Bitesize: Trollheart's Daily Album Mini-Reviews

Trollheart · 09-19-2012, 07:45 AM

Riverside's mainman shows he can go it alone

Artiste: Lunatic Soul
Nationality: Polish
Album: Lunatic Soul II
Year: 2010
Label: KScope
Genre: Progressive Rock
Tracks:
The in-between kingdom
Otherwhere
Suspended in whiteness
Asoulum
Limbo
Escape from Paradice
Transition
Gravestone hill
Wanderings
Chronological position: Er, second album
Familiarity: Just through what I've heard from Riverside
Interesting factoid:
Initial impression: Very progressive and ambient
Best track(s): Asoulum, Transition, Gravestone Hill, Wanderings
Worst track(s): None
Comments: This is one I've been waiting to review for some time now. Second solo album from Riverside's bassist and vocalist Mariusz Duda, “Lunatic Soul II” and its predecessor are supposed to be remarkable for the fact that although neither are acoustic albums, and feature keys, piano, drums etc, neither of them have any electric guitar. The first impression I get from the opener is of something starting slowly then building in intensity and passion with a very eastern tinge to the music, and the guitar, while acoustic, playing a large part in the music soundscape.

You can of course hear the obvious comparisons to Duda's work with his parent band, and Otherwhere, the first track to contain vocals, sounds quite Riverside while yet retaining its own sound, the sound of Lunatic Soul. The guitar really comes to the fore on this track, and the eastern influences are very apparent here. A lot of drama and tension in Asoulum, with touches of early Porcupine Tree, while both instrumental Limbo and its segue, Escape from Paradice, have a definite feel of Tom Waits, with the latter throwing in chants and rhythms more proper to an African tribal dance perhaps.

There's a big prog epic carried mostly on piano and synth, joined later by Duda's expressive and emotive voice in Transition, partly reminiscent of the solo work of Peter Gabriel, particularly his more introspective work on “So”. It's the longest track on the album by a long way, coming in at just over eleven minutes, and as you would expect, it goes through changes as it progresses, reminding me of Marillion circa “Marillion.com”, then Gravestone Hill shows how Duda can also pull everything right back to basics, with a tender little acoustic tale that evokes images of a simpler time, Duda's haunting vocal the last thing you hear as it fades out, and the album wraps up with Wanderings, a nice mid-paced little number with again elements of eighties Gabriel.
Overall impression: Certainly lives up to the hype, and proof that Duda has more strings to his bow than just membership in one of the biggest prog rock bands in Poland.
Intention: Listen to more, and perhaps get a little more into Riverside.

Trollheart · 09-21-2012, 07:20 AM

Illuminate your musical life with Josh

Artiste: Josh Groban
Nationality: American
Album: Illuminations
Year: 2010
Label: Reprise
Genre: Easy Listening
Tracks:
The wandering kind (Prelude)
The bells of New York City
Galileo (Someone like you)
L'Orra dell'addio
Hidden away
Au jardin des san-pourquoi
Higher window
If I walk away
Love only knows
Voce existe em mim
War at home
London hymn
Straight to you
Chronological position: Fifth album
Familiarity: “Closer”
Interesting factoid:
Initial impression: An instrumental opening?
Best track(s):Galileo (Someone like you), War at home, Higher window
Worst track(s): None.
Comments: Josh Groban was the first artiste to show me that I could actually listen to and enjoy songs sung in other than my native language, and to demonstrate to me the value of listening to the song instead of trying to understand it. Even now, songs like Oceano and Per te from the “Closer” album I featured as one of the very first albums I reviewed in my main journal resonate in my head, even though I have no idea what the guy is singing about. I came to realise that it really didn't matter: the lyrics were not as important as the actual song itself.

Interestingly, the album opens on an instrumental, quite Divine Comedyesque with a celtic feel to it, then the first vocal track is in English, with a beautiful piano backing and some sensuous violins. This album in fact has less “foreign-language” material than “Closer”, only three tracks of the thirteen not being in English, perhaps a commercial decision given Josh's rising popularity? Galileo (Someone like you) sounds like it could have come from a Broadway show, while If I walk away builds from a fragile banjo (!) melody into a full, triumphant orchestral piece.

There's no doubting the power of Groban's voice, whether he's singing tender ballads in a language other than English, as in L'ora dell'addio, or punchier, more uptempo fare such as Voce existe em mim, or English songs like The bells of New York City or Love only knows, and I see echoes of the lovely Remember when it rained in the dramatic Higher window, but it's the bleak, lonely, stirring pathos of War at home that finally shows you how effective Josh's voice can be, as he laments the fallen in so many wars.

Throw in the beautiful, haunting London hymn and an unexpected cover of Nick Cave's Straight to you, on which he does a phenomenal job, and you have an album that surprises, delights and entertains, and once again manages, if only in a few places this time out, to transcend language in the expression of music and again brings home another triumph for this unassuming young man.

