Trollheart

Random Track of the Day
Thursday, August 4 2011

Another strange one today. Oh, how Lady Luck likes to toy with me! Yesterday we had a six-minute ambient instrumental by an obscure instrumentalist. Today we have a track that's not even two minutes long, but from an internationally-recognised and acclaimed band. “Bornlivedie” (spelt that way, I'm not having problems with my spacebar!) is the opening track to the fourth album by Porcupine Tree, “Signify”, released in 1996.

Now, I am still making up my mind about this band, but one thing is without question: they are more than just a progressive rock band. They're more an experience, in much the same way Floyd are. Their music varies so much from album to album --- and even from track to track --- that I find it hard to get a handle on them. Some of their stuff I really like, some I don't and some just confuses me.
This is one of the latter.

Bornlivedie --- Porcupine Tree --- from “Signify” on Delerium

(Again, this video was not exactly available on YT so I had to knock together another of my own. I know it's not great, nor appropriate to the song, but hey, I don't have a whole lot of video footage lying around, so used the best I had.)

More an intro than a piece of music, it starts off with a radio announcer leading in a programme, then there's some ambient and feedback synth, with swirly sounds and then more voices at the end. I assume (though I haven't yet heard this album) that it then goes into the next track, but taken on its own it's really quite weird. Just shows that what I said above is indeed true: Porcupine Tree can be great, but then on other occasions they are downright strange! Ah well, I'm sure that taken in context it probably makes more sense.

Here's hoping Friday will allow us to select at least a recognisable song...

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Liberation transmission --- LostProphets --- 2006 (Visible Noise)


DUE TO THE HORRIBLE, EVIL CRIMES OF LEAD SINGER IAN WATKINS, THIS REVIEW IS NOW DELETED. I WILL BE DUMPING MY CD AND ERASING LOSTPROPHETS' MUSIC FROM MY COMPUTER. THEY WILL NOT CONTAMINATE MY JOURNALS IN ANY FORM. MAY WATKINS DIE IN PRISON, AND ROT IN HELL!

(In case you don't know what I'm talking about...)
BBC News - Lostprophets' Ian Watkins sentenced to 35 years over child sex offences

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Queen Boo

Your track of the day write ups are quirky as hell.

__________________
https://www.twitch.tv/drrobuttnik

Trollheart

Thx man. Where would this world be without quirks? Though it's worrying to hear that they could all be extinct in another three years! Please, please support the "Adopt a quirk" plan! For just three Andorian Pobble-beads a month you too could adopt a cute little quirk and save it from the ravaging attentions of boredom and political correctness which is even now threatening their habitat.

Thank your for your time.

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Freeman --- Labyrinth --- 2005 (Arise)


Sometimes you just take a chance, you know, and you don't even know why? I can't recall what made me pick up this album. I knew nothing of the band, had heard none of their material, but something recommended them, and I decided sure why not? Turns out they're Italian, though they certainly don't sound it, and damn good too. They've had seven albums to date, of which this is the fifth. Weirdly, the one prior to this was called “Labyrinth”! Doing a Genesis on it, eh?

The opening track is called L.Y.A.F.H, which you quickly find out stands for “light years away from here” --- why they didn't just call it that is beyond me. What, are they being charged per word or something? Anyway, it's a great opening, power progressive metal with big keyboards, chunky guitar and the clear, powerful voice of --- well, here's where it gets a little weird. Again.

Each band member (or most of them) seem to have two names. In their Wikipedia entry there's a name for each with another bracketed beside it. Perhaps it's to make names which are a little hard to pronounce/remember easier. So the vocalist is called Roberto Tiranti, but also goes under the name of Rob Tyrant (good choice of name for a metal singer), while the guitarists are Andrea Cantarelli, or Anders Rain, and Carlo Andrea Magnani, aka Olaf Thorsen. The keyboard player goes under Andrea de Paoli, or Andrew McPauls. Only the drummer and bassist have the one name, Alessando Bissa for the former and Segio Pagnacco for the latter: poor old rhythm section, short-changed again eh?

I can only assume that the double-names are to make it easier for marketing outside of Italy, as the bracketed, or second names are all fairly anglicised, and though some bear a resemblance to the original, I don't know where Olaf Thorsen comes from! But anyway, for the purposes of this review I'll use the shorter, or second name, for each member. For those who have them. Avoid confusion and less typing for me, so that I can pack a lot more in to my exciting life that would otherwise be wasted adding extra words to this journal entry!

It's a good opening, very powerful and very melodic, then things slow down a little for “Deserter”, which comes in on acoustic guitar but then gets going with a heavy riff and crunching vibe. Rob Tyrant's voice is VERY far up in the mix here, to the extent that sometimes the music drops back to a point where he's almost singing acapella. But when they're given their head, axemen Olaf and Anders can rock out with the best of them, with the keys a little subsumed in the mix, at least on this track. There's some of that annoying “death vocal” in the song too, but it's very much backing vocal, so not as annoying as I usually find this. I can handle this with bands like Leaves' Eyes, and it also happens with LostProphets, but as far as Opeth or Dimmu Borgir go, a little of that is all I can take and if the vocals are ALL screamed and growled that way, I hit STOP and then DELETE.

But there's no need to worry, as Tyrant is a very accomplished vocalist, and like many European metal acts, he does not come across as sounding Italian; if anything, you would think he was head of some US band, with that somewhat universal sound. “Dive in open waters” is pure thrash metal, with drummer-with-only-one-name Alessandro Bissa pounding the skins as if he just saw a horrible insect crawling on them and is trying to kill it, the twin guitars setting up a wall of sound that, this time, kind of overwhelms Tyrant's vocals a little. Perhaps a small toning down might have been in order, as the poor guy has to shout to be heard above the apocalyptic cacophony setup by the band. And again, I can barely hear the keyboards: you there, Andew McPauls? Oh yeah, there you are, doing a rather nice solo. Fair enough, but when the guitars take over it's like you fade into the background. Someone needed to sort out the production of this album. One minute the vocalist is on his own without backing almost, the next it's hard to hear him. And as for Signore McPauls....

