Posts tagged Prog
Album Review Shorts: Maybeshewill – I Was Here For A Moment, Then I Was Gone
Oct 6th
Short & sweet album reviews that never miss the point…
Maybeshewill – I Was Here For A Moment, Then I Was Gone
RockOSaurus Says…
Instrumental post-rock bands fall into one of two categories, mostly bland or rarely brilliant. Thankfully this Leeds group left me stunned with their classically backed rock power. The lack of vocals is rewarding as their violin melodies epitomise the word epic. When this is twinned with idyllic/all out assault dynamics, the storming guitars, clattering drums and sweeping keyboards make for truly stunning results. The softer butterfly flutter moments are starkly beautiful and sparse, plus they inevitably become heaving behemoths as they wind up into cataclysmic sound eruptions. An awe inspiring collection of towering feel good harmonies and superb songwriting. A triumph of post rock glory!! It’s rock Jim, but not as we know it!
8.5
Wolfmother @ Kentish Town Forum
Jul 2nd
2nd June 2011
After their failed attempts to make the 18 hour, globe circumnavigating flight from their Melbourne homeland this time last year, Wolfmother finally make it unscathed to the UK for a long overdue tour appearance. It is not only their flight here which can turn back the clocks, their 60′s psychedelia infused hard rock sound firmly flings open the door of nostalgia almost as wide as the bands ever lengthening Woodstock tribute haircut’s.
Turbogeist
Despite the trip down memory lane this was sure to be, tonight’s support came from the new furious punk poppers Turbogeist, last seen in a chaotic Camden Barfly not so long ago. It was a tough gig as the nights headline act’s musical tastes and their own have little crossover appeal. It’s not a shock to report that the docile crowd did not really seem all that interested. In this cavernous theatre their sound was less in your face and their choruses were not big enough to grab the required attention. A limp set from an exciting underground band unlikely to break out from the clubs on tonight’s showing.
Wolfmother had no such trouble in diverting eyes stage wards as the sound system bulged with huge power chords pumping out thumping drums, thundering guitars and heart pounding bass lines. Stockdale and co certainly look the part as they ply their trade as hard rock throwbacks with no sign of irony, just simple honesty and a dedicated retro love drip from their instruments all night long. Their guitars are colossal as they rumble through the deeper crunching spectrum with bulldozer like efficiency.
Wolfmother
With so many expertly riffs each song inherently spark heads a bopping and caused a fair few circle pogo pits for the over enthused. The real key to their success tonight lies in their breakdowns. Many bands can play big and write big chorus’s, but Wolfmother marry this with wandering interludes of trip out psychedelia lulling the crowd into their world of dreamy soundscapes. Of course only to be send crashing back into the main riff for the next bout of ecstatic melodies at the pinnacle of these epic crescendo’s. I’m pretty sure every song had an extension of some sort.
They played the best of their two released LP’s including the guitar hero classic Woman, the manic boogie shuffle of Apple Tree and the hammer-on melody maker The Joker & The Thief. They also managed to throw in a brilliant cover of The Doors Riders On The Storm, complete with whacked out organ solo. During a jam they also somehow managed to culminate different underlying melodies into the solo and verse of Stairway to Heaven, thus completing tonights led zep homage and everybody’s incredibly enjoyable evening!
The Wolfmother ball will stay a rolling as long as there is desire for what has come and past…no time soon then!
Trail Of Dead @ Electric Ballroom
May 15th
16th April 2011
The double gig header for this week was concluded with another trip to Camden, only this time it’s straight to the Electric Ballroom early doors in order to catch the bands (damn Friday night scheduling). Upon arrival we were bombarded with epic noise rock coming from Asobi Seksu, who seemed to be doing quite well in drawing in the already ample crowd.
Asobi Sesku
Catching the end of the set, they played with plenty of shoegazy fuzz factory loaded guitars and scratchtastic fretting. But it all fell apart when the female vocalist opened her mouth to deliver weak and whiney vocals. Good thing there weren’t that many vocals then hey!
Rival Schools
After a long time away Rival Schools had returned to the UK with their first new material in 7 years since their lauded debut United By Fate. They have clearly spent time honing their songwriting as these new tunes were mature, melodic and catchy. The performance was one of professionalism. All in all a fairly standard run through of their material. Good, but left a little hole where the excitement should be. Front man Walter Schreifels warm vocals and his intimacy with the crowd, initiating plenty of banter showed a confidence which even went so far as breaking out a cover by request. To the cries of “FREEEEEBIRD!” came a rendition of the first verse/chorus of Bon Jovi’s Wanted Dead Or Alive…they definitely have a sense of humour. Set highlights included the delayed drenched riffs of 69 Guns, the heaving opener Wring It Out and sing-a-long indie classic Used For Glue. On the whole, a rather enjoyable set.