Overall impression: Almost sorry to hear less non-English songs this time, but an excellent and well-balanced album. Another winner.
Intention: Just continue listening to this guy's music, and never be ashamed of being a Josh Groban fan!

Trollheart · 09-23-2012, 10:13 AM

A pleasant enough voyage

Artiste: Kathleen Edwards
Nationality: Canadian
Album: Voyageur
Year: 2012
Label: Zoe
Genre: Rock
Tracks:
Empty threat
Chameleon/comedian
A soft place to land
Change the sheets
House full of empty rooms
Mint
Sidecar
Pink champagne
Going to Hell
For the record
Chronological position: Fourth album
Familiarity: Zero
Interesting factoid: This album is co-produced by Bon Iver's Justin Vernon, with whom Edwards is in a relationship at the moment.
Initial impression: Suzanne? Is that you??
Best track(s):Empty threat, A soft place to land, Pink champagne
Worst track(s): Not a one.
Comments: Hailed as the “Canadian Suzanne Vega”, you can see why as this album gets underway and you hear Kathleen Edwards' voice: it really does sound just like the New York singer/songwriter, so much so that hearing Edwards on the radio I do think I could easily mistake her for Vega. It's a boppy opening as Empty threat rocks along, and things slow down for Chameleon/comedian, with a large injection of folk and Vernon adding guitar, though Edwards herself plays the guitar (mostly acoustic) on just about every song, as well as adding organ and backing vocals to other tracks.

There's a lot of Bon Iver in A soft place to land, the first ballad, to which Vernon adds some effective and powerful backing vox, and he's also to be heard in House full of empty rooms, another tender ballad. But there are rockier songs too, like the organ-driven Mint and Change the sheets, however it's hard to shake the Suzanne Vega comparisons, especially during the gentle Pink champagne, with some nice pedal steel, and Vernon on piano (in a musical duet with Edwards), acoustic guitar and drums. I like how Going to Hell fools you into thinking it's an acoustic ballad, then quickly ramps up into a boppy uptempo rocker, with a pretty blistering guitar solo from Vernon, and the album ends on For the record, a slow, downbeat, almost doomy closer, with some emotive Fender Rhodes courtesy of Kathleen and backing vocals from Norah Jones.
Overall impression: Pretty damn good really.
Intention: Would not be averse to checking out some of her other work.

Trollheart · 09-26-2012, 01:41 PM

This is considered one of their best albums?

Artiste: Diamond Head
Nationality: British (English)
Album: Canterbury
Year: 1983
Label: MCA
Genre: Heavy Metal/NWOBHM
Tracks:
Makin' music
Out of phase
The kingmaker
One more night
To the Devil his due
Knight of the Swords
Ishmael
I need your love
Canterbury
Chronological position: Third album
Familiarity: “Borrowed time”
Interesting factoid: The album was originally supposed to be called “Makin' music”, after the opening track, but then they changed it. No, I don't know why either.
Initial impression: Don't hear anything too wildly progressive here!
Best track(s): Kingmaker, One more night, To the Devil his due
Worst track(s): Out of phase
Comments: Ah yes, the Diamond Head album where they went all progressive and got up the noses of their fans, in the process quite possibly sowing the seeds for their eventual demise in terms of the fame they could have, and perhaps should have had. I've only heard the excellent “Borrowed time” up to now, and though once again my infamous brother had this album I never bothered to listen to it, so perhaps now is the time? It's a heavy enough opening, sort of puts me in mind of Def Leppard with a certain AOR tinge to the first track, also elements of Irish rockers Aslan in there.

To be honest, I hear nothing that terribly different or progressive until The kingmaker, where the guys go all Dio-era Rainbow with mbig mraching beat on a cruncher they manage to pull off quite well in my opinion, and One more night is a good straight-ahead rocker, more what you expect from Diamond Head. To the Devil his due sort of revisits the title track from “Borrowed time”, sounds like keyboards being used there although they're not credited on the album. The fantasy imagery continues in The Knight of the Swords, and Diamond Head are now fully immersed in their new progressive style, though to be honest I heard much of this happening on the previous album.

The album is pretty much the baby of guitarist Brian Tatler and vocalist Sean Harris, with the pair writing all the songs, the other two bandmembers having been fired by the label and replaced, but Harris and Tatler were pretty much always the heart of Diamond Head anyway, so I don't see any dip in quality; in fact, I barely realise that there's a new bass player and drummer. Sorry guys! To be honest, it started a little slowly and a little lacklustre, but as it's gone on this album has just got progressively (sorry!) better.

