Trollheart

Thanks. I always had trouble with my alphabet. What comes after Z?

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Trollheart

Album title: L.A Divine
Artist: Cold War Kids
Genre: Indie Rock
Nationality: American
Release date: April 7
Position in Discography: Sixth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 2.58
Maybe I'm just being overdosed on indie rock but it is starting to bore the arse off me. The second track here, “Can We Hang On” has an anthemic quality but it sounds as if the melody has been totally ripped off from another song; as usual, I can't place it but it's very familiar. “So Tied Up” is basically a boring pop song, “Restless” is decent but “L.A River” is total ****, even if it is only just over a minute long. “No reason To Run” sounds like a pastiche of U2 and Springsteen while there's a hint of Bowie and Talking Heads in “Open Up the Heavens”. There are definitely some good songs here, but whether there are enough to make the album worth it I don't yet know.

Some of the shorter tracks here are a waste of time; I mean, “Cameras Always On” is shaping up to be nice piano ballad, and thirty-five seconds later it's over. Two good closing tracks though, and on the whole I guess I'd say more good than bad as an album.

Check out more from this artist? Probably not
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? I think I have to

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart

Album title: Gratitude
Artist: Dayna Stephens
Genre: Jazz
Nationality: American
Release date: April 7
Position in Discography: Ninth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 4.50 *
See, the thing about jazz saxophone is that there seem to be two types: one is low, smoky, laid back and dreamy, sultry and soothing; the other is harsh, fast, in-your-face and to me, very annoying. Which camp does this guy fall into, or does he even alternate between the two? Well, the first track gives me hope, as it is indeed a soft, undulating, smooth tune which is very relaxing, with some nice piano accompanying the sax. And it kind of continues that way. “Amber is Falling” is pretty much a showcase for the pianist, and works well, and “Woodside Waltz” is lovely, driven this time by guitar. So far I'd have to say this is one of the few jazz albums I've actually enjoyed, right up there with Nypan and was it some Danish guy back in February or something? Whatever: it's really good and I'm not constantly checking to see when it will be over, which is always a good sign with me and jazz.

I really doubt this is going anywhere near downhill (as I would consider it) any time soon. We're onto track six of nine, and it's just been a joy to listen to. Seriously. I'd listen to more of this. Hopefully that doesn't jinx it! Okay, this is a red letter day: the first time ever that I've actually purchased a jazz album! Note it well, you'll be able to tell your grandchildren you were there when it happened! Just a beautiful, relaxing, immersive album. Can't pay it high enough praise.

Check out more from this artist? Oh hell yes
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes
(Un-****ing-believable! Not a single track from this album is available on YouTube!)
Actual Rating:


* (Up to now, I haven't seen anything rated at 4, much less over it! Bloody well deserves every single point!)

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Trollheart

Album title: Worlds Collide
Artist: Dead by April
Genre: Metalcore
Nationality: Swedish
Release date: April 7
Position in Discography: Fourth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 3.06
So after the sublimity of Dayna Stephens are we about to plumb the depths with yet another sub-substandard metalcore album? You have to give them points for gettng an album out in April, considering their band name, at least. Well it starts off almost like a pop song, then the heavy choppy guitars and the screechy vocals barrel in, and you can hear it's metalcore all right. Mind you, the chorus is sung in clean style. I guess the problem here is that sometimes these guys want to be metal (and pretty much fail at that) and at other times try to appeal to the pop fanbase. To be fair, they succeed better at the latter, but it's hard to take them seriously. Yeah, I think **** metalcore is the best way to approach this. Certainly **** these guys.

Check out more from this artist? No
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? I'm starting to think it's a waste of time

Actual Rating:

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OccultHawk

It is a good record.

It seems like you’d like Chet Baker and Stan Getz...

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Trollheart

Note taken. Thanks.