…And Now You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, to quote their full moniker do not do half measures. Neither do they like the phrase ordinary. Whether is the band name’s, their energy or the ethereal sonic experimentations they manufacture they are far from your average Joe’s. Kicking off their set they launched into a seemingly endless stream of melody and progressive rock greatness backed with more rise and falls than the south downs. After later checking up (setlist.fm) it seems this was the 16min album closer Strange News From Another Planet from latest LP Tao of the Dead, just how any middle of the road band would start their set, right?
…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead
Follow this with a seamless melody of cracking indie rock tunes from the same album including The Fairlight Pendant, Ebb Away and Summer Of All Dead Souls, you have the first half over within the blink of an eye! ToD have a great tendency to produce beautiful slow drifting instrumentations which lull your senses, taking you into a dreamlike state of mind. Yet they manage to never over do it (70′s prog a no-no), bringing back the main riff at just the right point to kick you up the ass with full blown amped up clout.
ToD were hitting the right notes with the crowd by playing moving on to some older material which sparked both moshs and sways in equal proportions. In rather ToD like fashion, their lead singer and drummer swapped for some of tracks which tended to be heavier and punkier.
Switching it up
These Texans take no prisoners no matter who is on vocal duty and it’s their genre bending, outright refusal to conform, while creating unique and exciting prog which sets them apart and above all who try to rival them. A great performance from true rock heavyweights.
Album Review: ..And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Tao Of The Dead
Feb 19th
Texan rockers with the hideously long name are back with more rocky goodness…
..And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Tao Of The Dead
RockOSaurus Says:
AYWKUBTOTD make about as much sense as their acronym. but that’s exactly what we have come to know and love about these epic rockers. The title of the opening song says alot about whats to come Introduction “Lets’s Experiment”, itself a meandering build up with no grand rock-out moment, leaves only more desire to listen on.
The fireworks do soon arrive in the shape of the uptempo driving rock numbers Pure Radio Cosplay & Summer Of All Dead Souls, both combining a loud/soft ethos with synth melodies and hard hitting guitars. The main issue I have with Tao of the Dead is that for every moment of euphoric rock bliss, there is an awful long time spent in melancholy enroute to arriving them.
Cover the Days Like A Tidal Wave comes in with a mere 2:07 mins before blast off, with Fall Of The Empire and Spiral Jetty being entirely engulfed by these gentle moods. Despite this, the comparitavely short tracks maintain interest with their ever morphing spectrum of sounds.
Towards the end of the album Weight of The Sun and The Fairlight Pendant bring back some level of volume equilibrium, upping the stakes once more with some epicly huge riffs. The greatest suprise of this album is in the extented prog leviathon, 16 minute album closer Strange News From Another Planet, which is an ever changing melody machine of nonsense, thats totally addictive!
Tao of the Dead is an impressive album of genre bending rock, which both dazzles and wanders in equal measure.
Mr Flowers Says:
The album itself starts with a 2 minute instrumental, only briefly interrupted by the voice of Conrad Keeley suggesting to the band,
“Let’s experiment”.
It might have been obvious that Trail of Dead were about to turn up that dial marked “Prog”.
Against that expectation though the first song proper, Pure Radio Cosplay, is actually more like a classic Rolling Stones rock song, or even something Primal Scream or Oasis might have done in the ’90s. The progressive stylings start bleeding through as the album continues: Cover The Days Like A Tidal Wave starts with an almost whispered spoken 2 minute intro until it explodes into a massive rock riff for its final seconds.
There are a few missteps on the album, such as Spiral Jetty which sounds like it’s the intro to another Trail of Dead rock out which unfortunately never starts. Lucky that it’s followed by Weight of the Sun then; a set of swaying verses that burst into a rousing chorus of shouts, guitars and drums, a slow-fast mechanic that’s emulated by the similarly great Ebb Away.
The Fairlight Pendant gives us one the more progressive songs on the record which sadly lacks any of the hooks of the other songs that make the long pretentious prog bits bearable, but it seems they were all saved for the album’s coup de grâce – the 16 minute behemoth that is Strange News From Another Planet. It’s almost like 5 songs in one which all flow into each other seamlessly. Each act alternately serving up rock songs, slowed-down melodic anthems, prog outs until we’re given one final burst of energy to finish the album where it started. It pretty much sums up the sound of Tao of the Dead – epic.
