First, the packaging and artwork:
This is really cool stuff. The inside back page reminds of the photo collage in Appetite For Destruction. Just similar colors and stuff. I'm going to try to avoid comparisons to other groups though, because that can sometimes get a little old for people to hear. The fact is, sometimes things just don't look or sound like anything else.
Anyway, back to the art. I like the pictures that go with each song title. That's a cool touch.
The inside artwork is cool too. I like the "reptiles are intrigued" sticker. All in all, the art is clever, funny, quirky, and well done.
Now the songs:
Beyond the Bones - I don't really like this one much, at least not as an album opener. It has a cool vibe, maybe it's the mix, I don't know. The vocals are too difficult to understand, and they just add to the sonic confusion. Not one of my favorites on the album. The clean piano stuff is really cool and ambient. I think the keyboard stuff is probably the best part of the song, like the solo and the verse riffs.
Blood Gulch - First thing that grabs is the funky, super compressed guitar riff. It's a great riff, and well played. The tone is cool, and that slippery, grinding bass rif underneath is definitely sexy. The lyrical content I can't really relate to (never played Halo) but the vocals are done well, and the melody fits the funk groove perfectly. The drums on this one are cool. I like the fills between each line. The guitar solo felt a little out of place. Maybe it shouls have been played clean? Just a personal preference. I dig the riff coming out of the solo a lot. the triangle...haha.
This is a great tune.
We Are - this one opens like video game music, and then goes into a kind of 70's dance thing. The delay on the vocals is awesome. I can hear this song playing on top of a 70's buddy cop chase scene. Who knows why. Lyrics are great. I like "We all want to be miracles, just try to light your world..."
the laugh at the end is funny, but a little weird for the song. I couldn't hear much bass on this one. a solid tune.
No One Special - this is one my favorites. I like the keyboards the best. the whistle riff under the verse is relaly cool and spacy, like an old horror movie. With the other keyboard orchestration, it's really full and intense. The short keyboard solo around 1:50 or so is pretty sweet. Great melody, effects and mixing. I don't like the end pitch shift. Repeats the last song, and kind of kills the mood.
Greek Mythology - more funk/jazz stuff is great. I love the quick tempo and feel change. Bass work and tone are both awesome. I love the bass and guitar unison part when the drums cut out. A fun short song.
Assassination Enthusiast – My favorite part is the backing vocals “assassination!” in the chorus. It’s so bizarre it’s cool. The lyrics are funny and serious. The breakdown at 2:05 is absolutely awesome. How did ever decide to go reggae/jazz for a song about an assassin? Cool! The guitar tone and playing in this part is great, as well as bass and the solid beat. The keyboard solo sounds really Eastern, very cool. There are so many different sounds and vibes going on in this song, and they all work really well, except the end. I wished it would have ended on a more enthusiastic tone. Preference again.
Perfect Misery – Good riffs and guitar work on this one. It’s the best performance of the song, followed closely by the vocals. The lyrics are awesome on this one, well blended with each part. The bass and drums provide a really solid rhythm section and bottom end. I’m glad to hear that these two didn’t go overboard. There are a couple of cool syncopated moments, which help the pacing, but I’m glad the song stays mostly mellow. This is also one of my favorites.
Zartan Boogie – Cool guitar tone! Too much cymbal with the drums, AAHHHH! Hisssssssssssss…that needs to be taken down. It gets better as the song goes on…sort of. The cymbal that gets ridden upon throughout most of the song is really distracting and annoying. I pretty much dig the whole song except for that. The other drum parts are great, just the hi-hat or ride or whatever that’s supposed to be.
Liquid Lunch – A cool song inspired by one of my favorite movies. This is really techno/industrial sounding, and then there’s that keyboard swell thing! I’m not sure I get it. I can only think of it as being representative of the multiple personalities going on in that film. Anyway, the vocals on this part are great, though I can’t hear them over the instrumentation very well. My copy of the CD has a lot of extra low end distortion on this so, I’m not making things out very clearly. I LOVE when it comes back to the faster techno style groove though. I wish it would stay there longer. Again, maybe it’s a symptom of the subject matter, but this song moves around too much for me, and it starts to feel inconsistent. The feel of each part is kind of too different from the one it comes out of and goes into. I like the guitar solo. The keyboard and guitar outtro with the bongos and trumpet is great, but again, a weird departure from the rest of the song. I like the song overall, but it bugs me too much to be a favorite.
The Night We Lost Our Spines – Funky, fast, kick ass all the way through.
And Lord of Sternums.
Silenced Forever – I love the intro. The noises are awesome. The little vocal or keyboard “wah?” things made me think somebody was in the room trying to talk to me. Creepy. Awesome drum work in this song. This is another song where all the changes really go well together. Oh that guitar riff! DUN DUN chukka chukka chukka chukka chukka DUN DUN! So metal! The keyboard accents in this are really cool. I LOVE the end.
We…
Will die for you
Will kill for you…That part is awesome, a great way to end it. Great lyrics.
Levitator – The guitars on this one are again the highlight. Les Paul thru a Marshall! The tones are fantastic and the riffs are perfect with all the other parts. The drums are also really subtle on this one, but really shine. The title track is definitely another favorite.
I 'll finish the rest after class.
