This is the second installment
from DJ Brokenwindow's Parallel Universe series. In the PU series, he takes two
records and blends them together to basically create a new song. This type of
mashing has gained some media attention in the past year when Danger Mouse mixed
Jay-Z's "The Black Album" and The Beatles "The White Album", to make "The Grey
Album". Of course, it also sparked a lot of controversy over copyright
infringement. But, DJ Brokenwindow is in the company of artists who just don't
care about all that legal mumbo-jumbo. Violent Turd is a label that has seen
recordings by Kid 606, who is known for his mashing. Hell, that's most of his
career. This collection is amazingly unique and interesting, but overall makes
for fun listening. Mixing Killing Joke with Major Figgas, Fugees with Luke
Vibert and later Ultravox, and Simple Minds with Naughty By Nature, among
numerous others, Brokenwindow manages to make it sometimes sound like that's how
the songs were meant to be. We can only hope he continues the series, because
this record is sweet. (Eddie Fleisher)
From First to Last – ‘Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Bodycount’ (Epitaph
Records)
Hard hitting beats,
straining vocals, and even a soft, acoustic tribute to heartbreak combine to
make From First to Last's debut, ‘Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Bodycount’, a
hit. Comprised of Sonny Moore (lead vocals), Matt Good (guitar, vocals), Travis
Richter (guitar, throat), Jon Weisbert (bass, throat), and Derek Bloom (drums),
From First to Last delivers a ground-breaking, gripping, and explosive sound.
Bloom states, "We believe in head banging like there's no tomorrow and playnig
until you puke." Good rules to live by, and From First to Last’s debut will keep
fans head banging to their heart's content. The album opens with the strong and
attention-grabbing, "The One Armed Boxer vs. The Flying Guillotine". When I
first gave the CD a spin, I wasn't sure if I'd get into it. But after only about
one minute into the first track, I was hooked. The emotional lyrics on "Note to
Self" convey the idea of leading two different lives, and trying to figure out
who you are. The amusing title, "I Liked You Better Before You Were Naked On The
Internet" describes how love can leave you completely immune to what is going on
around you, not seeing anything for how it really is. Probably my least favorite
track on the record was "Featuring Some of your Favorite Words", but it was made
up for by the remainder of this amazing album. I tend to be a sucker for bands'
softer, more emotional tunes set off in the middle of a crazy album, so "Emily"
was far and away my favorite track. It features a great acoustic sound, with
strong and passionate vocals describing the time spent missing a loved one.
Overall, I absolutely loved this album. (Melani Alleshouse)
I don’t get the
whole 20 word song titles thing, but the music on this 4 song EP form
Cleveland’s Karate For Kids is undeniably good. Karate for Kids don’t sound
like anybody else in the Cleveland scene that I’ve heard, anyway, so bonus
points for originality right off the bat. I’ve seen this band described as pop
punk, but that seems to be selling them short, if you ask me. The music is
indeed catchy and melodic, but far more interesting than the three chord crap
most bands calling themselves pop punk play. These guys definitely play with
passion and sincerity. While I prefer my political punk with a sense of humor,
it’s cool that these guys are at least writing about something of substance,
even if it does get a bit pretentious at times. This sounds like it was
recorded mostly live in the studio with no overdubs. If you’re paying
attention, you might notice a bad note or two, but sometimes that’s a fair trade
off to capture the kind of energy you can only get from a live performance. You
can head on over to the band’s website for info on getting a copy for yourself.
(Bob Ignizio)
After the largely
mediocre ‘God Says No’, I was kind of worried about Monster Magnet. That album
just felt like the band was going through the motions. Thankfully, ‘Monolithic
Baby’ finds Magnet back on course, striking a nice balance between the
psychedelia of their early albums and the straight forward riff rock of ‘Powertrip’.
Opening track “Slut Machine” is hardly the band’s finest moment, but it’s
followed quickly by “Supercruel”, a song that finds Magnet at their over the top
best. “Unbroken Hotel (Baby)” and “Monolithic” are classic Magnet anthems in the
vein of “Powertrip” and “Heads Explode”, and the cover of Bob Calvert’s “The
Right Stuff” shows the band still knows how to play the space rock when they
want to. The band also tackles a David Gilmour tune (“There’s No Way Out of
Here”) and a Velvet Underground number (“Venus in Furs”, technically a “bonus
track”). Aside from official covers, every Magnet album has at least one song
where they “borrow” a riff or two from some obscure sixties or seventies band
and rework it into something new. This time it’s “Ultimate Everything”, which
features a chorus that’s very reminiscent of Amon Duul II’s “Eye Shaking King”.
Hey, it’s different enough from the original for me to let it slide, and this is
one of the best songs on the album.
Ed Mundell’s guitar work is great throughout this album.
