My Musical Landscape

Retro Rewind Track: The Cult - She Sells Sanctuary

2012-02-09T20:01:00.000-08:00

Kyng - Trampled Song

2012-02-08T21:24:00.000-08:00

Kyng doesn't live up to their single for sure and that is obvious on the albums opening cut "Falling Down". I didn't care for the second track either but the doom metal Sabbath styled "Trampled Sun" which is the albums title is a passable tune. Still nothing to write home about which continues through the next few tracks all the while this album is playing I'm wondering why I'm still listening to it.

Then "I Don't Believe" hits and the volume knob is need of a turn in the upward direction. That doesn't happen again until I changed the album to something different. This album is stoner rock that doesn't carry with it much charm or punch. The songs are all droning and spiraling with very little in the way of a hook outside of their single. I can't recommend spending your money on this album but I do highly recommend "I Don't Believe" though.

Bobaflex - Hell In My Heart

2012-02-08T18:12:00.000-08:00

I only just heard this band recently on Octane and had to check them out further. The album opens with the title track which is an intro piece which quickly blows up into the single I heard "Chemical Valley" a blistering nu-metal rocker that has enough grit to please the heavier sound lovers and still enough melodic structure to appease those of us who prefer hooks with our aggression. They drop two more excellent tunes in a row with "Low-Life" being an awesome slice of hard rock.

They of course don't continue to be quite as catchy when the songs pace slow to a near stop on "Playing Dead" and "Sing" both I didn't really get much from upon the first couple of runs of the album. The band are one step from being too close to that piece of shit band Avenged Sevenfold. But they usually fall on the right side. The ballad "Last Song" is actually a good track that has power and depth with a hook included. I enjoy this one over the previous two mentioned for sure. At sixteen tracks this album is long and drawn out which could have been better by being more concise.

They hit radio friendly at the number thirteen titled "Hate You" which should garner them mucho plays. The album closes the studio parts with a cover song and well everyone should know by now how much I love cover songs! This one is a reading of the Simon & Garfunkel masterpiece "Sound Of Silence" which is obviously in the short list of greatest ballads of all-time and very near the top. Bobaflex do it all absolutely right, they make no mistakes in covering such an endearing piece of music. They stay true to the depth and deep sadness of the melody and breath wonderful grit into the breathy vocals which actually adds to the song. The band show great appreciation of the intricate simplicity allowing it to stay true to itself while sounding modern and inspiring.

I have to say that this band and album overall are impressive and I really enjoy the majority of the record even with if I have to eliminate the filler tracks with a quick press of the skip button.

Chevelle - Hats Off To The Bull

2012-02-06T22:40:00.000-08:00

As I want to destroy this album and praise it for being the alter of shit that Chevelle has been for their entire career I can't completely hate on Hats Off To The Bull. The single "Face To The Floor" is actually a pretty good track with a nice grinding groove. The album plods along in a dirgy haze for the most part never opening up to anything lighthearted. As Chevelle quickly drops into crap mode on "Ruse" I find the skip button very helpful after the bland emo chorus plays through. The band are doing their best Tool impressions too many times to actually call this album good. There are a few songs that are digestible "Piñata", "Hats Off To The Bull", "Prima Donna" that are pretty good tunes for this sort of emo metal.

I think what helps this album a lot is the cleaned up production values and much less of the volume knob and dirty noise that is present on each record previously.

Foxy Shazam - The Church Of Rock N' Roll

2012-02-06T22:29:00.000-08:00

This is a very good record from beginning to end and mostly because of what influences the music. This band is akin to The Darkness upon first listen and the comparison's are many. But with that Queen, Slade, The Sweet, Led Zeppelin and Slade all come to light as the album plays through. The band strike hard with the opening cut "Welcome To The Church Of Rock N' Roll" that has so much British glam rock from the 70's wrapped up in it that one might think it's older than it actually is from being so bloody genuine in sound.

As the album unfolds there is barely a poor track to be had with that said "(It's) Too Late Baby" is weak song but with so many other excellent rock songs we can accept their missteps. "Wasted Feelings" makes me smile each time I listen to it because it just makes me happy with all the silliness. The swagger of "The Streets" is pure unadulterated drunken sing-a-long happiness that reminds me of the film Hair. I don't know why but it does and I love that about it. The album's standout track is the very Queen styled "Holy Touch" that is one of 2012's best songs so far and I hope they release it as a single and radio actually bites into it.

This is a total surprise for me and I'm glad I gave it a listen because it is way better than I thought it was going to be and is now on my best of 2012 list for sure.

Van Halen - A Different Kind Of Truth

2012-02-02T07:55:00.000-08:00

This is surely a VH album but its old and we all know that because once you hear the overall product and compare it to the previous few records with Sammy you know that the writing musically is completely different. Eddie is blazing on this record like he's not done in a long time which obviously nods to an era long past. When you hear the guitar on "As Is" there is no bloody way that Eddie came up with this in the last year. He's not ripped it up in this flashy fashion since Woman & Children First.

The album isn't as bad as I expected after hearing the horrible "Tattoo" which is so bad it made me dislike Dave a little. Where this album eclipses the entire III debacle is that Eddie is blowing up the fretboard constantly. Even with the lesser vocalist and missing Michael Anthony not to mention the somewhat bad drumming of Alex and his stunted fills the album is worth hearing for Eddie alone.

The grind of "Honeybabysweetiedoll" is a wanking moment for Eddie and whatever else is going on doesn't really matter at all and you'll see what I mean once you listen to it. It seems like when the band tries the more refined hook sound Roth just doesn't have that smooth vocal needed to make the song truly shine. He's so circus meets vaudeville now that all I can see is that dumb ass grin and his giant stage props. The guy is such a dork now he's not cool anymore "Dave's Lost His Cool".

There are some really gawd awful songs on this album like "The Trouble With Never" that goes nowhere and makes me feel sad that is the best they could do and think its good. But then a song like "Outta Space" appears and you shake your head fog away and are transported back to VHII and feel 12 again. It's such an awkward listen because of how uneven it is as well as knowing that none of this is newly written music and sounds as so.

Don't get me wrong if you enjoy Eddie Van Halen then there is a lot of stuff to like on the album but in the end I feel like Dave's weaker than before. Although his best moment might be "Stay Frosty" which still has some bad phrasing and stumbling vocals. If the band had a better producer who took control of Roth and kicked his ass when he was laying down the vocal not accepting some of the performances and such this album could be a much better record than anyone expected. So boogie on folks this is what we got after mooning over the return of Roth for decades and well honestly what did you expect in reality? There was no chance DLR was going to be running with the devil at his age.

