Weezer - "Pacific Daydream"

Weezer, at one point, as far as I'm concerned was one of the best bands in the world.  If you really look at their early 90's output, we were really looking at something truly special.  Their 1994 debut "Weezer" (Aka "The Blue Album") is quite frankly nearly perfect.  This album was 10 tracks back to back that were incredible examples of Pop Rock and Power Pop.  Backed by gigantic singles like "Buddy Holly" and "Say It Ain't So", Weezer quickly became household names.   Weezer then went on to create another of the 90's most cherished albums, "Pinkerton".  This was a completely different album, focusing much more on frontman Rivers Cuomo's feelings and personal stories.  The result was an album that went on to do so much for the Emo genre.  It's an album that's beautiful and personal, all while remaining charming and catchy.  It was around that time that Weezer took some time off, and quite frankly things wouldn't be the same ever.  In 2001, they returned with their "Green Album", an album that quite frankly isn't a fraction of how incredible the band's early work was.  The material on this album wasn't nearly as catchy, and damn sure wasn't as well written.  Sure, there are some iconic singles ("Hash Pipe", "Island In The Sun"), and even some great deep cuts ("Glorious Day", "Don't Let Go").  But outside of that, this album is just so fake sounding.  Weezer's downward spiral continued on 2002's "Maladroit".  Once again, some of the singles were catchy.  But overall the magic of Weezer had worn off big time.  The material here was bland, boring, and not nearly as special as it once was.  2005 wasn't much better for Weezer as they released "Make Believe".  This album was basically hated by critics and fans alike.  And yea, there are like, 3 or 4 catchy tunes on here.  But overall, this is the most depressing album in Weezer's discography.  What made them once so lovable was just how human they are.  On "Make Believe", Weezer were lifeless.  Weezer returned a few years later with their self-titled "Red Album", and boy oh boy was this album bad.  I still enjoy "Pork and Beans", but everything else here is God awful.   But the thing was about all of these albums, was that time and time again they had moments of brilliance.  There were truly great Pop Rock tunes often sprinkled in throughout these seemingly endless amounts of awful tunes.  "Raditiude" in 2009 started off with "(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To", which I thought was fun and solid.  But oh BOY, the next 9 songs, were Weezer's worst yet.  Now, call me absolutely nuts, but for the most part, I enjoy 2010's "Hurley".  It's a bizarre album and one that's far from perfect.  As a matter of fact, tracks like "Smart Girls" and "Trainwrecks" are easily some of Weezer's worst yet.  But tracks like "Memories" and "Unspoken" are the sort of carefree, jolly Weezer tracks I've always loved.   So now, I don't think this album is perfect, but it's an album that I feel like proved that Weezer still have plenty left to offer.  So after this very long strand of album's that were truly awful, Weezer was suddenly showing promise.  This promise transitioned nicely with 2014's "Everything Will Be Alright In The End", which once again was strangely VERY solid.  Tracks like "Cleopatra" and "Back To The Shack" seemed to be in the same league as Weezer classics, while tracks like "Eulogy for a Rock Band" showed they still had tons of their trademark humor.  Now, this still was not a classic album, but I feel like Weezer just kept getting closer and closer to that mark.  But I really didn't expect to TRULY love an album from Weezer from start to finish again.  But that's exactly what happened when I tuned in to their 2016 release "Weezer (The White Album)".  This album was the sunny, catchy, glorious pop-rock album I've wanted to hear from Weezer since 1996.  Singles like "California Kids", "Thank God for Girls", and "L.A. Girls" were just so lovable from start to finish, and I would say that this album went on to be my favorite Rock album of last year.  But as wonderful as that album is, I haven't held my breath for Weezer to make another solid album.  Now, these new singles from Weezer have ranged from being solid to absolutely painful.  So let's talk about this new Weezer album, shall we!

(Let's just take a minute to really enjoy Weezer before this new album revs up)

Now, call me absolutely nuts, but I love this album’s opener “Mexican Fender”.  Yes, it’s nothing but Pop Rock with a bizarre narrative that goes nowhere.  But it’s sweet and charming, and actually reminds me a lot of something that would have shown up on their “White Album’.  But this one really is everything I truly love about Weezer.  The quirky lyrics are wonderful, the instrumental is determined but simple, and this singalong chorus is ridiculously lovable.  And while I’m talking about these lyrics, there are actually quite a few here that are seriously funny.  It even has that very nostalgic feel of the band’s last album, longing for summer days and simpler times.  It’s a real decent intro from Weezer, but sadly this album is about to go down the toilet.  Up next is “Beach Boys”, and instrumentally this really isn’t terrible.  I like the sort of gloomy and downtrodden feel to this.  But let’s talk about this production because it sort of worked for me at first but quickly it’s becoming obvious that this is a true production nightmare.  It’s just so clean and edgeless, which was, in fact, the case on their “White Album”, but here it doesn’t come off nearly as enjoyable.  Here, this just comes off as so-so safe and greased up for Radio airplay.  Then, we have the lyrics.  Now, Weezer has always been heavily influenced by the Beach Boys, especially on their last album.  But when it's being shoved down my throat this much, it’s not nearly as sweet to hear.  So “Beach Boys” gets very annoying and very fast.  “Feels Like Summer” is up next, and remember just how edgeless that production was coming off.  Well, on this one, it makes Weezer sound like they’re going for a damn Hip-Hop tune or an EDM tune.  But holy Hell, these, lyrics I do have to say are catchy.  As much as I despise this track and what it means for Weezer and where they’re future lies, they can still write a tune.  I’m not going to say this excuses this track because there truly is no excuse.  But these boring instrumentals and the near Hip Hop production are some of the worst things I’ve ever heard Weezer put together.  But I’ll be damned if Rivers can still write a Pop hook.  But as this album rolls on it just gets further and further from what I want to hear.  These heavy grooves and the glossy production are going to make a lot of older fans roll their eyes hard  And as far as a track goes, this honestly isn’t the worst thing I’ve heard from Weezer.  I mean, Rivers continues to obviously be able to write a hook.  But what the hell happened in the last year?  The band’s “White Album” showed they were able to just relax and write carefree tunes.  This just seems like a massive plea to be noticed and relevant again really, and it’s not pretty.

    “Weekend Woman” up next practically comes off as a damn Christmas Carol between these very warm vocals and the bells in the background.  But ironically, this is actually one of the lesser evils here.  It’s smooth, and I love the very whimsical instrumental.  Lyrically, I am sort of feeling like a lot of these tracks one way or another are really starting to blend together, at least as far as song tops go.  But this is just really enjoyable, and I actually really love just how hopeful a lot of this comes off.  For a Pop Tune directed by Weezer, this really isn’t bad at all.  On the other hand, “QB Blitz” is easily the worst track here.  Some of these narratives are just getting seriously painful to listen to.  It’s just all getting so repetitive for Weezer.  On this one, frontman Rivers Cuomo is rehashing so many things he’s been spewing out since 1994.  But this is just so damn awful.  All the metaphors are just so ridiculous, and worst of all, Rivers doesn’t even come off as human.  And honestly, that’s where so much of Weezer’s original charm stemmed from.  Instrumentally, “QB Blitz” is so bland and safe, and that production sadly hasn’t gotten any edgier or interesting.  Then we have “Sweet Mary” and by this point, so many of these tracks continue to blend together.  Rivers seems like he couldn’t be any less interested in this one.  It’s not nearly as sweet as he thinks it is, and if this is Weezer’s attempt at a vintage pop tune this is weak.  Weezer has proven over the years that they can very easily still write timeless Pop Rock tunes.  But when I hear this, I just want to move on and never look back.  At the very least though, “Get Right” is the sort of stripped down sound that comes off a whole lot more likable.  Even when the rest of the instrumentals come in, there isn’t anything terrible going on here.  Yes, take out the Rock elements, because this is basically a straight up Pop track.  But at the very least, Weezer seem like they’re having fun here.  Even more so then that, they don’t seem like they’re trying nearly as hard.  And while yes, this is still the most mainstream material Weezer has every touched, I really don’t mind this.  Plus, the band ironically sound at their most human here.

    This may not come as a shock to you, but with “La Mancha Screwjob”, this album doesn’t get any edgier.  But at the very least, this one has a solid narrative, and I actually feel like this one has some of the catchier moments of the entire album.  Is this going to get Weezer any new fans?  No.  Is this going to please Weezer’s classic fanbase?  Oh lord absolutely not.  But this is a decent Pop Rock tune which is FINE, but man, how far can one band fall in a years time. Weezer round this album off with “Any Friend of Diane’s”.  Now, I can’t really be that mad, because I honestly think this is the best track here.  It’s just so nostalgic feeling and so sweet.  It literally would have landed perfectly on the band’s last album.  I don’t even mind that this annoying production is still wallowing around stinking things up.  But where the hell was this carefree sound for the rest of the album?  What a slap in the face. 

