Connecticut". Those two moments are the most emotionally naked Folds gets on the album, but the upbeat, enjoyable music in between finds a comfortable balance between feelings and slapstick, between the road-rage driven "Errant Dog", "Free Coffee", and "Bitch Went Nuts". For God's sake listen to the transition between the latter two tracks; its easily the most enjoyable, laugh-out-loud section of Way to Normal.

On Way to Normal, Folds illustrates that he's on...well, he's on his way to being a normal guy. While most solo musicians claim to have that everyman appearance, Ben Folds can actually back it up in his music. This is the closest thing to an honest record I've heard from a solo artist in some time.

Final Score - 8.5/10
Ben Folds - Kylie from Connecticut [iTunes]

The Offspring Attempt to Rise, But Stall Out On Runway

The Offspring, punk rock's red-headed stepchild, released Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace on Tuesday, their first album since 2003's Splinter. The Offspring haven't exactly ever been at the top of anything in their time. Smash may be the most successful indie-label album ever, but it came out 2 months after Green Day's seminal album Dookie. Every step of the way, where Dexter Holland was the kid at the science fair with the paper-maché volcano, Billie Joe Armstrong was the kid next to him that managed to build a flux capacitor. Likewise, every move they've made in marketing this album has been matched and overshadowed by Coldplay (who also dropped an album on Tuesday).

Before going into the review, I need to make one gripe about the album title. Yeah, it fits the nature of the record well, but I'd feel a hell of a lot better about it if it didn't bear a striking resemblance to the most recent Foo Fighters album. I know, I know-- I'm picking nits here. Just pointing out that it bugs me a bit. Not that this album holds a candle to the Foos though.

The record opens well enough with "Half-Truism", an anthemic musing on the state of the world a la Sum 41's "We're All To Blame". "Half-Truism" shows off some of what makes the Offspring a decent band; a huge chorus, a knowledge of both good musicianship and punk rock, and a means of blending the two together. When those qualities come through, Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, has some real highlights.

However, inconsistency and half-assedness keep those gems marred. Other moments on the album either lack cohesion (the horrendous first single "Hammerhead") or try too hard to show the band trying to be a hardcore punk band, and less time actually being hardcore like the messy "Trust In You" (In theater we call this practice a number of bad things, among them 'mailing it in'). In other moments the Offspring are just bland, sounding less like the Dead Kennedys and more like Good Charlotte. "Fix You" may not be a cover of the Coldplay song, but it's boring enough to be mistaken for it. Even when the band does something that extends its own boundaries, its merely going into the safe territory of radio-ready rock balladry, such as "A Lot Like Me" and the fun, yet-all-too-familiar "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid" (the apparent second single).

This is not to say the album is a total loss. Dexter Holland's vocals, with the soaring "whoa-oh-oh's" behind him, and the overall skill of the band manages to keep a number of songs floating, if not actually very good. "Kristy, Are You Doing Okay?" is a powerful, emotional piece of music that, while again smelling of Sum 41, shows off the band's potential for something greater than what's presented. The track most reminiscent of older Offspring "Stuff Is Messed Up" can't decide if it's being serious or not, but halfway through it stops mattering because it's so damn fun.

However, shitty songs played well are still shitty songs.

Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace is a rarity in that it actually gets better the longer you listen to it. The challenge is having the patience and will to get through the subpar and flat-out awful. Since I admittedly lost interest before the album closed out (and only kept going for the good of the review), I can't say that it's necessarily worth the effort you'd need to put forth.

Final Score: 4/10
The Offspring - Half-Truism [iTunes]
The Offspring - You're Gonna Go Far Kid [iTunes]

I Love Journey...But I HATE Baseball Cards...

There are two good things about doing a review featuring Journey

1) I can talk about listening to Journey without risking getting things thrown at me.

2) I have a justifiable reason to post a Family Guy clip



Now that that's over with...Journey is back (most of them anyway) with Revelation, their thirteenth studio album and first with new lead singer Arnel Pineda, perhaps the most famous cover band singer ever, and poster child for YouTube fame (Pineda was discovered when Neal Schon found YouTube videos of his Journey cover band). With the exception of Pineda as a vocal clone of Steve Perry, there isn't much else in the way of a revelation on this album. From start to finish, this album is straightforward Journey, for better and for worse.

