Not only is this Part 2 of the Dream Theater review, but also a nice way to introduce THE WEEK OF SINGLES 2! From Monday through Saturday, we’ll be taking a look at some rare singles. Today’s is Dream Theater’s “Lie”.
RECORD STORE TALES Part 268: Lie
DREAM THEATER – “Lie”: This single was given to me by a customer named Ed. He was one of my earliest customers, very much intro progressive rock and heavy metal. He was a couple years older than me, with ginger hair and big big “Bubbles” glasses.
I had seen a copy in Toronto, at the big HMV store at 333 Yonge St. For whatever stupid reason, I chose to pass on it. Maybe it was the price. When I got back to Kitchener, I tried to order a copy from Encore Records but they reported to me that it was deleted. I then tried to order it from Amazon.com, who had it on back order for months before they too told me they could not get any more.
There were a couple good reasons to need this single:
1. The unreleased bonus track “To Live Forever”.
2. The hard to find live track “Another Day” which was only on the very rare (very expensive) Japanese release of the Live at the Marquee EP.
While discussing Dream Theater albums with Ed one day in ’97, I explained my frustration at not owning this single.
“I have two copies,” Ed said. “I bought it when it came out, and there were two CDs in the same case.”
“Really?” I exclaimed. “Any chance you want to let one go?”
“I’ll think about it,” Ed said. “I don’t have two cases, just two CDs, and I don’t need the second one.”
“I’ll be happy to take that off your hands,” I answered.
Ed did indeed give me his extra copy of the CD. Even without the case and cover art, I was satisfied. I bought an empty 2 CD case to put my copy of Awake in, with the “Lie” single as a “bonus CD”. Not exactly the ideal for a collector like me, but it’s an original physical CD copy and that’ll do.
“To Live Forever” was an obvious choice as a B-side, in comparison to the better tracks on Awake. It’s similar to, but not as spectacular as the mellow songs like “Lifting Shadows” or “Innocence Faded”. The live “Another Day” on the other hand is every bit as good as the Live at the Marquee CD. This single saves me from having to track down a Japanese copy! Thanks, Dream Theater.
From the album itself comes the incredible Kevin Moore song “Space-Dye Vest”. As mentioned in yesterday’s review, that is my favourite song from Awake. It defies categorizing, and it has a dark but glowing soul. Also included is the single version of “Lie”, which is nice if you plan on making a mix CD. The album track didn’t lend itself well to that, since it melds into other songs on the album.
I don’t know what happened to Ed. He’d mentioned he was losing interest in rock music. I guess that can happen, inconceivable as it is to me! He bought a bit of classical stuff, but I stopped seeing him towards the end. Maybe Ed will stumble upon this blog, and I can thank him again for this great CD single.
Awake has stood the test of time. In 1994 it was considered a commercial failure by the record label, in comparison to Images and Words. In 2014, it is still my favourite Dream Theater album. It is a lot of people’s favourite Dream Theater album, for its songs, complexity and aggression. It was also the final album to feature keyboardist and cofounder Kevin Moore. Moore had become increasingly more interested in samples, and you can hear that all over Awake. It is all the stronger for it.
Awake feels like a natural progression from Images and Words. Sonically it’s similar, and there’s no mistaking that it’s the same band. Awake is infinitely more complex, less commercial, and more ambitious. Clocking in at 75 minutes (a very fast 75 minutes), Awake was more epic than anything Dream Theater had attempted in the past. It was also heavier. James LaBrie’s vocals are more aggressive in delivery, and the album as a whole is more pedal-to-the-metal.
While Awake is not a concept album, it does have recurring lyrical and musical themes. The melody from “Space-Dye Vest” (written solely by Moore) appears elsewhere on the album, and there are a few multi-song suites as well. You’d be forgiven for thinking it’s a concept album. In fact Awake holds together much better than some lesser concept albums by other artists.
Challenging, heavy arrangements include the opening “6:00” which introduced Kevin Moore’s propensity for samples. I don’t know if the dialogue on the album is movie dialogue, or original material recorded for the album. Regardless, it’s effective and the dialogue complements the song. “The Mirror” and “Scarred” are also challenging, but rewarding to listen to.
There are more melodic songs, nothing as immediate as Images and Words, but still excellent: “Caught In A Web”, “Innocence Faded”, “The Silent Man” and “Lifting Shadows Off A Dream” are all personal favourites. “Caught In A Web” was selected as the second single, but failed to make an impact.