Rating: 6.4/10

Give A Listen To: “Mexican Fender”, “Weekend Woman”, “Get Right”, “Any Friend of Diane’s”

Genre: Pop Rock / Alternative Rock / Power Pop

Overall Thoughts:  I mean, I didn’t think Weezer were going to be able to pull this off.  I hoped they could, but I sort of new deep down it was going to be tough for the to repeat what made their last album so lovable.  But most of the material here is quite frankly, unforgivable.  It’s one thing to make Pop Rock, I actually feel like Weezer are one of the best in the world at it.  But the material on this album is just so damn clean and gutless.   The handful of really good tracks are seriously VERY very good.  But this is far from the Pop Rock album I needed to hear from Weezer.

Bell Witch - "Mirror Reaper"

Bell Witch came to my attention a few years ago, mostly because I love any super atmospheric metal.  So of course, I instantly fell in love with Bell Witch.  This duo's 2015 release of their 2011 demo was pretty solid. While I feel like the production could have been better in parts, everything else was completely spot on.  The atmosphere was campy when it needed to be, but was also ridiculously dark.  There were elements of Sludge Metal and Black Metal as well, and overall this demo was solid.   Bell Witch followed this demo up with the intense, hulking and patience-testing "Longing" in 2012.  Just by the album cover of this, I knew I was in for a treat.  This album is brutal, dense, and a difficult listen.  But man, is it ever worth it.  Bell Witch continued to show that they knew just so much about atmosphere and how to build tension.  But outside of that, this was just a brutal Doom Metal record.  There were elements of drone and Black Metal sprinkled throughout, and overall I just couldn't get enough of this. 2015's "Four Phantoms" just made Bell Witch's sound THAT much bigger.  This album was just as long, but twice as atmospheric.  It showed the duo going into more ambient passages, with some actually really awesome and warm sung passages as well.  Bell witch have been on quite the roll lately. Now, it has been a few years since we've heard from Bell Witch, mainly because of the death of founding member/drummer/vocalist Adrian Guerra, which is heartbreaking.  But Bassist/vocalist Dylan Desmond has recruited a new lineup and is back with an album consisting of one monolithic track.  Let's talk about it.

    Right off the bat, it’s clear that Bell Witch hasn't given up the slightest bit of their atmosphere.  This opening is both just so dar and also somber.  I mean, some of those bluesy licks floating through the background are just heart wrenching.  It does almost come off as a Eulogy of sorts, which really hits home if you know the story behind this album.  The production is very vivid as always, and for Doom Metal bands, I feel like Bell Witch just do such an amazing job of painting these very visceral pictures.  When things start slowly chugging away, it’s just as intense and hard-hitting as some of their early recordings.  There are a few more drone influences, and this is still very much so a patient mans game.  But if you can sit with this album, this is really pretty solid.  Every moody, monolithic note that comes along is just so heavy, and like I said earlier, incredibly emotional.  This is all just so grizzly and cinematic.  Hell, we don’t get any vocals for the first 7 minutes, but I feel like this track has been going on for an eternity by the time we hit 10 minutes.  Bell Witch, however, do a wonderful job of continuing to paint this very grizzly world of theres.  As far as the first 10 minutes go, I’ll be honest I probably haven’t heard much more emotional Metal this year.  Then, we have these very haunting vocals that come in chant style that make this even more gloomy, but that was going to happen eventually.  I have to keep stressing this, however, “Mirror Reaper” is a patient men's metal album.  But the rewards are absolutely mind-blowing because these riffs are just so gigantic and chilling.  In a way, I feel like Bell Witch has seriously learned the blues with this release. It’s monolithic and brutal, and certainly metal as anything, but it’s also some of the most intense sadness I’ve felt all year.  Now, let’s be real, this could have easily been split up into maybe a few tracks.  However, I will say that the chanted vocals that come in around the 24-minute mark are a warmly welcomed changeup.  It really takes things to the next level and makes an already haunting album even more haunting. But there isn’t anything cartoonish about this, this is a very real Metal album.  When some of those drums start pounding, I literally get chills with each thump, which eventually leads into some of the heavier material we get on “Mirror Reaper”.  Now, while I said this easily could have been split up into a few tracks, I do have to commend Bell Witch for keeping this track interesting for an hour and 26 minutes.  It’s a tough track to get through obviously, but the band ends up giving this track so much character.  The intense, tortured sounding black metal vocals that pop in eventually are just the amount of ferociousness I needed. But let me just take a minute to say, this album is haunted.  No, I mean it, it just constantly seems to be haunted by death.  It always just seems to be looming in the background.  This album actually begins to get really revved up around the half-hour mark.  Which is fine by me, but this is going to be incredibly hard to sit through for some.  But when some of the Doom Metal elements get heavier, it’s stunning.  It’s a soul-crushing sound, but the true sadness of this album remains completely dominant.  In a way, I almost get the feeling listening to this as I did with Queens of the Stone Age’s “…Like Clockwork”.  It’s a feeling that this band has truly learned the blues, and it’s bleeding through the music.  So even amongst all these very sludgy and intense riffs, it all just comes back to how sad this all is. Not to mention, some of the later riffs are just so hypnotic and are just melodic enough to stick with you.   So as an album, this works for Bell Witch, and if you’re a Bell Witch fan you’re going to love this.  But it’s absolutely soul-sucking, and it will absolutely bring down your mood.  But if you’re into Doom Metal, this album is going to be all gravy for you.  Now, things around the 40-minute mark do get a little stagnant, but Bell Witch make it easier to swallow with some seriously big releases to all of that great tension.  But on top of all of these very heavy passages, the quiet moments here are just so unbearably quiet.  Then we have these later, heavenly vocals that make this even more haunting.  But these vocals are just beautiful and pure and ends up adding a ton of human feel to this very supernatural album.  It also leads to some of the album’s more warm moments.  Now, because this album only has one incredibly long track, there are moments over this near 90 minutes that get a little winded.  But just like that, Bell Witch continue to keep me on guard by bringing in these much more crushing passages to start to wind this album down.  But this album, even if you’re a Doom Metal fan is going to rip your soul out and make you exhausted.  Not just emotionally, but physically.  The chanting continues to make this a very haunting listen, and almost a spiritual one as well. But as far as emotion goes, this is the most powerful release Bell Witch have come through with.  It’s not the heaviest, and it could have been split up a little, but it’s still heavy and engaging. 

Rating: 7.8/10

Give a Listen To:  Well there’s only one track…..

Genre: Doom Metal

Overall Thoughts:  This album is absolutely exhausting and brutal.  Bell Witch have made ridiculously long albums for years.  But an hour and 26 minutes of Doom Metal, all being one track.  This album is intense and brutal, and most of all is Bell Witch's most emotional work yet.  Like I said earlier, this was recorded after the death of drummer Adrian Guerra.  And you can just hear so much sadness in each monolithic and brutal riff.  It's a very somber album, but not once do Bell Witch let up on you, this is still pretty damn heavy.  Could this album have been a little heavier?  Yes.  Could it have switched up more?  Yes.  But it's still a very well crafted Doom metal album. 

Beach Slang (Quiet Slang) - "We Were Babies & We Were Dirtbags"

Beach Slang over the past few years has become quite frankly, one of my favorite current Punk bands.  I first got introduced to them around the time of their "Who Would Ever Want Anything So Broken?" EP was released.  This EP started off with a bang, with tracks like "Filthy Luck" and "Kids" being some of the most anthemic and memorable Punk tracks I had heard in years. But it was more than just loud, catchy Punk music that drew me to Beach Slang.  There was a serious sense of Nostalgia to their music, that wherever you are and whenever you're listening to them, you feel like you've heard it before.  It really ended up tugging at my heart, and I was truly obsessed with Beach Slang right off the bat. They continued in 2014 with the "Cheap Thrills On A Dead End Street" EP.  This EP showed some crunchier guitars, but contained just as much nostalgia and catchy hooks, with "All Fuzzed Out" and "American Girls and French Kisses" being major standouts.  All I needed now, was a killer full-length album to sink my teeth into.  Which I got with 2015's "The Things We Do To Find People Who Feel Like Us".  This album took every sound and element of Beach Slang, turned up the volume, and made a seriously memorable debut.  Tracks like "Ride The Wild Haze" and "I Break Guitars" were intense punk anthems.  While tracks like "Noisy Heaven" and "Porno Love" were a little slower but just as gigantic.  The result might just be my favorite Punk album of the last few years.  From there, Beach Slang went into Covers mode, with "HERE, I MADE THIS FOR YOU Volume 1".   This was a small collection of tracks where Beach Slang was covering some classic tunes, something that on Paper, excited the hell out of me.  But this collection was just so lifeless and not nearly as nostalgic as they could have been.  Then last year, Beach Slang dropped their second album "A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings".  This album fell really short once again.  Yes, this album contains some of my all-time favorite Beach Slang tunes, like "Spin the Dial" and "Punks In A Disco Bar".  But once again, the timeless feeling of their early recordings just fell so flat here.  I just really wanted to hear Beach Slang go back to the nostalgic, timeless Punk band that they started as.  Thankfully, Beach Slang's second covers EP "HERE, I MADE THIS FOR YOU Volume 2" was much better, with their Modern Lovers and Jesus & Mary Chain covers going over wonderfully.  So lately, Beach Slang have been doing these Quiet Slang shows, acoustic and stripped down.  This may be just what the band really needs to do to get back on track.  These singles, have been quite frankly beautiful and nostalgic and wonderful.  This may not be the Beach Slang you remember, but we're gonna talk about this EP anyway.

