Reviews

REVIEW: Orange Goblin – Back From the Abyss (2014 GUEST REVIEW)

NEW RELEASE – GUEST SHOT by UNCLE MEAT

GOBLIN1ORANGE GOBLIN – Back From the Abyss (2014 Candlelight)

When the mighty Orange Goblin started their musical journey, they really were more of your typical “Stoner Rock” fare.  Now to be fair, the word “typical” there refers to the overall sound and style of their music.  Right from their 1997 debut album, Frequencies From Planet Ten, it became apparent that if Orange Goblin was to be labelled “Stoner Rock”, then they were rightfully placed on the top shelf with the elite bands of that genre.  With their 2012 release, A Eulogy For The Damned, Orange Goblin dabbled sparingly with other forms of heavy rock.  The title track being the best example of that, which I feel is one of the best pieces of hard rock ever released.  But still, the album as a whole really was one big heavy metal punch to the head.  Orange Goblin’s latest musical journey  is more like a series of methodical jabs, as if the 12 songs were 12 different rounds of a barbaric boxing match, each round finding a different way of attacking your senses.  The aforementioned title track from Eulogy of the Damned showed me that Orange Goblin were capable of becoming something very different than just a “Stoner Rock” band.  Back From the Abyss sees the transformation completed.  After a couple listens I truly believe that when Orange Goblin’s career is assessed in retrospect, Goblin’s latest album will go down as their quintessential release.

The title of Orange Goblin’s 8th release refers to the gruelling two-year long tour that followed the release of Eulogy of the Damned.  It was on this tour that I had the privilege to see them live in London, Ontario last year.  They were outstanding live.  It was literally a fucking metal party.  The band seemed to enjoy the festivities as much as the crowd did.  Vocalist Ben Ward towered over the crowd like Conan and had his fellow barbarians eating out of his huge palm.  It should be noted as well, that as intimidating as Ben Ward is on stage, he was completely the opposite upon meeting him after the show.  He was a true gentleman and his overall coolness was very impressive.  Taking the experience of their first full North American tour to the studio produces Back From The Abyss. I personally was praying to the Metal Gods that Orange Goblin’s next album would continue to explore more musically diverse ways of punching you in the fucking head.   This album delivers much more than that.  This could very well be Orange Goblin’s finest hour.

“SABBATH HEX” –   The album starts off as it should with reckless Goblin abandon.  According to Ben Ward the song title came from an idea he once had to put a curse on anyone who doesn’t like Black Sabbath.  This is a great chugging riffy opener.  Starting from track one you start to realize Ben Ward is becoming more than just a growler.

“UBERMENSCH” –  Get in the car with Orange Goblin.  Fasten your seatbelts as they hit the gas pedal and tear it up.  That pretty much describes this second track.  Great riff during the verses are reminiscent of early QOTSA.  Riff is king.

“THE DEVIL’S WHIP” – This song was released weeks ago, and a lot has been written already about this being a blatant Motorhead memorial.  That is exactly what it is.  I find the track reminds me of the song “Iron Fist”, but I am sure every Motorhead fan would be reminded of a different track themselves.  From the beginning “Alright!” cue, this song is indeed a Kilmister-worthy tribute that speeds along at a break-neck pace.

“DEMON’S BLUES” – One of the greatest things about this album for me are the many different vocal approaches.  While most of this song sees Ben Ward barking out the blues in his special way, “Demon’s Blues” begins with spoken word that has a very doom metal feel.  I really like the melody-first approach on this song (which is even more apparent on the chorus), and it seems to foreshadow what is to come.

“HEAVY LIES THE CROWN” – It is official now.  Orange Goblin has progressed from being a great heavy rock band to being true songwriters.  This track is fucking awesome.  I love the lyrics, the great guitar work and the anthemic vocals.  In a recent interview, Ben Ward compared the ending chanting vocals to early Manowar and I can totally hear that.  For me, the last couple minutes of this track sounds like if Thin Lizzy had written the Game of Thrones theme song.  Best piece of music so far on the album.

“INTO THE ARMS OF MORPHEUS” –   Well, I did say “so far”.  “Into the Arms of Morpheus” starts off with a very “NIB”-like isolated bass line.  As this song marches on, Goblin launches into the molten blues they do so very well.  I love the ending of this song.  This might be the best guitar work I have ever heard from guitarist Joe Hoare.  It is becoming apparent that Orange Goblin are really challenging themselves as songwriters now.  And that theme continues with the next track as well.

“MYTHICAL KNIVES” – This pirate-themed track shows Ben Ward experimenting even more with his vocal approach.  More doom-esque tones and even parts that sound more like Gregorian monk chanting than rock vocals.  “Mythical Knives” = Melodic Power.  Nuff said.

“BLOODZILLA” – Orange Goblin warns you of what you are in store for as Ben Ward screams “Go!”  And as “Bloodzilla” began, there I was, heavily cutting in tribute to the wondrous metal before me.  I found myself wishing someone was with me while I was listening to this.  This will be an instant live staple.  I love the ending riff of this song, which repeats over and over again, and brought to mind for me a kind of heavy metal version of the ending to “Layla” by Derek and the Dominoes.