One of the strongest, and certainly the angriest song, is “Lie” which was the first single. I remember seeing the video on a program called “The Box”. I was shocked that Dream Theater had gone for such a heavy first single, but I was impressed nonetheless. “Lie” remains one of my favourite DT songs of all time. It was built from the groove up, and lyrically it’s angry as hell!
This is the edit version from the single
The best song on the album is Moore’s “Space-Dye Vest”. I don’t know what a space-dye vest is, but the title works with the song. Based on piano, samples, and a haunting vocal melody, this is the most unique Dream Theater song that I can think of. I think I can safely say that this one song is my favourite, even over “Lie”. The band revealed that they would not have put it on the album had they known Moore would leave later that year. The song was his baby, the others had no hands in its writing.
I’m not sure I would recommend Awake as the first Dream Theater album for somebody to try, but it should be tried by anyone curious about this band. It has had a huge impact on me, and I hope it can do the same for you.
Hey, I’ve done it. I used to sing along to the music in my store. Inevitably, a co-worker would say, “Hey, who’s singing this?” I’d answer, “Oh, it’s Van Halen,” or whatever. The punchline back to me: “Well then why don’t you let them sing it?”
Hah hah.
I had one customer who used to whistle all the time. He’d be browsing away, whistling a pleasant melody. Some hated the sound of Whistling Man. I’m not sure why, I’d rather listen to somebody whistling happily than the two girls over on Listening Station #3, shrieking “Oooh, that’s my shit, that’s my shit.”
It was always comical to hear people singing along to their headphones on the listening stations. Many were oblivious that anyone could hear them. Others were tapped on the shoulder by embarrassed family members. If I had a camera on my cell phone in those days, I would have been able to create some classic viral videos.
It was a little scary on one occasion. A kid who seemed a little disturbed was listening to some Kid Rock, and started swearing along, quite loudly and angrily. At first I didn’t know what to do; after talking it over with one of the bosses I gently interrupted him and asked him to stop singing along. He said OK, but about 10 minutes later, he was singing again.
I saw this kid a lot. That summer, he was coming in every day, usually in the morning. He often listened to a CD, sometimes two, and usually stayed an hour without buying anything. We didn’t really have any store rules about this kind of non-customer except to use your own discretion.
When he started singing again I had to cut him off. I told him that he’d listened to enough for today and showed him to the door. I think this is probably the only customer I’ve ever had to kick out for singing in the store.
To come back to my original point, I don’t mind a little singing in public as long as it’s unobtrusive and pleasant. I don’t need to know that your “shit is bananas”. But if you have a pleasant little melody in your head, what’s wrong with humming a happy tune?
W.A.S.P. – Still Not Black Enough (Castle, US and UK versions)
This one came up due to some discussion between myself and Jon Wilmenius who suggested that I not outright dismiss Still Not Black Enough. I decided to give it a listen again, all the tracks from both versions, and listen with an open mind. I haven’t listened to this album in years. I went through a brief W.A.S.P. phase not long after quitting the store. I bought Helldorado, Unholy Terror, and both Neon God CDs, which might not have been a good idea; doing so many at once.
Still Not Black Enough was a treat to revisit. It’s top-loaded with some pretty great W.A.S.P. songs. In fact the album rocks and rolls along quite excellently for four solid tracks in a row: “Still Not Black Enough”, “Skinwalker”, “Black Forever” and the awesome “Scared To Death”. I’ve never heard Blackie attempt anything like “Scared To Death” before. Female backing vocals on a W.A.S.P. album? It actually works, and brings this track to a much higher level. Nothing wrong with the other three songs either — all are catchy, heavy W.A.S.P. songs with that Crimson Idol sound.
The album skids to a halt upon track 5, “Goodbye America”. The unfortunate thing is that “Goodbye America” is a great W.A.S.P. song, kinda similar to “Chainsaw Charlie”, like a shorter twin brother. Blackie chose to introduce it with a boring, spoken word political thing, which sucks all the air out of the room. Cut the shit, Blackie. You’re a rock star who drinks fake blood from a fake skull for a living. Leave the politics to Bono on the left and Ted on the right. Shit, even Ted doesn’t write his songs about it.