Retro Rewind Track: Extreme - Decadence Dance

2012-01-21T11:22:00.000-08:00

Gin Wigmore - Gravel & Wine

2012-01-14T22:40:00.000-08:00

I first came across Gin while watching music videos on some blog site awhile back. I began looking for her album with the song "Black Sheep" on it but nothing came up. Finally a few months later I found it and now to see if it can live up to the awesomeness of the lead-off single. I have to say it does for the most part as she wails from track to track. The song "Devil In Me" has a sweet spaghetti western feel in the music that suddenly spins into a retro groove. Undeniably great is this song with the excellent guitar fills and the driving acoustic rhythm riff.She drops a very high quality ballad called "If Only" that harkens back to the 50's crooners like Connie Francis and Lesley Gore. I have to say that this album is what I had expected from Duffy's breakout record after hearing the big single "Mercy" but was completely disappointed by after hearing the album.

Gravel and Wine takes the listener on a journey of sound and emotion that is always majestic even when Gin gets abrasive or loud. She has the ability to kick up some dust and rock but then you hear a song like "Saturday Smile" that is so stunningly beautiful in all aspects and you'd nearly think it was Adele. I have to say I'm glad I finally got a hold of this record because it's absolutely brilliant and gives me great enthusiasm for Gin Wigmore turning me into a huge fan. If this album does get a domestic release I will have not trouble spending the cash to support her talent. Duffy, Lilly Allen and Macy Gray better be on their game because they have some serious competition for their spots with the overtly talented Gin Wigmore ready to strike a huge blow and steal those artists lime lights.

The Goods

2012-01-10T22:51:00.001-08:00

flash MP3 player

Retro Rewind Track: Judas Priest - Freewheel Burning

2012-01-10T22:15:00.000-08:00

10 Songs That Should Be On Everybody's I-Pod

2012-01-10T22:03:00.000-08:00

It's the first list of 2012 so here we go!

10. Born To Be Wild by Sean Kingston Feat. Nicki Minaj

09. Hate Train by Metallica

08. Don't Stop (Color On The Walls) by Foster The People

07. Drive By by Train

06. Strike by Primal Fear

05. Everybody Talks by Neon Trees

04. Go by Tones On Tail

03. Red Solo Cup by Toby Keith

02. Gold On The Ceiling by Black Keys

01. Bully by Shinedown

Black Keys - El Camino

2012-01-10T21:40:00.000-08:00

This album is a raucous rock n' roll ride from a band that I'm still discovering. I'm blown away by how cool and groovy they are and that each time I play this record it gets better. I mean I've been listening to "Gold On The Ceiling" for a month now almost daily and I have to crank the volume and rock out. This is one of the first songs I've been completely addicted to in a long time. I mean I've been liking some tunes but this song can be on repeat for an hour and I will enjoy it every time a little bit more. The thing about El Camino is that every song has its own individual personality all the while making for a cohesive album listening experience.

There are some truly great records like Dark Side Of The Moon, ZoSo (Led Zeppelin IV), Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Exile On Mainstreet, Revolver and The Joshua Tree and now the Black Keys are in that company in my opinion. I wouldn't put it at the top of the list because you can't do anything better than Sgt. Pepper or Darkside Of The Moon but to me it deserves to be mentioned in the same sentence as those slices of genius. When you take the disco influenced "Run Right Back" and then the Elvis Costello meets Roxy Music feeling of "Sister" this album inspires large goosebumps. They are so well crafted but organic at the same time creating such a beautiful soundscape that I gladly give up the minutes of my life to listening to them anytime, anywhere.

Five years ago I wouldn't have even known who this band was but they are on my radar now and they will never be out of it again. The bands big single "Lonely Boy" is instantly memorable that leaves you with nothing but a smile. I like to play this album on random with my I-Pod just so I don't know what tracks coming next. It makes the repeated listening even more enjoyable and adds some fun for me any how. Songs like "Nova Baby" are so good they sound like old favorites from the first listen and that's something special that is very hard to achieve. That song in particular reminds of my new wave days of Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello for some reason, I guess it has that spirit. This is a better album than I could have expected it to be and if I would have had it in my listening rotation earlier than December 2011 I would have had it sitting near the top of my best of top 100 list not at the still respectable #31 where it ended up just because of how late I was to the Keys party.

Primal Fear - Unbreakable

2012-01-10T21:07:00.000-08:00

The album opens with a splendid intro track that builds to the climax with "Strike". The song has a huge production and kick ass drum sound that drives the excellent riff forward. Then Ralf Scheepers chimes in with his Halford-esque squealing vocal making for a great heavy metal beginning to Unbreakable. This does not end as the album unfolds into more excellent heavy rock n' roll for all to bang thy head's to. The album weaves through Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath and Halloween territories never losing themselves to their influences. The wickedly good "Bad Guys Wear Black" is reverent in its aggression and metallic thunder.

Let get this straight this album never comes close to a misfire and each song has enough going on that it is a winner. I would go on to compare it to the absolutely perfect Humanity: Hour One as it is as good albeit different but easily as solid as that album is and might even be a touch more fun considering all the glorious headbanging fun you will enjoy here. When "Unbreakable (Part 2)" gets to the 3:15 mark and the instrumental pounding begins I had to admit I was excited to hear the guitar solo that was coming, I loved it 'nuff said. Now with the excellent quality of the songs on Unbreakable it could have been a track or two shorter which would have driven the quality to an infinite level of success. Even though the length is a tad long this album is to be lauded as the bands greatest album. The surprising excellence of 16.6: (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead) was the beginning of this renaissance period which I'm sure we are just in the middle of and I hope that the band continue to grow and bring the thunder for years to come if this is the kind of metal we can expect from Primal Fear.

Shameless - Dial S For Sex

2012-01-10T20:25:00.000-08:00

So this is an odd ball project that sorta works and sorta doesn't because of the "too many cooks" prophecy. The album starts out with a thin muddy abrasive mess called "Innocence Is No Excuse". I bet there is a decent post hair metal glam rock song hidden in there somewhere but its hard to get to because of the terrible production in the tin can they used as a studio. An absurd cover of "Hot & Cold" arrives next and is bloody awful devoid of anything likable. Stevie Rachelle's vocal on "Summertime Goodbye" is decent but buried in the mix but I still enjoy hearing something new from Stevie.

"Live 4 Today" apes the riff of "Stone In Love" by Journey but that's where the comparison ends for sure. Another weak ass under produced and unfinished song that sounds like a demo. Another shit cover this time of a Willie Nelson classic that has a completely stupid drum track. Even though this could have been decent with Steve Summers snarky tone blazing out the deep lyrics they again fall short, very short. Hey the next seems to have it all together sounds like a good tune ahead enter "Love The Way (You Make Me Sick)" and overall its the first good tune the album has provided. Suddenly I'm seeing the clouds part and the rain dry up but I know this album is more of a rainy with sunny periods kinda record. Sounds like a Pretty Boy Floyd song and that is a good thing if we are talking about the debut which I am.