Revelation opens as you would expect a Journey album to open, with a balls-out power ballad. "Never Walk Away" most certainly falls into the category of what's good about Journey. It was on the strength of this song alone that I opted to give the rest of the album a chance. From there it's a mixed bag of sing/shout-along rockers best heard from your car speakers with the windows down, and the arena friendly love songs that let the band take a breather. There's nothing inherently bad about Revelation, or any Journey album for that matter, it's just that after awhile, it gets a bit tired, and I feel the need to hear something different, which Journey can't necessarily provide. The instrumental closer is a nice attempt, but it comes far too late. The core of Revelation is good in 10-15 minute spurts, but headache-inducing in increments longer than that. It's kind of like actually being in the 1980s.

But that's just the first disc. Journey earns its keep on the second disc, which is essentially the Pineda-fronted Journey performing 11 of the band's biggest hits. I don't know if these recordings were meant to prove to hardcore fans that they're still the same band, or simply a way for Wal-Mart to milk an extra couple bucks out of buyers, but it's brilliant. I think there should be a rule that anytime a band changes lead singers, they must release recordings of the new lead singer singing the old favorites. Would this not be a) a great way to keep skeptical fans happy that the band hasn't changed, and b) a great marketing scheme? Someone give me a good reason why this would suck.

Anyway, Revelation comes down to this; if you LOVE Journey, you'll enjoy the album. If, like me, you're a casual fan, you'll break even. If you don't like Journey, you weren't gonna buy the album anyway.

Final Score: 6.5/10
Highlights:
Journey - Never Walk Away
Journey - Wheel In The Sky (Arnel Pineda Version)

==TJ==

¡Viva La Mainstream! Likes Viva La Vida. What A Shock.

(For the record, Blogger effed up the old template so it looked a little ugly, hence the new one. Hoping they fix it/something better comes up soon. Sorry for the otherwise subpar look for the time being)

A couple of people at EMI must really have dreaded coming into work these last couple days. Coldplay's rabidly anticipated fourth album Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends leaked last night, 13 days before its official June 17th release date. I have a lot to say in this review, but if you don't have time to read the whole thing, know that this album (despite being only 10 tracks) was the meatiest, most interesting album I've listened to all year.

The album opens with "Life in Technicolor", an instrumental track that more or less serves as an overture to the rest of the album, which brings me to my first piece of praise; the instrumentals on this LP are a cut above anything I've heard Coldplay do. I don't know if credit for that goes to Chris Martin, producer Brian Eno, or the band as a whole, but credit is due nonetheless. If EMI wanted to try to double-dip on this album, I think releasing an entirely instrumental version of the album would go over nicely. Coldplay run a musical gamut on Viva La Vida..., from the Justin Timberlake influenced "Lost!" to the Phish-meets-an-ice-cream-truck* "Strawberry Swing", while still making sure fans know that this is still the same band (more or less) with piano nods in "42" and campfire-y acoustic guitars in the closing "Death and All His Friends", which had me singing along only 30 seconds in.

*Yes, I actually wrote that in my notes.

Going back to the instrumentation on the album, I felt like every song would work well on a soundtrack to some movie somewhere. "Lovers In Japan/Reign of Love", one of three 6-minute-plus opuses on the album, between the incredible strings and Chris Martin's subdued vocals could provide background music to any one of a thousand movies and do nothing but enhance the scene.

Now onto the lyrics. Here too there's layer upon layer of meat and subtext to be found, not the least of which in "Viva La Vida". The steady run of Biblical and religious allusions are as interesting to read and look at as they are to hear Chris Martin sing. And across the board the album wonderfully balances themes of life and death, as the album title would suggest (more on that later). I can't even really give an accurate analysis of it, since doing so from memory wouldn't really do it justice. It's that good. Just like his comrades, Chris Martin made a huge leap on this album with both his singing (check out the lower register on "Yes") and his songwriting (the hook and chorus-free "Cemeteries in London").

When Coldplay announced that they were experimenting with their sound on Viva La Vida, the first thing I thought was "Coldplay's going Radiohead". Based on this review, that's not entirely accurate. The sound is distinctly different from Radiohead. But make no mistake; Viva La Vida is to Coldplay what OK Computer was to Radiohead. In making this album, the whole game changes for Coldplay. The Coldplay that made millions off "Clocks" and "Speed of Sound" isn't really here on this album. On Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends Coldplay finally fill the huge sound they've hinted at on their first three albums. And now that they've filled those shoes, the next logical step is for them to break the hell out of them. When that happens, I'll have some cash set aside so I can be there to hear it.