This is really cool stuff. The inside back page reminds of the photo collage in Appetite For Destruction. Just similar colors and stuff. I'm going to try to avoid comparisons to other groups though, because that can sometimes get a little old for people to hear. The fact is, sometimes things just don't look or sound like anything else.
Anyway, back to the art. I like the pictures that go with each song title. That's a cool touch.
The inside artwork is cool too. I like the "reptiles are intrigued" sticker. All in all, the art is clever, funny, quirky, and well done.
Now the songs:
Beyond the Bones - I don't really like this one much, at least not as an album opener. It has a cool vibe, maybe it's the mix, I don't know. The vocals are too difficult to understand, and they just add to the sonic confusion. Not one of my favorites on the album. The clean piano stuff is really cool and ambient. I think the keyboard stuff is probably the best part of the song, like the solo and the verse riffs.
Blood Gulch - First thing that grabs is the funky, super compressed guitar riff. It's a great riff, and well played. The tone is cool, and that slippery, grinding bass rif underneath is definitely sexy. The lyrical content I can't really relate to (never played Halo) but the vocals are done well, and the melody fits the funk groove perfectly. The drums on this one are cool. I like the fills between each line. The guitar solo felt a little out of place. Maybe it shouls have been played clean? Just a personal preference. I dig the riff coming out of the solo a lot. the triangle...haha.
This is a great tune.
We Are - this one opens like video game music, and then goes into a kind of 70's dance thing. The delay on the vocals is awesome. I can hear this song playing on top of a 70's buddy cop chase scene. Who knows why. Lyrics are great. I like "We all want to be miracles, just try to light your world..."
the laugh at the end is funny, but a little weird for the song. I couldn't hear much bass on this one. a solid tune.
No One Special - this is one my favorites. I like the keyboards the best. the whistle riff under the verse is relaly cool and spacy, like an old horror movie. With the other keyboard orchestration, it's really full and intense. The short keyboard solo around 1:50 or so is pretty sweet. Great melody, effects and mixing. I don't like the end pitch shift. Repeats the last song, and kind of kills the mood.
Greek Mythology - more funk/jazz stuff is great. I love the quick tempo and feel change. Bass work and tone are both awesome. I love the bass and guitar unison part when the drums cut out. A fun short song.
Assassination Enthusiast – My favorite part is the backing vocals “assassination!” in the chorus. It’s so bizarre it’s cool. The lyrics are funny and serious. The breakdown at 2:05 is absolutely awesome. How did ever decide to go reggae/jazz for a song about an assassin? Cool! The guitar tone and playing in this part is great, as well as bass and the solid beat. The keyboard solo sounds really Eastern, very cool. There are so many different sounds and vibes going on in this song, and they all work really well, except the end. I wished it would have ended on a more enthusiastic tone. Preference again.
Perfect Misery – Good riffs and guitar work on this one. It’s the best performance of the song, followed closely by the vocals. The lyrics are awesome on this one, well blended with each part. The bass and drums provide a really solid rhythm section and bottom end. I’m glad to hear that these two didn’t go overboard. There are a couple of cool syncopated moments, which help the pacing, but I’m glad the song stays mostly mellow. This is also one of my favorites.
Zartan Boogie – Cool guitar tone! Too much cymbal with the drums, AAHHHH! Hisssssssssssss…that needs to be taken down. It gets better as the song goes on…sort of. The cymbal that gets ridden upon throughout most of the song is really distracting and annoying. I pretty much dig the whole song except for that. The other drum parts are great, just the hi-hat or ride or whatever that’s supposed to be.
Liquid Lunch – A cool song inspired by one of my favorite movies. This is really techno/industrial sounding, and then there’s that keyboard swell thing! I’m not sure I get it. I can only think of it as being representative of the multiple personalities going on in that film. Anyway, the vocals on this part are great, though I can’t hear them over the instrumentation very well. My copy of the CD has a lot of extra low end distortion on this so, I’m not making things out very clearly. I LOVE when it comes back to the faster techno style groove though. I wish it would stay there longer. Again, maybe it’s a symptom of the subject matter, but this song moves around too much for me, and it starts to feel inconsistent. The feel of each part is kind of too different from the one it comes out of and goes into. I like the guitar solo. The keyboard and guitar outtro with the bongos and trumpet is great, but again, a weird departure from the rest of the song. I like the song overall, but it bugs me too much to be a favorite.
The Night We Lost Our Spines – Funky, fast, kick ass all the way through.
And Lord of Sternums.
Silenced Forever – I love the intro. The noises are awesome. The little vocal or keyboard “wah?” things made me think somebody was in the room trying to talk to me. Creepy. Awesome drum work in this song. This is another song where all the changes really go well together. Oh that guitar riff! DUN DUN chukka chukka chukka chukka chukka DUN DUN! So metal! The keyboard accents in this are really cool. I LOVE the end.
We…
Will die for you
Will kill for you…That part is awesome, a great way to end it. Great lyrics.
Levitator – The guitars on this one are again the highlight. Les Paul thru a Marshall! The tones are fantastic and the riffs are perfect with all the other parts. The drums are also really subtle on this one, but really shine. The title track is definitely another favorite.
I 'll finish the rest after class.