So after a bunch of garbage the band finally have found a groove and dropped back to back fun glam rock songs. Steve Summers has a great voice and I wish only for a big budget well written batch of songs from him and Keri Kelly. After a completely dreadful slow intro "U&I" turns into another decent piece of music from the ex PBF boys. The album believe or not has improved enough for me to continue listening even with a waste of time power ballad. Rachelle is in the Religious Fix era voice for his lead vocal of "Toy Human" it's nothing to write home about but its listenable. There is a bunch of filler and cop of the Ramones "Happy Birthday" to end the album on a positive note. Overall save your dollars and put on the Pretty Boy Floyd debut followed by the Tuff debut What Comes Around Goes Around which will make you smile and feel good about saving the cash on this and getting to hear those two great glam metal records.

Fun Feat. Janelle Monae - We Are Young

2012-01-07T20:45:00.001-08:00

Jessie J Live On The Voice: Holland

2012-01-06T16:45:00.001-08:00

The Worst Music Of 2011

2011-12-31T21:53:00.000-08:00

Worst Albums:

Metallica & Lou Reed - Lolu

Beyonce - 4

Jay-Z and Kanye West - Watch The Throne

Chris Brown - F.A.M.E.

Limp Bizkit - Gold Cobra

Spank Rock - Everything Is Boring And Everyone Is A Fucking Liar

Lady Antebellum - Own The Night

Soulja Boy – Skate Boy

Jennifer Lopez - Love

Staind - Staind

Demi Lovato - Unbroken

Big Sugar - Revolution Per Minute

Drake - Take Care

Meat Loaf - Hell In A Handbasket

Kaiser Chiefs - The Future Is Medieval

Nicole Scherzinger - Killer Love

Kelly Rowland - Here I Am

Bad Meets Evil - Hell: The Sequel

Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Mathew Good - Lights Of Endangered Species

Ben Moody - You Can't Regret What You Don't Remember

Thrice - Major/Minor

Blink 182 - Neighborhoods

Kentucky Headhunters - Dixie Lullabies

Biggest Disappointment Album:

Kings Of Leon - Come Around Sundown

Hedley - Storms

Rascal Flatts - Nothing Like This

Mathew Sweet - Modern Art

Journey - Ecl1P53

Saliva - Under Your Skin

The Cars - Move Like This

Mickey Thomas - Marauder

Natalia Kills - Perfectionist

Fountains Of Wayne - Sky Full Of Hearts

Strokes - Angles

Steel Panther - Balls Out

Patrick Stump - Soul Punk

Montgomery Gentry - Rebels On The Run

Jane's Addiction - The Great Escape Artist

Scotty McCreery - Clear As Day

54-40 - Lost In The City

Arctic Monkey's - Suck & See

CSS - La Liberacion

Trews - Hope & Ruin

Dirty Vegas - Electric Love

Jedward - Victory

Trivium - In Waves

Foster & Lloyd - It's Already Tomorrow

Hurtsmile - Hurtsmile

Kooks - Junk Of The Heart

R.E.M. - Collapse Into Now

Sloan - The Double Cross

Blue October - Any Man In America

Dev - Night The Sun Came Up

Matthew Morrison - Matthew Morrison

Wayne Static - Pighammer

Most Overrated Album:

Radiohead - The King Of Lambs

Beastie Boys - Hot Sauce Committee Part Two

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

Bon Iver - Bon Iver

Vines - Future Primitive

Florence + The Machine - Ceremonials

The Band Perry - The Band Perry

Jason Aldean - My Kinda Party

Wide Mouth Mason - No Bad Days

Cage The Elephant - Thank You Happy Birthday

Duff Mckagan's Loaded - The Taking

Los Lonely Boys - Rockpango-Deluxe

Martina McBride - Eleven

Sam Roberts Band - Collider

The Decemberists - The King Is Dead

Bjork - Biophillia

Travis Barker - Give The Drummer Some

Feist 2011 - Metals

PJ Harvey - Let England Shake

Jay-Z and Kanye West - Watch The Throne

Diddy Dirty Money - Last Train To Paris

My Morning Jacket - Circuital

Mastodon - The Hunted

Most Overrated Song:

Jar Of Hearts by Christina Perri

Don't You Wanna Stay by Jason Aldean Feat. Kelly Clarkson

On The Floor by Jennifer Lopez Feat. Pittbull

Without You by David Guetta Feat. Usher

If I Die Young by The Band Perry

It Will Rain by Bruno Mars

Just Can't Get Enough by Black Eyed Peas

Mistletoe by Justin Bieber

Coming Home by Diddy Dirty Money Feat. Skylar Grey

Lighters by Bad Meets Evil Feat. Bruno Mars

More by Usher

Just A Kiss by Lady Antebellum

California King Bed by Rihanna

Headlines by Drake

Jason Aldean

God Gave Me You by Blake Shelton

Never Say Never by Justin Bieber

Remind Me by Brad Paisley Feat. Carrie Underwood

Hit The Lights by Jay Sean Feat. Lil' Wayne

Papi by Jennifer Lopez

We Owned The Night by Lady Antebellum

What's My Name by Rihanna Feat. Drake

Most Overrated Artists Of 2011:

Jason Aldean

Beyonce

Kanye West

Drake

Jennifer Hudson

Lil' Wayne

Justin Bieber

Nicole Sherzinger

JLS

The Wanted

Will Young

Leona Lewis

T-Pain

The Script

Lady Antebellum (I HATE THEM)