“THE ABYSS” – At times this track veers more towards Alice in Chains rather than the Sabbath-based approach that usually dominates their material.  Rearing its not so ugly head again is the doom metal sound I mentioned earlier.  In general, I am not a fan of the style of doom metal.  However I find that the sprinklings of doom throughout this album are simply a great compliment to the songs.  Once again another terrific Orange Goblin instant classic.

“TITAN” – The first of two instrumentals on the album, “Titan” may actually be my favorite piece of music on Back From The Abyss.  Very reminiscent of Iron Maiden, as well as shades of Thin Lizzy once again.  Even more surprising is that parts of this song actually remind me of Dream Theater or Queensryche.  Just another example of Orange Goblin having a lot more up their tattooed sleeve than we thought they did.

“BLOOD OF THEM” – With lyrics inspired by H.P. Lovecraft, and even more diversity in the vocal approach, “Blood of Them” comes across as an extremely heavy track both lyrically and sonically.   Love the spoken word at the beginning of the song.  Simply another great track on this album.

“THE SHADOW OVER INNSMOUTH” – The second instrumental on Back From The Abyss ends the album in style.  I found that this track reminds of “The Zoo” by the Scorpions, but with many more riffs and some off-beats.  Just a great guitar-based track which again proves that melody is becoming king to Orange Goblin.  In an interview, Ben Ward stated that they are thinking of using this track is their intro when playing live.  That would be a great choice.

In closing, Back From The Abyss impressively proves that Orange Goblin are not just a band writing heavy songs anymore.  Orange Goblin are songwriters that happen to play heavy rock and roll.  What category do you put Orange Goblin in now?  Who knows and who cares.  All you need to know is that this album is Top Shelf Rock.  Based on my previous experience seeing this band live, I can only imagine how good these songs will be to see live.  If you get the chance to see Orange Goblin live, you must do so.

5/5 stars

Ester Segarra

REVIEW: Live – Throwing Copper (1994)

LIVE – Throwing Copper (1994 Radioactive Records)

20 years ago.  It seems like such a long time, but it’s true: There was an era when the top of the charts were dominated by the likes of Hootie, and Live. Kids today might not know Live, but many of these songs are still radio staples today: “I Alone”, “Lightning Crashes”, “All Over Me” among others.  8 million copies sold, and although you can find it used quite easily today, a lot of people hung onto their copies of Throwing Copper.  I am one.

I began working at the record store in 1994, and I used to tell my customers, “You’ll probably know all these songs.” I said that for a few albums back then, such as Purple by Stone Temple Pilots and Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill. Not only did Throwing Copper have five hit singles, but virtually every album track was getting played somewhere. That’s how strong this record is.

The legacy of this album is its influence. I will maintain that without Throwing Copper, there would be no Matchbox 20, and certainly no Daughtry. Unfortunately all those bands learned from Live was bombast, and they turned it up to 11. They learned nothing about song craft, nothing about expression, nothing about restraint.

Throwing Copper has bombast in spades. It’s there in Ed’s vocals, but it’s also there in the rhythm guitar parts and the noisy Neil Young-esque solos. It’s there in the rolling bass lines and the thundering drums. But Ed Kowalczyk also knew how to use his voice quietly (“Lightning Crashes”), which amazingly was still as expressive. He names Michael Stipe as a huge influence, and you can hear R.E.M. and even U2 between the grooves.

Personal fave song:  “Shit Towne”.

Production by Jerry Harrison is stunning. The drums are some of the best, most natural sounding drums recorded in the 90’s and the bass is strong without dominating. This CD is in no need of a remastering, it sounds just fine as it is.

It’s kind of a shame that Live never did anything this good again, or with this kind of impact. While I have listened to every Live album since, I never bought any of them. This is the only one I bothered buying, and I liked it so much I bought some of the singles when I could find them. The domestic single for “White, Discussion” has a great acoustic version of “I Alone”.

If you need some 90’s nostalgia, and don’t have this album, you absolutely need it. If you’re too young to remember the 90’s but love bands like Theory of a NickelCreed, then you need to find out what real music sounds like. Throw out your Daughtry discs and pick up Throwing Copper.

5/5 stars

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There is also an unlisted track after “White, Discussion” known as “Horse”.

REVIEW: AC/DC – “Play Ball” (2014)

AC/DC – “Play Ball” (2014 Columbia)

Holy shit, AC/DC’s back. When we all heard about Malcolm’s health problems, I thought that was it. I really didn’t expect them to carry on with Stevie Young — but here he is, on AC/DC’s great new single “Play Ball”.