RockOSaurus: 7/10
MrFlowers: 8/10
DoesItRock Overall Score: 7.5/10
Listen to And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Tao Of The Dead now on Spotify!
coup de grâce
Albums of 2010: 10-1
Dec 30th
It’s time to complete the countdown of DoesItRock.nets favourite albums of 2010…
10) Volbeat – Beyond Hell/Above Heaven
Volbeat are absolutely adept at churning out those huge chorus’s you wished all stadium rock bands could write. They could easily out Jovi the Bon, take the Iron to the Maiden, and shoot down the Foo’s with such a polished set of outstanding soaring rock tracks as collated on Beyond Hell/Above Heaven. If Metallica were born in, started life as a rockabilly band who decided to write an album full of Enter Sandman’s you’ll get close to the latest offering from Volbeat. A stunning set of exuberant heavy metal tunes destined for huge crowds!
9) Danko Jones – Below The Belt
This hardworking, hard rocking trio from Canada have been plying their big guitar fuelled, booze soaked punk leaning, classic rock inspired party for many years now. This is their X release and it is a barnstorming riot of riffs, big dumb rock ‘n’ roll lyrics and glorious melodies. Although they have veered closer to the mainstream before with many tunes being unfound rock radio classics, this is no bad thing for a band who have yet to accept they are damn good at writing them. When they channel their unhinged love for rock and metal into a killer melody, there really isn’t a better band on the planet right now. If you don’t mind big macho lyrics, bigger guitars and huge rock soul, Below The Belt is for you!
8) The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster – Blood & Fire
“The sound of a blues nightmare running wild, waking up the neighbourhood using a Marshall powered megaphone”, is how best to describe 80′s Matchbox B-Line Disasters sound on their latest album. Being away for a while has clearly put fire in their bellies as they come romping straight at the jugular from the very start of Blood & Fire. The pace very rarely relents and their blues rock factory, churns out fuzzed up riffs with Chinese manufacturing efficiency. A blazing album from start to finish!
7) Kvelertak – Kvelertak
Norwegian Black Metal anyone? Given this tagline I was very tentative about listening to this but I’m so glad I did. Sung in their native tongue none of the lyrics make sense, but neither does most metal sung in English! The sound is more akin to Motorhead than Mayhem with the driving speed of hardcore punk with some technically stunning guitars and emphasis on melodic hooks big enough to land Moby Dick. There are so many riffs packed into each song it is a blizzard of high intensity Scandinavian power coming straight through the speakers. Definitely the hardest hitting album on our countdown. So if you fancy getting knocked over by a thrilling lesson in all out rock and roll, check out the blazing Kvelertak.
6) Fang Island – Fang Island
This self titled album from this arty indie band is a work of unrelenting happiness, exquisite harmonies and storming guitars. Fang Island have managed to fuse so many different influences and still come out with a coherent and ecstatic album packed with mainly instrumental works of genius. Their sound is the most eclectic on the countdown by far, which collates such intensity of exuberant melodies and gang vocals that it’s hard not to love. Sure the lack of vocals could be off-putting, but with a heavily effect driven triple guitar attack tutored at the Thin Lizzy school of soloing, it is as good and different an indie rock guitar album you are ever likely to hear!
5) Birds of Tokyo – Birds of Tokyo
Birds of Tokyo are alternative rock heavyweights from Australia who were formed in collaboration with Prog giants Karnivool. Their latest self titled album is their most poppy but also is the most consistent. Loaded with great lyrics and a progressive rock feel to many pop tracks, grandeur and awe is never far away. Vocals are just perfect, never overbearing but soulful and beautiful throughout. It is hard not to enjoy such a sweepingly brilliant album which flows from soaring piano melodies to big rock chords with ease. A superb album from one of Australia’s best bands.
4) Superchunk – Majesty Shredding
Superchunk’s hugely overlooked comeback album after a 9 year hiatus was one of the most fun, playful and enjoyable albums of the year. Despite the bands years, this album still sounds youthful and full of wide eyed adolescent energy. Lyrics on Majesty Shredding are equally as jovial as their bouncable up-tempo tunes which are weighed down by innumerable cracking vocal harmonies, guitars are never overbearing but always fit the mood perfectly. A consistently great record full of many high points, a welcome return from Superchunk.
