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Recent Reviews
...on The Other Side...but not longer.
If there is one fault with this album it is its length. Clocking in at just under 30 minutes (29:54), this is definitely the Atkins'enhanced rock record. Though more focused than a lot of albums, the questions remains: "Why couldn't Sully Erna and the gang have made a couple more songs into acoustic cuts?"
The songs themselves are superb. The guitars, though all acoustic, are balanced perfectly with the bass. The aforementioned bass work really deserves the medal of honor on this record. At times, the bass is what carries the songs as the guitars just aren't as dominating as on the standard Godsmack LPs. Using excellent counter melodies that keep the songs rolling, the bass work really is what shines.
Even given the reduced-weight size of the album, I do still enjoy the way they constructed it. Out of the seven tracks on the album, three are completely original (the single "Running Blind", "Touche", and "Voices"). The last of the three original tracks, "Voices", is easily the weakest track on the album. Having one that wasn't up to snuff would be acceptable on a full-length album, but on one this short it is simply sutting down on the already meager amount of music here.
Don't get me wrong, this album is still enjoyable. "Running Blind", "Spiral", and "Asleep" (a re-tooled version of the massive hit "Awake") are all excellent. It just comes down to the leaness of the album that keeps it from being truly great and, as a result, makes it just plain good. If you consider yourself a fan of Godsmack, or just of acoustic music in general, you owe it to yourself to pick this up and give it a listen. Let's just hope that this is a temporary (if welcome) breath of fresh air for the band and that their next full-length LP won't forsake their hardcore style for leaness and won't favor acoustic over plugged-in.
If there is one fault with this album it is its length. Clocking in at just under 30 minutes (29:54), this is definitely the Atkins'enhanced rock record. Though more focused than a lot of albums, the questions remains: "Why couldn't Sully Erna and the gang have made a couple more songs into acoustic cuts?"
The songs themselves are superb. The guitars, though all acoustic, are balanced perfectly with the bass. The aforementioned bass work really deserves the medal of honor on this record. At times, the bass is what carries the songs as the guitars just aren't as dominating as on the standard Godsmack LPs. Using excellent counter melodies that keep the songs rolling, the bass work really is what shines.
Even given the reduced-weight size of the album, I do still enjoy the way they constructed it. Out of the seven tracks on the album, three are completely original (the single "Running Blind", "Touche", and "Voices"). The last of the three original tracks, "Voices", is easily the weakest track on the album. Having one that wasn't up to snuff would be acceptable on a full-length album, but on one this short it is simply sutting down on the already meager amount of music here.
Don't get me wrong, this album is still enjoyable. "Running Blind", "Spiral", and "Asleep" (a re-tooled version of the massive hit "Awake") are all excellent. It just comes down to the leaness of the album that keeps it from being truly great and, as a result, makes it just plain good. If you consider yourself a fan of Godsmack, or just of acoustic music in general, you owe it to yourself to pick this up and give it a listen. Let's just hope that this is a temporary (if welcome) breath of fresh air for the band and that their next full-length LP won't forsake their hardcore style for leaness and won't favor acoustic over plugged-in.
posted December 26, 2004 at 01:08:15 PM
To call Blindside's Silence an excellent CD is an understatement. To say it is underrated is an even more tragic case of understatement. Many I know haven't even heard of this band, let alone easily their best album yet. It is a hard-hitting, relentless masterpiece that doesn't have a low point, has many highs, and ends with quite possibly the most touching acoustic track in recent memory without being sappy.
Yes, Blindside is a "christian" band. Their faith is professed in their booklet and in songs such as "Pitiful" and the excellent title track, "Silence." But make no mistake, the band isn't overly preachy, although most of the songs have a subliminal spiritual message. Rest assured, though, because they are here to rock. And rock they do. The guitar melodies are superb, expertly combinig some punk elements and metal to create a fusion that has the high energy of punk and the raw intensity of hard rock.
Standout tracks on the album are "Caught A Glimpse" (an excellent way to open up an album), "Pitiful", "Midnight", and "Silence." The latter of which is the acoustic number, which for anyone with faith, is a must-listen.