The title track is a great closer, starting out on an acoustic piano ballad melody, then kicking up into a fast, punchy rocker that hurtles along with a lot of energy. Okay, maybe it's not the sharp-edged metal DH fans were used to, but I still like this album, and don't see it departing too far from its predecessor. A very worthy effort, and not to my mind deserving of the lambasting it got from certain quarters.
Overall impression: Pretty much the last line above really...
Intention: I've more Diamond Head to listen to, at some point.

Unknown Soldier · 09-27-2012, 04:41 PM

Oh now you're getting bolder and talking about Diamond Head, I can't believe you still haven't heard their debut album (as its not mentioned here

) Its surely one of the greatest metal albums ever recorded and has guitar riffs capable of blasting the listener into ecstasy. Anyways, Borrowed Time is a good album IF you haven't heard the debut, but if you know the debut then it pales in comparison! A couple of the songs on Borrowed Time were re-recordings off the debut album anyway. As for Canterbury, I agree with a lot of your review and its can sound slow and lacklustre as well despite some good stuff on it. The band really shot themselves in the foot with the Canterbury album and that is largely down to their own lack of thought. Canterbury, was the type of album that a band puts out after it has established itself and then goes out and tries something different. Diamond Head took this approach, but as they weren't an established act, it spelt their early demise. The only reason anybody knows to Diamond Head, was largely down to the influences they had on Metallica and Megadeth etc.

Trollheart · 09-30-2012, 06:12 AM

Right, I'm just going to have to listen to that album, aren't I?

You've bigged it up so much, and I've liked what I've heard from Diamond Head so far anyway. Okay, it's moving up the list...

As for "Canterbury", I'd disagree that you wait till you're established before trying something like that. I think they were brave and quite forward-looking: while other metal bands were basically churning out the same old riffs and tunes, and mostly sounding a lot like each other, DH stepped into the unknown and tried to bridge the gap between metal and prog rock. After all, Rainbow had only the one album before they went all proggy with "Rising". Okay, Blackmore was already well known from Purple, so maybe bad example. But still...

I think people should have been more forgiving of DH, allowed them the opportunity to spread their wings, see what they could achieve. They could have been really big, like, bigger than the biggest thing you can think of! Sad really. Course, later Maiden moved in the same direction, but for a while there I would definitely have considered Diamond Head "the thinking metal fan's band"...

Trollheart · 09-30-2012, 06:15 AM

Not the sort of elegy I'd like to leave behind: a little "lost", perhaps?

Artiste: Elegy
Nationality: Dutch
Album: Lost
Year: 1995
Label: TNT/Noise
Genre: Power Progressive Metal
Tracks:
Lost
Everything
Clean up your act
Always with you
Under God's naked eyes
1998 (The Prophecy)
Spirits
Crossed the line
Live it again
Spanish Inquisition
Chronological position: Third album
Familiarity: Zero
Interesting factoid:
Initial impression: Well, the first word that comes to mind is overblown...
Best track(s): Everything, Under God's naked eyes, 1998 (The Prophecy), Crossed the line
Worst track(s): Clean up your act, Live it again
Comments: I've taken a few tracks from Elegy over the past year or so, mostly in Random Track of the Day, but never sat down and listened to a full album. This is their third, and I must say from the off I don't like the opener and title track: way too much happening a la Dream Theater, with too much technical expertise seeming to be there on show just for the sake of it. Things get a little better with Everything, a hint of melodic AOR in there, but you know, it's all exciting and energetic and fun and all, but, well, it's just boring me.

Okay, well this might be better: nice power ballad with some expressive synth, great guitar solo, emotional vocals ... yeah, like this a lot. Chalk up Under God's naked eyes as my standout so far, no question. And the instrumental that follows is it a great piece of guitar work, though I suppress a guffaw at the idea of 1998 being a prophecy. Come on, it was written in 1995 after all. Runs nicely into Spirits, which is fine until vocalist Eduard Hovinga begins singing, as it sounds very muddy. There's some nice progressive metal going on in Crossed the line, with some pretty solid keyswork, bu then the last two tracks just totally let this, let's be honest, completely average album down.
Overall impression: Sort of meh. Okay in places, never particularly brilliant. Maybe I just caught a bad album?
Intention: I know Elegy can do better than this, so I'll probably check out another of theirs at some point. This however has made me less eager to do that any time soon.

Unknown Soldier · 09-30-2012, 08:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Right, I'm just going to have to listen to that album, aren't I?

You've bigged it up so much, and I've liked what I've heard from Diamond Head so far anyway. Okay, it's moving up the list...

As for "Canterbury", I'd disagree that you wait till you're established before trying something like that. I think they were brave and quite forward-looking: while other metal bands were basically churning out the same old riffs and tunes, and mostly sounding a lot like each other, DH stepped into the unknown and tried to bridge the gap between metal and prog rock. After all, Rainbow had only the one album before they went all proggy with "Rising". Okay, Blackmore was already well known from Purple, so maybe bad example. But still...