Judging by “Play Ball”, not much has changed in AC/DC land.  The flavour is still distinctly AC/DC: upbeat, great mid-tempo groove and solid riff.  And I swear you can hear some different fingers on the strings.  Listen carefully.  Yet regardless of losing arguably the most important member of AC/DC, it sounds like nobody else.  Brian’s still growling, his voice pretty much unchanged since the Ballbreaker album in ’95.   Musically, I’m thinking in territory similar to 2000’s Stiff Upper Lip.  I’ve heard the song six times as of this writing (three on the radio, three on my PC).  It’s nothing that will go down in AC/DC history as one of their greatest singles, but I can’t say anything bad about it either.

4/5 stars

Rock Or Bust tracklisting:

01. Rock Or Bust
02. Play Ball
03. Rock The Blues Away
04. Miss Adventure
05. Dogs Of War
06. Got Some Rock & Roll Thunder
07. Hard Times
08. Baptism By Fire
09. Rock The House
10. Sweet Candy
11. Emission Control

REVIEW: Skid Row – Forty Seasons: The Best of Skid Row (Japanese version)

SKID ROW – Forty Seasons: The Best of Skid Row (1998 Atlantic Japan)

US cover

US cover

The Japanese fans always seem to get the coolest stuff.  Look at this package: shiny silver, instead of the boring grey of the American release.  Digipack with foil stickers!  Bonus track!  So much cooler than the standard release here.  Hell, the Japanese title is even spelled F-o-r-t-y, where the American version has the briefer 40.  Why?  Not sure.  Either way I’m glad to have this version, which fell in my hands thanks to customer Conrad in the late 90’s.  He sold it to me with stickers intact and still sealed; all that is missing is the obi strip.

Whether you own Forty Seasons or 40 Seasons, the party starts with “Youth Gone Wild”.  Any commemoration of the Sebastian Bach years should open with that track.  Although “Youth Gone Wild” is Bach’s signature track today (along with “I Remember You”), he actually wrote neither.  Some fans would be surprised how little Bach has written in Skid Row, and indeed he only has two writing credits on this greatest hits disc.  What Bach brings to the party is his spirit, attitude, and incredible voice.  When Skid Row came out in ’89, Bach was almost instantaneously a 21 year old superstar.  He had the ego to deliver the rock star vibe in concert and in print, and he certainly had the vocal chops.  This is why Bach has remained a thorn in Skid Row’s side today, 15 years since hiring Johnny Solinger to replace him.

Track two is a little too soon for a mellow song in my opinion, but “18 and Life” works in this slot due to its dark vibe and powerful choruses.  The singles “Piece of Me” and “I Remember You” are the other representations from album #1, although I definitely could have done without “Piece of Me”.  Skid Row have written much better heavy rockers since.  “I Remember You” is a song I still haven’t really tired of, thanks to Bach’s timeless performance.  Every time Baz sang this tune in Toronto, the place went insane, as Bach always sang it for his old stomping grounds.  Rachel Bolan and Snake Sabo may have written the song, but when I think of “I Remember You”, I think of Toronto.

Skid Row’s second album Slave to the Grind blew away the first.  I’m glad “The Threat” was included.  It may not have been a single, but it was one of the outstanding album cuts.  Equally solid was the bass groove of “Psycho Love”, which is relentless.  Skid Row really turned up the octane on that second album.  I think both tracks outshine the single “Monkey Business”, but nothing can overpowerful the thrash metal of “Slave to the Grind” itself.  When it was released, I couldn’t believe how full-on Skid Row had become.  This is a high water mark of heaviosity.

“Quicksand Jesus” represents one of the three slow tunes on Slave; I would have selected “Wasted Time”.  “Quicksand Jesus” is an outstanding song, and so is the other slow tune not included here, “In A Darkened Room”.   “Wasted Time” is so clearly above and beyond either of those two, that I can’t understand why it’s not on this CD.  It has something special to it, like “I Remember You” did.

FORTY SEASONS_0005So the first half of the CD covers the first two Skid Row records with all the big hits.  The second half covers the rest, plus rare and unreleased stuff.  I love the third Skid Row record, Subhuman Race.  I consider it a great metal record in the context of the mid 1990’s.  For some reason, none of the Subhuman songs included here are the album versions.  I know the band fought with Bob Rock over the production on that album, and maybe that is why.  “Into Another”, which might be considered a slower song, is remixed making a little lusher.  The single “My Enemy” is also remixed, perhaps to tame down the St. Anger-esque drums.  My favourite Skid Row ballad, “Breakin’ Down” is remixed as well, but you have to know the song really well like I do to notice by ear alone.  (Listen to the guitar accents.)  Overall it’s more polished and finished, which is fine, because the album version was actually more or less just the demo version.  Lyrically the song is a message from Sabo to Bach, about their failing relationship.  Bach reportedly received the demo, sang to it, and that’s what was put on the record.

The excellent banger “Frozen” is presented in demo form, which is interesting but inferior to the excellent, slamming album version.  Finally, “Beat Yourself Blind” (Bach’s favourite song from Subhuman Race) is live.  What an awesome tune live.  This is from the Japanese Subhuman Beings on Tour EP. As great as the stuttery album version is, the live one is more fluid.   I’ve heard Rachel Bolan say the Subhuman album “sucked”.  I don’t understand how he can say that, and I think the five songs here prove my point.