3) Arcade Fire – The Suburbs
A token entry for an indie-pop album in a rock/metal list, The Suburbs swayed wistfully into contention with it’s fancy lyrics and breezy pace set by the yellow jackets of Modern Man, Rococo, City With No Children, Suburban War, Wasted Hours, while occasionally sprinting off with punk-song Month of May when some of the other songs weren’t looking. In a year they headlined the main stage at Reading and Leeds Festivals, surely they can’t carry on fooling people into thinking they are an indie band anymore and not the full-blown pop monster we know they really are. To be honest, you’ve probably spat your coffee out and are trying to clean up your keyboard after seeing Arcade Fire appear in the same list as Volbeat and Kvelertak, so it’s probably best you just move along and pretend this didn’t happen – MF.
2) Pulled Apart By Horses – Pulled Apart By Horses
A debut album reached #2 on the countdown with this offering from Leeds Alt-Metal saviours PABH. They play loud and hard, fast and tight, shouty and noisy, each element combining to form superb rock and roll. While they have gathered their reputation from their blistering live shows (one of which blew us away at Camden Crawl), their debut LP is almost as intense an experience full of energy and potency from the first spin. Yet despite their raging noise rock, they are surprisingly accessible (I even spotted a track on Radio 1). Vocals have a clean nature to them despite veering into venomous howls on occasion and the barrage of guitars are slow and big enough for the Sabbath fans. The quality here is impeccable and with barely a dud in there this makes PABH our runner-up of 2010.
1) Foxy Shazam – Foxy Shazam
It was a suprise selection at number 1 this year, but put simply Foxy Shazam’s third album is a totally unique and uplifting pop record which swings from glamtastic Darkness-esque guitar genius to queen-like pop magnificence with bundles of catchy melodies, rousing chorus’ and alternative rock eclectic-ness. The strength of the album is in its consistency. It really is packed with great pop tunes which collectively flow like the soundtrack to the greatest party you haven’t been to. Seriously underrated and overlooked, Foxy Shazam’s screwball tunes are always infectious, never dull and retain the ability to showcase the crazier side of life…one which their explosive live shows exhibits perfectly. I have returned to this time and time again, it hasn’t yet failed to raise the spirits!
Roll on 2011!
Honerable Metions: Voodoo Johnson – 10,000 Days, Wolf Parade – Expo 86, FACT – In The Blink of an Eye,
Click here for the top 25 as a Spotify Paylist >> DoesItRock Albums of 2010
Albums of 2010: 25-11
Dec 29th
It really doesn’t feel like a year since I started writing the Best of lists for 2009, but that time has arrived. There have been plenty of good albums but in our hearts, very few have been elevated to classic status. Instead of the usual critic’s lists who are each trying to out scene each other, I have tried to reflect the DiR.net’s team listening habits, detailing what we like to listen to, rather than what’s cool to listen to. Free from any prejudices, it is now time to run down the albums which have rocked our collective socks in 2010…let the countdown begin!
25) Airbourne – No Guts? No Glory!
AcDc were busy touring this year, so winners of Australian Hard Rock album of 2010 goes to their sound-a-like’s Airbourne for their hit packed sophomore album.
24) Voodoo Six – Fluke?
London based hard rockers live up to the expectation and deliver a fiery collection of stratospheric rock, thumping guitars and killer hooks.
23) Joe Satriani – Wormhole Wizards
The king of guitar returns with a more relaxed feel to his latest LP. It is crowded with inventive guitar brilliance with his distinctive melody first approach, and incredible emotive string bends. A high standard throughout makes this a vast improvement on his last LP.
22) Paul Gilbert – Fuzz Universe
Guitar virtuoso Paul Gilbert shows off his melodic side on his latest release which is packed with instrumental glory, super shredding and genius composition.
21) Slash – Slash
The worlds most recognised guitarist enlisted his friends and came up with a great collection of singles, but collectively the album varies to wildly to enter into our top 20.
20) Far – At Night We Live
On one hand the Deftones are breaking new ground taking alt-metal noise to massive critical acclaim, while lying low on the other is Far, a more pop-centric, accessible offering who have crafted a thumping album of big emotion and thudding alt-rock. Far’s return is triumphant and damn impressive as warped guitar effects plough a hugely melodic shaped hole into their truly huge bass licks, all backed with Jonah Matrangah‘s slickly produced vocals provide the lyrical clout. The mood is generally a dark cloud, but when the thunder strikes it’s when they are at their best. Slow building atmospheric guitars and skyward floating vocals are mixed in with more riff hungry tracks create a superbly balanced record.