I think people should have been more forgiving of DH, allowed them the opportunity to spread their wings, see what they could achieve. They could have been really big, like, bigger than the biggest thing you can think of! Sad really. Course, later Maiden moved in the same direction, but for a while there I would definitely have considered Diamond Head "the thinking metal fan's band"...

The point I was making about Canterbury, was that the band hadn't made their breakthrough commercially and by doing an album like Canterbury it wasn't going to happen, especially when rivals such as Iron maiden and Def Leppard were putting out what metalheads wanted to hear. As you say, Rainbow are not a great comparison as Ritchie Blackmore had just set up Rainbow after leaving Deep Purple one of the biggest acts in the world at that time.

Diamond Head were special, they had fantastic riffs, an evil edge, an amazing grasp of melody and were able to incorporate proggy rock and AOR into their sound.

There is one album I've just reviewed number 09 in the 1970 year by Stray. I reckon you'd really like this album as it was a big influence on Diamond Head and pre-dates them by a decade.

Trollheart · 10-02-2012, 12:14 PM

One of my favourite Country artistes, Nanci rarely disappoints.

Artiste: Nanci Griffith
Nationality: American
Album: The loving kind
Year: 2009
Label: Rounder
Genre: Country/Folk
Tracks:
The loving kind
Money changes everything
One of these days
Up against the rain
Cotton
Not innocent enough
Across America
Party girl
Sing
Things I don't need
Still life
Tequila after midnight
Pour me a drink
Chronological position: Nineteenth album
Familiarity: “Lone star state of mind”, “There's a light beyond these woods”, “Once in a very blue moon”, “The last of the true believers”, “Little love affairs”, “Storms”, “Blue roses from the moons”, “Flyer”, “Late night grande hotel”, “Other rooms, other voices”.
Interesting factoid:
Initial impression: It's like meeting an old friend you haven't seen for years...
Best track(s): Not innocent enough, Across America, Sing, Cotton, Up against the rain, Still life
Worst track(s): Non sequitur
Comments: I've had a deep and abiding love and respect for the music of Nanci Griffith ever since I laughingly read the liner notes on her album “Lone star state of mind”, only to have my mind changed and my prejudices given a good kicking as I realised how great the album was. That began a sequence of buying all her albums --- not all of which were perfect, it has to be said: some of her earlier work is a little hard to get into --- and a new appreciation for country music. She's been recording for almost thirty-five years, and this album, her nineteenth, shows her with no intention of slowing down.

She's not known for overly political lyrics, but this album changes all that with songs about Obama (Across America), Bush (Still life), the death penalty (Not innocent enough), on which she duets with the great John Prine, and interracial love in the title track. She even throws in a reworking of One of these days, which breathes new, fresh life into a song that graced her 1980 album “The last of the true believers”. There are of course the ballads --- what Griffith album would be complete without them? --- and Up against the rain, a tribute to Townes Van Zandt, is the first of these, followed by the heartbreaking Cotton, almost a folk traditional swaying anthem with some lovely accordion and a fine little guitar section.

Her first album of original material since 2005, “The loving kind” does not disappoint on any level. Of course, Nanci being Nanci it doesn't exactly break any new ground, never straying too far from her signature sound, the themes and tunes that have made her a star in country music, but that's no bad thing. Nanci has of course spread her wings before, covering folk standards on two albums, torch songs on another, and an album of her own material with orchestral arrangement, released over a decade before Peter Gabriel had the idea. So she can't be accused of not trying new things, but here, apart from the more openly topical, darker and more politically-motivated lyrics, she sticks to what she's good at.

Y'know something? It's been far too long. I see Nanci has a new album due out this year. Mental note to self: mark that for pre-order.
Overall impression: Great to reconnect with one of the greatest, and most underappreciated songstresses of our time.
Intention: Must go back and listen to some of her older stuff; this has put me in the mood. Now where did I put that vinyl copy of “Once in a very blue moon”...?

Trollheart · 10-06-2012, 06:29 PM

Stunning debut from a band who surely have a big future

Artiste: Ivyrise
Nationality: British (English)
Album: Ivyrise
Year: 2011
Label: Big Cartel
Genre: Rock
Tracks:
Hurts
Too much
Yes to running
Line up the stars
Looks like Heaven
You know me
El Paso
Run from you
Last words
With you till the end
Scars
Chronological position: Debut album
Familiarity: One single
Interesting factoid:
Initial impression: Good and rocky with some pop melodies and yeah, very memorable.
Best track(s): Hurts, You know me, El Paso, Last words
Worst track(s): Nary a one
Comments: Just heard a single from these guys and was so impressed I grabbed their debut, and to date only, album. It's a kind of mixture of pop and rock, sort of on the style of The Script, Coldplay, Deacon Blue, that kind of thing. The opener is very catchy, with a great sense of fun despite the title, and it more or less continues in that vein. Guitars figure a little too heavily for this to be rated as pop, but it's certainly very chartworthy music, and I would have thought that Ivyrise would have got a lot of airplay: as I'm only hearing about them now, a year later, and the Wiki page isn't even updated to include this album, I can't say if they were a big hit or not, but they should have been.