The album closes with a pair of treats: unreleased songs!  “Forever” from the first album’s sessions is better than many of the songs on that record!  Who chooses these songs?  Perhaps it was a bit too derivative of other popular 80’s bands, but Sebastian makes it sound like nobody else but Skid Row.  This not only should have been on the album, but could have been a hit single.   Then there’s “Fire in the Hole”, a great little slammer that didn’t make the second album.  This time I agree.  That second album is incredible and “Fire in the Hole” isn’t up to those high standards.  It’s definitely better than many bands’ album tracks, but not Skid Row.

Last of all, the lucky Japanese got the Ramones cover “Psycho Therapy” from the B-Sides Ourselves EP (1992).  This is the only inclusion from that EP, and it’s a gooder.  Rachel sang lead (with Taime Downe of Faster Pussycat backing him).  We all know Rachel’s a punk guy, and I think that’s the side of Skid Row that clashed with Bach’s metal tendencies.  Just my theory.

Great CD, loads of fun and value.

4.5/5 stars

REVIEW: Rush – Red Stars of the Solar Federation (Live at Montreal Forum May ’81)

RED STARS_0001RUSH – Red Stars of the Solar Federation (X-Rekords, Live at Montreal Forum May ’81)

I found this bootleg when I was unceremoniously transferred from one location to another.  When I started at the other location, this was among the first CDs that came in that I just had to buy.  It’s a Rush bootleg from the legendary Moving Pictures tour.  In fact this CD is the audio of the Rush video Exit…Stage Left, which is a different audio from the LP.  It sounds like a vinyl rip.  Otherwise the sound quality is pretty good.  The audience is shrill and very loud.  There are also clearly speed/pitch issues with the audio.  (This could be corrected in Audacity, but I don’t think I could do it by ear.)  This CD is selling for over $70 currently on Discogs.  I paid nowhere near that.

Between the songs are interview snippets from the band, same as the video.  It features a few tracks that were not on the Exit…Stage Left album:  “By-Tor”, “In the Mood”, “In the End”, and “2112” which is unlisted.  The rest of the songs are completely different recordings, anyway.  I guess that’s why the asking price is $70.  They are no less perfect; no less electrifying.

“The Trees” and “Xanadu” take up one massive 17 minute track on the CD, and it’s a monument to perfection of performance and craft.  I can barely remember the sequence of all the different parts of Xanadu; I can’t imagine how Rush can play a set full of this stuff with precision and feel all the time!  All this while Geddy has to remember complex lyrics about searching for the lost Xanadu.

RED STARS_0002I love Peart’s slamming drums on “Red Barchetta”, a song I simply never tire of.  What is it about Rush songs?  They don’t burn out like so many other bands.  Not even “Closer to the Heart” has burned out on me yet, and it’s always a pleasure hearing a less familiar version.

On to “By-Tor”: it features a nicely noisy and meandering Alex Lifeson solo, surely a highlight of the entire performance.  This segues directly into a truncated “In the End”, also from Fly By Night.  This then is butted against “In the Mood” from the first Rush album in an awkward transition.  Geddy appears to change the lyrics from “Hey baby” to “Hey Cookie”.  Even this song is shortened, and segues into “Grande Finale” from 2112.  Alex ends it with some noise-laden blasting on his axe, almost stealing the spotlight from his two bandmates.  It’s a perfect storm of musical excellence and heavy rock.

Sonically,  Red Stars of the Solar Federation is vastly inferior to the current Exit…Stage Left DVD.  Yet I have a geeky love for an oddball CD like this.  While I can’t say it’s worth $70, I can say it’s worth:

3.5/5 stars

This CD is top-scratched and pinholed, but plays great

REVIEW: Van Halen – For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991)

VAN HALEN – For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge (1991 Warner Bros.)

What a frustrating experience this album was for me.  This was supposed “the one”; the album that would please the DLR fans and finally unite Van Halen fandom.  Heavier with only one ballad, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge was to be a statement.  Edward Van Halen had said that neither 5150 nor OU812 were ever properly finished to his liking.  In both cases, the band were under pressure to get out there and tour (OU812 because of the 1988 Monsters of Rock).  F.U.C.K. was to be the album that he finally got to spend time on and properly finish.  It was also Eddie’s first album using his new Ernie Ball guitars.   I expected my brain to be blown.

And it was, or it was by the first single at least.  “Poundcake” lived up to the promise.  Sure, lyrically it was…well, pretty stoopid, but musically?  Van Halen had some balls back!  This motherfucker grooves like a slow train.  As far as guitar tricks went, Eddie went all out with harmonics, taps, and…drills?  The shimmery guitars were subtly different from Eddie’s classic “brown sound”, but a guitar sound is an ever-evolving quest.  On this song, his rhythm guitar tones recall his friend, Brian May.  With “Poundcake” as a first single, I couldn’t wait to hear the whole album.