After a rousing cover of Jefferson Airplane’s “Somebody To Love”, Blackie gets out the piano and does the first ballad of the album. It’s essentially a reprise to “Hold Onto My Heart” from Crimson Idol. It’s even called “Keep Holding On”. Nice song, but no need to do it twice. OK sure, “Keep Holding On” is a different slant, on a lot of different instruments, but it’s the same damn song.
“Rock And Roll To Death” is both old (previously released on 1993’s excellent First Blood…Last Cuts compilation) and too gimmicky. It’s an old-timey rock and roll song a-la Chuck Berry played metal style. I guess it’s supposed to sound like “old W.A.S.P.”, like “Blind In Texas”? Regardless it’s out of place on Still Not Black Enough, and it was already on the last album, so to me, that means “delete”.
The original ten-track version of the CD placed a ballad here, after “Rock And Roll To Death”. The acoustic-with-strings ballad “Breathe” was removed from the re-release, and I get why. It’s similar once again to Crimson Idol songs like “The Idol” and “Hold On To My Heart”. The actual sonic quality of the song is not good at all, it sounds like a demo. The drums are obviously not real, they sound like a drum program. The strings are obviously synth. It sounds unfinished, compared to the rest of the album.
No matter which version of the CD you buy, track 9 is “I Can’t”. It’s also acoustic, so again it’s good they removed “Breathe” from the CD, two acoustic songs in a row is too much for a W.A.S.P. album. This one’s a little edgier, it’s not a ballad. It’s more a cheesy bad-ass cowboy song with gratuitous “fucks”. Thankfully it turns electric at the end. Track ten, and original album closer, is “No Way Out Of Here” which sounds like any number of songs from Crimson Idol. The similarities are more than superficial. There are lyrical references to that album, and both albums were performed by the same band: Frankie Banali and Bob Kulick.
The re-release of Still Not Black Enough has three bonus tracks. (It also has “Skinwalker” which was track 2, but not on the original release of the CD.) Track 11 is “One Tribe”, which is pretty different and pretty cool. It’s a softer song, but it’s about the most original song on the album. It has strong melodies, and a dramatic enough arrangement. There’s also what sounds like an electric violin solo! Lyrically, this sounds like redemption.
Then come the unnecessary covers: “Tie Your Mother Down” and “Whole Lotta Rosie”. Of the two, I would say “Tie Your Mother Down” works best. It brings back the female backing vocals from “Scared To Death” and it’s fun! “Whole Lotta Rosie” isn’t particularly notable.
I was surprised that I like Still Not Black Enough as much as I do. I dismissed it outright years ago as an inferior clone of Crimson Idol. It has moments like that, most definitely. It’s also a pretty enjoyable listen, and now that I’ve dusted it off, I’ll spin it a couple more times. Regardless of which version you get (track listings for both below), I think Still Not Black Enough is worth about:
RECORD STORE TALES Part 266: This sort of thing ain’t my bag, baby!
The weirdest gift I ever received at the Record Store was an Austin Powers “Swedish-made” Penis Enlarger Pump. This was a “gag” gift from a group of co-workers. I recall not knowing how to react! Awkward! It’s true that all of us were obsessed with Austin Powers at the time. Talking like him, reciting lines, all that stuff. But a penis enlarging pump? Sorry, that sort of thing really ain’t my bag, baby! Meanwhile, I had gone to Chapters and bought books for everybody. Normal books. Not…books about penises or penis pumps or anything. The same co-workers packed it up with “gummy boobs”, some silver zebra boxer shorts (too tight, sadly), and plastic handcuffs.
I’m one of those socially awkward guys to start with, so you throw a penis enlarging pump in a box with handcuffs and gummy boobs, wrap it up in Christmas paper and what you get is a blushing LeBrain!
Although I sold the penis pump at a garage sale, I did display it in my bedroom, briefly. Here’s the photo to prove it!
Welcome back to WTF Search Terms. These are real search terms that somehow led people to mikeladano.com. Today, I thought I’d answer some people’s musical questions.
1.why is lenny kravitz last two cds a disappointment
Lenny Kravitz has sucked since cutting off his dreads. Scientists call it “Samson Syndrome”.
2.whats the dirt on richie kotzen screwing bandmates wifes
Great question. Kotzen was actually screwing Rikki Rockett’s girlfriend/fiance while on tour with Poison. Kotzen later married her after being terminated by Poison.
3.glenn tipton can’t play anymore
Incorrect.