(One of my favorite older Beach Slang tracks)

This short and sweet EP starts off with a reworking of their earlier track “Future Mixtape For The Art Kids”.  Now, right off the bat, you can clearly see what we’re dealing with.  That’s right boys and girls, this EP is going to be stripped down in a big way.  But if you heard about this EP in advance, you shouldn’t be too shocked.  No, this is all based on Cello and Piano parts.  And when I first heard that, I really didn’t know how to take that.  But if I’m being honest, I think this version is loads more heartfelt than the version we got on “A Loud Bash of Teenage Feelings”.  Obviously, it’s not as punchy and explosive, even in the most intense lyrical moments.  But this is a completely different take on this track, and really adds new life to it.  It’s just so heartfelt and passionate and really makes this hit so much closer to home.  It’s obviously delicate and incredibly sweet, which is strange coming from Beach Slang.  But if you know what you’re getting yourself into, this is just a really interesting take on this track.  Up next is another reworking, that of one of my favorite Beach Slang songs “Bad Art & Weirdo Ideas”.  Once again, I really don’t have a single issue with this.  The very delicate sound of this EP continues to be very likable, but if you’re going in blind you’re probably going to have a bad time.  But compared to some of the covers they were doing, this really isn’t bad at all.  It’s very sweet and once again very charming, which may not be what you want to hear from Beach Slang.  But I think this stripped-down sound really takes advantage of some of the band’s major nostalgic factors.  However, I do have to say that if Beach Slang did more material like this that was more original and not a reworking, this wouldn’t be nearly as interesting or pleasurable. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzlHlLyEx4g

    Up next we get a Replacements cover, which is a band that I’ve always heard so much influence in Beach Slang’s music.  Now, I do see what Beach Slang was going for with their cover of “Androgynous”, and to an extent, they do a solid job.  But of all of the tracks on this EP, this is by far the cheesiest.  The nostalgia this band has always played so hard on is out in full effect, and that’s totally fine, it comes off very nicely.  But of all of the tracks to cover by The Replacements, this was not a good choice.  They could have done something so much more memorable.  This is the first time I really feel like Beach Slang’s obsession with sounding so retro is falling just so short.  Plus, some of these vocal passages are some of the more awkward I’ve heard from Beach Slang recently, sorry boys. On the other hand, their cover of “Thirteen” by Big Star is fantastic.  It’s very nostalgic, and sort of sounds really timeless the way Beach Slang spun this.  But a lot of what makes this cover great is what I love about a lot of Beach Slang tracks.  In a way, it comes off like it was one of their own tunes, to begin with.  “Thirteen” is one hell of a cover.  I’ve always had a suspicion that Big Star was an influence on them, but hell, Big Star influenced everybody.  Outside of that, this is a beautiful, sweet cover that comes off really well. 

Rating: 7.3/10

Genre: Acoustic 

Overall Thoughts: This is a pretty solid collection of tracks from Beach Slang.  For my liking, I would have loved to see them bump this up a bit with maybe another cover and another reworking, especially with how hyped this EP was.  But still, this is easily the most compelled I've been by anything Beach Slang have done since their "The Things We Do..." album.

Bully - "Losing"

Oh BOY.  I've wanted to enjoy the music of Bully since the first time I saw them about 3 or 4 years ago.  I've always enjoyed them casually.  But when it came to their debut album, "Feels Like", I felt like it was all just so tame.  Their live shows are so exciting, but the material here was just so mediocre.  Tracks like "Trying" and "Reason" are solid and all, but everything else to me just came off so tame for Bully.  Now, I'll be honest.  These new singles have been a little bit more aggressive. So I do have some faith in Bully.  Now let's see if they can pull through.

This album starts off with “Feel The Same”, and I feel like instrumentals I’ve always not really minded Bully’s music too much.  I love just how intense the guitar riffs are on this one.  But outside of that, I still feel like singer Alicia Bognanno’s performance time and time again doesn’t really hit the mark.  There are some really awkward vocal moments here, and I feel like most of the time her and the rest of Bully are on completely different pages.  So yea, this is upbeat and wild and certainly grungy.  But Alicia’s performance is on a completely different planet.  Her more sweet and poppy vocals seem almost completely out of place, and her rougher vocals just sound completely awkward.  All I have to say about “Feel The Same”, is Yikes.  Next up is “Kills to Be Resistant”, and instrumentally this fits a lot of the same notes that the opener did. I feel like this is a little more on the rails though, and the result is Alicia and Bully sound like an actual unit.  I actually enjoy some of her more soothing moments here, they come off actually chilling, and her shouted vocals come off as some of her most rebellious ever.  Overall, “Kills To Be Resistant” is the diamond in the rough here.  Not to mention, I feel like Bully actually sound like they have a purpose here, which is something I’ve always felt like they’ve lacked.  But here, they sound focused and determined, and I love it.  But after having all of those great things to say, “Running” rears it’s head and I feel like I’m listening to a soundtrack to an absolutely abysmal American Pie sequel.  The instrumentals are so freaking boring, even more so than usual, because there practically isn’t anything happening here.  Then we have Alicia’s vocals, which aren’t horrible on some of the verses.  But when she gets into her upper register to belt out this ridiculously bad chorus, I feel like turning this album off altogether.  It’s moments like this that make me feel like nothing about Bully sticks out to me, at all.  I honestly really think they might do better going for a more Pop sound because it’s the more pop moments of Alicia’s performance that pick this one up a bit.  But still, oh boy is “Running” bad.  “Seeing It” is up next, and oh great, more Post-Grunge that sounded outdated when bands were doing this in 1998.  These instrumentals are beyond boring to the point where it isn’t funny.  And Alicia’s performance within this sluggish atmosphere is laughably bad.  I still think some of her sweeter vocals come off nice.  But as a complete package, this track sucks.  Some of Alicia’s wails here are so awkward that I almost feel bad for her.  And while, as far as the melody goes as well as some lyrics on “Seeing It”, I think there is some great stuff deep down.  But there are just too many elements here that make me less of a Bully fan than ever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cia7HOYxj8w

    As this album rolls onward, it just gets worse and worse.  While I haven’t always been a fan of Bully, I at least could appreciate some of their old, chaotic instrumentals.  But “Guess There” may be the most ridiculously boring and sluggish Bully track yet.  Alicia sounds absolutely bored to tears, I can shudder to think how any of this would come off live.  Once again, lyrically I do get what Bully is going for, and every once in a while, there is a moment of brilliance as far as the melodies go.  But outside of that, “Guess There” does NOT work for me.  On the contrary, I feel like this is some of the worst material Bull have put together yet.  Now, “Blame” is up next, and my initial thoughts were that this is easily the most blatant early 90’s ripoff I’ve heard yet.  But no matter how much it sounds like Bully is performing over a Dinosaur Jr. track, I actually really REALLY like this track.  I feel like as far as Alicia’s performance goes, this is actually as spot on as it can be.  She seems totally invested in the performance, being wild when it needs to be and packing just enough punch.  But it’s like I said, here, her vocals are much sweeter and catchier.  And that just works so wonderfully for her.  “Blame” is easily one of the best tracks I’ve heard from Bully in a very long time.  Then we have “Focused”, and just when I felt like Bully was getting back on track I have so many questions about this one.  What the hell even is this track?  These instrumentals aren’t flattering to anyone in Bully.  They’re just so sluggish and bland, to the point where it’s beyond cheesy and quite frankly just laughable.  Even Alicia in this instance quite frankly just seems so bored with what’s going on around her, I don’t even want to think about hearing a track like this life.  And things just plain get awkward when Alicia starts screaming her head off.  Thankfully, Bully answer that with one of the best tracks here.  This one has just the amount of groove and oomph that I needed to hear from these guys.  Once again, Alicia’s vocals outside of her occasional yells are at their more pop-oriented here.  But it ends up making this track loads more memorable.  The instrumentals which are going for a nice groove on this one seem just so much more comfortable with Bully’s style.  So no, “Not The Way” isn’t exactly wild and life-changing, but it’s a sweet Alt-Rock tune that I certainly wouldn’t mind checking out again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir_GC6e1cns