MuchMusic came close to banning this video

I was given the CD (same copy I still have) on my birthday in ’91, by childhood friend Bob.  I still remember popping the CD in for the first time that afternoon.  Then a few days later it was given to me again (this time on cassette) by my Aunt and Uncle!

Momentum is maintained on the second track, “Judgement Day”, heavier than the first.  The riff is anchored by a whammy bar trick, and it’s tasty.  I cannot find fault with “Judgement Day”.  This is what I wanted and hoped for from the new Van Halen album.  The groove is still there, Alex and Mikey gelling in a relentless way.  Sonically, both guys are recorded better than ever.  The bass and drums on For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge are really something to behold.

Then, things slide.  The awful “Spanked” is the worst song on the album, and possible contender for worst Van Hagar song yet.  “All you bad bad boys, call her up on the spank line,” sings Sammy with a straight face.  The sad thing is, the song would have been a fine instrumental, or basis for something with David Lee Roth.  Sammy ruins it with shitty lyrics and a shitty melody.  Too bad.  “Runaround” is a good song on first and second listen, but you tire of it quickly.  It’s bland, as is much of F.U.C.K.  The problem with “going heavy” for an album is the risk of losing diversity and texture.

The 7-minute “Pleasure Dome” can barely be called a song.  Organized chaos with some lead vocals, yes.  But it’s barely a song.  There are moments of brilliance contained within (the drums in particular) but it’s not particularly worthy.  And this was the side closer.

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As crappy as “Spanked” is, “In ‘N’ Out” is virtually a carbon copy.  It has some sparkling guitars to go with it, but like “Spanked”, the song sucks.  I can’t believe somebody didn’t say, “Guys, let’s cut the album down to 9 tracks like we used to do, and leave those two for B-sides”.   “Man On a Mission” isn’t much improved.  Just dull rock with dumb lyrics.  Totally uninspired.  It’s just four guys playing music without much direction other than, “turn it up!”

Things change up a little bit on “The Dream is Over”.  This also-ran isn’t a bad tune, though nowhere near single quality for Van Halen.  It’s at least a step in the right direction.  It feels as if the album was in a slumber, and it has now woken up — the title is apt.  And thankfully Sammy isn’t singing about girl parts for a change.

Van Halen didn’t consider “Right Now” to be a ballad, but it’s the only song with a keyboard.  It’s a welcome oasis in the desert of monotonous rock.  It’s a great song.  I don’t think anyone can say that it hasn’t been played to death, so I don’t need to comment further.  MTV awards, Pepsi, blah blah blah.

Nice suit.

“316” (named for Wolfy’s birthday 3/16/1991) is an acoustic guitar part that Eddie had been playing live for years.  Later, Eddie used to play this piece for Wolfgang while still in the womb.  But it’s just a brief 90 second instrumental, a segue into “Top of the World”, also a single.  It took a while for me to recognize the riff.  In fact, I didn’t pick up on it until I heard this song following “Jump” on the album LIVE: Right here, right now.   Only then did I realize:  it’s based on the outro riff from “Jump”!  So they re-used that oft-forgotten riff and built a new song around it.  It’s a good song, very pop rock, but a suitable album closer.

As high as this album charted (US #1), I’m convinced For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge is one of the albums responsible for the death of hard rock in 1991.  Sure, a lot of people bought it.  But a lot of people also didn’t like it very much.  Maybe they were getting tired of the schtick, but I do know I found it really hard to proudly blast this album out of the car.

2.8/5 stars

REVIEW: Rush – Snakes & Arrows (2007 MVI 5.1 version)

You’ve heard of Epic Meal Time?  They should call me Epic Review Time.  Here’s a couple hours of music, text and video distilled down and covered in detail.  This is a double-sized review for the price of one.  Dive in and engorge!

RUSH – Snakes & Arrows (2007 Warner Music Interactive DVD album)

Rush’s Snakes & Arrows album was considered a progression from the previous record, Vapor Trails. The pummeling of Vapor Trails has been tempered with light and shade, bringing a more balanced Rush.  It was also mixed in 5.1 for a special “Music Video Interactive” DVD by Richard Chycki and Alex Lifeson, who oversee most of Rush’s 5.1 mixes.  I haven’t listened to any version of Snakes & Arrows for many moons, so this is a review from fresh ears.

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First though, there is a 40+ minute documentary video called “The Game of Snakes & Arrows” so we can learn a bit about how the album came to be.  Geddy Lee says that their priority for choosing a recording studio was that they wanted the best drum sound imaginable.  They chose an old mansion out in the Adironacks.  47 individual microphones were used to record the entire drum kit.  Neil Peart says that the isolation of the studio led to the three guys reconnecting as musicians and friends like the old days at Le Studio.   According to Alex Lifeson, the plan for writing this time was to take it easy, working on the writing part only part time.  Later on, more time was spent on just rehearsing and playing the new songs, which transformed them along them way.  The documentary contains snippets of some intricate Lifeson acoustic 12-string, in the studio, where Alex makes it look easy.