There's a really anthemic chorus to Yes to running, very infectious and with a great U2-style piano intro Line up the stars was the first single taken from the album. A little more restrained than some of the tracks on the album; I would have chosen the opener or Yes to running personally, but it's a good song nonetheless. There's even some semi-country flavour in You know me, which again I think would have made a great single, perhaps a successful one. Touch of the old Wet Wet Wet in it, the likes of “Angel eyes”, also some Nickelback.

What I like about this band, the initial impression (that has lasted) is that they're primarily a rock band, using some influences from already established bands but still injecting shots of pop, country, indie and creating a sound that while not unique is something that I think may become identified with them. Pretty much each song is catchy, well written and well played, and the performance in particular of main songwriter, vocalist and piano man Ben Falinski really drives this band, while the guitars of Dan Tanner are not to be sneezed at either.

You know, I could go on, but as the album runs I realise that there isn't one bad track on it, and every one could qualify as a standout, which makes picking favourite tracks from it something of a problem, but a problem I'm happy to have. These guys should be huge. A really good debut, and I can only see them going from strength to strength as time goes on.
Overall impression: A whole lot better than I was expecting. Really like this.
Intention: Keep an eye on these guys!

09-19-2012, 07:45 AM	#91 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Riverside's mainman shows he can go it alone Artiste: Lunatic Soul Nationality: Polish Album: Lunatic Soul II Year: 2010 Label: KScope Genre: Progressive Rock Tracks: The in-between kingdom Otherwhere Suspended in whiteness Asoulum Limbo Escape from Paradice Transition Gravestone hill Wanderings Chronological position: Er, second album Familiarity: Just through what I've heard from Riverside Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Very progressive and ambient Best track(s): Asoulum, Transition, Gravestone Hill, Wanderings Worst track(s): None Comments: This is one I've been waiting to review for some time now. Second solo album from Riverside's bassist and vocalist Mariusz Duda, “Lunatic Soul II” and its predecessor are supposed to be remarkable for the fact that although neither are acoustic albums, and feature keys, piano, drums etc, neither of them have any electric guitar. The first impression I get from the opener is of something starting slowly then building in intensity and passion with a very eastern tinge to the music, and the guitar, while acoustic, playing a large part in the music soundscape. You can of course hear the obvious comparisons to Duda's work with his parent band, and Otherwhere, the first track to contain vocals, sounds quite Riverside while yet retaining its own sound, the sound of Lunatic Soul. The guitar really comes to the fore on this track, and the eastern influences are very apparent here. A lot of drama and tension in Asoulum, with touches of early Porcupine Tree, while both instrumental Limbo and its segue, Escape from Paradice, have a definite feel of Tom Waits, with the latter throwing in chants and rhythms more proper to an African tribal dance perhaps. There's a big prog epic carried mostly on piano and synth, joined later by Duda's expressive and emotive voice in Transition, partly reminiscent of the solo work of Peter Gabriel, particularly his more introspective work on “So”. It's the longest track on the album by a long way, coming in at just over eleven minutes, and as you would expect, it goes through changes as it progresses, reminding me of Marillion circa “Marillion.com”, then Gravestone Hill shows how Duda can also pull everything right back to basics, with a tender little acoustic tale that evokes images of a simpler time, Duda's haunting vocal the last thing you hear as it fades out, and the album wraps up with Wanderings, a nice mid-paced little number with again elements of eighties Gabriel. Overall impression: Certainly lives up to the hype, and proof that Duda has more strings to his bow than just membership in one of the biggest prog rock bands in Poland. Intention: Listen to more, and perhaps get a little more into Riverside. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:22 PM.