Top Albums Of 2011

2011-12-20T22:39:00.000-08:00

100. Colt Ford - Every Chance I Get

99. One Direction - Up All Night

98. Nikki Lane - Walk of Shame

97. Craig Morgan - This Ole Boy E.P.

96. Hollywood Undead - American Tragedy

95. Steve Wariner - Guitar Laboratory

94. Black Country Communion - 2

93. The Maine - Pioneer

92. Red Hot Chili Peppers - I'm With You

91. Katie Sky - Paradise E.P.

90. Rebecca Ferguson - Heaven

89. Lady GaGa - Born This Way

88. All Time Low - Dirty Work

87. Rev Theory - Justice

86. Blondie - Panic Of Girls

85. Black N' Blue - Hell Yeah!

84. Cavalera Conspiracy - Blunt Force Trauma

83. Benny Benassi - Electroman

82. Kelly Clarkson - Stronger (Deluxe Version)

81. Julie C. - Steady Ground

80. Metallica - Beyond Magnetic E.P.

79. Status Quo - Quid Pro Quo

78. Nickelback - Here And Now

77. Disturbed - The Lost Children

76. Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto

75. The Downtown Fiction - Let's Be Animals

74. Trace Adkins - Proud To Be Here

73. Death Cab For Cutie - Codes & Keys

72. Hot Chelle Rae - Whatever

71. Iced Earth - Dystopia

70. The Pepper Pots - Train To Your Lover

69. Janedear Girls - The JaneDear Girls

68. Julianne Hough - Wildfire

67. Electric Boys - And Them Boys Done Swang

66. The Cab - Symphony Soldier

65. Bowling For Soup - Fishin' For Woos

64. George Thorogood & The Destroyers

63. Eric Church - Chief

62. Black Stone Cherry - Between The Devil & The Deep Blue Sea

61. Foo Fighters - Wasting Light

60. Motorhead - The World Is Yours

59. Beady Eye - Different Gear, Still Speeding

58. New Found Glory - Radiosurgery

57. Olly Murs - In Case You Didn't Know

56. Simple Plan - Get Your Heart On!

55. Switchfoot - Vice Verses

54. Warrant - Rockaholic

53. Lenny Kravitz - Black & White America

52. Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin'

51. Tom Morello - World Wide Rebel Songs

50. Sixx:A.M. - This Is Gonna Hurt

49. Ronnie Dunn - Ronnie Dunn

48. Marianas Trench - Ever After

47. Chickenfoot - Chickenfoot III

46. Jason McCoy - Everything

45. Craig Campbell - Craig Campbell

44. LMFAO - Sorry For Party Rocking

43. Dream Theater - A Dramatic Turn Of Events

42. David Guetta - Nothing But The Beat

41. Bush - The Sea Of Memories

40. Zascha Moktan - State Of Mind

39. Art Of Dying - Vices & Virtues

38. Sherrie Austin - Circus Girl

37. Sawyer Brown - Travelin' Band

36. Hard-Fi - Killer Sounds

35. Noah & The Whale - Last Night On Earth

34. Plain White T's - Wonders Of The Younger

33. Shakra - Back On Track

32. Avril Lavigne - Goodbye Lullaby

31. The Black Keys - El Camino

30. Panic! At The Disco - Vices & Virtues

29. Seether - Holding Onto Strings Better Left To Fray

28. Dia Frampton - Red

27. Whitesnake - Forever More

26. Selena Gomez - When The Sun Goes Down

25. Pistol Annies - Hell On Heels

24. Rival Sons - Pressure & Time

23. Five Finger Death Punch - American Capitalist

22. Yes - Fly From Here

21. Emphatic - Damage

20. Butch Walker - The Spade

19. Katie Waissel - Katie Waissel

18. David Bowie - Toy

17. Night Ranger - Somewhere In California

16. Helix - Smash Hits....Unplugged!

15. Miranda Lambert - Four The Record

14. State Of Shock - Rock N' Roll Romance

13. Ida Maria - Katla

12. Lena - Good News

11. Stevie Nicks - In Your Dreams

10. Adele - 21

09. Jessie J - Who You Are

08. Megadeth - Th1rt3en

07. Alice Cooper - Welcome 2 My Nightmare

06. Various - Muppets: The Green Album

05. Lenka - Two

04. Brad Paisley - This Is Country Music

03. Theory Of A Deadman - The Truth Is...

02. Anthrax - Worship Music

01. Cher Lloyd - Sticks + Stones

Top 100 Songs Of 2011

2011-12-20T21:30:00.000-08:00

100. My Name Is Kay by Kay

99. S&M by Rihanna

98. Tonight by Seether

97. Haters Anonymous by Sky Ferreira

96. Apologize by Hollywood Undead

95. Stand Up by James Durbin

94. He Likes Boys by Simone Battle

93. I Want Somebody (Bitch About) by Kristin Chenoweth

92. Radio by Raphael Saadiq

91. Stand by Lenny Kravitz

90. Mayhem by Imelda May

89. Control by Benny Benassi Feat. Gary G

88. Radiosurgery by New Found Glory

87. Hurts Like Heaven by Cold Play

86. 1000 Ships by Rachel Platten

85. Sad Song by Lenka

84. Renegade by Daughtry

83. Bone To Pick by Katie Waissel

82. I Like by Klaas & Bodybangers

81. Perfect by P!nk

80. Kiss Me by Zascha Moktan

79. The Lady Is A Tramp by Tony Bennett Feat. Lady Gaga

78. L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. by Noah & The Whale

77. This Is What Rock N' Roll Looks Like by Porcelain Black

76. ATouch Of Velvet A String Of Brass (We Love Barbra, Too) by BerlinYC

75. Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 Feat. Christina Aguilera

