Tag: Headlines (Page 18 of 76)

The Influence: Falling Objects

September 30, 2010 /


RIYL: Bush, Jimmy Eat World, ’80s modern rock

On their current album, the Influence have produced a collection of emotional guitar-driven rock songs that may have a lot of people recalling the glory days of Gavin Rossdale and Bush. For geezers like myself, it’s hard not to hear elements of early ’80s modern rock in the music of this band from Virginia. The Influence create a certain groove in their music. Although it contains driving guitars and a big drum sounds, it also have a beat you can shake your ass to.

Listen to “Falling Objects,” “Bleed Out,” “Torn” and “Break” and you’ll find your head unconsciously bobbing to the beat with your eyes closed and images of a sweaty dance floor in your head. Isn’t that the signature of a great pop song – one that tugs the heartstrings but also gets you moving as well? Bowie knows this; so do Springsteen, Prince and Madonna. Not sure I’d place the Influence in the pantheon of those icons, but Falling Objects is one heck of a catchy album.

This record is not an explosion of emo angst, like so many of this band’s contemporaries. Instead, lead singer Matt Stephenson controls his voice to serve the music. He may wear his heart on his sleeve, but he doesn’t make each track bleed like it’s his last thought and prayer, either. This isn’t Dashboard Confessional.

That doesn’t mean these guys don’t bust out some crunchy guitars when it’s called for. “Slippin’” is a nasty metal-driven number with some excellent harmonies. Toss in a thoughtful acoustic number (“The Sleep”) and a couple of power ballads (“The Following” and “Anisoptera”) and you have what constitutes a really good pop/rock album. (Flying Eye 2010)

The Influence MySpace Page

Alternative, CD Reviews, Emo, Rock

Jimmy Eat World: Invented

September 30, 2010 /


RIYL: Anberlin, Get Up Kids, Sense Field

By now, most of you are probably already familiar with Jimmy Eat World’s back story. Arizona band gets major label deal, then gets dropped, then gets signed by another huge label, and finally enjoys commercial success. 2001’s Bleed American was packed to the ceiling with one sun-soaked hook after another, and each album that’s followed it has provided plenty more. After the dissonance of 2004’s Futures, Jimmy Eat World honed in on their pop sensibilities on 2007’s Chase This Light. Although the album didn’t deliver the kind of sales numbers it deserved, it still features some of vocalist Jim Adkins’ finest performances.

Invented, Jimmy Eat World’s seventh studio album, doesn’t divert too far from Chase This Light. If there’s one thing that immediately stands out, it would be the subtlety in some of the arrangements. Outside of a few cuts (“My Best Theory,” “Action Needs an Audience”), most of the material on Invented doesn’t try and hit you over the head with a flurry of power chords. This is a nuanced batch of songs, and producer Mark Trombino (Blink 182, Rocket from the Crypt) does a bang-up job of capturing all the small details. Whether it’s an acoustic guitar being strummed faintly in the background, or a track of harmony vocals, Trombino brings the listener into the room with the band. After a couple albums without him, it’s great to hear Jimmy Eat World back in a recording studio with the guy.

Sonic triumphs aside, Invented isn’t without its faults. Like much of Futures‘ second half, a few songs are dragged down by weaker vocal lines and a darker tone that doesn’t necessarily work well with some of the material. Jimmy Eat World are at their best when both their guitar riffs and vocal performances are soaked in melody. We’re not suggesting for every track to be an upbeat radio-ready number, but when the group surrenders too often to the somber side of their sound, things get less interesting. We’re not sure if Invented will be remembered as favorably as some of the older albums in their fantastic discography, but there certainly are enough fine moments on it to warrant your attention today. (DGC 2010)

Click here to read our interview with Jimmy Eat World lead singer Jim Adkins

Jimmy Eat World MySpace page

Alternative, CD Reviews, Emo, Rock

The Hours: It’s Not How You Start, It’s How You Finish

September 30, 2010 /


RIYL: Pulp, Coldplay, The Wonder Stuff

To call It’s Not How You Start, It’s How You Finish a debut album is technically true, but a bit misleading. In truth, it’s a Franken-album, culling the best moments from the Hours’ first two, import-only albums, 2006’s Narcissus Road and 2009’s See the Light, plus one new track (two if you buy the deluxe edition). Still, debut* album or not, it’s a doozy, filled with sky-high chorus after sky-high chorus, gorgeous octave-jumping piano lines and one of the most optimistic lyric books you’ll find outside of Christian pop (or Howard Jones). On the opening track “Ali in the Jungle,” better known here as the soundtrack to Nike’s “Human Chain” ad, speaks of how “everybody gets knocked down / How quick are you gonna get up?” In “These Days,” singer Antony Genn (think Miles Hunt of the Wonder Stuff, with better pipes) advises us, “If there’s ever a time we need to come together, the time is now.” In “Icarus,” he opines that “If you don’t shoot, then you don’t score.” They’re not deep statements, but they resonate in conjunction with the music.