09-21-2012, 07:20 AM	#92 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Illuminate your musical life with Josh Artiste: Josh Groban Nationality: American Album: Illuminations Year: 2010 Label: Reprise Genre: Easy Listening Tracks: The wandering kind (Prelude) The bells of New York City Galileo (Someone like you) L'Orra dell'addio Hidden away Au jardin des san-pourquoi Higher window If I walk away Love only knows Voce existe em mim War at home London hymn Straight to you Chronological position: Fifth album Familiarity: “Closer” Interesting factoid: Initial impression: An instrumental opening? Best track(s):Galileo (Someone like you), War at home, Higher window Worst track(s): None. Comments: Josh Groban was the first artiste to show me that I could actually listen to and enjoy songs sung in other than my native language, and to demonstrate to me the value of listening to the song instead of trying to understand it. Even now, songs like Oceano and Per te from the “Closer” album I featured as one of the very first albums I reviewed in my main journal resonate in my head, even though I have no idea what the guy is singing about. I came to realise that it really didn't matter: the lyrics were not as important as the actual song itself. Interestingly, the album opens on an instrumental, quite Divine Comedyesque with a celtic feel to it, then the first vocal track is in English, with a beautiful piano backing and some sensuous violins. This album in fact has less “foreign-language” material than “Closer”, only three tracks of the thirteen not being in English, perhaps a commercial decision given Josh's rising popularity? Galileo (Someone like you) sounds like it could have come from a Broadway show, while If I walk away builds from a fragile banjo (!) melody into a full, triumphant orchestral piece. There's no doubting the power of Groban's voice, whether he's singing tender ballads in a language other than English, as in L'ora dell'addio, or punchier, more uptempo fare such as Voce existe em mim, or English songs like The bells of New York City or Love only knows, and I see echoes of the lovely Remember when it rained in the dramatic Higher window, but it's the bleak, lonely, stirring pathos of War at home that finally shows you how effective Josh's voice can be, as he laments the fallen in so many wars. Throw in the beautiful, haunting London hymn and an unexpected cover of Nick Cave's Straight to you, on which he does a phenomenal job, and you have an album that surprises, delights and entertains, and once again manages, if only in a few places this time out, to transcend language in the expression of music and again brings home another triumph for this unassuming young man. Overall impression: Almost sorry to hear less non-English songs this time, but an excellent and well-balanced album. Another winner. Intention: Just continue listening to this guy's music, and never be ashamed of being a Josh Groban fan! __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:22 PM.

09-23-2012, 10:13 AM	#93 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	A pleasant enough voyage Artiste: Kathleen Edwards Nationality: Canadian Album: Voyageur Year: 2012 Label: Zoe Genre: Rock Tracks: Empty threat Chameleon/comedian A soft place to land Change the sheets House full of empty rooms Mint Sidecar Pink champagne Going to Hell For the record Chronological position: Fourth album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: This album is co-produced by Bon Iver's Justin Vernon, with whom Edwards is in a relationship at the moment. Initial impression: Suzanne? Is that you?? Best track(s):Empty threat, A soft place to land, Pink champagne Worst track(s): Not a one. Comments: Hailed as the “Canadian Suzanne Vega”, you can see why as this album gets underway and you hear Kathleen Edwards' voice: it really does sound just like the New York singer/songwriter, so much so that hearing Edwards on the radio I do think I could easily mistake her for Vega. It's a boppy opening as Empty threat rocks along, and things slow down for Chameleon/comedian, with a large injection of folk and Vernon adding guitar, though Edwards herself plays the guitar (mostly acoustic) on just about every song, as well as adding organ and backing vocals to other tracks. There's a lot of Bon Iver in A soft place to land, the first ballad, to which Vernon adds some effective and powerful backing vox, and he's also to be heard in House full of empty rooms, another tender ballad. But there are rockier songs too, like the organ-driven Mint and Change the sheets, however it's hard to shake the Suzanne Vega comparisons, especially during the gentle Pink champagne, with some nice pedal steel, and Vernon on piano (in a musical duet with Edwards), acoustic guitar and drums. I like how Going to Hell fools you into thinking it's an acoustic ballad, then quickly ramps up into a boppy uptempo rocker, with a pretty blistering guitar solo from Vernon, and the album ends on For the record, a slow, downbeat, almost doomy closer, with some emotive Fender Rhodes courtesy of Kathleen and backing vocals from Norah Jones. Overall impression: Pretty damn good really. Intention: Would not be averse to checking out some of her other work. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:23 PM.

