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Djugdish - Standards |
| May 29th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 2001
Tracks: Away; Prayder Willie; Gazebo; No Inhibitions; Let Go; Someone Stole My Secret; Frozen
Best track: No Inhibitions
Track to skip: none
The title is obviously a joke as this would be the first time you could have heard the songs. However, it’s not just a joke title because now, a year and a half after its release, these songs *are* the band’s “standards”. I think that gives a good indication of what this band is about. They’re funny and they write some pretty wacky music, but the band is very intelligent. It’s really hard to give a one word definition of Djugdish’s music because they switch styles effortlessly and as quick and often as you blink. In the most basic terms, they’re a melodic heavy rock band, but that’s way too limiting. Let’s see, besides the heavy rock they go into funk, jazz, hip hop, bossa nova, country, drum-and-bass, opera…stop me when you get the point. That’s one of the main reasons I get really excited every time I hear a new song because you honestly have no idea where it’s going to go. This isn’t predictable, cookie-cutter, top 40 music here.
I’ve been digesting this CD for almost a year now and each time I listen to it I love it more. Djugdish’s live shows also bring out the goodness in these compositions. They are all *excellent* compositions. Most of the music (and all the lyrics on this CD) are by vocalist/keyboardist Androo O’Hearn. Lead guitarist #1 Matt Talbert contributes music in Gazebo and the album’s highlight, No Inhibitions. In sitting here racking my brain to come up with the “best track”, it’s always No Inhibitions that I think of first. I don’t know what Androo’s singing about, but the music is incredible. Not to mention the guitar solo, which is not only Matt Talbert’s best recorded solo, it’s also in a way the centerpiece of the album. It’s like the pivotal point of the album, everything swings from that point. And in the constant sea of heaviness, it’s this pure chunk of peace and beauty. So yeah, I think it’s a pretty cool solo.
The rest of the solos are spread out through Matt and the brothers: saxophonist Trent Talbert and lead guitarist #2 David O’Hearn. It’s always nice when there’s a bit of clearing for Trent to solo in and I LOVE that a heavy rock band has a sax player. The rhythm section is made up of drummer Matt Thompson (who also plays for King Diamond) and bassist Gary Thorne. Both of these musicians bring unexpected things to this music. Normally in a heavy bands you don’t find drummers who have style and groove. Djugdish is obviously the exception. Same goes for the bass position, most bassists in heavy bands keep their parts simple and low and usually double the guitars. That’s boring. It’s refreshing to hear Gary’s basslines because they are really melodic and creative. On paper (or a computer screen) it seems like all these different playing and music styles wouldn’t compliment each other, but Djugdish totally pulls it off.
So, about the disc itself. It’s only 7 songs, but it totally leaves you wanting more. Being 45 minutes long it’s a great length for a debut album. You get enough of a taster that you want more, but it still fulfills you on it’s own. All 7 of these songs are damn excellent and I often find myself putting the whole disc on repeat and just jamming to it for a couple of hours. The production on this, an unsigned band’s debut, is near perfect. It’s so clear and SO full. I’ve never heard a ‘local’ band put out an indie CD that sounds this good. So kudos to producer Eric Delegard for knowing his stuff and being as good as he is. I do not get tired of listening to this CD, and that’s all you can really ask for.
Rating: 94
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Black Sabbath - We Sold Our Soul for Rock ‘N’ Roll |
| May 29th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1976
Tracks: Black Sabbath; The Wizard; Paranoid; War Pigs; Iron Man; Tomorrow’s Dream; Fairies Wear Boots; Changes; Sweet Leaf; Children of the Grave; Sabbath Bloody Sabbath; Am I Going Insane (Radio); Snowblind; N.I.B.
Best track: Black Sabbath
Tracks to skip: Changes, Am I Going Insane
The 2CD set, Symptom of the Universe, would probably be a little bit more desirable than this, but if you want a cheap and easy introduction to Black Sabbath, then this is it. I don’t listen to this near as much as I used to, but it’s still pretty good. Sabbath were a pretty important band, esp. on heavy music. This stuff isn’t all ground-breaking, but it’s enjoyable. Mostly, the songs are pretty good. The first one (also the first track on their debut) is probably the greatest thing they ever did. It’s still just the heaviest riff ever and such a creepy song. It’s an excellent song and the perfect choice for the opening of this.
There’s always going to be some songs that don’t quite measure up (Changes, Am I Going Insane), but most of these songs are pretty good and deserved classics. Changes is really bad though. I mean, it’s a freaking love song! The same damn band that writes “Black Sabbath” also comes up with this AWFUL love song. I could at least give it some points if it were a good song, but it’s really just bad. The piano part is really basic and the mellotron is SO drippy. Too cheesy for me. Am I Going Insane is a really dumb song as well; it reminds me of the bad Kiss songs from the late 70’s. I don’t care for Tomorrow’s Dream too much either, but the chord progression on the chorus is pretty cool. I like Snowblind as a composition, but Tony Iommi’s guitar sounds horribly out of tune. It hurts to listen to it.
While I’m going on about the negative stuff here, the lyrics (I assume all written by Ozzy?) are uniformly bad. OK, they get points for War Pigs, but most have bad lyrics. Iron Man may be the worst (besides Changes). I still really dig the music, but the words are very bad in a hilarious way. Lyrics aside, the music parts of the songs are all pretty well written and I that’s what I focus on anyway. Most of these songs are really good. There are some omissions on this, but it’s a great place to start. I enjoy it.
Rating: 85
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Robert Fripp String Quintet - The Bridge Between |
| May 29th, 2003 under Album Reviews. [ Comments: none ]
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Released: 1993
Tracks: Kan-non Power; Yamanashi Blues; Hope; Chromatic Fantasy; Contrapunctus; Bicycling to Afghanistan; Blue; Blockhead; Passacaglia; Threnody for Souls in Torment
Best track: Hope
Track to skip: nothing really sucks on here, but not a lot really grabs me
Robert Fripp is excellent, Trey Gunn is excellent, and the California Guitar Trio are excellent. In theory, and occasionally in reality, this group of 5 musicians (aka the RFSQ) sounds like a dream come true for music lovers. Most of this CD isn’t like that though. As witnessed from this CD and the video Live in Japan, when this group focuses on certain songs they are unstoppable. I think my biggest problem with this CD is how the trio’s songs (they all appear on their first album, Yamanashi Blues) don’t sound good with the addition of Fripp and Gunn. They’re great compositions but Fripp and Gunn don’t add anything and they actually take away from the songs themselves. These songs are Kan-non Power, Yamanashi Blues & Blockhead. All three of these are way superior when played by the CGT themselves.
The times when this string quintet really works are on tracks like Afghanistan, Passacaglia & especially Hope. I just have to comment on how amazing and utterly perfect this song is. Possibly the most moving piece of music I’ve ever heard. It goes without saying it’s the highlight of this disc. I love these other two songs as well; they’re all excellent. The rest of the album is filled out with a Trey Gunn solo spot (Bach’s Chromatic Fantasy, one that Gunn does much better on the video), a Fripp/Gunn duo (Blue, which is pretty good and features an out of place Starless quote), and a menacing solo Fripp soundscape (Threnody…an evil thing, but I’ve heard him get WAY more evil out of his guitar).
All in all it’s a disappointing disc. They are better on the video, which I recommend. Besides THRaKaTTaK (the worst thing any of these guys have ever been associated with) this is probably the worst disc by any of these guys. Bicycling to Afghanistan and Hope are essential and excellent, but you can get Hope on the DGM sampler. Well, like I said, a disappointment considering the talent of these 5 guys.
Rating: 73
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