Producer Nick Raskulinecz was not a passive participant; indeed there was give and take with the band in order to make the best out of each song. It was a process that worked well according to Alex.  I enjoyed hearing Alex explain the suspended F chord in “Far Cry” — there’s a story behind it. There is some great footage of Geddy playing Mellotron on “Good News First” too.  I also love a fly on the wall scene of Geddy jamming a bass lick on his brand-new-out-of-the-box Jaco Pastorius bass.  The lick sounded good and Geddy says, “We’ll jam to it later.  We’ll get the Big Guy on drums.”  Chills up my spine.   Raskulinecz  asks, “Would it be bad if we had two instrumentals on the record?”  Geddy immediately responds, “No, it’ll be a first.”  Peart shows up and they start to jam, and when Alex arrives it only takes him a day to come up with his guitar part to the Grammy-nominated Rush bass-drum jam called “Malignant Narcissism”.  Wham, bam, thank you ma’am.  This is how the big boys play.

Although this doc is only 40 minutes in length it’s well worth having.  This is great stuff.   Neil Peart crafting drum parts in front of our very eyes is a treat that few other DVDs deliver.  Seeing Geddy applauding his bandmate shouting, “He’s killing it, woo!” is glorious.

As if all this isn’t enough, there is a many-paged (I lost count) essay by Peart called “The Game of Snakes & Arrows: Prize Every Time”.  My favourite detail is what producer Nick Raskulinecz was nicknamed:  “Boujze”, based on the sound he’d make when trying to convey to Peart a drum fill suggestion.  “Bappitty-bap-bap-booooujze!”

The DVD photo gallery is a total joke:  FIVE pictures.  At least the package comes with an expanded booklet with lots of Hugh Syme’s surreal artwork.  Since the photo gallery on the DVD was just shite photies, I’ll give you some shots from the documentary that are loads better.

So, let’s get on with the album then.  Pushing play —

Delicacy and aggression describe album opener (and first single) “Far Cry”.  The acoustics of Lifeson are easily overwhelmed by the pummeling band.  “Far Cry” boasts one of those powerful 90’s-style Rush riffs that groove rather than exercise the brain.  Immediately I am overwhelmed by a dense 5.1 riff.  I do not know how many guitars I am hearing, but Alex has unique parts coming in from all sides, including an acoustic on the left that I never noticed before.  I have loved “Far Cry” since its triumphant release in 2007; it is just as powerful and engaging today.  New appreciation for Lifeson will be had on this mix.

“Armor & Sword” was a standout then and now, just as “Far Cry” before.  The song has always shimmered, but more so in 5.1.  This track has much more of Alex’s acoustic guitars, and more texture.  It has a regal 80’s Rush-like quality without the keyboards.  In fact there are no keyboards on Snakes & Arrows, only the Mellotron.  The 5.1 mix becomes a little dense at times, and the layers of guitars oppressive, but it is indeed a massive song.  Then, you can audibly hear the Mellotron on “Workin’ Them Angels”, a phrase taken from one of Peart’s books.  It is a brighter song than either of the first two, and I like the reference to the “moving picture”.  “Workin’ Them Angels” is an album highlight, particularly the mandolin near the end.

SNAKES AND ARROWS_0007Somber moods inhabit “The Larger Bowl”, with Alex’s acoustics again giving it mood and texture.  The hippy-ish chorus sounds like the 1960’s to me, and with the acoustics it paints a picture in my mind.  This is a very good song, but Alex’s well composed guitar solo is the focal point for me.  His tone is very different on the solo, very warm.  It’s an excellent song.  “Spindrift” is less overwhelming to me.  There is nothing wrong with it; it is simply less enchanting than its predecessors since they set the bar quite high.  The song was, however, performed on the Snakes & Arrows tour and kicks of CD 2 of the album Snakes & Arrows Live and there is no denying it is powerful.

“The Main Monkey Business” is the first instrumental, again featuring Geddy on Mellotron.  The main melodic element to this song feels familiar to me — it reminds me of one of Ace Frehley’s “Fractured” instrumentals in terms of melody.  In terms of playing and structure, it is nothing like Frehley.  The 5.1 mix here is nicely balanced.  I’m getting plenty of distinct acoustic parts, with Geddy and Neil front and center.  The chiming guitars behind me envelope the listener in warmth.  Then, suddenly during a solo guitar section, the mix retreats almost all way to stereo before returning again on all 5.1.  Things bounce back and forth between intensely heavy and intensely heady.  This is a masterpiece of instrumental craft.

