So Arcade Fire has released a video for their song The Wilderness Downtown. Only it is a bit different from traditional music videos. Actually, its a little eerie. I suggest everyone check it out and give it a shot. There is a bit of interaction required. Also, you need to use Google Chrome. It is well worth installing the browser.
The song itself is actually quite good. What one would expect from Arcade Fire: easy to listen to and enjoyable.
Right now I’m listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ two disc album Stadium Arcadium. With the Peppers currently working on a new studio album (sans Frusciante sadly) I thought I would do an entry about them. So I decided to discuss which of the two discs from Stadium Arcadium is better. First, the track list for both:
Jupiter
Dani California
Snow (Hey Oh)
Charlie
Stadium Arcadium
Hump de Bump
She’s Only 18
Slow Cheetah
Torture Me
Strip My Mind
Especially In Michigan
Warlocks
C’mon Girl
Wet Sand
Hey
Mars
Desecration Smile
Tell Me Baby
Hard to Concentrate
21st Century
She Looks To Me
Readymade
If
Make You Feel Better
Animal Bar
So Much I
Storm In A Teacup
We Believe
Turn It Again
Death of a Martian
Both discs are 14 tracks long. Both are chock full of great songs, some funky, some slow and nice, some uppity and bouncy. And then there are a couple that are kind of meh. Hey, it’s inevitable when you release an album 28 songs in length. So lets start by looking at the highlights of Jupiter.
First off, their first single from this album is the first track. Dani California is a great song, if a little bland because I’ve heard it so many times. The second track is my favorite song from the whole album. Snow (Hey Oh) is quite possibly the greatest song I have ever heard. Frusciante blows me away with his great guitar riffs and Snow just has an amazing one and the lyrics also captivate me. The title track, Stadium Arcadium, is also on this disc and it is a great slower paced song. Especially in Michigan is also one of my favorites on the disc. The lyrics and the guitar solo are great. Another song that deserves an individual mention is Wet Sand. This song has such a great buildup and sounds awesome. Hey rounds off the disc nicely by bringing the pace down.
One track in particular from Jupiter, Hump de Bump, is probably the “funkiest” song on the whole album. It is more reminiscent of their earlier days and it was great to here some of that coming out still. At first I wasn’t sure I liked it, but then when Chad Smith started to break it down on the drums I knew that this song was a keeper. Definitely a classic to me.
Now on to Mars. I love the first six songs off this disc. One of the most memorable lines from the album is from 21st Century for me: “Simple soldier/ Hand it over/ Stop and read what you just wrote her”. I’m not usre what it is about the line, but it fits the music and the theme so nicely that it always sticks out when I listen to the song. She looks to me is probably my favorite “slower” song from the album. Readymade delivers probably the best guitar solo from the entire album and was probably my second favorite song, after Snow, to hear at their show (only including songs from this album).
Now as for the lowlights from the album there are three songs that I don’t lose sleep over if they are skipped. Slow Cheetah is the first, from the Jupiter disc. The song is somewhat boring if you ask me with nothing about it grabbing my attention. The other two, from Mars, are If and Animal Bar. If is just a god awful song about nothing with no interesting instrumentation or musicianship. Animal Bar is the same situation as Slow Cheetah.
So which disc do I enjoy more? The winner has to be Mars. Despite having my least favorite song on this disc I think the good songs more than make up for it. The first six songs alone probably make up for it. But then there are other good tracks like Storm in a Teacup and Death of a Martian. Although the race is close Jupiter has more of thier singles on it and because of that I tend to get tired of hearing those songs on the radio.
At the end of the day though I can’t say I would be opposed to listening to either disc. Does anyone else have an opinion on this matter? Weigh in on the issue with a comment whilst we all wait in anticipation for RHCP to release their next effort.