    Bully actually string a few really solid tunes together towards the end here.  As this album continues to go for a smoother direction, tracks like “Spiral” really take control.  Here, the guitars aren’t nearly as scratchy or explosive.  But man, this is just a smooth, retro-tinged Alternative tune.  Alicia doesn’t sound like she’s reaching for anything or even has to.  And the band around her haven’t sounded this unified in ages.  It’s a truly groovy tune that I really love.  But like, why can’t we get more of tracks like this?  Why does Bully constantly try so hard to bring back the 90’s post Grunge sound?  “Either Way” on the other hand is a little more upbeat and exciting.  But let’s be honest, Bully continues to sound seriously on a great path.  Why the hell they always feel the need to fill the rest of their albums with these cringe-worthy Post Grunge anthems is beyond me.  There’s an edge to “Either Way” and all, but Bully just sounds so much more comfortable.  Not to mention, when Alicia explodes at the chorus, it comes off actually exciting.  It’s short, but it’s also really sweet in Bully’s own way, and very charming.  But up next “You Could Be Wrong”, and once again, all that feedback comes rolling back in and it’s pretty awful.  All of sudden, Bully sound incredibly dated again and out of their element completely.  I will give “You Could Be Wrong” this though, this has everything that I could have ever asked to hear from Alicia.  There are some really sweet moments here and there, but this instrumental is sloppy as anything I’ve heard this year.  It’s just so muddy, and we’re back to the backing band sounding like this is all a chore for them.  This album ends off with “Hate and Control”, and I’ll give this one a little credit.  While it’s still very sluggish, I do appreciate just how heavy this one is and how massive the production is. But Alicia honestly sort of takes the wind out of everything with her verses that do nothing for me.  Instrumentally, this one is a whole lot more interesting.  But Bully, from the looks of it, you guys need an absolutely massive change. 

Rating: 6.2/10

Give A Listen To: "Kills To Be Resistant", "Blame", Not The Way", "Either Way"

Genre: Post Grunge / Alternative Rock / Noise Rock / Indie Rock 

Overall Thoughts:  Going into this, I figured this would be the release that sold Bully for me as a band.  But that couldn't be further from the truth.  This album is a freakin' mess.  There are certainly great tracks sprinkled throughout, and some real moments of greatness.  But frontwoman Alicia Bognanno seems completely disconnected from the rest of the band.  Alicia often comes off awkward, and the rest of Bully just sort of seem bored.  This band needs to switch things up, big time. 

Destroyer - "ken."

Destroyer has been a fascination of mine for a very long time.  I honestly got familiar with Dan Bejar's music through The New Pornographers.  But since then, I've backtracked and got into a LOT of Dan's older stuff recording under the Destroyer name.  In 1996 he made his debut with "We'll Build Them A Golden Bridge", and honestly it's not too pretty.  There are some things to really grab hold to here, like Dan's very poetic lyrics and delivery, as well as a few tracks that would return on later New Pornographers albums.  But outside of that, this album is messy.  The instrumentals aren't nearly as enchanting as they eventually would be, and Dan seems constantly unfocused.  So much so, I didn't even bother with his next album "Ideas For Songs".  Thankfully, Dan really went into overdrive on 1998's "City Of Daughters", his first stunning album. Dan brought out a series of very elegant, refined Indie Rock tunes that dabbled in Jazz occasionally.  But these were all very visually stunning, unbelievably well written Indie tunes, that put Destroyer on the map in a big way very quickly. 2000's "Thief"   showed Dan continuing down the same path.  I mean. these tracks were just as sweet, charming, and expertly written. But it was more than that.  Dan just had such a way of presenting these tracks in such an elegant way.  It made you think that you were watching this very artsy Indie Rock stage show, and I loved every minute of it.  Dan branched out Destroyer's sound even further with his next album, "Streethawk: A Seduction".  This album was incredibly classy and grand and showed Dan bringing in more instrumentals than ever.  On top of that, he was writing much longer tracks, but they remained compact and intriguing.  Now, I do feel like Dan hiccuped a little with 2002's "This Night".  Don't get me wrong, some of my favorite Destroyer tracks of all time are on here, like "Here Comes The Night".  However, this album is a little overblown.  Not to mention, at over an hour this is Dan's longest yet, and I just didn't think that was completely necessary.  In 2004 though, Destroyer did bounce back with one of my favorite records of theirs, "Your Blues".  This was Dan's most charming and elegant yet.  Some of these instrumentals were just so classy, bringing in dozens of horns and strings.  Plus, his songwriting just seemed to get better with each passing moment.  Destroyer's sound continued to get bigger and bigger with 2006's "Destroyer's Rubies".  Now, I wasn't really into some of the longer tracks here that seemed a little over-indulgent to me.  But still, tracks like "European Oils" were easily some of the most classy Indie tunes on the market. But once again, I needed a little bit of a change up from Destroyer. We got a slight change up in 2008 with "Trouble In Dreams", a much more stripped down album for Dan.  There weren't as many lavish instrumentals, and it was kinda refreshing to hear Dan step back.  But I still felt like I needed a major shift for Destroyer.  And boy did we ever get that shift and in the best way.  On "Kaputt", Dan embraced the very smooth sounds of 80's Soft Rock and Jazz, resulting in a seriously unbelievable album.  It was all just done so smooth, making for one of the coolest and chilled out albums in Destroyer's discography.  On the other hand, Dan didn't let any of his delicate songwriting and theatrical performances go.  Destroyer followed suit with 2015's "Poison Season", an equally Jazzy and elegant album.  But I just loved how much more direct the production was and how much louder these tracks were.  Destroyer has been on quite the roll as of lately.  So it's been a few years since we've heard from Dan, but these new singles have been sweet and refreshing.  Let's talk about this album, shall we!

(the one track that got me into Destroyer)

    This album starts off with “Sky’s Grey”, and it’s honestly sort of a weird intro for Dan that I don’t 100% understand.  I mean, I respect that he wants to make this a sort of very serene and pretty intro.  But this is just so damn uneventful.  Now, we’re slowly seeing that this is going to be a pretty heavily Synth driven album.  Later on in this album, that actually ends up working great.  But on “Sky’s Grey, it actually leaves a pretty bad taste in my mouth.  As far as Dan’s performance goes, there really isn’t anything I can be mad about.  His performance is honestly, just as beautiful and elegant as it’s always been, and it’s clear that Dan really hasn’t lost anything as far as that goes.  But in some ridiculous irony, later on in the track when things start to shape up instrumentally, Dan completely loses me lyrically.  Overall, let’s just say this track isn’t for me.  On the other hand, “In The Morning” instantly has a little crunch to it and almost a heaviness in the synths.  There’s actually a weird, semi-industrial feel to this which is something I really never thought I would hear from Dan.  But that’s exactly what it is, and it’s made even stronger by these wailing guitars and patient verses.  Now, Dan’s always worked with a whole lot of very classy production.  But “In The Morning” has a very minimal feel to it that actually comes off really striking.  That, added with Dan’s usual very poetic and endearing lyrics, makes for a really brilliant tune.  Up next is “Tinseltown Swimming in Blood”, and it’s weird because I really never expected to hear these very gloomy synth ballads from Dan.  He’s done downtrodden tracks plenty of times, but this is really a whole new level thanks to those very bleak synths.  There’s also a SERIOUS 80’s vibe to this, similarly to what we heard on album’s like “Kaputt”.  But all of that, alongside Dan’s very mysterious and cryptic yet beautiful performance, makes for a really stunning tune.  Now, this all comes at a price which may alienate some.  Dan’s usual very classy instrumentals are nowhere to be found.  Dan ends up making up for it since he’s such a damn good performer.  But if you’re into hearing Dan try something really different, so far this track has been seriously interesting.  Then we have “Cover From the Sun” which is striking on an entirely different level.  This one, on the other hand, is one of the sunniest and most pleasant tracks I’ve ever heard from Dan.  It’s sweet and endearing, and quite frankly one of the most straightforward tunes I’ve ever heard from Dan.  Of course, we’re still dealing with very abstract lyrics and great performances, so it’s still Destroyer at heart.  But man, I sort of wish “Cover From the Sun” was a little longer.  Still, this tune rules. 