SNAKES AND ARROWS_0005“We can only go the way the wind blows,” claims Peart on the next song.  “The Way the Wind Blows” has two distinct sections:one heavy and one with layered acoustics. I prefer the acoustic section and I’m not too much into the heavy parts which sounds a bit same-y to 90’s Rush stuff.  Then, “Hope” is a short Lifeson acoustic showcase.  This might be the point at which some Rush fans started to doze a bit.  Admittedly Snakes & Arrows is the most acoustic-based Rush album I can think of. I just don’t think that’s a bad thing.  Not when you have Alex Lifeson in your band.  “Hope” leads into “Faithless”, a strong Rush composition.  There seems to be some sort continuity of theme here, or perhaps it is all in my head?  First Neil says we can only go the way the wind blows.  Then we go from “Hope”, to a discussion of faith.  On “Faithless”, Neil says that like the willow, he will quietly resist.  Seems like a total 180 from going where the wind blows to me, and I don’t care if it’s not intentional because I think it’s cool.  On the guitar end, Alex plays a cool bluesy solo, once again classing up the song several notches.  What a player.

The song that doesn’t work for me is “Bravest Face”.  I find the verses annoying.  “Good News First” is better, returning us to the regal Rush territory I prefer.  Alex’s magnificent chords are enhanced by the Mellotron.  Weak verses are compensated for here by other elements.  It sounds like an incomplete song to me, but better than “Bravest Face”.  The aforementioned “Malignant Narcissism” is a mind-tornado as opposed to a mind-blow.  But it’s actually a distraction; you’re about to be blown away by the sheer power of closer “We Hold On”.  Rush closers usually just bowl me over, and “We Hold On” is one of those.  Fucking awesome.  This time, Alex concentrates on the electric guitar and comes up with numerous unique and enhancing licks.  This is a complete Rush triumph.  Neil is absolutely relentless.  It leaves the album on an exhausted, satisfied note.

And a good thing, too — I was starting to worry as the song quality was dipping towards the end there.  I’m happy Rush redeemed it with a stunner like “We Hold On”.

4/5 stars

REVIEW: Avril Lavigne – Under My Skin (2004 w/ bonus track)

Yesterday, you read all about why I own this (and many others).  Will I still like it today?  Let’s find out.

AVRIL LAVIGNE – Under My Skin (2004 Arista)

Let’s get on with it.  The version of Under My Skin that I have comprises 13 songs, so let’s put the headphones on.   “Take Me Away” opens strongly with sparse, polished guitars and keyboards.  It sounds like Evanescence, actually.  It was written by Avril and her guitarist Evan Taubenfeld.  At this point, Avril wasn’t singing with any annoying contrivances in her voice.  She was just blasting away (most likely in autotune).  Given that this song is very produced and plasticized, it’s still a good song.  So far we’re 1/1.

AVRIL_0004“Together” is a bit too melodramatic for Mike 2014, but damn, I still love that fucking chorus. I’m singing along with my fist in the air.  Shit!  2/2.

One of several hit singles was the ballady “Don’t Tell Me”.  This one makes me want to vomit in my mouth a little bit.  I’m uncomfortable with this kind of teenybop rock now.  But that fucking chorus hits and…ahh fuck!  Still, the chorus can’t save the song, it’s shite.  2/3.

Avril returns to her so-called punk roots with “He Wasn’t”.  Phil X on guitar here, but he doesn’t get to solo (a damn shame).  As much as I want to hate the song, I can’t.  It seems pretty sincere, and it ain’t bad.  It’s snarky but not annoyingly so.  3/4 now.  “How Does It Feel” is a ballad, not a bad one either.  The instrumental production on this one (by Raine Maida) is excellent, although the vocals still sound autotuned.  Phil X again on guitar.  The score is now 4/5.

I’m a total sucker for the single “My Happy Ending”.  Butch Walker wrote a pretty cool song, and the chorus is one of those Avril bellows that she is known for.  The lyrics, like most of ’em, are about some dude.  I can’t really sing along to “He was everything, everything that I wanted,” sincerely, you know?  Still, the score is now 5/6.  And it’s going to go up to 6/7, because I remember liking the song “Nobody’s Home” a lot.  I’m not sure what the lyrics are exactly about, but Avril sounds like she’s trying to get serious, so that’s better than words about some dude.  Ben Moody from Evanescence itself co-wrote this one, so you can guess who it naturally reminds me of.  Still, I’ll maintain that 6/7 because the chorus is still great.

“Forgotten” starts out crap.  You sure can tell this one was written by Chantal Kreviazuk as that is who it sounds like.  The track doesn’t improve on the chorus.  Pass.  The board reads 6/8.   A good song called “Who Knows” is up next, and even though it wasn’t one of the single, I think it’s one of the best songs.  This one kind of sounds like a pop metal anthem, you could imagine a band like Warrant having a song like this.  It has mellow acoustic verses with a shout-y fun singalong chorus.  7/9 now!  “Fall To Pieces”, written with Raine Maida sounds like an Our Lady Peace outtake.    A pretty good outtake, with a great bridge.  Good enough for 8/10.