One more thing; a lot has been made about the album's title. Tons of people think it's absurd. I liked the notion of Viva La Vida from the getgo (maybe because of how close it sounds to the name of this blog), and was willing to accept the extended title, but after hearing the album, I can do one better; the album title makes sense. Depending on how you look at it, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends is either a joyful celebration of life and existence or an upbeat transcendental meditation on death and the afterlife (think Black Parade without the suicide controversy). Thus, the album is either Viva La Vida, or the album is Death and All His Friends. Coldplay leaves it up to you. And they said they weren't pulling a Radiohead. Needless to say, EMI shouldn't worry too much about a leak hurting record sales. Coldplay's making sure their label lives to see another album...or at the very least another few weeks out of bankruptcy.

Final Score: 9.5/10
Coldplay - Viva La Vida [iTunes]
Coldplay - Lost! [iTunes]
Pre-order Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends on iTunes

==TJ==

PS: Check out the new guy on the block at Polar Bear Stole My Coat

Disturbed's Indestructible Nearly Lives Up to the Name

Today Disturbed dropped their Indestructible, their fourth studio album. The band had already promised a heavier, angrier album than anything we've heard from them to date, and in hearing lead singer David Draiman talk about the inspiration for the album (up to an including an old girlfriend's suicide, a fire that burned his garage and motorcycles, among other things), it's understandable where it's coming from. As someone who wasn't blown away by Ten Thousand Fists and still thinks Believe was the best Disturbed CD (and a sorely underappreciated album in general), I was simultaneously curious and excited to see where this darker turn would lead. After being amazed by leadoff single "Inside the Fire" and loving the album artwork, I was prepared to accept whatever else Disturbed offered up for Indestructible.

The album opens up with the title track, whose intro bears an uncanny resemblance to the beginning of Apocalypse Now (more specifically, The Doors' "The End). A rather appropriate way to lead things off. "Indestructible" is exactly the sort of "Eff You" anthem Disturbed likes to get things started off with. From there it goes into "Inside the Fire", which I still think might be the best Disturbed single of their career thus far. It's also one of the most traditionally metal things this band has ever written. Between this song and "Perfect Insanity", Disturbed's transformation from a early 00's nu-metal band into a respectable, true metal band is complete. Dan Donegan's guitar solos are incendiary, and drummer Mike Wengren has come into his own with this album, double-bass pedals and all. A number of times during my first listen of Indestructible, I had to ask myself, "Are these REALLY the same guys who scored a hit off 'Down With the Sickness'?"

That's not to say that Disturbed have totally reinvented themselves. "Criminal" still shows shades of something from The Sickness, and Draiman isn't afraid to go animal on us and unleash that absurd "Monkey from 28 Days Later" scream, only now it's better placed than in the past.
Disturbed manage to successfully create an album that, albeit dark and heavy, stops short of being depressing. Overall the music here would fall into the category of metal, but it's not the stereotypical death metal that gets Christian groups all uppity. Think more Ozzy, less Morbid Angel.

(Full disclosure: I had to wikipedia a list of death metal bands to finish that analogy. Seeings how I don't listen to much of any of those, needed some help. Judge me all you want)

Without a doubt the best song on this album is "The Night". This track shows David Draiman at the absolute top of his game, getting into the higher reaches of his voice without it ever losing that raw edge that the song needs. The hooks are brilliant, and while it may not have the best potential for a hit single, is easily the most memorable song on the album behind "Inside the Fire". It, along with most of the rest of this album, would be an amazing experience to hear done live.

Indestructible is a 12-track long freight train of an album that gets its momentum from minute one and rarely stops to refuel. The complaints are in large part negligible, mostly just tracks and lyrics that don't stack up to the rest of the album. I'd like to see Disturbed play a bit more with track length; everything on this album hovers between 3:30 and 4:30, and I would love to see what they did with a quick sub-3 minute ballbuster or perhaps something more epic. But by the time "Facade" comes to its abrupt end to close the LP, Disturbed have done everything they set out to do with Indestructible, and most importantly, they've almost certainly pleased a number of fans.

Final Score: 8.5/10
Disturbed - Inside the Fire [iTunes]
(I would love to post "The Night", but I got the album off iTunes, so everything but this song is DRMed)

==TJ==

Duffy vs. Winehouse (Here's A Hint: One Of Them Doesn't Suck)

I recently picked up the debut album from Duffy, the Welsh singer-songwriter that's continuing the 60's soul revival inexplicably made popular by Amy Winehouse. Shortly thereafter I swallowed my reservations and gave Winehouse's Back to Black album a listen. Needless to say, I was only half-surprised by what I heard.