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Trollheart

Album title: InFinite
Artist: Deep Purple
Genre: Hard Rock/Heavy Metal/Progressive Rock
Nationality: English
Release date: April 7
Position in Discography: Twentieth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? Yes
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? Yes
Average RYM Score: 3.22
Some classic bands know when to call it a day; they've had their fame, made their money, carved their place in history (literally, in the case of Deep Purple and 1970's In Rock!) and can gracefully retire, while others, like Hawkwind, have been almost constantly going for half a century and slow no signs of slowing down. Which is preferable? Carry on by all means if you can maintain the high standards you set for yourself in your heyday, but if all you're doing is trading on past glories in a vain attempt to hold on to your youth and/or fame, maybe it's time to hang up the guitars and unplug the keyboards?

Not that I'm suggesting this is the case with the legendary Deep Purple, but there's no question they didn't reform in 1984 for one reason and one reason alone: money, which they surely don't need, but then, when was money more about want and less about need, at least among the rich? So, like Pink Floyd's going-away “present” to their fans in 2014, you can't be blamed for approaching this with a certain amount of skepticism. Not that I've been a fan of the “new” Purple; my last encounter with them was 1974's Stormbringer and the “reunion” album Perfect Strangers left me cold. But to their credit I guess they've soldiered on, but now, with a lineup that only includes three of the original members from the classic lineup that produced such gems as In Rock, Machine Head and the aforementioned Stormbringer, is this even the same band?

Hey, perhaps I'll be eating my words. Odd though how it starts off with a kind of robotic chant before the first track gets going, but once it does there's the old hard rock sound of the band who made rock history and helped create heavy metal. I must say, that doesn't sound like Ian Gillan: the power seems to be gone from his voice. Don Airey is a great keysman, but who could replace the late Jon Lord? And Steve Morse is no Blackmore. But enough comparisons. On the face of it, this does have the Purple sound, and mostly it sounds like any of their seventies albums. The first thing that impresses me though is “The Surprising”, which has a different sound, including some Eastern stylings and a very prog rock feel. “Birds of Prey” has something too, but overall I feel this is just another hard rock album, even an album out of time, almost as if Deep Purple are trying to force the seventies back. I couldn't say in any honesty that they've moved with the times, and generally this feels very dated and perhaps even a little sad. And why is there a version of “Roadhouse Blues” to close with? I mean, I love the song, but living in the past much? It's almost as if they're saying - with a touch of desperation - "Hey look! We used to rock like this!"

I suppose you have to give them credit for still going, but the question is, as I posed at the beginning, should they be? I'm not sure what proper Purple fans will make of this album, but I'd rather hear Machine Head personally.

Check out more from this artist? Probably, if only out of curiosity
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes

Actual Rating:

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OccultHawk

Even now I’m sure it’s a blast to be in Deep Purple but Steve Morse has a lot more than that to offer.

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Trollheart

Album title: Binge & Purgatory
Artist: Deez Nuts
Genre: Hardcore Punk/Rapcore/Rap Rock
Nationality: Australian
Release date: April 7
Position in Discography: Fifth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 2.59
This isn't as bad as I had originally thought it would be, however it's also not really, so far, anything great. Kind of a mix of metal and rap with some punk thrown in; aggressive but melodic and almost singalong at times. Interesting. It is a little all over the place though. Sometimes that's what happens when you try to mix too many styles that often don't mesh together all that well. “Lessons Learned” is a good example of when they stick with the one style (metal with a hint of punk) and it works very well. At other times, not so much. Yeah I guess it's fun to listen to but I don't see myself coming back to this at any point.

Check out more from this artist? Nah
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Maybe

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart

Album title: Fenomeno
Artist: Fabri Fibra
Genre: Hip-hop
Nationality: Italian
Release date: April 7
Position in Discography: Ninth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 2.27
Great: yet another hip-hop album with some goon on the phone thinking that constitutes a track, and this time it is of course in Italian, so means even less to me. Why do they do this? It's like that squeaky voice so many of them use. Annoying. Once it gets going though, “Red Carpet” ain't bad. Can't understand any of the lyric of course, but the rhythm and melody are good. In fact, most of this is pretty good really. “Stavo Pensando A Te” particularly impresses me. I start to wonder if I'm becoming a fan of Italian hip-hop? Been a pretty fun ride, and given that there are seventeen tracks on this it didn't drag and I enjoyed pretty much all of it. Avanti!

Check out more from this artist? Si
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes

Actual Rating:

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