Yesterday Linkin Park released the first single, The Catalyst, from their upcoming album, A Thousand Suns. Linkin Park has always been a special band for me. They were really the first band that I liked because I liked them. Not because someone else did or because my parents did or for any other reason. I heard them and I decided for me that this was MY music. Of course that was many many years ago now. Since then the sound they broke out with, a very nu metal, rap-rock sound has more or less been abandoned. This is very obvious with The Catalyst.
I guess one might call me a fanboy. I do tend to enjoy anything Linkin Park puts out (except Valentine’s Day, that was a terrible song) but I do always try to stay critical. So when I first heard The Catalyst I didn’t know WHAT to think. The sound is a huge departure from Minutes to Midnight, which was only a small step away from their first two albums. The song sounds electronic. As in take the european electronic do-do-do sound and mix it with some sweet drumming and you’ll have a basic idea of what to expect. And all I can think about now is what the hell did Brad Delson do while they were recording this track?
I hear not a single guitar riff in the entire song. Drums, check. Singing, check. Rapping, check. Bass, check. Scratching, check. That accounts for everyone else in the band. But no guitar. This indicates to me one of two things. 1) Brad Delson was fired without anyone knowing. I’m gonna go ahead and say this isn’t the case. The other option is 2) that this is not entirely indicitive of the rest of the album. Many people I’ve heard voice their opinion on this song say they don’t really like it because of the electronic sound. Fair enough, but lets not judge the entire album before its out. I can’t see them not including guitar on any tracks on the album, so I can also see them taking a step back where the fans are more comfortable.
There is more evidence, I think to suggest that the album won’t sound entirely like this single too. Linkin Park has stated time and again that they’re letting their sound change and looking to continue to be creative with this album. They called in Rick Rubin to produce this album because they liked the way he helped them do this. So it appears to me that they are going for shock value with this first single. They’re saying “Here, this is the most different thing you will hear from us. I hope you like it,” as opposed to putting something out to appease their fanboys. There is plenty of time for the mainstream single to take over the radio stations. I mean, look at the Offspring. The first single from Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace was Hammerhead. Any Offspring fan enjoyed it. They also knew that it wouldn’t be a huge hit in the mainstream. When the album was released everyone knew right away that You’re Gonna Go Far Kid was gonna be their huge single. And it was. So why shouldn’t Linkin Park do it too? They are rewarding their fans who are on board with them innovating with their sound like they want to, and making the rest of the fans who just want to hear the old style wait.
You’ll have noticed by now that I haven’t given my opinion yet on the song. So what do I think of it? The first time I heard it I was flabergasted, to say the least. “What is this? This isn’t Linkin Park. What have they done?” Upon subsequent listenings it has REALLY grown on me. I had to get over the initial shock but now I quite enjoy it.
Strong points: The lyrics. The lyrics are probably the strongest part of this whole song. They are sort of cryptic, but if you listen and think there are definitely dark undertones. The imagery is just amazing, with lines such as Will we burn inside the fires of a thousand suns?/ Like memories in cold decay/ Transmissions echoing away. An obvious duality can be seen. The theme is very critical and the intense imagery really emphasises that we are infact the origin of our own suffering.
Another strong point is the intense, epic build up in the second half of the song. The music cuts down to the piano and the do-do-do sound. Then chester kicks in singing the same line a few times. A very ominous double kick joins him and then drums are added. The sound further builds as Chester starts to shout-sing in that way he does and an echo is heard. Then the verse in played underneith. Finally, when all these things come together everything can be heard distinctly but they all blend nicely. Truely my, and many other peoples I’m sure, favorite part.
Weak points: Unfortunately the do-do-do sound should have been used slightly more sparingly I think. While it fits at some points, the first time it starts in the song I always go “huh?”. This is largely due to it becoming the focus of the sound, when it should always be in the background. And when it IS in the background it sounds great and adds a whole new dimension to the song. To be fair though, I do think only the first time it comes into the song does it ever sound out of place.
Another weak point, and this is just a personal thing for me, is the lack of guitar. But that being said, it doesn’t necessarily detract from the song. It’s just something I like. I’m not saying that adding a more prominent guitar part would have made the song better.