74. Runaway Baby by Bruno Mars

73. Pumped Up Kicks by Foster The People

72. Sucker Punch by Butch Walker & The Black Widows

71. Hey (Nah Ney Nah) by Milk & Sugar Feat. Vaya Con Dios

70. Bottoms Up! by Nickelback

69. Coconuts by Reckless Love

68. Bullet Proof Heart by My Chemical Romance

67. Best I Can by Art Of Dying

66. Different by Ximena Sarinana

65. Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO

64. Take Her From You by Dev

63. Haven't Had Enough by Marianas Trench

62. Country Song by Seether

61. Hello by Martin Solveig Feat. Dragonette

60. Bad Example by Pistol Annies

59. Animal by Neon Trees

58. I Didn't by Sherrié Austin

57. Fake I.D. by Big & Rich Feat. Gretchen Wilson

56. Rock N' Roll Romance by State Of Shock

55. Country Girl (Shake It For Me) by Luke Bryan

54. Fuck Him He's A DJ by Ke$ha

53. Baggage Claim by Miranda Lambert

52. Sorry by Art Of Dying

51. All I Know by Matt The Electrician

50. Over The Moon by Cher Lloyd

49. Under & Over It by Five Finger Death Punch

48. My Heart Skips A Beat by Lenka

47. Bass Down Low by Dev Feat. The Cataracs

46. Honey Bee by Blake Shelton

45. With Ur Love by Cher Lloyd Feat. Mike Posner

44. I Like It by Static Revenger & Richard Vission Feat. Luciana

43. Young Love by Rival Sons

42. I Am Made Of You by Alice Cooper

41. Honey, Honey by Julie C

40. Do It Like A Dude by Jessie J.

39. Who Says by Selena Gomez

38. Just Fishin' by Trace Adkins

37. The Truth Is ... (I Lied About Everything) by Theory Of A Deadman

36. Rolling In The Deep by Adele

35. World Wide Rebel Songs by Tom Morello & The Nightwatchman

34. Fish by Craig Campbell

33. Lies Of The Beautiful People by Sixx AM

32. Tonight, Tonight by Hot Chelle Rae

31. Barbara Striesand by Duck Sauce

30. Repeat by David Guetta Feat. Jessie J.

29. Taken By A Stranger by Lena

28. Love In America by JTX

27. Toothbrush by Brad Paisley

26. The Whip by Locksley

25. Rainbow Connection by Weezer Feat. Hayley Williams

24. Born This Way by Lady GaGa

23. DesperateBoys & Stupid Girls by Kimberly Caldwell

22. The Lazy Song by Bruno Mars

21. Mean by Taylor Swift

20. Are You Ready? by Kate Miller-Heidke

19. For What It's Worth by Stevie Nicks

18. Soul Man by Ben L'Oncle

17. Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen

16. Dance With Me Tonight by Olly Murs

15. Swagger Jagger by Cher Lloyd

14. U & I (Mark Taylor Radio Edit) by Lady GaGa

13. Domino by Jessie J.

12. Go, Go, Go by 89ers

11. The Ballad Of Mona Lisa by Panic! @ The Disco

10. Bounce by Emphatic

09. Red Solo Cup by Toby Keith

08. I Like How It Feels by Enrique Iglesias

07. Super Bass by Nicki Minaj

06. The Golden Age by Asteroids Galaxy Tour

05. Bad Karma by Ida Maria

04. Low Life by Theory Of A Deadman

03. Price Tag by Jessie J. Feat. B.o.B.

02. The Devil You Know by Anthrax

01. Old Alabama by Brad Paisley Feat. Alabama

Coming Soon

2011-12-15T23:12:00.000-08:00

This month hasn't really been seeing many post because I've been busy compiling all my personal lists and the year in review stuff. There will be some best and worst of lists and a few others that will probably make some laugh or roll their eyes. I love doing this sort of stuff even if I'm the only one who sees it or cares but I always love to hear and read the opinions of all whether I agree or disagree.

TTFN
Splash

Retro Rewind Track: Sherrié Austin

2011-11-24T22:33:00.001-08:00

Sherrié Austin - Circus Girl

2011-11-24T17:47:00.001-08:00

The return of one of my favorite country singers Sherrié Austin is a welcomed surprise. I wasn't sure what she would have for songs because her last album was a little bit of a snore-fest. This album is a nice redeeming of her talents as a song writer. Since her return to Nashville from New York and the theatre stage she's changed her focus lyrics wise towards the thirty plus female crowd. I have to say this album is her best since the debut Words from 1999 because she's comfortable and has no pressure from a major label pushing her to be hip to the youth like a Carrie Underwood or Sara Evans both whom are hit and miss with Evans continually losing by reaching for the prize with weak material.

On Circus Girl Sherrié really sounds like she's lived these songs personally and with her excellent voice and charisma she exudes credibility. The albums opener is also the albums title track that upon the first line of the song is a home-run. After the perfect verse it slides into a wonderful chorus that is undeniably awesome. I have to say that this song is one of my favorite country tunes of 2011 and hopefully will be everyone else's at some point in the near future. This is one of those country albums that is easy to digest and has a very Cashville sound in the current era but because she's singing words she wrote it all works where many other Nashville stars fail miserably.

The next three tunes are all winners and "I Didn't" make me smile as I myself have friends who fit exactly what she's singing about. They seem to believe they are something extraordinary when they obviously are not according to their mates. "If I Was A Man" is another in the excellent category which is followed by a gooey ballad that I'm not to particular on but it's not a terrible song at all. The album ebbs and flows very well with another highlight track "He's All Yours" that is as the title implies and cheating song from the point of view of angry wife. She picks up the pace with "Bad For Me" which could have been on a Miranda Lambert album it is that damn good. It has the spirit and brashness of the immortal K.T. Oslin who is an artist that is sorely missed by myself.

Sherrié writes and good theme song for that thirty plus crowd who is trying to find themselves after another relationship falls apart for no good reason, one that just didn't have it is all. She follows "Friday Night Girls" with "Sleep With Me" that is pretty much the next step in the story which probably is also following a few cosmo's. The album begins is closing sequence with the uptempo "That Kind Of Happy" a powerful song about standing up and doing so with your own might not bowing down and falling into another one of those story book love tales. "Streets Of Heaven" is a ballad Austin released previously but does a nice job of re-inventing the song with a little better production. This stunning album comes to conclusion with a Christmas themed tune called "Naughty Or Nice" which is the albums lead-off single that she duets with besty "Shane Stevens". It's a perfect fit as the albums closing number because the tune is so catchy, fun and charming that it leaves the listener with such a nice feeling it's not hard to hit the play button again and run through the entire album one more time.

Sherrié Austin has outdone herself with Circus Girl and even with the minor flaws she proves once again that she's not just a beautiful face she's got more talent than almost every other country star in Nashville today. This is easily one of the best albums of 2011 and almost the best country album of 2011 too bad she had such stiff competition with Miranda Lambert and Brad Paisley who both released great records this year as well.

2011 American Music Awards

2011-11-20T17:07:00.001-08:00

This years show kicked off with a stellar performance from Nicki Minaj that featured David Guetta. She was great and took her costuming to yet another level. The staging was fantastic with the cool cabled dancers and the giant robots shooting smoke during her medley that included the excellent "Superbass". What might just be the best part of the show after it all plays out was Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift singing word for word to "Superbass" from their seats while dancing together. That is so cool to see at an awards show which isn't so typical with all the egos that are inside the room at one of these shows.

The first award of the night went to Maroon 5 which was nice to see a real band of musicians win an award on the show. This line-up of perfomers tonight has good potential to make this one of the best shows they've aired in the shows long running history. I still remember the show I enjoyed the most and my favorite performance of John Mellencamp doing a duet with the legendary Mitch Ryder which for me blew the roof off the place. This show could rival it but that sort of performance will probably never happen again. Taylor Swift wins for favorite country female which I don't take issue with because of how genuine she is even though she beat my girl Miranda Lambert I know Taylor deserved it.

Justin Beiber with his poor live singing does a Christmas tune "Under A Mistletoe" which was barely passable and since my daughter enjoyed it with such a big smile it helped me get through the awfulness of it. I still don't get why this kid has become so popular but it proves with an excellent promo team out there spinning their web and piles of money anyone can be famous. Obviously talent has nothing to do with it. The Bland Perry does their only decent tune which is not as good as the industry tries to make it seem. We all know that Brad Paisley, George Strait, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton and many more are much better with better tunes than this one. But mediocrity seems to be what the masses are buying today.