4. iron maiden lyrics “what information do you need”
“We want…information…information…information!” – The Prisoner
5. does blackie lawless ever talk to anyone? 2013
Blackie Lawless has taken a vow of silence and now speaks through a computer like Stephen Hawking.
6. i wonder book list of names in the rock roll band kiss used to be in ks benny gene simmons paul stanley ace frehley peter criss and vinnie vincent
BON JOVI – Slippery When Wet(1986, 2010 Universal special edition)
I’m not blown away by the new series of Bon Jovi reissues. For the running time of a CD, they could give you a heck of a lot more content. I mean, I’ve bought this album 3 times. I bought it on cassette back in ’87, then I bought the first round of remastered CD issues of the entire Bon Jovi catalogue. Now, begrudgingly, I’m starting to pick these up, because I’m a completist. How many times have you bought Slippery When Wet already? At least once, I’m guessing.
Slippery When Wet is one of those oddball albums: It’s considered the classic landmark by a very successful band, but it is by no means their best. I’ll tell you what it is though: It’s a concept album. When I listen to Slippery When Wet, all I can hear is a concept album about growing up in Sayreville, New Jersey. Think about it! “Wanted: Dead or Alive”? That’s not about touring, man. That’s a song about dreaming, while writing songs in Richie Sambora’s mom’s laundry room. Lyrically, Slippery When Wet captures a more innocent era and presents it in the form of different characters from all walks of life.
She says we’ve got to hold on to what we’ve got Cause it doesn’t make a difference if we’re naked or not
Slippery is the album that made people like Desmond Child and Bruce Fairbairn into household names. It’s notable for the presence of three smash hit classics: “Wanted: Dead or Alive”, “Livin’ On A Prayer”, and “You Give Love A Bad Name”. All three are obviously available on various Bon Jovi hits compilations. There are a couple deep cut classics, but Slippery is mostly padded out with filler. Surely, “Social Disease” with its juvenile lyrics and terrible synth-horns is one that Jon would like to disown? Also cheesy are “Wild In The Streets”, “I’d Die For You”, and the sappy “Without Love”. What helps save these songs are earnest performances from Jon, but especially Richie Sambora.
Two of the best songs are the deep cuts. “Let It Rock” is a cool song, a bit muddy in the mix, but with some really cool sounding keyboards. The atmospherics of it were unique for the time. It still stands as one of Jon’s better moments. Then there is “Raise Your Hands” which opened side 2. This one rocks, and has some blazing guitars. I have always been a fan of “Raise Your Hands”. Remember when it was used in that one scene in Spaceballs? Sweet!
John freakin’ Candy
The production, by the late Bruce Fairbairn, is muddy at times and too glossy at others. Fairbairn’s work on the 80’s Aerosmith albums was more innovative and interesting. I’ve always liked talk-box on guitar solos though, so I’ll give him and Richie Sambora credit for the catchiest talk-box solo in history. Regardless this album set new standards. Suddenly, everybody wanted to work with Desmond Child and Bruce Fairbairn. Aerosmith were next, then Poison, then AC/DC. As for Desmond Child, his old pal Paul Stanley came-a-knockin’ when it was time to write for the next Kiss album. Slippery When Wet was undeniably one of the biggest influences on the second half of the 1980’s. Rock bands were adding keyboardists, and trying to find ways to get played on radio and MTV the way Bon Jovi had. Jon also used his newfound influence by helping friends like Cinderella and Skid Row get signed. Cinderella certainly benefited from having Jon and Richie appear as rivals in their “Somebody Save Me” music video.
As influential as it is, albums such as New Jersey, Keep the Faith, and These Days are superior in my ears. When I was swept up in the Bon Jovi tide in ’87, I finally picked up Slippery on cassette. I was surprised, because I expected it to be a lot better. Considering all the hits, all the hype, and all the sales, I was hoping for more than half an album of good songs.
As far as the reissue goes, the reason I picked this particular one up was that I saw there was a “live acoustic” version of “Wanted” on here. I hoped and prayed that it was the acoustic version from the original 1987 “Wanted” cassette single. (If you haven’t heard it, man, you absolutely need to.) I only have that on cassette. However, it’s not the same version. It’s a good live acoustic version, with just Richie and Jon. It’s purportedly from the Slippery tour, and made stronger by Richie’s powerful vocals. “Prayer” and “Bad Name” are the other two live songs included, sounding pretty standard. These three bonus tracks are all there is; no era B-sides such as “Edge of a Broken Heart” or “Borderline” are included. Songs like these would have gone a long way to strengthen an album that’s a little weak in the knees.