So to wrap this up I just want to say I’m very excited for the rest of the album. I don’t think it will all be as much of a departure from their old sound as this song was, but I’m sure we can expect some other unexpected things, and probably a few other songs that make use do a double take. At the end I’m sure (read: hoping, since I do ultimately enjoy old LP best) we’ll hear some good old rocking, shouting and mixing.
Oh and whoever did the mix for this song (I’m guessing Shinoda, but I can’t say for sure) deserves a gold medal for awesome.
As always:
Not an official video. But I couldn’t find the song on playlist.com so I used youtube.
For those of you who don’t know Linkin Park has a new album on the horizon. It is titled A Thousand Suns and is slated for release on September 14th. Their first single, The Catalyst, will be released next Monday. When I listen to it a few times I will probably write me thoughts on it but for now I want to write about one Rick Rubin.
Rick Rubin is, simply put, a genius. What does he have to do with Linkin Park? He produced their third studio album, Minutes to Midnight, and stepped in again to produce A Thousand Suns. But that isn’t all he produced. He is the mastermind behind such classics as the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Blood Suger Sex Magik (1991), Johnny Cash’s American Recordings (1994) and Rage Against the Machine’s Renegades (2000). Thats not all, he also produced Metallica’s latest effort Death Magnetic. Death Magnetic is a very listenable album and a far greater effort from the thrash metal band than St. Anger was. Both the self titled album and Out of Exile by Audioslave were produced by Rick Rubin spawning a number of hits. He was noticably absent for Revalations however, which did not fare nearly as well. The list goes on and on, but I think you can understand his influence on the music business. The full list can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_Rubin_production_discography.
Rick Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records with Russel Simmons. Because of his work with the Beastie Boys, Run DMC and Aerosmith, and other hip hop groups he is often credited as introducing rap-rock to the mainstream. He Artists often praise him after working with him. He won Producer of the Year at the 2008 Grammy awards and also listed in Time Magazine as one of the top 100 most influential people.
Usually Rubin sits back and lets the band do what they will. He listens and tries to coach them, rather than take a leading role in the album: “I have no training, no technical skill — it’s only this ability to listen and try to coach the artist to be the best they can from the perspective of a fan”. Of course, this approach isn’t always accepted. He recieved criticism from Muse and Slipknot after working with them. Other projects, such as his work with U2 have fallen through. None the less, the “Good” column is far longer than the “Bad” column.
This is why I can’t wait to hear A Thousand Suns and see what Rubin has been able to do with Linkin Park. I also can’t wait to hear the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album and all future work from this man. When will it slow down? Will it ever? Who can say, but as far as I can tell, he is a large part of the reason for the continued production of good and innovative music. I mean, the man convinced Johnny Cash to cover a song by Nine Inch Nails that would go on to be critically acclaimed. That’s got to count for something right?
I just thought I would share this with everyone: Diamond Eyes. You can find it at the bottom, as usual. It’s the song that can be heard in the trailor for the movie The Expendables. This movie looks so epic and I can’t wait to see it. The song is pretty damn good too. I might have to check out more stuff by Shinedown.
In other news, I recently picked up the newest album by Stars, The Five Ghosts. My verdict? Strong effort, but lacking… something.
To be honest, I don’t really have a lot to complain about with this album. Each individual song is nice, catchy enough. There are no songs that I skip over when I listen to the album. But I also can’t necessarily name each individual song. The album kind of blurs together for me, as if it is just one big streak of grey. Infact, the songs that stick out most for me are probably the more upbeat ones. This is peculiar because Stars are pretty much the masters of woe and melancoly.
One track in particular, We Don’t Want Your Body, really sticks out for me. The chorus is mostly a repetition of the hook. For hours on end you’ll be singing “we don’t want your body” in your head. Unfortunately, this catchy little piece of work is followed by He Dreams He’s Awake, one of the albums weakest points, in my opinion. Painfully slow, with nothing to grab you at all.