Chris Brown does just another black singer thing, which is whine in a mic to some ridiculously boring over the top bullshit R&B song. I can't stand this music genre because every single song sounds like the last one. When he breaks into the dance portion of his performance and lip syncs it improves to enough to temporarily halt my power nap I was about to experience. The video screens and lighting effects were better than the song and the dancing though. The Rap/Hip-Hop award goes to easily the only talented person nominated being Minaj who has sold a ton of music this year and she's not disappointed musically all. Kelly Clarkson's performence was as expected BRILLIANT. This girls a legend in the making and in twenty years when she's at the same level of success as Madonna and Reba remember I called it years before and stood by it from day one. There are very few vocalists that have the gift that lies within her and she proved it one more time tonight on this show.

Wow Rhianna wins R&B/Soul award and I'm shocked that the best of the three nominated won. Enrique absolutely ripped it when he performed tonight. I've become a huge fan of his over the last few years and I look forward to hearing new music from him because he writes nearly perfect pop singles. Ludicris comes out to close one of the nights best performances overall and one that I enjoyed the most. Jennifer Lopez was decent but did exactly the same thing she's always done pretty much wearing the same outfit she's been performing in for the last five years.

The show took dump in the Country Band/Dup/Group category handing it to the untalented Petunia Pig and her two dweebs otherwise known as Lady Antebellum. Another group that sings faceless drivel that has nothing good about it. The deserving winner of the award who was nominated is Zack Brown Band that released an album worth listening to and spending money on. But again popular doesn't always mean talented in the music world. Sugarland not nominated is shameful as well. We can only hope that Sawyer Brown gets noticed for their excellent current release next year.

Wow Onerepublic sucked major ass, well their singer did anyhow. He couldn't hit the chorus notes even remotely and I'm sorry but this shows how good their producer is that makes him sound like he can sing. Too bad the rest of band look bad because of his poor live singing on the major stage. The guy can't even keep his breath as he sings. He's winded and tense and off key what a joke and this is what your friends and family are spending money on instead of real talent. Katy Perry did a great job on "The One That Got Away" and she got a special award for being the first female artist to have five number one singles from one album. Considering how great and talented she is I can see her doing this at a regular pace. The best new artist going to Hot Chelle Rae was the best choice and proves that The Bland Perry aren't really as popular as these shows try to lead everyone to believe because that award was fan voted.

Mary J. wasted five minutes of all our lives with a terrible song and whiny shriek-fest. I don't care if she can sing this was bloody awful and if I wanted to hear this kind of crap I can put nearly any black artists album on and hear this verbal diarrhea. Beyonce! Really, Really, REALLY? Rhianna was robbed as Beyonce's album is the worst album of 2011 and the proof is in the lack of sales and the release of five singles in two and half months with none of them catching fire at all. Everyone is a bomb just like that piece of shit album they are all contained on. She's overrated and continuously releases awful music but gets promoted over the more talented artists for some unknown reason. This last fifteen minutes of the show have been a complete down turn with too many black awards and their lack of anything rock is ridiculous. There are a few more genre's of music than stool pop (R&B, Soul, Rap, Hip-hop). I'd like to see some more genre's included how about Sunshine Pop, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Rock N' Roll and others?

Maroon 5 and X-Tina rocked the house with their disco tune "Moves Like Jagger" which included Taylor and Selena dancing and singing from the crowd, they are so cute. I don't think Adam and X-Tina like one another at all. Gym Class Hero's Feat. Adam Levine again solid performance by a group that knows how to blend the genre's well to be appealing to everyone. The hasn't been quite as good as I hoped but it is surely one of their best productions. I have to say the lighting design team are amazing. Some of their staging and effects are low key but still very effective. Really impressed with that side of the show.

UGH! Drake sucks ass even though he's Canadian I can't stand his horrible flow. It's always the same every single song or feature he does. Why can't black people say the word "ask"? They say "aks" I mean they do go to school right? They have the ability to speak properly but use lazy English and create some stupid form of language that sounds pretty idiotic. Favorite Pop/Rock had no rock but Bruno Mars won so I'm completely good with that. He's very talented and I look forward to hearing him grow as an artist. I believe he's going to be here for the long term and I hope we get more of the swing/Motown style he does live. Daughtry the lone rock performer does one of the worst songs on their new album which is a piss poor ballad. Nice way to showcase the genre asshat, you could have done Renegade and stole the show but nope I'll be a lame ass wimp rocker instead.

Will.I.Am did a cool performance with the black light dance group from America's Got Talent. It was cool for basically being an art piece because it was just lip Sync'd anyway. Album of the year went to a Brit which this was/is supposed to be American Music Awards. Kinda weird that Lady GaGa didn't get the award and really she should have taken it anyone with a brain that works properly knows that.
Here comes the final performance from LMFAO which I'm sure will be fun but I don't know how good they are in a live setting.

Yay! Taylor Swift for Artist Of The Year, very deserved and I'm so glad she's getting all these accolades. She's so honest and normal it makes me feel good watching her win. Ok LMFAO are winning! I'm totally entertained and I'd watch their performance again it was fun. The show's finale actually lived up to the hype. Overall I'm impressed with the show and ending with the Hoff was great. Good job this year.

Top 20 Nickelback Songs Of All-Time

2011-11-19T00:09:00.001-08:00

Being such a great singles group this shouldn't be too hard but honestly it wasn't as easy as a fan would think.

20. Midnight Queen
19. Flat On The Floor
18. Never Gonna Be Alone
17. Gotta Be Somebody
16. Too Bad
15. Far Away
14. Don't Ever Let It End
13. Someday
12. Feelin' Way Too Damn Good
11. Bottoms Up
10. Never Again
09. Photograph
08. Figured You Out
07. Someone That You're With
06. This Afternoon
05. Something In Your Mouth
04. How You Reminded Me
03. Burn It To The Ground
02. Animals
01. Rockstar

Daughtry - Break The Spell

2011-11-18T14:43:00.001-08:00

Oh the faceless modern rock balladeer from the American Idol fame train. Here they/he is with their third album worth of music that so far has been overtly lame ass wimp rock for macho wanna be's with dumb Japanese tattoos and that terrifying barbed wire wrapping around their arms, probably have those ridiculous tribal hoops stretching their earlobes as well. Yeah and the girls that may pass by my blog review of this album I'm probably describing your boyfriends. Now with the insults out of the way lets get to the music on this digital platter that leads a doomed format life.

The groups first song released "Renegade" is a decent high octane rock tune that is by far the best song the bands released to date. They quickly drop back into that ridiculous modern rock mid-tempo near ballad cliche but do so with an enjoyable tune. Shocking!, damn near heart stopping that the band put two songs back to back that both are good. The unbelievable achievement is that this doesn't only happen at this point the streak continues with a hat trick "Outta My Head" a catchy rock song that not includes a good chorus but a solid verse that is not normal for Daughtry's material. Usually this band regurgitates the same songs with different words but the exact same topical themes. The almost alt. country "Start Of Something Good" is right in their wheelhouse of shame, tempo wise but Chris doesn't do his normal over singing and emoting this time when the song breaks into the chorus. He actually holds it back and doesn't get lost in the Star Search/American Idol torch song gymnastics.