Something pertaining to Amy Winehouse's antics pops up on one of my celebrity trash websites on average once a week, sometimes more. I honestly don't understand the appeal. Winehouse doesn't even have the appeal of someone like Britney Spears or Lindsay Lohan whom people can at least remember as once upon a time being attractive and talented. Winehouse got her first hit in "Rehab", only to then spontaneously combust as the rest of the world realized, "Oh, crap. Maybe that wasn't just a song". Since then, there hasn't been much of a high note in her career, save for the Grammy wins, which to this day I can't explain. So you can understand my hesitation when people told me to give Back to Black the fair chance it deserves. Well, I did my best to do so, and I can honestly say I am largely unimpressed. Winehouse's voice may have moments of excellence, but those are few and far between, and too often she comes off as an Alicia Keys with marginally better songwriting (which says almost nothing, since Keys has never impressed me as a songwriter.) There are a few spots that with a bit of polish could shine, notably the title track, but at the end of it all the whole album sounds more like a tribute to the style Winehouse is trying to reinvent than an actual original album.

Final Score: 3/10

If you were to shoot Amy Winehouse up into space and point her in the vicinity of a black hole, once time took its course and Winehouse was totally sucked in, it's a safe bet that Duffy would pop out the other side of that black hole. Duffy and her debut Rockferry are everything Winehouse isn't, and what Winehouse haters should flock to if they want to be a part of the current trends in music. The album opens with the title track, and by the end of said opener the album has already bested anything Amy Winehouse has offered up. Duffy's voice is massive, and smoother than most contemporary R&B stars are today. The fact that the current hit single "Mercy" (#34 on the Top 40 last week) is buried way down at track 7 on a 10 track debut album should tell you something about the confidence Duffy has in the quality of the rest of her material. That confidence is well placed. From back to front Rockferry is an alluring listen. Even if you're not a fan of the genre, you'd do right to give it a chance just to say you heard some really good music (and to spit in the face of Grammy voters who could not have been more wrong back in February).

Final Score: 8/10
Duffy - Stepping Stone [iTunes]

Back in a few hours with a review of Disturbed's new album and some other stuff.

==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==

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==

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==

Panic at the Disco go to Boot Camp With Sgt. Pepper

Panic at the Disco (now with 100% less !) are back with Pretty. Odd., their follow-up to 2005's A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, which went from being an underground favorite to Top 40 radio fodder. After a great deal of anticipation, the album found its way to the internet, a few short days before its release tomorrow.

Listening to the album, the first words that come to mind are "self aware". Panic (and this album) are both well aware of the response that A Fever You Can't Sweat Out got, and the fact that releasing a sophomore album that was essentially A Fever You STILL Can't Sweat Out would never have succeeded. So Panic gets the message and returns with an album that alludes to the over-the-top, cabaret style of Fever, but never actually takes on that sound. Panic opens the album with "We're So Starving", one of the best introductory not-really-a-song tracks I've heard in awhile. The track is essentially a wink and a nod to the listener, saying "Yeah, this is still us, but..."

The album then continues with lead single "Nine in the Afternoon", a bright, happy track that sets the mood for the rest of the album. Song after song, you get hit with jangly guitars, wandering lyrics and melodies, and a simple, subdued beat in the background. Also prevalent on nearly every track is a previously unheard-of brass section keeping the sound nice and big in lieu of the normal pop-punk stylings of old. Gone are the Pete Wentz-worshiping song titles. In its place are much more thoughtful, albeit still just left of center titles like "She's A Handsome Woman" and "The Piano knows something I Don't Know". That brings up another aspect of the new Panic: they're out of the Fueled By Ramen shadow that acted as a sort of stigma in the past. They're still on FBR imprint Decaydance, but they've outgrown the baby-FOB comparisons.

One more word belongs in the same sentence when describing Pretty. Odd.; "Beatles". Beatles influence is all over this album. "We're So Starving" and "Nine in the Afternoon" have Sgt. Pepper written on their foreheads, and "Do You Know What I'm Seeing" sounds so much like "Norwegian Wood", it's almost uncanny. Other bands have listed The Beatles as an influence on the album, but no one to my knowledge has ever been able to pull it off with the success that Panic at the Disco have. Some would call it pretentious Lennon-worship, but in reality its just smart playing and utterly brilliant songwriting.

When Panic! at the Disco dropped the ! earlier this year, many (myself included) scoffed and suggested it was a feeble attempt at begging to be taken seriously. Memo to self and others; we were wrong. It wasn't just a feeble beg, it was a statement, saying the same thing the opening track said "Yeah, this is still us, but..."