The_Hours_04

The band admittedly runs at two main speeds. There are the upbeat, chugging skyscrapers like “Big Black Hole,” “Narcissus Road” and “Ali in the Jungle,” and there are the showstopping ballads like “Back When You Were Good” (a very gutsy song title in a snarky world) and the splendid “Come On.” The big exception to this is the closer “See the Light,” a slow-building, two-chord track in the vein of Pulp’s “Common People.” It’s arguably the best song here, though a thousand lashes to the person who decided to edit it down from its original seven-minute glory. This is beautiful stuff across the board, but a quick note to Genn: the people most likely to buy your music probably have kids, so let’s cut back a bit on the ‘F’ bombs, shall we? It’s unbecoming. (Adeline 2010)

The Hours MySpace page

Alternative, Artists, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Melodramatic, Pop, Widescreen

Skunk Anansie: Wonderlustre

September 29, 2010 /


RIYL: Sevendust, Guano Apes, Muse

During their original run through the ’90s, Skunk Anansie was the alt-rock equivalent of “Beauty and the Beast.” When they weren’t breaking your heart with fragile, sparse ballads like “Secretly” and “Follow Me Down,” they were breaking your legs with political punk rock thrashers like “Selling Jesus” and “On My Hotel T.V.”

After a decade-long hiatus, the group is back, and for the first time they seem to be combining their penchant for romantic/lovelorn ballads and fast-paced mosh-friendly hard rock. Wonderlustre is the group’s most mainstream record to date, full of mid-tempo rock made for the radio. But Skunk Anansie playing for the pop crowd is still Skunk Anansie, and lead singer Skin’s powerful vocals and intelligent lyrics add depth to songs like “Over The Love” and “You’re Too Expensive,” which would be a bit too pedestrian and by-the-numbers without her. Skin also proves that her monopoly on beautiful-but-depressing songs about how much love sucks remains intact with the gut-wrenching “I Will Stay But You Should Leave” and “Talk Too Much,” two incredibly powerful songs that should be barred from the iTunes libraries of the recently dumped (trust me).

The music behind the lyrics needs some work, but its nice to see Skunk Anansie back. Even if they’re not at top form, Wonderlustre leaves little doubt that they soon will be once again. (V2 Records 2010)

Skunk Anansie MySpace page

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Rock

KT Tunstall: Tiger Suit

September 29, 2010 /


RIYL: Sheryl Crow, The Sundays, Stevie Nicks

KT Tunstall catapulted herself to overnight success in 2006 with her debut album, Eye to the Telescope, which spawned the hit single “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree.” Her 2007 follow-up, Drastic Fantastic, was just as good, if not better, than the debut, and now Tunstall is back with Tiger Suit. As usual, Tunstall’s songs are mostly upbeat hook-fests, albeit with slightly less magic than before. With Tiger Suit, she’s regressed a bit, because these are good tracks that are structured well and have solid melodies and arrangements – but something is lacking compared to Tunstall’s previous work, be it soul or depth or that slight bit of alternative grit that was present on both Telescope and Drastic.

Tiger Suit opens with “Uummannaq Song,” an odd title but the familiar mid-tempo singsong style that is most closely reminiscent of her earlier work. That rolls right into “Glamour Puss,” a song that is catchy beyond belief but somehow not exactly memorable. The best tracks on here are “Difficulty,” a song that lends itself to some quirky but effective production, and “Lost,” which is slower yet but arranged nicely. “Come on, Get In” is her label’s attempt at having Tunstall re-create “Cherry Tree,” and it’s kind of a lame one at that. Still, let’s face it – Tunstall’s mediocre is far better than most female singer/songwriters’ work these days. It’s just that her die hard fans may come away slightly disappointed this time, especially after a three-year wait. (Virgin 2010)

KT Tunstall website

Alternative, CD QuickTakes, CD Reviews, Pop, Rock

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