The band don't really come close to reinventing themselves at all on this album but if I am to compare this to their last record it's so much better even being as similar to it as it is. The song writing has improved drastically on Break The Spell and that is why this album isn't being trashed like I really felt inclined to do before I got past "Renegade". I can say this is not going to make my best of 2011 albums list and won't come close to earning more listens than when my wife, daughter or friends will force me to listen to or put up with me bitching about it being lame compared to other albums and they are forced to turn it off to shut me up. I can be that hard to deal with sometimes when it comes to music or movies. When the band drop two songs back to back that are both good and work together is at track eleven and twelve. Both songs are good modern pop rock songs with strong chorus's and good grooves.

The expanded version of the album includes "Who's They" which is a complete joke of a song and really should have stayed buried. They give four extra songs that are so vanilla you don't know if its Nickelback, Art Of Dying, Saving Abel, Shinedown or any other modern rock band. Even though "Everything But Me" is a good song it could still be anyone from the genre performing it. No originality or defining moments are had on this album which is still an improvement from their gawd awful waste of studio time Leave This Town.

Nickelback - Here & Now

2011-11-18T13:44:00.001-08:00

Lucky number seven is what Nickelback is hoping for with their seventh album release. The trouble with Nickelback and the album format as they include a large amount of filler material. This is not untrue on Here & Now which has even more filler that their previous album Dark Horse. The bands dual single release of "Bottoms Up!" to rock radio and "When We Stand Together" to pop radio is not dissimilar to the dual release from Dark Horse albeit this time not as good. Both songs are decent tunes and "Bottoms Up!" is a solid hard rock song where as the pop single while good fizzles for me.

The bands production sound is freaking huge and the monstrous guitar textures is akin to the mighty Def Leppard in the amount of layers. The album runs really high quality songs for the first four tracks which rival nearly all their previous albums but doesn't compare to the first two tracks from Dark Horse. As the album continues forward though the quality does take a nose dive into mediocrity at times. While being a fun song and enjoyable a slight decline starts with "Gotta Get Me Some" the song isn't bad it falls a little short is all. Then the big power ballad "Lullaby" sucks the life out of me with the over the top production and the contrived chorus not to mention the overdone drums that are too bloody big for the song and distorts the melody burring the piano as well as the bass is so fake sounding with the extra punch from Sony Soundforge's compression and other effects. The song is just too much even for a hard rock power ballad. I think being so overproduced the song loses too much, I think there might have been a good song in there if it was only piano, guitar and percussion. A very stripped back organic sound wouldn't have made it seem so cheesy.

Chad takes a shot at being something more than cock rock with "Kiss It Goodbye" but in the end it's still cock rock meets hair metal. I haven't made a decision if I actually like this song. It will take a few listens before that will come down but upon the first few runs past I'm leaning towards immature ego trying to sound smart which lets be honest we don't want Nickelback to be at all. The oh so typical modern rock radio hit "Trying Not To Love You" which is a complete piece of shit which will sell huge when the single fairy sprinkles it all over radio, I just hate these songs from the modern rock format. Most if not all of them are so bloody dull and boring all I find is a snooze fest when I hear them. Not to mention so faceless lacking originality which you can insert whomever you like because they can all do the song without any noticeable difference. Followed by the same song albeit a little better but still faceless drivel.

Chad's gigantic creative dump "Everything I Wanna Do" is next and if you can get to the skip button fast enough please take the opportunity to save the 3:26 of your life for a better song. One of the worst songs this band has recorded since their horrid debut Curb. The album closes with what is a song that has become a formula for the band and probably the best song on the album "Don't Ever Let It End". They seem to always put something a little more spirited and fun in the final track spot and this song, if only stripped back a little more would have been as good as "Rock Star" or "This Afternoon". Still a good song and one I hope that is included in their live set, actually I'd love to design their live set and eliminate most of the shite power ballads that seems to make them so freaking popular outside of Detroit Shit City at least. A decent record, flawed and sometimes overproduced to nausea but not a disappointing record like one of Canada's other great bands Hedley.

Hedley - Storms

2011-11-12T13:36:00.001-08:00

Let's be completely honest from the beginning this album doesn't come close to being as good as their last album. The lack of seriously catchy uptempo pop rock numbers and the overwrought delivery of much of this material takes too much personality away from the band. The album overall is a little stiff and whiny specifically in the wanna be emotional delivery by Jaccob. It doesn't come off as honest emotion it sounds manufactured to pretend to be mature and grown up and greatly affected by their experiences overseas.

The album opens with torch song number one "One Life" not terrible but not worth listening to again either. The albums first single "Invincible" follows along a very similar path again passable but I'm not a huge fan of it either. The second torch song "Heaven's Gonna Wait" and I'm getting pretty bored at this point realizing that this album is a dud and I'm not going to get much of anything that was great about The Show Must Go. Well they finally write a pop tune that doesn't suck the joy and life out of listening to music. At this point I'd just like to hear something fluffy and uptempo and finally I'm rewarded a little for all the crap I've waded through. "Young" has some life and personality but even though its the best song on the album at this point its not enough and I'm still not happy with this album.

The song "Beautiful" FINALLY hits the acceptable quality mark. A great slow song that isn't dull and boring that nearly has the charm of "Friends". Could we finally be getting to the meat of this recording session? Well to answer my own question yes this is the meat of the album. A couple more good songs appear and things are atleast not making me regret buying tickets to see them live on this tour. You get a run of decent songs up to and including "Last Call". Then the complete garbage ballad called "I Won't Let You Go (Darling)" rears its ugly head and well back to the shite at the beginning we go. I admit I hated "Perfect" on The Show Must Go as well so I'm sure this song if a single will probably sing to all the tweens who think the world will end if their highschool boyfriend dumps them or that are going to spend the rest of their lives with some kid they met in the first month of school this year.

After the big giant dump the band has with that ballad they pick up the quality again on "Hiding Place" which nearly covers up the stench of "I Won't Let You Go (Darling)". The albums best song is the Beatlesque "Carry On" and nothing on this album is even close to as good as this song. I would have heard this track and then sent them back to rock n' roll writing school to make more just like it. See that's the problem with this record and it being so disappointing is that I know they can write great pop rock tunes. They don't have to be like most other acts and age a little and turn into a ballad act for radio play success. They are talented enough and cool enough to be a longterm act that enjoys major success for the next ten or twenty years. The album closes with two remixes of weak songs unnecessarily added to the make it deluxe version.