19) Weezer – Hurley
This album has split the doesitrock.net crew down the middle (review), but it has still made the top albums list by the skin of its teeth. The high points on the album are undeniably catchy if somewhat idiosyncratic, but then this is what Weezer do best of late. Plenty of cracking pop tunes and songs about little or nothing, line the somewhat oddly titled Hurley. With their 2nd B-Sides collection release this year (Death To False Metal) also being a corking album, far greater than the sum of its parts, Weezer have clearly turned a corner and are running back with Linford like speed!
18) Against Me! – White Crosses
The backlash against this release was swift and rather unfair in my opinion. Sure Against Me! may have sold out to the majors and gone all pop leaving their trail of destruction sniggering at what they have become. But taken on its merits (that’s pop-rock), this is a heavyweight ready to take on all comers and most probably win! Writing anthemic rock songs more akin to Springsteen than the Dropkicks, are their staple, and they do this incredibly well. Always full of heart and sung with conviction though road worn vocal chords White Crosses is jammed with superb, quality upbeat rock and roll songs with a (somewhat diluted) punk heart.
17) Taking Dawn – Time To Burn
These Las Vegas, roadrunner backed heavy metal rockers have managed to create an 80′s influenced set of hard rock packed with immense riffs and towering melodies. Each track kick starts with a blistering guitar lick which takes hold and doesn’t let go. Vocals are stadium sized and perfectly compliment each athemic chorus. If you appreciate glammed up metal, a good guitar workout and a rock and roll swagger, Time To Burn is your answer.
16) Carpark North – Lost
Somehow this album has missed the mainstream, the radio and seemingly everyone’s attention which is absolutely criminal. Lost is a superbly crafted album which showcases what can be achieved if euro-electro pop is done properly. With driving guitars and spiralling electro beats providing the atmospheric backdrop it’s the synths hooks and warm vocals which take centre stage. Literally littered with cracking little pop tunes to rival the big guns, it’s time a little light was shone on this underappreciated band.
15) The Pineapple Thief – Someone Here Is Missing
Prog is so often seen as the joys of the middle aged man, or those with long beards who re=un the local war re-enactment society. The Pineapple Thief’s latest album is out to change this, as they seamlessly meld electro beats, cruising guitars and haunting vocals into a brilliantly flowing album. With few overindulgent guitar solo’s and extended jams, most songs are highly catchy and full of understated beauty. Variety is key here, with tracks featuring dreamy acoustics, bold electro-rock explosions, fleeting ambient melodies, melancholic vocals and noisy guitars outbursts. This is one to listen end-to-end in a world dominated by the shuffle button.
14) The Sword – Warp Riders
Hard Rock has seen a good year with plenty of great releases. The Sword sit atop of this tree proudly with Warp Riders, a sci-fi epic of stellar proportions. This album is about as riff hungry as they come with wall to wall guitars and pounding bass. The adept classic rock soloing shows outstanding ability and a raft of ingenious melodies. It sways to the borders of Prog rock but before tipping over, a thundering power chord is on hand to rescue it. A thumping collection of Hard Rock, played by southern rock’s shining light of 2010.
13) Jim Jones Revue – Burning Down Your House
Listening to Burning Down Your House, transports you back to the 50′s and the bar room blues of Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard. The Jim Jones Revue have rolled back the clocks and ignored the past 60 years of musical development, playing fully cranked, high octane, scuzzed up blues bonanza. There really isn’t that much here in terms of musicality, but when music sounds this fun it’s hard to ignore. Big bluesy shuffles and bolstered piano tinkling sung by a crazed MC is instantly alluring, addictive and rock n’ rolling!
12) Blood Command – Ghostclocks
Scandinavia’s Blood Command are a breath of fresh air. Never did we realise that we needed a female fronted frenzied alt-metal behemoth with a slice of pop sweetness…but clearly on this form, we most definitely do. Taking a a lightly watered down Blood Brothers formula and adding immensely catchy melodies in amongst their rapid-fire spiky riffing, not forgetting a side order of Norwegian dance-pop Blood Command have melded a superb sound. Flailing from all out metal guitar assaults to mid-tempo riff rock Ghostclocks is never boring and totally essential for 2010!
11) Motion City Soundtrack – My Dinosaur Life
Welcome return from the pick of the US Pop Punk bands who stand head and shoulders above their peers. My Dinosaur Life showcases once again great song writing, jubilant chorus’s and incessant melodies. This album harks back more closely to their guitar driven debut album which can only be a good thing, plus with plenty of corking singles lining the playlist, It strolled effortlessly into the end-of year list despite being released almost a year ago.
Stay tuned for the top 10 tomorrow!