The song ends really strangely, fading out very quickly like a badly-done single edit, and we're into the title track, great hook and very commercial-sounding but yet very heavy. These guys have almost got the balance right, if they could just ensure the keys are pushed a bit more up in the mix, as I'm sure old Andrew is doing some great work there, but most of the time it's hard to even hear him. “M3”, a song about the BMW M3 sportscar, is a suitably fast rocker, with the keys finally allowed to shine through and sounding really excellent, the twin guitar attack taking on a very Iron Maiden feel. A lovely little piano passage halfway in adds real character to the song, then there's a tremendous guitar solo from one of the two axemen.

The Maiden influence continues in “Face and pay”, with a certain Metallica edge in there too, and a great bluesy midsection where Andrew McPaul finally gets to really show what he can do, but it's the creepily excellent “Malcolm Grey” that steals the show. The longest track on the album, at six minutes, it starts off with what sounds like a car crash, weird howling sounds and footsteps, creaking doors and rain lashing down. It's introduced musically by Andrew on beautiful piano before the guitars get in on the act and we hear the tale of a killer who tells us ”My hands are red with blood/ But it's not mine!” followed by a nasty laugh.

The piano keeps an eerie counterpoint to the guitars as the song progresses, with some really great keyboard in there, proving that when allowed to, Andrew McPaul is as capable on the ivories as anyone. Rob Tyrant does a great job portraying the face of a killer who seems not to remember what he has done --- a split personality probably, as he asks, pleads really ”Can someone tell me/ If it's true or not? /I'm scared by the pleasure I've felt.”

“Meanings” is a good ending to the album, with again nice keyboard and of course the ubiquitous heavy guitar, though you kind of feel that after “Malcolm Grey” the quality dipped towards the mediocre for the rest of the album, and there's not a lot that marks any of the final three tracks out for me. That said, this is a very good album, and although I don't know whether Labyrinth are known much outside their native Italy, they certainly should be. These guys can hold their own with the best prog metal out there today.

TRACKLISTING

1. L.Y.A.F.H
2. Deserter
3. Dive in open waters
4. Freeman
5. M3
6. Face and pay
7. Malcolm Grey
8. Nothing new
9. Infidels
10. Meanings

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

jackhammer

I always check your journal out as it is always written with huge enthusiasm and a love of music no matter what the genre.

I cannot stand Barry Manilow and Lighthouse Family were one of the most insipid, bland and forgettable bands I have ever heard but I hold my hand out to you for writing about the music that you like. If people like what you listen to then that is personal justification but if they don't then its bollocks to us all and you will just keep listening away and quite rightfully so.

Keep it going... you do have at least one avid reader!

As for Y & T I think that their album Ten from '91 (I think) was a great slice of radio friendly rock. Especially this beauty:

__________________

Trollheart

Ah Jack, I can always rely on you!
I don't expect everyone to like everything I write about: in fact, I'd welcome some heated debate on the demerits of some band or album I've praised, or vice versa (kind of anticipating a Seventh Key backlash...!), but as I mentioned in a few posts already, the view count proves that at least my journal is drawing regular attention, good or bad. If more people commented I'd know which, but I have to expect that it's generally positive, otherwise why would people keep coming back to read?

So yeah, I'll keep on writing and of course there are bands/artistes people will not like --- Manilow was one of the Random Tracks of the Day, and I literally have no control over what's chosen (though of course if it's not in my collection it by definition can't come up!), but I thought it was quite hilarious to have him alongside the likes of Cloudscape, Bonfire and yeah, Y&T! Just shows that you never know what's going to hit you when you click on "newest post" here!

Wait till you see my feature on Big Bands of the Forties! Heh, just kidding!

Thanks again for the comments: nice to know someone is interested enough to post.

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

jackhammer

I really like the Uriah Heep Track. They are a band that I know virtually nothing about.

Glenn Miller? I have to confess to being a fan. In The Mood, Pennsylvania 65000 and Little Brown Jug are great tracks and I do listen to his music a lot more than I let on.

As for Art Of Noise, they have become an incredibly influential band in Electronica in both sound and production. A very under rated band. If you haven't already heard it (but I reckon you probably have) check out the German band Propaganda and their album Secret Wish. Produced by Trever Horn (Art Of Noise obviously). The opening track is one of the most under rated pieces of Ambient Electronica I have heard and it adheres to a Pop music format. That was the beauty of Trevor Horn.

__________________

Trollheart

Random Track of the Day
Wednesday, September 7 2011

Looks like more from those frozen guys from our home planet! Yes, it's Iced Earth again, with a very Iron Maiden-sounding track about those magnificent men in their flying machines. This is taken from their album “The glorious burden”, and it's called "Red Baron/Blue Max".

Red Baron/Blue Max --- Iced Earth --- from “The glorious burden” on SPV



Always a fun thing to write songs about, the two World Wars provide great scope for lyrics. I'm biased of course but I believe the ones who make the best use of this is Iron Maiden, with the likes of “Aces high”, “Tailgunner” and “Where eagles dare”, but Iced Earth do a good job here with the tale of the World War One German flying ace, Manfred Von Richtofen, otherwise known as the Red Baron. Nothing overly special about the song: good heavy rocker, great guitars and the singer sounds very like Bruce Dickinson. You can almost hear the chatter of machine guns as the aces battle it out in the bullet-strewn skies over France....

__________________
Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018