    By the time “Saw You At the Hospital” rolls around, Dan has taken the synth vibe down a bit.  This one actually comes off like a track from “Kaputt” era Destroyer.  It’s very cryptic and comes off as some bizarre tune from some Art-School movie.  But to be honest, this is where I love hearing Dan the most.  The very light and delicate instrumentals are just so elegant, and once again I have the feeling like I’m in some sort of Indie Rock theatre.  I’m sort of surprised once again with how short “Saw You at the Hospital” is.  But man, this album so far has been surprisingly very pleasant.  The synths, however, return with a vengeance on “A Light Travels Down the Catwalk”.  But sort of like the intro to this album, this one sort of underwhelms me and comes off a little one dimensional.  I think Dan’s lyrics are really solid and thought-provoking here still, especially with that first line of “Strike and empty pose, a pose is always empty”.  So while I certainly do like elements to this, instrumentally this one is easily the most awkward here, almost like Dan used to this track to test out his entire synth sound.  However, Dan’s performance does save this one to an extent.  On the other hand, “Rome” is the sort of patient and seriously powerful track that does so much more for the synth sound that Dan is going for.  There’s a very retro feel in a lot of this production, and once again there’s a huge 80’s feel.  But it’s nothing that Dan hasn’t taken on in the past and mastered.  “Rome” is very hip for Destroyer, blending the smooth jazz and sort of 80’s vibes of “Kaputt”.  But outside of that, Dan just sounds miraculous on this one.  It’s one of his more straightforward performances here, and he seems to be just as patient as the pace of this track.  The result is a seriously intense and powerful ballad.  Up next is “Sometimes in the World”, and Dan never ceases to amaze with these opening liners (“I can’t pay for this, all I have is money” is an instant classic).  I like the dirtier and crunchier sound in this one, in a bizarre way there really are some of Destroyer’s heaviest tracks of all time on this album. But Dan adapts to it surprisingly really well and continues to remain the star.  The melodies are playful, the instrumentals are truly beautiful, and I seriously love just how majestic this one is.  Dan Bejar continues to completely outdo himself. 

    “Ivory Coast” sadly is a little messy right off the bat, and for the synth-driven tracks, this is easily the ugliest showing.  Here, there’s nothing nearly as ear-grabbing going on, and Dan sounds like a complete outsider.  But it’s more than, Dan doesn’t even sound nearly as interesting as this one.  His performance isn’t as artsy or delicate, and Dan doesn’t even seem like he has a lot to say which really sucks.  “Ivory Coast” just puts me to sleep sadly.  On the other hand, I love the instantly woozy synths on “Stay Lost” as well as Dan’s much bleaker performance.  This one is simple, but it feels like once again Dan is right back on track and hasn’t missed a step.  There’s almost a weird hopeful feel in this one very shining synths.  But like I said, Dan seemingly plays it simple on this one with lyrics.  But for one of the shortest tunes here, “Stay Lost” works for me.  "La Regle du Jeu” is our finale here, and instrumentally this is a little bizarre to hear from Dan.  As far as that goes, this is easily the most playful thing here.  It’s a quirky and bouncy atmosphere, which honestly isn’t exactly what I want to hear from Dan completely.  But I still think there’s a lot to dig here.  I love the very smooth verses that eventually show up, and Dan’s performance may be one of his most powerful and memorable here.  And while I’m not feeling the much quirkier instrumental, some of the others playing in the background is classy enough to make this work. 

Rating; 7.9/10

Give A Listen To:”In The Morning”, “Tinseltown Swimming In Blood”, “Cover From The Sun”, “Rome”

Genre: Indie Rock / Art Rock / Baroque Pop / Jazz

Overall Thoughts:  Ok, so when I heard this album was going to be dominated by synths, I really didn't know what to expect.  Dan really adapts the sound with his usally very classy Baroque Pop very nicely however.  The result is a series of the same sort of elegant and sweet Ballad's that Dan has been pushing out for years.  Is it going to be a classic?  Maybe, maybe not.  But for a guy on his 10th album or so to be sounding this good, it's really impressive. 

William Patrick Corgan - "Ogilala"

William Patrick Corgan, AKA Billy Corgan, AKA a guy who should have never stepped foot in the wrestling business, aka one of my favorite frontman of all time, is a very polarizing dude and has been for years.  Let's be honest, his time in The Smashing Pumpkins is untouchable.  He wrote countless unbelievable songs and for me wrote some of the most personal and relatable lyrics of the 90's Alt Rock explosion.  But in the 2000's Billy has been much more all over the place.  He's released a lot of mediocre albums and has quite frankly gotten quite a big ego.  So to be honest, I' really wasn't as pumped as I would like to be about this new solo album.  Then we have these singles, which are alright at best.  Let's just chat about this new album, shall we?

This album starts out with “Zowie”, and oh now is this album gonna be long for me.  Instantly I just feel like this is so over-the-top and dramatic for Corgan.  Which honestly, does get him out of his comfort zone, and I’ll give him that and won’t take it away.  But of course, this is Bully Corgan in 2017, so you’re damn right it’s overblown.  These aren’t nearly the lyrics I was hoping I would hear, and no they certainly aren’t the worst thing he’s come up with.  But why should I care about this?  Corgan doesn’t once answer me that.  This just comes off as over-indulgent and quite frankly boring.  The problem with him for years has been that he makes his much too much about him.  So hearing “Zowie” with him all along with just a piano is a little too much for me.  “Processional” is up next, and to be honest this much more stripped down folk is a whole lot easier to digest than the crap Corgan was just spitting out.  I still feel like this is a little overblown, but at the very least, this is much more heartfelt.  Even Corgan’s vocals come off as he if he’s really singing from the heart, which is nice.  Like, I certainly see the potential here, and I honestly don’t really have an issue with this.  I feel like this may be a little one dimensional for some, but outside of that this is a sweet folk ballad that totally makes you feel like Billy’s in a good spot.  Then we have “The Spaniards”, which almost has a Psychedelic or Space Rock feel to it.  There’s almost a sort of late-career Flaming Lips vibe in this instrumental, which comes off very cosmic sounding.  Instrumentally, I think it’s a great sound for Corgan.  It sort of goes with what he was putting together on the last Smashing Pumpkins album.   But these vocals remain suspect though and are some of the most cringe-worthy I’ve ever heard from Billy.  “The Spaniards” is a very spiritual track, and this a very spiritual album.  And that’s totally fine.  But this performance is just so unbearably overblown, so this one ends up being quite frankly just alright.  I do enjoy the instrumental still quite a bit though. “Aeronaut” on the other hand, from the first time I heard it I really couldn’t take it seriously at all.  Corgan here is once again trying just so hard to make this very emotional ballad.  The result is seriously cheesy, almost to a laughable extent.  The instrumental gets repetitive and boring within the first 30 seconds and is just so safe and bland.  If there is a silver lining on “Aeronaut”, I don’t know what it is. 

    At the very least, this much more Folk oriented sound continues to really sort of work for Corgan.  Hell, I’ll listen to anything he has as long as he stays away from that damn piano.  But “The Long Goodbye” while it is a slight improvement still comes off so half-baked.  I feel like Corgan does sound better in this atmosphere, but he continues to sound so damn directionless.   He used to have such purpose with whatever he was doing.  But “The Long Goodbye” is just goofy, to be honest.  I do think he’s onto something with the more Folk elements, but the rest of this is a prime example of why he’s fallen so hard.  For example, “Half-Life of an Autodidact” with it’s much more Folk Rock feel is actually just about the best track here.  The instrumental here is much more upbeat and less full of itself.  It’s a snappy tune, and most importantly positive, and Billy just sounds so comfortable as well.  Hell, I really wouldn’t mind listening to this track a few more times, to be honest.  It’s much more soaring, and just how uplifting and beautiful it makes me actually happy to hear.  “Amarinthe” also comes off seriously classy.  In a weird way, this one almost comes off like a deep B-Side from “Gish”.  It just has that sort of Cosmic atmosphere once again which certainly does work really well for Billy.  He once again, sound’s seriously confident here.  The result is, once again a very sweet and passionate ballad.  It’s funny though, some of these deep album cuts are so much less egotistical and it’s really nice to hear.  Maybe there is hope for a future Billy Corgan solo release to be stunning.   “Antietam” on the other hand, steps away from the more Psychedelic feels of the last two tracks for a more straightforward folk tune.  Honestly, though, I feel like this is a backtrack for Billy.  Like, here, Billy’s overbearing personally is right back at the front of everything.  Lyrically, I do like the much dark themes and the even dark imagery.  But I feel like just hearing Billy this full blast does no one any favors.  I do have to commend him though because a lot of these tracks are very heartfelt.  

    On the other hand, “Mandaryne” is one of the most seriously dramatic tunes here.  A lot of the tracks here, I felt like Billy meant for these tracks to be played in some sort of Theatre or Opera House, but that’s his ego for you.  On the other hand, “Mandaryne” is a very gripping, intense ballad.  On this one, he sets up his vision and executes it beautifully, and for the first time here I feel like I truly understand what Billy was aiming for recording these songs.  Then we have “Shiloh”, and once again these stripped down folk tracks are doing him huge favors.  His vocals obviously remain hit and miss, and if you don’t like his vocals to begin with you probably aren’t going to start now.  But outside of that, the instrumentals which earlier were so full of themselves are seriously tear-jerking here.  Overall, I have to admit this album is certainly better than I thought it would be.  But Billy still has a VERY long way to go if he wants to really make it as a solo star.  Our finale here, “Archer”, follows in the same Folky suit as a lot of these tracks have.  But oh God Billy, these vocals!  These lyrics!  What were you thinking?  I just feel like he put all that effort into the last few tracks, only to have this finale be by far the cheesiest and most ridiculous track here.  I can’t take a single vocal seriously, and these lyrics aren’t helping anyone.  Even this very vast atmosphere doesn’t do him any favors and just makes him quite frankly sound so awkward.  