I was pleased to see a retro looking backstage pass included within the slipcase. That made me a bit happier with my purchase. Nice touch, this is the kind of thing that rewards people for buying the CD rather than downloading.
RECORD STORE TALES Part 265: A Nightmare On Cocknuckles Street Redux: Special Edition
A while ago, I presented a story called Part 104: A Nightmare on Cocknuckles Street. I was telling it from memory, a tale of a customer phone call gone awry! I re-told it the best I could, thinking that my original record store journal from that day had been lost.
I was wrong. I found it. I present to you the original journal from the actual day of events! Buckle up. [Street names changed for this blog.]
Date: 2005/12/10 20:36
So here is a story.
I come in after going out to get a soda and a candy bar, I still have my coat on when the phone rings. Kyle’s with a customer so I grab it. A dude is on the other end.
Him: Hey buddy, I ordered some CDs last Saturday and I haven’t heard anything so I wonder if they’re in.
Me: Sure, I’ll check for you, one second OK? (puts down phone removes coat.) Thanks for waiting. We’re up-to-date on calling the special orders but I’ll check for you. What was the CD?
Him: It was the new Josh Groban.
Me: (Checking in the computer, I knew already there was no Josh Groban. So I checked to see if anybody had ordered one, and nobody had.) …Actually…we don’t have any record of anybody ordering a Josh Groban.
Him: Well what the hell! (Wife yelling in background) (To wife: He says they ain’t got no record of it! They lost it!) Well how could that happen?
Me: I’m not sure exactly…let me check another one. What others did you order?
Him: There was a Motley Crue.
Me: (Pretty sure of what I would find) Hmmm, I have nobody ordering one of those, either.
Him: Well that’s fucked up. (Wife yelling in background) (To me:) Did you hear that?
Me: No, not really.
Him: Be glad you didn’t.
Me: OK, understood.
Him: Now how hell did this happen? I handed the guy a piece of paper and he said he would order them for me! He said they would be here in seven days. So what the hell happened?
Me: To be honest, I don’t know, now is it possible you were at a different store?
Him: It was your store. You telling me you fucked up?
Me: I don’t know for sure but it is possible. Let me…
Him: Well aren’t you a bunch of geniuses down there.
Me: You ordered them to the [Record Store], [Cocknuckles Street] location?
Him: It was your store, on [Dicklock Street]!
Me: You just called [Cocknuckles Street].
Him: What is that?
Me: This isn’t [Dicklock Street] that you called, this is the [Cocknuckles Street] location.
Him: Well I didn’t know there was more than one! This is the number in the book! Why the hell isn’t [Dicklock Street] in the book, you tell me that!
Me: Dunno man. They messed that up I guess. [555-5555]. There ya go.
VAN HALEN – Balance (1995 Warner – Japanese version included)
I had no idea what to expect when Van Halen released Balance in 1995. Grunge had come and gone, the landscape vastly altered since Van Halen’s last wax in 1991. Eddie was the king of pyrotechnics, and that kind of playing was not in vogue. How would the band adapt? Well, they didn’t. Balance takes Van Halen into a highly polished, commercial direction. This is “balanced” with heavier grooves and a couple more “serious” lyrics. The result turned out to be one of Van Halen’s most pop outings.
Produced by the late Bruce Fairbairn, Balance borders on over-polished. The sounds are rich, thick and glossy, but miles away from the raw guitar pummeling of the early days, or even the previous For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. Eddie Van Halen, in a Guitar World interview, said the album was characterized by “better song writing”, but I think what he really meant was “more commercial songwriting”.
The album starts with a different sound for Van Halen: Gregorian chants. Hey, it was the 1990’s and later the same year, Iron Maiden would introduce their X Factor album with similar chants, no shit. The chanting merges into a heavy guitar riff accented by a wall of droning fills. This is “The Seventh Seal”, and Sammy’s voice is in top form. Michael Anthony’s bass rolls and hits the notes at just the right moments. This is truly a great song, completely different from Van Halen of old, but surely a triumph.