I have always liked “Freak Out”.  It’s just fun.  This one too sounds like a Raine Maida construction, but it is not.  It’s written by Butch Walker and Avril’s drummer Matt Brann.  It’s easier to listen to than most Our Lady Pea(ee-yai-ee-aye-ee)ce, so the score is now 9/11.  As my buddy Craig might say, it’s looking like it’s time to hand in my Man Card.

Maybe not!  “Slipped Away” is utter shite that I cannot listen to.  It sounds like Chantal…guess who wrote it?  The chorus is not too bad, but this song is crap.  Can’t take it.  If I could deduct 2 points, I would.  9/12.  It’s down to the “bonus track” now.  “I Always Get What I Want” originally came from a UK edition, but I bought this CD from my nearest Walmart.  There’s something on the fine print about Sony BMG Music Entertainment (UK) Ltd, so maybe that’s something to do with it.  “I Always Get What I Want” is another “punky” Avril, but like “Slipped Away”, it too is crap.  Sounds like Avril’s trying to be her heroes, Green Day.  No thank you.

The final score for Avril Lavigne’s Under My Skin is 9/13.  Did I like it as much now as I did in 2004?  Not quite.  It might have been that I liked a couple more of those sappy songs.  However, I’ve already said far too much here.  I’m going to cut my losses and get out now.

3.5/5 stars

VIDEO TOY REVIEW: Despicable Me Fart Blaster

DESPICABLE ME Fart Blaster (Illumination Entertainment)

5/5 stars from LeBrain
7/5 stars from Martin LePage

REVIEW: Journey – Red 13 (2002 EP)

Welcome to the end of Week of EPs! We checked out some famed and obscure EPs all week:

MONDAY: Aerosmith – The Other Side (1990)
TUESDAY: Wolfsbane – All Hell’s Breaking Loose Down at Little Kathy Wilson’s Place! (1990)
WEDNESDAY: AC/DC – ’74 Jailbreak (1984)
THURSDAY: Marillion (as “Remixomatosis”) – You’re Gone (2005)

JRNY RED 13_0003JOURNEY – Red 13 (2002 Journey Music)

I chose an obscure, semi-forgotten release to end the Week of EPs.  Time seems to move slowly in Journey-land.  Their first track released with “new” singer Steve Augeri was in 1998, and the album Arrival was released in 2000. (2001 in America.)  Generations wouldn’t come out until mid-2005.  There was a lot of upheaval at the time for classic rock bands like Journey who were lacking key original members.  No longer on a major label, Journey tried releasing a self-produced EP on their website in 2002.  It came and went without a lot of people even noticing.  Fans who knew what was going on were interested in what Journey might sound like now, free of the constrictions of a record company.

I don’t know where the title Red 13 comes from, but if you add up studio albums including the soundtrack Dream After Dream, Red 13 would be the band’s 13th studio release.

The fact that there’s an intro (simply called “Red 13”) tells you that Journey are at least stretching their wings a bit.  It’s an interesting intro, with programmed techno beats, new-agey prog keyboards, and noisy, exotic Schon licks.  Even though I loathe these kinds of beats, I am at least excited by the sound of Journey experimenting with their sound again.  This intro takes us directly into a song called “State of Grace” which expands on the exotic vibe.  It’s one of the heaviest things recorded by Journey to date.  Augeri lacks the vocal superpowers of Steve Perry, but he fills the role acceptably well.  “State of Grace” combines anthemic Journey with experimental, guitar-dominated hard rock.  It is a successful mix.  Red 13 is off to a promising start.

JRNY RED 13_0001The track simply titled “The Time” is a Zeppelin-esque slow groove, with nary a keyboard to be found.  Instead, Schon and Jonathan Cain lay on the rhythm guitars, complimenting what the other player is doing.  While something like “The Time” is an admirable achievement to a listener such as myself, I don’t think average Joe Six-pack Journey Fan will appreciate what the band are doing here.  They might consider it a “piss break” song.  Meanwhile I’m hanging on waiting to see what Schon’s going to do for a solo.    (Answer: he does what Schon does!)  I’ll also single out drummer Deen Castronovo as an MVP on this song.  I’ve always been candid about my preference for Steve Smith in Journey, but this song is a different kind of Journey and Deen’s frenetic fills are more than ample.

The third song “Walking Away from the Edge” was co-written by, of all people, Geoff Tate.  This is a solemn piano-based ballad.  It resembles some of the things the band did in the past with Steve Perry.  Unfortunately it’s not as memorable as, say, “Send Her My Love”.  It does boast a powerful chorus but at 6:17, the song is a little too long.  It fades abruptly, and then the final song is “I Can Breathe”.  This one is little more than a standard sounding Journey rocker.  It is not particular special unfortunately, until close to a 3-minute mark when a horn section kicks in.  They should have had the horns there from the start!

Red 13 is not a bad EP, but the production is sub-par, as can happen when bands self-produce.  However, had a producer been there in the studio the songs would undoubtedly turned out differently so that’s the trade off.  The worst thing about it is the band photo, which just looks cheap and bad.  What is that on your face, Neal?  Dirt?

3/5 stars