Rating: 6.7/10

Give A Listen To: "Processional", "Half-Life of an Autodidact", "Amarinthe", "Mandaryne"

Genre: Folk Rock / Alternative Rock / Acoustic

Overall Thoughts: Going into this album, I was really worried about how this was going to turn out.  And quite frankly I was right, there is a LOT of really messy, cringe-worthy moments that show Billy's ego is alive and well.  However, there are a handful of very sweet ballads on here.  Billy just needs to really stick with it, because when he ventures out into Piano-Rock territory it just gets worse.  

St Vincent - "MASSEDUCATION"

St Vincent, AKA Multi-Instrumentalist Annie Clark has been at it for years now writing Artsy, Beautiful and Sophisticated Alternative rock.  Her 2007 "Marry Me" was a beautiful mix of Art Pop and Chamber Pop.  But I think what really made this one stand out for me, was Annie's performance.  Her vocals were always so lush, and her lyrics were always so sincere.  The result was an instantly gratifying and seriously sweet Alternative album.  2009's "Actor" however, quickly showed Annie branching out in a big way.  There were plenty of very sweet, Chamber Pop ballads on here.  But plenty of other moments showed Annie branching out into Experimental Rock, Noise Rock,  Progressive Pop, and TONS more.  It was actually a really far out record, and one that really took me by surprise, but in the best way.  St. Vincent continued to really push her boundaries with 2011's freakish "Strange Mercy".  This was Annie's most experimental and wild album yet.  And there are a handful of some of my favorite St. Vincent tunes on here like "Neutered Fruit" and "Surgeon".  But for some reason, I've never been able to 100% wrap my head around this album.  I just feel like some of her earlier, more accessible albums are a little more enjoyable.  And to be honest, I really wasn't that into her collaboration with David Byrne ("Love This Giant) either.  While I thought that album had a lot of good things going on with it, and it's certainly worth a listen and all, I feel like so much of that album was such a stretch for the two of them.  Thankfully, I feel like St. Vincent really outdid herself with her 2014 Self-Titled album.  This was Annie's wildest album, with noisy guitars and outlandish production.  It was easily Annie at her most experimental yet, and it's an album that grows on me every time I listen to it.  So it's been a few years since we've heard from St. Vincent.  And these new singles have been pretty wild to be honest, even "New York" which at first really didn't hit me at all.  So let's chat about this new St. Vincent album!

(A St. Vincent classic)

This album starts off with “Hang On Me”, a very patient intro from St. Vincent.  But if I know her, this won't last for too many tracks, so it’s really nice to hear her in this pretty environment.  I love some of her lyrics here.  They’re still certainly cryptic and pretty far out, but I love how beautiful they’re presented and just how strangely hopeful she sounds amongst all of this.  Now, the instrumentals on “Hang On Me” continue to be very experimental no matter how quiet and subtle this is.  But for a St. Vincent ballad, this is actually very pleasant to listen to.  Now, “Pills” is a really interesting tune.  It’s the sort of tune shoving Pop-Culture down its throat using its own Pop melodies that I would expect to hear from St. Vincent.  It goes over for Annie really well though.  It’s certainly very snappy and hypnotic, but it’s also got almost a “Tongue-In-Cheek” humor to it.  Instrumentally, this is the sort of wild track that I’ve been dying to hear from Annie for a while now.  Not to mention, Kamasi Washing of all people backing her up on Sax really shines as a great addition, and Annie’s very noisy guitar playing is always welcome.  “Pills” is a truly bizarre track, and one of the many here that are completely obsessed with Sex, but man is it a blast.  I’m not nearly as into the more spoken work finale, but I really can’t take anything away from this overall.  Now, for a lot of this album, Annie is getting very creative with Synths, and that really starts on the albums title track “Masseduction”.  I love just how determined and confident she continues to sound.  Now, I actually really love this track.  I certainly love the sort of vintage Funk feel to it all, and Annie is really letting loose with her vocals.  The very off-kilter humor and very visual and memorable one-liners remain constant, and this album’s obsession with Sex continues to be a focal point.  However, Annie really makes it work in her own very artsy way.  So overall, yea, I really dig “Masseduction”, I just wish it was a little more unhinged.  Annies headfirst dive into Synth Pop continues with “Sugarboy”, but it’s nothing too far from what she’s worked with in the past.  However, I would say the synth elements have never been this blaring and in your face.  Like, this is actually a really intense synth beat, and it’s just something I really wasn’t expecting to hear at all.  I still feel like Annie is working with a series of her cachet and most accessible songs of all time, which may not please everyone, but it certainly does make it easier to digest.  Now, this very sporadic and intense instrumental isn’t exactly my favorite.  But I continue to really love Annie’s very commanding performance that just keeps getting bigger and more confident.  The synth beat just keeps getting bigger and bigger with “Los Ageless”, but so do Annie’s very smooth performances.  But of course, this album’s absolute obsession with Sex, Image, Lust blares on as well.  But Annie is such a mastermind that she packages it up in a very classy way. There’s almost a very retro vibe to “Los Ageless”, almost as if this was some sort of X-Rated, B-List Pop single from the 80’s.  Outside of that though, I seriously love some of Annie’s more soulful and bluesy vocals in the second half of this one that just sound so passionate.  Now, once again, I feel like this one really didn’t need to be as long, and that last minute or so of a monologue just gets weird.  But still, this track works for me, and so far this has been a VERY enjoyable album. 

    Now, with “Happy Birthday, Johnny” this album begins to falter for me a little bit.  I totally get what people did about St. Vincent’s ballads and all, Annie certainly has a very endearing vibe here.  And this track is seriously beautiful.  I love her vocals that are just so smokey and the very serene atmosphere.  But I just really can’t get into this one.  It’s a sweet tale that’s pleasant to listen to, but that’s about all I can say sadly.  I feel like if this one had a bigger and more epic instrumental and was located later in the trackless this track would have been so much more interesting.  “Savior” however quickly gets things back to the Erotic level that it was at a few tracks ago.   But the very bluesy, swanky sound that comes along with the instrumental on this one actually makes it come off even more effective.  It’s actually one of the truly sexiest performances here, and it makes me wonder where this all coming from with Annie.  But I digress, the pacing on this one is what really makes it hit home.  The verses creep along making you think they’re building up to some gigantic chorus, which ends up creeping along just as slow.  What a damn tease.  But this album remains a very easily digestible listen from St. Vincent.  Sadly, “New York” still puts me to sleep.  Once again, I do really appreciate Annie’s very bluesy performance and endearing lyrics.  But between this and her early ballad, I feel like this is grossly out of place on this highly sensual album.  It’s sweet in parts.  But once again, I just expect so much more.  Give me some more lavish instrumentals or some buildup or something.  I do understand why people are really catching on to this one, however.   But a ballad about New York isn’t cutting it in between a series of songs about what turns Annie Clark on.  On the other hand, “Fear The Future” is much more in line with what I want to hear from St. Vincent.  I personally love her guitar playing and her noisy approach to it, and it’s on display wonderfully here.  Overall this track is so much more abrasive, and it’s actually shockingly experimental.  There are just so many harsh instrumentals, and Annie’s very haunting performance really hits home.  It’s a very determined, passion performance overall.  My only real critique is that I sort of wish it was longer.  “Young Lover” is up next, and even when this album is at it’s weirdest and most bizarre, Annie has this really bizarre way of making everything sexualized.  This is a really weird track, easily one of the most far-out ones yet.  It’s filled with this very off-kilter beat and random blasts of harsh noise.  Also, I don’t know what it is about these late tracks, but Annie certainly sounds much more chilling and haunting hitting all of these high notes.  But this track is another really solid tune as far as I’m concerned.  I love just how wild and unhinged Annie continues to sound, she’s almost as wild as these instrumentals.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uWgulZIvk0

    “Dancing With A Ghost” begins to usher in this album’s final tracks, and it’s a pleasant pretty interlude.  But let’s be real, it doesn’t add anything life-changing, and this could have been 45 seconds tagged onto another track.  Then we have “Slow Disco” which is another ballad.  And I really don’t know why, but once again, I’m seriously not feeling this track at all.  Annie sounds great, and the instrumental is much more interesting compared to the early tunes.  But this one just isn’t clicking with me, and really doesn’t come off as a St. Vincent track to me.  Annie also ends this album off with a ballad with “Smoking Section”.  But to be honest, this is by FAR the most interesting one here.  I love the imagery on this one, and how exhausted Annie sounds in her performance.  It’s a truly haunting and seriously dark track.  The synths are easily at their most heavy, and the pacing on “Smoking Section” is done so well, rounding up this album nicely. 