The next tune (and second single) however, “Can’t Stop Loving You”, is an embarrassing foray into pop. While Van Halen wrote pop stuff before (“Love Walks In”), this song lacks cojones of any kind. The guitar is really thin, Alex Van Halen cha-cha’s his way through the drum fills, while Sammy sings a lyric that David Lee Roth would have used to wipe his ass.
“Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do)” is anything but a love song. Sammy tackles drugs, faith, youth in crisis, and the 1990’s. Hagar has never sounded more foreboding, or mature for that matter. Eddie’s riff is simple, but dark and rhythmic. Michael locks onto the riff, creating this unstoppable wall of groove.
Sammy has an unfortunate habit of being too jokey when it’s inappropriate. Eddie didn’t like the lyrics to “Amsterdam” and you can see why. There is nothing wrong with this mid-tempo rocker with spare Eddie riff, except the lyrics. After the previous song’s warnings about drugs, suddenly Sammy is singing, “Whao, wham bam! Roll an Amsterdam! Stone you like nothing else can.” Granted, two very different drugs (heroin vs. weed) but lyrically “Amsterdam” isn’t winning any awards.
“Big Fat Money” is very old-school boogie ‘Halen in intent; the music could have fit on virtually any of the first six albums. Producer Fairbairn had Eddie playing a fatbody jazz guitar during the solo section (mirroring a trick he pulled with the Scorpions two years previous) but it doesn’t save the song. I’ll give VH a C for trying, but “Big Fat Money” is a C+ at best.
C+
“Strung Out” is a jokey opener to the ballad “Not Enough”. Basically, this is Eddie messing with (and wrecking) a piano from the inside! This was recorded years prior, at Marvin Hamlish’s house in Malibu during the writing sessions for 1984. Van Halen destroyed Hamlish’s white Yamaha piano and had to have it repaired. It was covered with cigarette burns, and Van Halen had attempted to play the piano from the inside, by throwing balls at the strings.
That fades into “Not Enough”, another ballad. Not quite as embarrassing to listen to as “Can’t Stop Loving You”, but not by much. Really, in the year 1995, Van Halen should have stuck to the serious themes, and guitar-based songs. Tunes like this made Van Halen seem completely out of touch with what was happening in the 1990’s. Within months of its release, Shannon Hoon would overdose, Layne Staley locked into a dance of death with smack, and Richey Edwards of the Manic Street Preachers went missing (presumed dead) after suffering long bouts of depression. These were dark times in rock and roll. I just wasn’t feeling “Not Enough” and “Can’t Stop Loving You”, then or now.
Baluchitherium
“Aftershock” is another hard rocker, nothing embarrassing here, good riff, good melody, good song. Won’t make anybody’s desert island Van Halen list, however. A pair of instrumentals follow, an interesting touch seeing as Van Halen didn’t do too many instrumentals post-Dave. “Doin’ Time” is Alex messing around on the drums, which segues straight into “Baluchitherium”. “Baluchitherium” was so named because a baluchitherium was one of the biggest prehistoric land mammals known — and Eddie felt a stomper like this tune needed to be named after one of the biggest baddest animals to ever walk the Earth. Unlike most VH instrumentals, this one just sounds like an unfinished song — an idea without a vocal.
“Take Me Back (Deja Vu)” is a pop song that I don’t mind at all, accented with acoustic guitar. Apparently Eddie had the guitar part in his head for decades, going back to the pre-Van Halen 1970’s, when he was a kid. It’s very laid back, but also very summery and the lyrics are decent.
“Feelin'” is a morose song but with an epic, powerful chorus. It is very different from anything the band had done prior, and hints at the directions to come in the Cherone years — for better or for worse. It’s a good album closer, as I like a dramatic ending from time to time.
If you’re lucky enough to be in Japan, there was one bonus track: this is the groove laden, oddball “Crossing Over”. It’s a song about the afterlife and lyrically it’s probably the best tune of the bunch. The bass part alone on this song was so infectious that in my opinion, it is actually the main hook of the song. I’d consider this the best track on the album myself. The arrangement is fairly unconventional, and the drums tumble and roll against the groove in a cool way. Again, apparently this song dates back to 1983! I think you will not regret tracking this one down. Thankfully it was easier to find on the “Can’t Stop Loving You” single. Notably, the Japanese version of the cover was also toned down.