For a band from Sweden, this band definitely doesn't lose anything in the flight across the Atlantic. Indeed, Blindside is sure to lose their unheard of status with a flow of material like this. My hat is off to them for creating such an amazing album.
Yes, Blindside is a "christian" band. Their faith is professed in their booklet and in songs such as "Pitiful" and the excellent title track, "Silence." But make no mistake, the band isn't overly preachy, although most of the songs have a subliminal spiritual message. Rest assured, though, because they are here to rock. And rock they do. The guitar melodies are superb, expertly combinig some punk elements and metal to create a fusion that has the high energy of punk and the raw intensity of hard rock.
Standout tracks on the album are "Caught A Glimpse" (an excellent way to open up an album), "Pitiful", "Midnight", and "Silence." The latter of which is the acoustic number, which for anyone with faith, is a must-listen.
For a band from Sweden, this band definitely doesn't lose anything in the flight across the Atlantic. Indeed, Blindside is sure to lose their unheard of status with a flow of material like this. My hat is off to them for creating such an amazing album.
posted December 26, 2004 at 12:49:46 PM
First and foremost, I'd like to reccomend this to anyone who wants to get into A Perfect Circle. It's an excellent album from start to finish bringing the listener through soft melodic guitars (The Noose) to violent screaming (Pet) and back to exalted melancholy (The Nurse Who Loved Me). Indeed, Keenan's crew has hit the jack pot, creating an album that in itself is much greater than just the sum of its parts.
The album starts with a soft guitar intro which graduates into a suitable, if indicative, intro track with "Package." This is the tone for the album: schizopheranic, melodic, moody, quick-shifting experimental rock. Following the intro comes probably the most traditional song on the entire album (which probably attributed to this song's radio sucess): "Weak and Powerless." The guitars are excellent and Maynard's soaring vocals take a melodic masterpiece and transform it into grandiose expansive rock at its best.
Other songs worth note are "The Noose", "Blue", "Crimes", "The Nurse Who Loved Me", and "Pet." All of which are highly experimental and nothing like that has been done in rock recently. Billy Howerdel, the lead guitarist, definitely deserves a drink and a shaken hand for his superb use of strings in these songs. He creates melodies that are nothing like what has been done before, but that all sound strangely familiar and accessable both for the lyricist and the listener.
Often soft, drawn out, and brooding, A Perfect Circle's Thirteenth Step is definitely in the right direction. Some will grow tired of the deliberate pacing of the songs and the somewhat repetitive melodies. But rest assured, given a few honest listens, the sheer experimentality of the album should win over. In the end, Thirteenth Step is a triumph. I only hope that the coming of the already announced upcoming Tool album doesn't spell the end for such an excellent group's career when they are obviously so talented and work so well together.
The album starts with a soft guitar intro which graduates into a suitable, if indicative, intro track with "Package." This is the tone for the album: schizopheranic, melodic, moody, quick-shifting experimental rock. Following the intro comes probably the most traditional song on the entire album (which probably attributed to this song's radio sucess): "Weak and Powerless." The guitars are excellent and Maynard's soaring vocals take a melodic masterpiece and transform it into grandiose expansive rock at its best.
Other songs worth note are "The Noose", "Blue", "Crimes", "The Nurse Who Loved Me", and "Pet." All of which are highly experimental and nothing like that has been done in rock recently. Billy Howerdel, the lead guitarist, definitely deserves a drink and a shaken hand for his superb use of strings in these songs. He creates melodies that are nothing like what has been done before, but that all sound strangely familiar and accessable both for the lyricist and the listener.
Often soft, drawn out, and brooding, A Perfect Circle's Thirteenth Step is definitely in the right direction. Some will grow tired of the deliberate pacing of the songs and the somewhat repetitive melodies. But rest assured, given a few honest listens, the sheer experimentality of the album should win over. In the end, Thirteenth Step is a triumph. I only hope that the coming of the already announced upcoming Tool album doesn't spell the end for such an excellent group's career when they are obviously so talented and work so well together.
posted December 26, 2004 at 12:52:18 PM