Rating: 7.8/10

Give A Listen To: “Hang On Me”, “Masseduction”, “Savior”, “Fear The Future”

Genre : Art Pop / Synth Pop / Indie Pop / Noise Rock / Experimental

Overall Thoughts:  This may just be Annie Clark’s most accessible album under the St. Vincent name.  Take that as you will, but it’s a pleasant switch up for St. Vincent.  Now, I’ll be honest, I did expect this album to be actually better than it turned out being.  Some of the ballad’s were a little limp for me,  and I would have loved to have hear Annie freak out more and bring in some noisier tunes.  But outside of that, this Sex-Filled, Synth Pop album is a really solid listen still. 

Courtney Barnett & Kurt Vile - "Lotta Sea Lice"

Over the past few years, I've grown to really love Courtney Barnett and I've absolutely grown to obsess over Kurt Vile.  I've just always thought Courtney's almost rant like, observational tracks have always been so enjoyable to listen to, and Kurt's cool voice and laid-back style have been the backbone of just about every one of my Chill Out playlists.  Now, when I first heard they were going to be collaborating early this year, I got really excited.  Mostly because I seriously didn't know what to expect.  But from these opening singles, it's sounding to be a pretty perfect pairing.  Let's chat about this new Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile collaboration.

    This album starts off with “Over Everything”, and it’s the sort of sweet and breezy intro I was hoping I would hear.  Kurt sounds at his coolest, and Courtney sounds as sweet and as endearing as ever. I love how these two artists have always had such a way of finding things they love in small details, and here is no different.  But I think the real story on this entire album is just how much chemistry these two have.  Kurt and Courtney find so much in observational lyrics and offbeat anecdotes, and that’s what we’re getting here.  Instrumentally, I feel like these two are deep in their comfort zone, but it’s incredibly charming.  I love the tales of Kurt and Courtney at a young age, and how much they’ve grown.  “Over Everything” is a wonderful opening track, and a seriously top-notch Singer/Songwriter track.  Then we have “Let It Go”, and I hope you guys are geared up for this very hazy, breezy Indie Folk track because this sound makes up the album.  Kurt and Courtney have this sort of “He Said, She Said” sort of thing going on here.  But honestly, it TOTALLY works out for them and quite frankly, it’s adorable.  I love just the way their voices intertwine as well on the choruses.  Overall, “Let It Go” is very decent.  It’s nothing out of the ordinary for either of them, but it’s smooth and wonderful to listen to.  Now, just when I got done saying that there wasn’t going to be much venturing into new territory, we get “Fear Is Like A Forest”.  This track is a hard left turn from what we’ve got so far, and honestly, it’s mind-blowing.  I love this very dark, moody, bluesy feel.  Courtney here sounds so rugged, it’s a great sound for her.  She’s the real star here, with Kurt sort of backing her up occasionally.  But the duo continues to have stunning chemistry.  Not to mention, the instrumentals are just so intense and raw sounding.  Kurt and Courtney’s vocals are just so haunting and hypnotic, and overall this track is my pick for one of the best here by far. 

    The very downtrodden, gloomy vibe of this album continues in a big way with “Outta The Woodwork”.  Now, this one is an early track that Courtney came out with, but obviously, Kurt is taking the reigns on this one.  However, his very cool, low-key voice works with the vibe of this track so wonderfully.  I feel like, for him, this was the perfect track of hers that he could have covered.  I also love some of the heavier guitars here, to the point where they actually end up coming off like one of Kurt’s solo tracks.  Courtney here does a great job of backing Kurt up with a series of very breezy vocals of her own.  But this continues to be seriously, a very enjoyable album, and this is a big stand out for me.  Then we have “Continental Breakfast”, which isn’t nearly as downtrodden and bluesy.  On the other hand, this is actually really charming and almost a little quirky.  It’s just further proof that Kurt and Courtney have the Singer/Songwriter formula down to a T.  Kurt’s got some incredible one-liners here, and I just love to hear them go back and forth in “He Said, She Said” fashion.  But then end up bringing it together for a sweet and harmonious chorus that’s really sweet.  “Continental Breakfast” is charming, beautiful, and all around a wonderful duet.  Then we have “On Script” which quite frankly turns up the volume a little to be a little more of an electric cut.  But I feel like this may be the weakest track here.  The riff is just sort of sloppy and much less concrete than earlier tracks.  Courtney’s performance here is quite frankly bizarre, as I don’t think I’ve ever heard her this unbelievably bored.  “On Script” is all over the place.  The instrumental I feel like is pulling in about 8 different directions, and Kurt’s influence isn’t felt at all.  This overall is just a bizarre track that really doesn’t fit this album art all.  By the end of it, it just sorts of melts into this awful mush that doesn’t do anything for anyone.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHCtH15dpmU

    Kurt and Courtney get their act together for the end of the album though.  “Blue Cheese”, compared to the following track has a much more upbeat feel, which is something we haven’t got that much of a feel for here.  Now, I just really love all the quirky one-liners and just how much character Courtney and Kurt show off.  Not to mention, they just seem like they’re having so much fun on “Blue Cheese”.  Some of the melodies here are seriously top notch, and the duet vocals come off really nicely.  It never gets that far away from the sort of bluesy vibe, however, and that’s just fine by me.  I know this probably goes without saying, but I seriously hope we hear more from these two in the future.  We get another cover up next with “Peepin’ Tom”, and this one is an early Kurt track.  But Courtney’s very somber performance on this one honestly brings this up to the next level.  Between that and the very soulful, classy guitar playing, this is an absolute mammoth of a track.  Courtney has taken Kurt’s classic and given it an entirely new spin.  But in a way, that’s what this album is all about.  The tracks on this album are really pushing these two to their absolute best.  Not to mention, these atmospheres are incredibly intimate, and really just make the performances of Kurt and Courtney that much stronger.  “Untogether” is our finale here, and is once again a sort of quirky Folk duet.  And for the most part, it’s really nothing we haven’t heard here.  But sadly, I don’t get any real closure from this.  It’s certainly still really sweet, and some of these duet melodies are incredible.  But I just wish I got more of a finale feel from this.  Outside of that, these two have such chemistry.  

Rating : 8.1/10

Give A Listen To: "Over Everything", "Fear Is Like A Forest", "Outta The Woodwork", "Peepin' Tom"

Genre: Indie Folk / Indie Rock / Folk Rock

If You Dig This, Check Out: Kurt Vile - "Smoke Ring For My Halo", Courtney Barnett - The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas

Overall Thoughts:  Overall, I really couldn't have asked for much more from this album.  Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett are two of the best Singer/Songwriter's in the world at the moment, and this LP just solidifies that even more.  But outside of that, this is a sweet, charming Folk Rock album.  The two Indie Darlings have incredible chemistry with one another, I just sort of wish this was a little longer.

Marilyn Manson - "Heaven Upside Down"

Marilyn Manson is without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most controversial figures in metal music of all time.  His image, his lyrics, his imagery, his music videos, are all the stuff of any teenagers parents' nightmares.  But I've always had such a soft Spot for Manson.  In 1994, Manson debuted with "Portrait Of An American Family".  Now, this is by no means a perfect album, the production is often sloppy, and some of the worst songs on here are ridiculously bad.  But there are also tons of tracks on here that show Manson's genius at an early stage.  Sure, there are fan favorites like "Dope Hat" and "Cake And Sodomy".  But it's the little details that make this a decent album, like his parody of the Psychotic boat ride from Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory that starts this album off, or his brilliant sampling of "Twin Peaks" for "Wrapped In Plastic".  Manson very quickly turned the volume up to 10 though on his next album, 1996's "Antichrist Superstar".  This album was instantly so much more explosive, incorporating much more Industrial Metal and Gothic Metal Influence.  But that's not all Manson turns up. The production on this album was a thousand times better, and the level of violent lyrics and disturbing themes were countless.  And what do you know, it was a freaking BLAST to listen to.  Manson sounded like a real rock star, and not just the estranged lovechild of Trent Reznor and Rob Zombie anymore.  In 1998 though, Manson did a complete 180 with the release of "Mechanical Animals".  This album wasn't nearly as heavy or as intense and was majorly influenced by some of the Glam Rock of the 70's.  Which on paper, really doesn't sound like it would work.  And in all honesty, it took me years to really appreciate this album.  But now that I'm older and I can appreciate stuff like T.Rex and Bowie more, I've come to love "Mechanical Animals".  Plus, it really gave us a look into the person that Marilyn Manson really was around this time, which is something I didn't expect. It's a strangely somber album, with themes of drugs, depression, and fame within these tracks.  However, if you were into Manson's heavier material, he had you covered.  2000's "Holy Wood (In The Shadow Of The Valley of Death)" showed Manson going back to his heavier and more industrial sound in a big way.  The tracks on here were intense and explosive, like "A Place In The Dirt", "The Love Song", as well as others.  But it also showed a slightly more mature side to Manson on tracks like "In The Shadow Of The Valley of Death".  Manson in the 2000's is a bit more hit and miss.  In 2003 he released "The Golden Age of Grotesque".  Now, this album isn't all bad, and tracks like "This Is The New Shit" and "mOBSCENE" prove that Marilyn Manson could still write a damn good single.  Even some of the later deep cuts were solid.  But this album overall is just so cheesy in parts.  Tracks like "Ka-Boom Ka-Boom" and "Doll-Dagga Buzz Buzz Ziggety Zag" were cringeworthy, and quite frankly didn't even sound like Marilyn Manson singles.  Manson returned in 2007 with "Eat Me, Drink Me".  Now, this album was still very flawed and showed Manson getting cheesier by the minute.  But I feel like this album doesn't get enough credit.  A good portion of this album is just so different for Manson, as he stripped down his metal sound for more of an atmospheric, Goth Rock sound.  The result is much sexier, and so much more personal than we've seen from Manson in the past, and sort of bluesy too (fans of early Danzig may dig this album a whole lot).   Now, the late 2000's were really rough on Manson.  He was in this phase of really wanting to re-establish himself as this much more emotional, tortured soul.  In 2009, he went head-on with that sound with his "The High End of Low" album.  The results sadly are laughable.  Tracks on here like "Running To The Edge of the World" are truly some of the most hilariously bad tracks in Manson's discography.  Even the singles on this album hit far from the mark for Manson.   Things got even worse with "Born Villain", which hearing the first track or two I didn't think it was going to be that bad.  But oh LORD this was bad.  Manson here took a nosedive into deeply emotional, often over-sexualized tracks that quite frankly came out along seriously dated and ridiculous.  I honestly thought I would never enjoy a Manson album again.  But low and behold, 2015's "The Pale Emperor" is quite frankly, a masterpiece.  This album really hit me out of nowhere.  Manson had been going for a gloomier and more personal and bluesy vibe for years.  But "The Pale Emperor" just seemed to click so well with Manson's style.  Tracks like "Third Day of A Seven Day Binge" and "Deep Six" are instant classics, and overall this is easily the best thing Manson has done since the early 2000's.  And not for nothing, but these new singles have been pretty damn great as well.  So yea, I'm really excited to talk about this new Manson album!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5LZ8YErl2M