09-26-2012, 01:41 PM	#94 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	This is considered one of their best albums? Artiste: Diamond Head Nationality: British (English) Album: Canterbury Year: 1983 Label: MCA Genre: Heavy Metal/NWOBHM Tracks: Makin' music Out of phase The kingmaker One more night To the Devil his due Knight of the Swords Ishmael I need your love Canterbury Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: “Borrowed time” Interesting factoid: The album was originally supposed to be called “Makin' music”, after the opening track, but then they changed it. No, I don't know why either. Initial impression: Don't hear anything too wildly progressive here! Best track(s): Kingmaker, One more night, To the Devil his due Worst track(s): Out of phase Comments: Ah yes, the Diamond Head album where they went all progressive and got up the noses of their fans, in the process quite possibly sowing the seeds for their eventual demise in terms of the fame they could have, and perhaps should have had. I've only heard the excellent “Borrowed time” up to now, and though once again my infamous brother had this album I never bothered to listen to it, so perhaps now is the time? It's a heavy enough opening, sort of puts me in mind of Def Leppard with a certain AOR tinge to the first track, also elements of Irish rockers Aslan in there. To be honest, I hear nothing that terribly different or progressive until The kingmaker, where the guys go all Dio-era Rainbow with mbig mraching beat on a cruncher they manage to pull off quite well in my opinion, and One more night is a good straight-ahead rocker, more what you expect from Diamond Head. To the Devil his due sort of revisits the title track from “Borrowed time”, sounds like keyboards being used there although they're not credited on the album. The fantasy imagery continues in The Knight of the Swords, and Diamond Head are now fully immersed in their new progressive style, though to be honest I heard much of this happening on the previous album. The album is pretty much the baby of guitarist Brian Tatler and vocalist Sean Harris, with the pair writing all the songs, the other two bandmembers having been fired by the label and replaced, but Harris and Tatler were pretty much always the heart of Diamond Head anyway, so I don't see any dip in quality; in fact, I barely realise that there's a new bass player and drummer. Sorry guys! To be honest, it started a little slowly and a little lacklustre, but as it's gone on this album has just got progressively (sorry!) better. The title track is a great closer, starting out on an acoustic piano ballad melody, then kicking up into a fast, punchy rocker that hurtles along with a lot of energy. Okay, maybe it's not the sharp-edged metal DH fans were used to, but I still like this album, and don't see it departing too far from its predecessor. A very worthy effort, and not to my mind deserving of the lambasting it got from certain quarters. Overall impression: Pretty much the last line above really... Intention: I've more Diamond Head to listen to, at some point. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:48 PM.

09-30-2012, 06:12 AM	#96 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Right, I'm just going to have to listen to that album, aren't I? You've bigged it up so much, and I've liked what I've heard from Diamond Head so far anyway. Okay, it's moving up the list... As for "Canterbury", I'd disagree that you wait till you're established before trying something like that. I think they were brave and quite forward-looking: while other metal bands were basically churning out the same old riffs and tunes, and mostly sounding a lot like each other, DH stepped into the unknown and tried to bridge the gap between metal and prog rock. After all, Rainbow had only the one album before they went all proggy with "Rising". Okay, Blackmore was already well known from Purple, so maybe bad example. But still... I think people should have been more forgiving of DH, allowed them the opportunity to spread their wings, see what they could achieve. They could have been really big, like, bigger than the biggest thing you can think of! Sad really. Course, later Maiden moved in the same direction, but for a while there I would definitely have considered Diamond Head "the thinking metal fan's band"... __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

09-30-2012, 06:15 AM	#97 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Not the sort of elegy I'd like to leave behind: a little "lost", perhaps? Artiste: Elegy Nationality: Dutch Album: Lost Year: 1995 Label: TNT/Noise Genre: Power Progressive Metal Tracks: Lost Everything Clean up your act Always with you Under God's naked eyes 1998 (The Prophecy) Spirits Crossed the line Live it again Spanish Inquisition Chronological position: Third album Familiarity: Zero Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Well, the first word that comes to mind is overblown... Best track(s): Everything, Under God's naked eyes, 1998 (The Prophecy), Crossed the line Worst track(s): Clean up your act, Live it again Comments: I've taken a few tracks from Elegy over the past year or so, mostly in Random Track of the Day, but never sat down and listened to a full album. This is their third, and I must say from the off I don't like the opener and title track: way too much happening a la Dream Theater, with too much technical expertise seeming to be there on show just for the sake of it. Things get a little better with Everything, a hint of melodic AOR in there, but you know, it's all exciting and energetic and fun and all, but, well, it's just boring me. Okay, well this might be better: nice power ballad with some expressive synth, great guitar solo, emotional vocals ... yeah, like this a lot. Chalk up Under God's naked eyes as my standout so far, no question. And the instrumental that follows is it a great piece of guitar work, though I suppress a guffaw at the idea of 1998 being a prophecy. Come on, it was written in 1995 after all. Runs nicely into Spirits, which is fine until vocalist Eduard Hovinga begins singing, as it sounds very muddy. There's some nice progressive metal going on in Crossed the line, with some pretty solid keyswork, bu then the last two tracks just totally let this, let's be honest, completely average album down. Overall impression: Sort of meh. Okay in places, never particularly brilliant. Maybe I just caught a bad album? Intention: I know Elegy can do better than this, so I'll probably check out another of theirs at some point. This however has made me less eager to do that any time soon. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:50 PM.