The albums picks up again though with the song Changes. This track is one where Amy Millan really shines. I mean really. This is the highlight of the album for me. Millan, in that way she does, has you hanging off of every word she sings without being imposing or demanding. Torquil Campbell’s voice is no where to be found on this particular number, allowing Millan to take center stage.
In the end, the album can be said to fall short of what we heard on their previous efforts such as Heart or In Our Bedroom After the War. However, there are certainly tracks worth listening to on the album and if you enjoy them it is worth picking up.
What was the last song you listened to? Who was it by? What album was it from? Did you listen to the whole album? If you could answer the first three questions and answered yes to the last then you are of a dying breed. Oh, maybe not of those who truly enjoy music, but certainly of the entire population. What I’ve started to notice is that the full album experience has started to die. What do I mean by this? Read on and find out.
Probabaly one of the biggest revalations in the music industry in the past 20 years has been the introduction of peer-to-peer file sharing. It started with Napster, but soon other clients began to surface. Today, you could probably find 10 or more programs allowing you to share files. For most people this means free music. But the way these programs work, by downloading a single file (ie. a single song) has left some of us wanting. It would take a considerable amount of effort to find all the songs on an album and to download them all. For most, thats fine. They only want the one song anyways. Unfortunatly, because of this, albums are no longer put together with the same amount of thought as they used to be.
Lets back up. In the early days of music, when an album used to come on a hard copy (CD, cassette, 8-track, vinyl) and downloading was not available, in order to listen to a song at ones leisure, one had to purchase the entire album. And while they might have listend to the song they like initially, it is inevitable that they would then go on to listen to the rest of the album. Now, if the artist has done the album right then the listener will probably enjoy all or most of the songs on the album and have found 8 or 9 other songs they enjoy. And so often the artist DID do it right.
Let me throw a rather curious example at you. Because of the albums acclaim the songs “Time” and “Money” have been heard over and over again even by generations that were not alive when it was recorded. If you played the songs almost anyone could name the titles, possibly the artist too. If you ask them if they know the album plenty would say no. Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon is one of the greatest albums ever recorded. Yes, this is an opinion. It is, however, a much-echoed opinion, often accepted. When I am listening to one of the aforementioned songs and someone asks what I’m listening to I say The Dark Side of the Moon. Most people now will say “Time” or “Money”.
The album is meant to be listened to end-to-end as well. Doing so enhances the experience. The songs all flow together, and now what makes each individual song so great is increased. This leads to another problem that is arising these days. As is the case with The Dark Side of the Moon, the order of songs on an album can greatly increase the appeal of the album. But because people are simply downloading single songs, artists are putting less thought into this. What was the last great concept album to be released? Greenday’s American Idiot was semi-concept (and if you ask me, not that great, but thats another argument). My Chemical Romance has The Black Parade and Coheed and Cambria have theirs. Decent examples, but the idea is hugely declining from the popularity it experienced in the 60′s, 70′s and 80′s.
And why shouldn’t it? Not many people pay attention to the whole album anymore. They hear a song, find it on limewire or whatever happens to be the big file sharing program at the time, download it and enjoy it, with nary a thought for the rest of the songs. So why should an artist toil and stress over what songs are put on the album and what order to put them in when a large portion of people won’t give it a thought.
Perhaps there is hope, atleast for song order and choice. With the increasing popularity of torrent file sharing entire albums are available for download rather quickly. This creates a whole new slew of problems for the artist as well, but that could fill another entire article. I also know that a few people I have talked to sometimes just search for an artists name and download random songs they haven’t heard of. This shows there is still interest to hear other songs. Now if people could just open their eyes and realize they should just get the entire album…
So, if you are one who listens to the entire album, I salute you. If you are not… stop diluting the quality of music being released these days!