This album starts off with “Revelation #12”, and oh nelly is it ever a noisy and abrasive intro.  It actually reminds me of just how explosive NIN sounded on their “Not The Actual Events” EP this year.  It’s a little different for this era of Manson.  He’s sort of toned it down these days, but this is just vicious, to be honest.  It’s explosive, with some really great instrumentals that harken back to his early, glory days.  I’m not gonna say that “Revelation #12” is anything too groundbreaking.  But it actually comes off pretty well for a late-career thrasher, and it constantly just sounds completely off the rails.  Here, a lot of the lyrics don’t even come off corny.  As a matter of fact, I feel like a lot of the biblical imagery used on this track is really clever for Manson.  Overall, this track is all gravy for me.  Now, “Tattooed In Reverse” however instantly slows things down into a sort of bluesy jam that I would have expected to hear on the last Marilyn Manson album.  But let me just say, this is a mere fraction of what it could have been.  On Manson’s last album, when it came to this sort of tune he would come off so tortured sounding.  But here, he just sorts of sounds like a sad old man trying desperately to reclaim his fame.  But it ends up coming off so much less shocking and truly abrasive.  Not to mention, I feel like in a weird way this beat was left over from Kanye West’s “Yeezus” ( I can almost hear him yelling in the background”.  Manson on “Tattooed In Reverse” just sounds so cheesy, and these ad-libs are even cheesier.  I can’t take this one seriously at all.   On the other hand, “WE KNOW WHERE YOU FUCKING LIVE” is so much more in the right direction.  Manson sounds like a real killer again here, and I love the sheer intensity of these verses.  And it’s all a buildup to this absolutely gigantic chorus which really does feel like an old-school Manson anthem.  The whole concept of “What’s a nice place like this, doing around people like us” is clever, bizarre but clever.  Overall, it’s just sort of refreshing to hear Manson back in this much more industrial atmosphere.  “WE KNOW WHERE YOU FUCKING LIVE” is intense, but it’s just melodic enough to really stick with you.  “SAY10” (or Satan, get it?) is once again pushing in the more synthetic direction.  Now, I do really like this track, but I do sort of wish Manson would stick to one sound.  I love the very creeping atmosphere and the slow pace of this one that’s just so murky.  But it makes for one of the album’s best atmospheres, to the point where it’s actually really thrilling when those blaring guitars pop in.  Now, you can certainly argue this one is a little cheesy.  I honestly think it’s pretty damn clever though.  It’s not nearly as shocking material, but it’s an effective tune that does stick with you.  It’s moments like this that I really am so glad he drifted away from what he was doing on albums like “The High End of Low” and “The Golden Age of Grotesque”.  “SAY10” really works for me, and it makes me happy that Manson is having this career revitalization.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmblT8_9-7U

    This album trudges on with “KILL4ME”, which sort of comes off as a leftover from Manson’s last album, but a really good one.  I love how bluesy and swanky this is, this one certainly has some real swagger to it.  It’s smooth though, and Manson doesn’t sound like he’s really reaching for anything.   It has just the right amount of synths in the chorus to make this so much bigger in feel.  Overall, so far, this has been pretty solid of an album.  It’s nothing Manson has never done, but this is just so much better than the low he was at for years.  Now, obviously “KILL4ME” isn’t nearly as intense or explosive as other tracks here.  But for that sort of Glam Rock inspired Manson we got on albums like “Mechanical Animals”, this is great.  Now, ‘Saturnalia” took some time to grow on me.  I love the very fast paced, intense Industrial beat that this one starts off with.  However, I will be honest, I’m not really that interested in Manson’s opening vocals, they’re sort of goofy.  Once again though, as far as lyrics go, in Manson’s own way this is more human than ever.  Even if Manson’s definition of “Human” is talking about demons, he makes it work.  Most importantly though, I love how tortured Manson sounds.  In every way, this is the sound that he mastered on his last album.  But it still packs quite the punch when it needs to.  Now, for an almost 8-minute track, this one actually floats really nicely and doesn’t feel drawn out.  As a matter of fact, it almost has a Progressive feel since we’re dealing with these sort of different passages.  But overall, “Saturnalia”  works pretty great for Manson.  He may not be breaking new ground or trying anything wildly outside the box.  But he’s being himself and sounding more human than ever.  "JE$U$ CRI$I$” on the other hand is much more explosive and intense right off the bat and seems like a lot more of a standard Manson track.  But lyrically, this one is a little hit and miss with me.  I certainly dig a few lines here and there, but there are just as many lines that I can’t take seriously at all.  Thankfully, instrumentally this one is intense enough to save this one to an extent.  But it’s moments like this as a whole that sort of come off as just OK.  It shows that Manson isn’t the unhinged Rock Star he once was and that he’s trying so hard to be edgy once again.  "JE$U$ CRI$I$” is certainly alright, and I do love the demonic growling of “JESUS CRISIS” in the final moments.  But this one just exposes a little too much of how Manson has grown out of relevancy.  Now, “Blood Honey” goes back in the much gloomier direction.  But holy hell, am I ever having slow flashbacks to Manson’s really awful albums of years ago.  I don’t mind just how patient and slow the instrumental is.  But Manson once again is slowly falling apart lyrically.  There are some really great lines once again, but the majority of this shows Manson just desperately grabbing for shock value that used to come so easy to him.  There are certainly still a lot of human elements to this that is really nice to hear, and Manson once again does sound very lonely.  So it’s not bad per say, but it does make me pine for the days that this came so easy to him. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnx-ofbxSQ8

    Thankfully, Manson bounces back with “Heaven Upside Down”, the sort of bluesy and stripped down track that I was actually really excited to hear.  It’s moody, bluesy, but also really confident.  Manson on this one doesn’t sound like he’s trying for anything he just sounds like he’s being himself.  It’s really refreshing to hear a track like this, with Manson taking influences from numerous other Rock genres.  The female vocals floating through the background are a nice touch as well.  This album ends off with “Threats of Romance”.  Sadly, the sluggish and bluesy vibe on this one doesn’t click at all.  Here, I feel like Manson’s much heavier instrumentals just don’t do as much for him.  I like the bluesy guitars, but his vocal performance here isn’t nearly as striking.  I do sort of like the atmosphere, but it’s just so exhausting to hear this track.  

Rating: 7.6/10

Give A Listen To: “Revelation #12”, “WE KNOW WHERE YOU FUCKING LIVE”, “KILL4ME”, “Saturnalia” 

Genre: Metal / Industrial Rock / Blues Rock 

Overall Thoughts: Marilyn Manson right now is in the middle of a career renaissance of sorts.  This album isn't exactly reinventing anything as far as Manson goes. But for the most part, there really isn't anything terribly wrong with this album.  There are certainly a few moments where Manson's writing is off, or maybe he's trying a little too hard.  But let's be honest, this far into his career can we really expect anything more?  If you were a fan of "The Pale Emperor", chances are you'll like this.