Ruling on the Field: 8/10
Highlight Reel: Nine in the Afternoon, Pas de Cheval
Pretty. Odd. on iTunes

==TJ==

4 Quick-ish CD Reviews; That's Right, I Bought CDs...

I'm not doing an Under The Radar post today or tomorrow, because a) I'm holding till I can get in touch with another artist for my next one, and b) I just think it's time to mix it up a bit this week. So here's something new.

It's a safe bet that any time I go home, I'm going to come back to school with some new music. This time is no different. Over the last week I bought 4 CDs, 1 digital album, and played through some stuff that hasn't been spun in awhile. Since I haven't listened to the digital album yet (it's NIN's Ghosts I-IV, and I haven't had 2.5 hours to burn on listening to it yet) and I'm gonna save the older stuff for another entry, a look at the CDs I bought, in the order I bought them:

Sixx:A.M. - The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack
I've been trying to find myself a copy of this one since my first hearing (and unexpected enjoyment) of "Life is Beautiful". The concept behind the album is really cool; a soundtrack for a book. For the most part the music is pretty good, in spite of being a bit lacking in originality. A run of the mill nu-metal band could probably write and record this album and it would come out serviceable, but something about Nikki Sixx's connection to the material and lead singer Jason Michaels delivery, along with some ridiculous guitar work from DJ Ashba puts it a cut above the rest of the pack these days. Not that hard given what the pack looks like these days (Puddle of Mudd and Seether are both atop the Rock charts right now). Reports suggest that a second album from Sixx:A.M. are unlikely and this was just a one-shot, but it doesn't cheapen the good effort from the band. Probably not a classic for the ages, but worth some iPod space.
Ruling on the Field: 7.5/10
Highlight Reel: Life Is Beautiful [iTunes]
(sorry, haven't uploaded this album yet)

Radiohead - Hail to the Thief
The last album I needed to have the full Radiohead discography, I found this at a used CD shop for 5 bucks. I'm going to do a full review of Radiohead's stuff next week, but this album was more of a mixed bag for me than any of their other stuff. On one hand, when Radiohead does something truly ear-catching, as they do on songs like "There There" and "We Suck Young Blood", the result is bloody brilliant. The problem is moments like these tend to be few and far between, and you have to listen really hard to find why people like Radiohead so much. Hail to the Thief certainly isn't a bad album, it just takes work to listen to, and I'm not always up for trying that hard to enjoy music.
Ruling on the Field: 5.5/10
Highlight Reel: There There [AmazonMP3]

Counting Crows - August and Everything After
I already had most of this album thanks to Mike Newsham, but I felt as though it was one of those ones that I needed to own, simply because it showed off the era of music so well. The debut album from Counting Crows came out the same year as Nirvana's final studio LP In Utero, and ends up being a great set to tie the angsty, heavy sounds of the grunge era and the hooky, upbeat stylings of post-grunge (see also: The Goo Goo Dolls and Collective Soul). There's rarely a bad moment on this album (except maybe the dredgy "Raining in Baltimore"), and when it's good, it's among the best in the genre, and quite frankly, Counting Crows have been for most of their career. As debut albums go, August and Everything After is one for the books.
Ruling on the Field: 9.5/10
Highlight Reel: Mr. Jones [iTunes]
(so hard to pick just one, so I went with the best-known)

Jay-Z - American Gangster
Been meaning to give this a listen since it found its way onto many (including my own) Best of '07 lists, and it helped that I saw the movie from which the album drew its inspiration. As a general rule I steer clear of rap albums, since they too often end up being the same old garbage, but Jay-Z has become one of few exceptions to that rule (his protege Kanye West is one of the others). American Gangster is a bit of an enigma as rap albums go. For starters it's a concept album, an idea usually reserved for rock music. It also simultaneously glorifies and warns against the "gangster life" that is so often the focus of rap music. Since Jay-Z seems to envision himself as a bit of a modern day Frank Lucas (minus the drug trafficking), he understands the allure of that life, but also finds it important to tell listeners that he rose above it and found success anyway. The music itself is across the board better than any rap I usually hear on the radio. "Roc Boys (And The Winner Is)..." deserved all the praise it got, and "Hello Brooklyn 2.0" is an example of Hova's ability to craft a track. Even the collaborations on the album match his skill. The album didn't sell me enough to become a fan of rap, but I certainly didn't feel bad shelling out 12 bucks for it.
Ruling on the Field: 8/10
Highlight Reel: Roc Boys (And The Winner Is)... [Amazon MP3]

And that pretty much does it for me. Back tomorrow with a Weekend WTF, and then next week it's back to business as usual.

==TJ==

Current Music: Finger Eleven - Paralyzer [iTunes]