Also, if you get the chance, give The Dark Side of the Moon a listen end-to-end. I promise you wont be disappointed. You might even realize what you are missing out on.
I like it when an artist uses unique and interesting devices in a song. Sometimes it turns out terribly (a la almost anything by Eminem) and sometimes it turns out beautifully (think Metallica S&M). One thing that I really love to hear is both a male and female lead singer in a song. A handful of bands actually have both a male and female lead vocalist but many times a vocalist of the opposite gender is brought in for just one song. Whatever the case, I find that having the dual leads can add a lot of depth to a song, and even add a new layer of meaning.
For that reason I am now going to list my top 5 favourite songs with both male and female vocals. Although, not in every case are they both lead, you will find that the songs where they are, are nearer the top of the list.
5. Possession – Evans Blue (Sung by Kevin Matisyn, backing vocals by Tara MacLean)
There is a lot I like about this song. The hard guitar riffs coupled with the beautiful lyrics (written by Sarah McLachlan, bet you didn’t know THAT) make for an interesting song. But what made this track stick out when I listened to the album the first time was the vocals. The backing vocals are female and basically just the same lyrics sung overtop of the male lead vocals in certain spots. While this is, by no means, revolutionary, the mix is done almost flawlessly. The sound of Tara’s voice is very soft when compared to the rougher voice of Kevin.
4. Head South – Modest Mouse (Sung by Isaac Brock, backing vocals by Nicole Johnson)
Don’t ask me what it is about this song that I like, I just think it is fun. But, similar to Possession, the female vocals are simply an echo over the male vocals, this time just for the words “head south”. But the contrast between the two is fantastic! Isaac is basically screaming the words, while Nicole is singing them quite melodically. Together, you get a sense of the emotions and thoughts that the characters in the song may be feeling, or what others think about them. At least, I do.
3. I Run To You – Lady Antebellum (Sung by Charles Kelley and Hillary Scott)
I’m not the hugest country music fan, but now and then I do enjoy a good bout of country music. Lady Antebellum has just recently come on my radar and I have started to love what I hear from this trio. This track is just plain cute. It is a nice country ballad about needing your significant other. What I think is unique about this though is that I think Hillary’s voice is the stronger of the two. This is unusual, because usually the man has the stronger voice. When Hillary and Charles are singing together you can definitely hear both, but Hillary is more apparent I think.
2. 9 Crimes – Damien Rice and Lisa Hannigan
This song is like an explosion of emotion, it just blows me away. The melody is so simple but so beautiful. Lisa and Damien have voices that go together so well, especially in this song. The song begins with a verse sung by Lisa, then the chorus. Then Damien sings a verse that is almost identical. They then sing the chorus together in a call and replay style. The thing is, you get a sense that, even though what they are singing is the same, it has quite a different meaning. It is remarkable how well they do this. The song is largely open to interpretation and the metaphor in the chorus can leave you thinking about it for a while. At least for me it did. But the way they sing together is just so amazing that I had to put this near the top of my list.
1. The Night Starts Here – Stars (Sung by Torquil Campbell and Amy Millan)
I love Stars! I think Torquil and Amy complement each other so perfectly and both of their voices are so amazing. Torquil, in particular has such a strong voice, with a lot of power behind it (if you want an example of it listen to the song “Barricade”). Amy on the other hand has a voice that just demands you listen to it, without it being harsh or loud. On this particular track, near the end, they both sing their verse at the same time. It works out magnificently, and really sounds beautiful. I have not heard a rock song ever where two lead singers sing over top of one another without it being in some sort of call and reply style. But in this song it is two separate verses being sung together.
So there it is, my top five songs with both female and male singers. Actually, maybe I shouldn’t say songs, because I would probably pop a few more Stars songs on there or something, but I guess I limited the list to just one song per artist. But anyways, I hope you give these songs a listen and focus on how the dual sounds change the listening experience. Or just listen to them and enjoy them!
As always, the following are the songs mentioned in this entry that could be found on playlist.com.