He’s a criminally underrated player, one of a small handful of guitarists these
days who actually has a distinctive style. But of course, it ain’t Magnet
without Dave Wyndorf’s classic vocal delivery and lyrics. A lot of lazy
reviewers have said Wyndorf’s songs aren’t “about” anything. This just isn’t
true. If you have even the vaguest understanding of metaphor, it’s pretty
obvious that “Monolithic” is about the vapid, one dimensional pop culture of the
present (a frequent theme of Magnet lyrics), and “On the Verge” is about U.S.
foreign policy. Not that you have to know that to enjoy the songs, and that’s
kind of the reason Wyndorf writes lyrics the way he does. The songs have
meanings if you want to dig, or you can just sit back and enjoy the rock.
Whichever way you listen, ‘Monolithic Baby’ delivers. (Bob Ignizio)
This is the second installment
from DJ Brokenwindow's Parallel Universe series. In the PU series, he takes two
records and blends them together to basically create a new song. This type of
mashing has gained some media attention in the past year when Danger Mouse mixed
Jay-Z's "The Black Album" and The Beatles "The White Album", to make "The Grey
Album". Of course, it also sparked a lot of controversy over copyright
infringement. But, DJ Brokenwindow is in the company of artists who just don't
care about all that legal mumbo-jumbo. Violent Turd is a label that has seen
recordings by Kid 606, who is known for his mashing. Hell, that's most of his
career. This collection is amazingly unique and interesting, but overall makes
for fun listening. Mixing Killing Joke with Major Figgas, Fugees with Luke
Vibert and later Ultravox, and Simple Minds with Naughty By Nature, among
numerous others, Brokenwindow manages to make it sometimes sound like that's how
the songs were meant to be. We can only hope he continues the series, because
this record is sweet. (Eddie Fleisher)
Hard hitting beats,
straining vocals, and even a soft, acoustic tribute to heartbreak combine to
make From First to Last's debut, ‘Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Bodycount’, a
hit. Comprised of Sonny Moore (lead vocals), Matt Good (guitar, vocals), Travis
Richter (guitar, throat), Jon Weisbert (bass, throat), and Derek Bloom (drums),
From First to Last delivers a ground-breaking, gripping, and explosive sound.
Bloom states, "We believe in head banging like there's no tomorrow and playnig
until you puke." Good rules to live by, and From First to Last’s debut will keep
fans head banging to their heart's content. The album opens with the strong and
attention-grabbing, "The One Armed Boxer vs. The Flying Guillotine". When I
first gave the CD a spin, I wasn't sure if I'd get into it. But after only about
one minute into the first track, I was hooked. The emotional lyrics on "Note to
Self" convey the idea of leading two different lives, and trying to figure out
who you are. The amusing title, "I Liked You Better Before You Were Naked On The
Internet" describes how love can leave you completely immune to what is going on
around you, not seeing anything for how it really is. Probably my least favorite
track on the record was "Featuring Some of your Favorite Words", but it was made
up for by the remainder of this amazing album. I tend to be a sucker for bands'
softer, more emotional tunes set off in the middle of a crazy album, so "Emily"
was far and away my favorite track. It features a great acoustic sound, with
strong and passionate vocals describing the time spent missing a loved one.
Overall, I absolutely loved this album. (Melani Alleshouse)
I don’t get the
whole 20 word song titles thing, but the music on this 4 song EP form
Cleveland’s Karate For Kids is undeniably good. Karate for Kids don’t sound
like anybody else in the Cleveland scene that I’ve heard, anyway, so bonus
points for originality right off the bat. I’ve seen this band described as pop
punk, but that seems to be selling them short, if you ask me. The music is
indeed catchy and melodic, but far more interesting than the three chord crap
most bands calling themselves pop punk play. These guys definitely play with
passion and sincerity. While I prefer my political punk with a sense of humor,
it’s cool that these guys are at least writing about something of substance,
even if it does get a bit pretentious at times. This sounds like it was
recorded mostly live in the studio with no overdubs. If you’re paying
attention, you might notice a bad note or two, but sometimes that’s a fair trade
off to capture the kind of energy you can only get from a live performance. You
can head on over to the band’s website for info on getting a copy for yourself.
(Bob Ignizio)
After the largely
mediocre ‘God Says No’, I was kind of worried about Monster Magnet. That album
just felt like the band was going through the motions. Thankfully, ‘Monolithic
Baby’ finds Magnet back on course, striking a nice balance between the
psychedelia of their early albums and the straight forward riff rock of ‘Powertrip’.
Opening track “Slut Machine” is hardly the band’s finest moment, but it’s
followed quickly by “Supercruel”, a song that finds Magnet at their over the top
best. “Unbroken Hotel (Baby)” and “Monolithic” are classic Magnet anthems in the
vein of “Powertrip” and “Heads Explode”, and the cover of Bob Calvert’s “The
Right Stuff” shows the band still knows how to play the space rock when they
want to. The band also tackles a David Gilmour tune (“There’s No Way Out of
Here”) and a Velvet Underground number (“Venus in Furs”, technically a “bonus
track”). Aside from official covers, every Magnet album has at least one song
where they “borrow” a riff or two from some obscure sixties or seventies band
and rework it into something new. This time it’s “Ultimate Everything”, which
features a chorus that’s very reminiscent of Amon Duul II’s “Eye Shaking King”.
Hey, it’s different enough from the original for me to let it slide, and this is
one of the best songs on the album. 