Greetings and Salutations!!!
Well, it’s been a really, REALLY long time since I’ve posted anything on this blog. My wife and I were blessed with our first child on July 20th, an awesome baby boy named Luke, who is already a rocker at heart. While it’s been one of the most amazing thing that’s ever happened to me, it has left little time for blogging. SO, my goal over the next few weeks is to get caught up and release some blogs about the shows I was able to sneak out to.
But first, I wanted to post about what’s been going on in the last few months, and what I’ve been listening to. There are several really good albums that are out that have been active at The Music Pill during midnight feedings and through headphones while walking Luke to sleep. 🙂
I’ll start with the album that I can’t get enough of. As I Lay Dying’s album Awakened came out recently, and is, in my opinion, brilliant. Metalcore strikes at the root of what I enjoy in music, extremely hard musicianship with the occasional powerful breakdown, along with melodic vocals, all packaged together (you can sing AND punch someone!! 🙂 However, with the rise of the musical internet, and a strong following of young kids, this genre has become completely saturated with mediocrity. As I Lay Dying is a refreshing insight into what this genre should be – and while this album is more melodic than their previous ones, it gets rave reviews from me. Check out their single Cauterize.
Stone Sour dropped the first of two concept albums, called House of Gold and Bones Pt. 1, recently. I am a totally geek for Corey Taylor, and am really enjoying this album. Many who challenge Stone Sour say that their rock is somewhat generic…that it’s not ground breaking. I don’t disagree, they aren’t pushing any genre limits, but the band is insanely talented (Taylor on vocals, Slipknot guitarist Jim Root on lead guitar, and former Soulfly drummer Ray Mayorga on drums). What results is excellently tracked hard rock riffs and drumming, with Taylor’s soaring vocals. Check out RU486, which is no doubt named after the controversial prescription abortion pill.
Periphery‘s new album is another one that I am sort of hooked on. As a music fan, this band absolutely pushes my comfort zone – its a progressive metal band that uses crazy time signatures to make their songs switch gears and stay interesting. It also features much more clean vocals and less dissonant guitar than most prog metal bands I hear, meaning it just might be the perfect band to bridge me into liking prog metal a bit more. I love a challenge, and every time I listen to this, I like it more. Touche to my friend Randy for the recommendation. My favorite track is Facepalm Mute.
For something different, a great option is the latest in a series of albums driven by the plot of a comic – The Aftermath: Ascension, by Coheed and Cambria. Even more amazing than lead singer Claudio Sanchez’s hair is this band’s ability to continually surprise it’s listeners. Heavy piano on this album, along with killer high vocals and one of a kind creativity lead to another consistently solid album. The song Domino the Destitute is the groups most addicting since the ever-powerful Welcome Home. Coheed followers will be impressed, and the casual fan of the music genre will most likely be surprisingly hooked.
I hesitate to put this next album out there, because of my incredible bias, but I’ve also been listening to 10 Years latest release, Minus the Machine, a LOT. Partially because I was able to catch them in concert recently (concert review to come!), but partially because I just think they are a really great band. I’ve been a huge fan since I heard Wasteland the first time in 2006 at X103’s Mayday.
Other releases I have been checking out:
Axewound, which is new band that takes Bullet for my Valentine’s Matt Tuck and Liam Cormier from Cancer Bats and crams their collective sounds together, relased their freshman effort Vultures. Unfortunately for die-hard BFMV fans like myself, the metalcore/hardcore mashup doesn’t quite mesh, and what’s left is an album that’s barely less cheesy than the band name. I’m not mad I bought it, but will look forward to Tuck returning to his metalcore sweet-spot.
I felt like I had to check out the latest double album from Baroness, titled Yellow and Green, not only because a friend of mine had been pushing this band for a while, but also because they had a devastating bus crash in Europe that left them all in the hospital for lengthy rehab periods. With as much fan support as I’ve seen them get since then, I figured I was missing something special. So far, the album is good but not great, but I think it may grow on me.
Finally, hardcore greats Converge came out with For All We Love We Leave Behind this past month. While hardcore isn’t usually my cup of tea, this band has been leading the charge for 20 years, and there’s a reason. The vocals are intense, but they were intended to be, and they pair quite nicely with the rest of the band. Whenever I’m in the mood for something intense, this is a great choice.
Thats it for now. Several shows on the horizon, and lots to catch up on from this summer, so expect a busy next couple weeks from The Music Pill!