On the whole, I think the majority of Sammy’s final Van Halen album is not to be ashamed of. I think the songwriting and lyrics were stronger than Unlawful, if only the production had been less geared towards pop and a couple ballads deleted, this might have been the very best thing Van Hagar ever did. However I’m not always the most objective guy. There are Van Halen fans out there who don’t think much of Balance. Some of those fans really, really don’t like Balance. In order to end this review with some “balance”*, I found one and asked for his opinion.
Craig Fee: “I kept re-listening to Balance, doing my best to like it because it was 75% of my favourite band. It turned out to be more disappointing than my illustrious NHL career and my attempts to have a three-way with Rose McGowan and Liz Phair. “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You” is a steaming pile. It still is.”
I don’t have any sort of rebuttal for that.
3.75/5 stars
* Two clear signs of a writer doing a half-assed review: Using the same pun twice, and padding it out with quotes from other people.
VAN HALEN CONSPIRACY THEORY (™)
The band were foreshadowing the firing of Hagar with subtle hints left on the back cover of Balance.
TWISTED SISTER – Live At Wacken The Reunion (2005 Eagle Rock)
Here’s a rare find: A CD/DVD combo pack where the CD is equally worth the price of purchase as the DVD. This package contains an 11 song live album as well as a great DVD concert/documentary. Twisted Sister certainly have risen in the esteem of rock fans since the 80’s. Sister’s resilience has won them over, not to mention their heaviness which was lost on the 80’s crowd.
I will say that I was disappointed when I first bought it in 2005. It was issued as a dual-disc. Remember those? I’ll get into the dual-disc crap at the end of this review. I later bought a far superior CD/DVD set, and that’s the version that I recommend over the dual-disc. Regardless of which version you have, at least both have nice big booklets with loads of pictures and some liner notes too.
The DVD is peppered with documentary footage and interviews with all five Twisted members. The documentary covers the entire history of the band, and sheds light on their acrimonious breakup and triumphant reunion. I found Mark Mendoza’s segments particularly interesting as he had the most problems with Dee, and in fact was not on board when TS first reunited in 1990’s. The live program is, of course, great. It’s well shot, and sounds good.
The CD is nice as it’s not just a soundtrack to the DVD, but a standalone live album on its own with 11 tracks total, spanning the early years plus six songs from Wacken. I enjoy this one quite a bit on its own as a live album. From 1980, “Bad Boys of Rock ‘n’ Roll” through to the rare “You Know I Cry” are all replete with loud n’ dodgy sound. Then from ’82, “You Can’t Stop Rock ‘n; Roll”. The Marquee, London: Yes, that would be earlier than the Live at the Marqueealbum, recorded in ’83. The fidelity here is improved, although the band’s on-stage fury goes on unabated.
Finally, six 2003 recordings from Wacken. It’s not the entire show obviously, which seems a bit of a shame. Goodies here include personal favourites “I Am (I’m Me)”, “Like a Knife in the Back” and “The Fire Still Burns”. That last one’s interesting because it’s not really a great track on its album, Come Out and Play. It’s heavier and better live. Best of all, Dee’s voice is still in excellent shape. Everybody ages; that’s to be expected, but I don’t think Twisted Sister have lost a thing with age.
Now, let’s talk about this dual-disc.
This is by far the worst dual-disc I’ve ever tried to play. It certainly looks cool (see gallery below). The DVD side has the TS “bone” logo emblazoned directly on the playing surface. I’ve never seen graphics on the playing surface of a disc before, and it looks awesome. This side plays on all my DVD players, no problem. The CD side will not play correctly on any of my CD players, although it plays fine on my blu-ray player. The CD doesn’t conform to the Red Book standards, which is to say it’s slightly thicker than the CDs that many CD players are designed to accommodate. It all depends on the tolerances built into the players. Dual-discs are delicate in the first place, and they should never be played in a front-loading car deck or it could get destroyed along with your deck. In the long run, in order to enjoy the CD on a CD player, I had to buy the damn thing again, this time on the CD/DVD set.
So, great video side, great live album, cool looking disc and package. Dual-disc technology…not so great. Buy accordingly.
“To Live Forever” was an obvious choice as a B-side, in comparison to the better tracks on Awake. It’s similar to, but not as spectacular as the mellow songs like “Lifting Shadows” or “Innocence Faded”. The live “Another Day” on the other hand is every bit as good as the Live at the Marquee CD. This single saves me from having to track down a Japanese copy! Thanks, Dream Theater.
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