10-02-2012, 12:14 PM	#99 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	One of my favourite Country artistes, Nanci rarely disappoints. Artiste: Nanci Griffith Nationality: American Album: The loving kind Year: 2009 Label: Rounder Genre: Country/Folk Tracks: The loving kind Money changes everything One of these days Up against the rain Cotton Not innocent enough Across America Party girl Sing Things I don't need Still life Tequila after midnight Pour me a drink Chronological position: Nineteenth album Familiarity: “Lone star state of mind”, “There's a light beyond these woods”, “Once in a very blue moon”, “The last of the true believers”, “Little love affairs”, “Storms”, “Blue roses from the moons”, “Flyer”, “Late night grande hotel”, “Other rooms, other voices”. Interesting factoid: Initial impression: It's like meeting an old friend you haven't seen for years... Best track(s): Not innocent enough, Across America, Sing, Cotton, Up against the rain, Still life Worst track(s): Non sequitur Comments: I've had a deep and abiding love and respect for the music of Nanci Griffith ever since I laughingly read the liner notes on her album “Lone star state of mind”, only to have my mind changed and my prejudices given a good kicking as I realised how great the album was. That began a sequence of buying all her albums --- not all of which were perfect, it has to be said: some of her earlier work is a little hard to get into --- and a new appreciation for country music. She's been recording for almost thirty-five years, and this album, her nineteenth, shows her with no intention of slowing down. She's not known for overly political lyrics, but this album changes all that with songs about Obama (Across America), Bush (Still life), the death penalty (Not innocent enough), on which she duets with the great John Prine, and interracial love in the title track. She even throws in a reworking of One of these days, which breathes new, fresh life into a song that graced her 1980 album “The last of the true believers”. There are of course the ballads --- what Griffith album would be complete without them? --- and Up against the rain, a tribute to Townes Van Zandt, is the first of these, followed by the heartbreaking Cotton, almost a folk traditional swaying anthem with some lovely accordion and a fine little guitar section. Her first album of original material since 2005, “The loving kind” does not disappoint on any level. Of course, Nanci being Nanci it doesn't exactly break any new ground, never straying too far from her signature sound, the themes and tunes that have made her a star in country music, but that's no bad thing. Nanci has of course spread her wings before, covering folk standards on two albums, torch songs on another, and an album of her own material with orchestral arrangement, released over a decade before Peter Gabriel had the idea. So she can't be accused of not trying new things, but here, apart from the more openly topical, darker and more politically-motivated lyrics, she sticks to what she's good at. Y'know something? It's been far too long. I see Nanci has a new album due out this year. Mental note to self: mark that for pre-order. Overall impression: Great to reconnect with one of the greatest, and most underappreciated songstresses of our time. Intention: Must go back and listen to some of her older stuff; this has put me in the mood. Now where did I put that vinyl copy of “Once in a very blue moon”...? __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:51 PM.

10-06-2012, 06:29 PM	#100 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Stunning debut from a band who surely have a big future Artiste: Ivyrise Nationality: British (English) Album: Ivyrise Year: 2011 Label: Big Cartel Genre: Rock Tracks: Hurts Too much Yes to running Line up the stars Looks like Heaven You know me El Paso Run from you Last words With you till the end Scars Chronological position: Debut album Familiarity: One single Interesting factoid: Initial impression: Good and rocky with some pop melodies and yeah, very memorable. Best track(s): Hurts, You know me, El Paso, Last words Worst track(s): Nary a one Comments: Just heard a single from these guys and was so impressed I grabbed their debut, and to date only, album. It's a kind of mixture of pop and rock, sort of on the style of The Script, Coldplay, Deacon Blue, that kind of thing. The opener is very catchy, with a great sense of fun despite the title, and it more or less continues in that vein. Guitars figure a little too heavily for this to be rated as pop, but it's certainly very chartworthy music, and I would have thought that Ivyrise would have got a lot of airplay: as I'm only hearing about them now, a year later, and the Wiki page isn't even updated to include this album, I can't say if they were a big hit or not, but they should have been. There's a really anthemic chorus to Yes to running, very infectious and with a great U2-style piano intro Line up the stars was the first single taken from the album. A little more restrained than some of the tracks on the album; I would have chosen the opener or Yes to running personally, but it's a good song nonetheless. There's even some semi-country flavour in You know me, which again I think would have made a great single, perhaps a successful one. Touch of the old Wet Wet Wet in it, the likes of “Angel eyes”, also some Nickelback. What I like about this band, the initial impression (that has lasted) is that they're primarily a rock band, using some influences from already established bands but still injecting shots of pop, country, indie and creating a sound that while not unique is something that I think may become identified with them. Pretty much each song is catchy, well written and well played, and the performance in particular of main songwriter, vocalist and piano man Ben Falinski really drives this band, while the guitars of Dan Tanner are not to be sneezed at either. You know, I could go on, but as the album runs I realise that there isn't one bad track on it, and every one could qualify as a standout, which makes picking favourite tracks from it something of a problem, but a problem I'm happy to have. These guys should be huge. A really good debut, and I can only see them going from strength to strength as time goes on. Overall impression: A whole lot better than I was expecting. Really like this. Intention: Keep an eye on these guys! __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 01-13-2015 at 12:52 PM.