Overall I'm still disappointed but I am sure as the singles roll out to radio in Canada that I will enjoy some of them. I will never listen to Storms in its entirety again because it isn't good enough. I can only hope that this is not a signal of the future and only a hiccup in what should be an illustrious career to come making them one of Canada's best bands.

The Goods

2011-11-12T13:30:00.000-08:00

Check Out Iced Earth's Latest Video

2011-11-12T13:11:00.001-08:00

Iced Earth - Dystopia

2011-11-12T12:25:00.001-08:00

Oh thank you finally a new album from this band that isn't a waste of time. Tim Owen's albums were pure shite and then the garbage filler that has been so present in the last ten years worth of music is also on a holiday this time round. Blocker takes the band to a height vocally they haven't been in a very, very long time. His deep register isn't quite thick enough like Chuck Billy but when he does a little high shriek line or two now and again that is super tasty to my ears. The band seem to be just that finally a band even though Jon Schaffer is the master and the others are his soldiers. He leads them into battle this time with a winning epic which is about bloody time. I don't think Barlow could have done anything for this band at this point.

What makes this record a success is the fact that the songs are just songs that begin and end in a timely manner losing much of the epic ideals and just being decent ideas concise in their delivery. The lessened progressive metal and the turning up of the power metal makes this one of the years better metal records. A little weak in the production end where bigger vocal production with some killer bottom end on the deeper aggressive parts ala FFDP or Testament this would have been a metal classic.

The album kicks off with three solid heavy metal tunes that get your adrenalin going then give way into a mid-paced number allowing us listeners to catch our breath. The song is actually a pretty tight number with some nice acoustic guitars mixed in which adds a nice dimension to the metallic assault. Be ready to crank up the volume when "V" starts and delivers and very heavy Judas Priest styled rhythm to bang your head along to. From Priest the boys visit Iron Maiden for inspiration next which I just freaking love. "Dark City" is a total winner and it makes me miss Iron Maiden a little. The band continue to satisfy my liquid metal blood right to the conclusion of the album. This is finally an album that the band can go out and perform live in near entirety and the crowds will be happy to punch air and mosh along to without even noticing the missing favorites from their back catalog.

If you are a metal fan this album should be a solid addition to your listening rotation. It's ebb and flow is great because every song sounds different from each other which never becomes stale or boring as it plays beginning to end.

D-A-D - Dic.Nii.Lan.Daft.Erd.Ark

2011-11-12T12:09:00.001-08:00

Now here is a band that has been chugging away for years in complete obscurity from a North American standpoint. They debuted with one of the best hard rock records you will ever hear named No Fuel Left For The Pilgrims that just kicked ass and left nothing breathing in its wake. Since then I haven't found them nearly as captivating over their entire career of alt. Rock meets hard rock blends. The band have released fourteen albums to date which is incredible considering they've got little to no fan base over here. The bands follow-up lacked the hooks of the North American debut and saw them fall into obscurity at a pace that would be so quick you'd miss it with a blink.

Here they continue to rock along with an average record of bluesy hard rock akin to the stripped down rock of their heyday. The band don't have anything comparable to "ZCMI" or "Rim Of Hell" so don't get your hopes up if you remember them from the late 80's. Most of the time the tempo's drag in a blues rock vein almost stoner rock territory. It's when they embrace a more mainstream rock sound on "Fast On Wheels" or "Breaking Them Heart By Heart" do they sound comfortable in their own skin. Then they pull off a bunch of run-of-the-mill rock pretty faceless and forgettable until the second to last track where a pretty nice power ballad "Your Lips Are Sealed" appears. It's a decent song but nothing to write home about at all. D*A*D should either find the piss and vinegar from their one and only great record or just call it quits because this quality of music isn't going to do anything to rekindle their fans who came aboard on No Fuel Left For The Pilgrams

Fastway - Eat Dog Eat

2011-11-12T11:55:00.001-08:00

I haven't like a thing by this band since they parted ways with Dave King and to be honest when I saw a new album in 2011 I felt disappointed before I even looked into who was in the band this time around. Once I read Toby Jepson was singing on the album I though ok lets here what he was able to get out of Eddie who hasn't had a good song idea in twenty years. The trouble is no matter how good Jepson is in other projects he can't save this band name from Eddie Clarks terrible songwriting.

The album is devoid of boogie and the uptempo hard rocking guitar driven music we once got from this band. The blues based music is somewhat present but it isn't good blues at all. The song "Love I Need" is one of the best tunes of the eleven present and it's nothing more than a 99th rate tune. By the time you get to the last track and hear what resembles a classic era sound from the name Fastway I'm so bored and wishing for this to be over that I don't care if the song is passable album filler. If you have money to burn get a match and actually burn it because it will be of better use than purchasing this piece of shit. Toby Jepson can't save this version of a band that's never lived up to their first two albums. Fast Eddie Clark is almost as big a joke as Tony Iommi with all the crap versions of Black Sabbath he's formed over the years since Ozzy and Ronnie moved on. Actually that's not fair Clark is twice the joke any formation of Black Sabbath was after Dio left.

Stay away from this crap!

Last.FM Addiction: I must scrobble!!!

2011-11-11T16:12:00.001-08:00

I remember years ago when I first joined Last.FM I wasn't so sure I wanted to let those powers that be see that I was listening to music on my computer because of the downloading legality and the idea that mp3's were against the law. Well those years ticked away and both downloading and mp3's are mainstream now. Music has moved from the brick and morter of a store selling a product to being an online digital file shared by some or purchased from an online outlet. I have to say Last.FM has made listening to music even more fun for me since I returned to using the service a couple years ago.

I only wish that I'd have been using it the entire time so I could see what I think I listened to a lot and what I really did listen to a lot. I've noticed that some of my absolute favorite artists don't have as high a play count as I'd believed they would. I honestly don't like using any player besides Winamp on my computer and now with the scrobbling it does to Last.FM I hate putting on a CD because I don't get the songs scrobbled to my account. But now with this addiction I've formed with scrobbling I've found myself not listening to some stuff because I didn't want it to show up in my list that might make my library uncool. I've not allowed that to take over my entire listening rotation but, I've had to be conscious of it creeping in and obscuring my eclectic listening habits. I love so much when it comes to genre's of music from country to heavy metal to hip-hop and just about every other genre there is today.

The coolest thing I find about the whole Last.FM idea is that I can see what my friends are into and what stuff they listen to and maybe even influence them to try something new from what I know is good music. See my holier than thou opinion when it comes to music is always present and having this program helps satisfy that part of my personality. I've been a music fanatic since I was three years old and got my first record player as a child. It was not one of those silly Fisher Price plastic deals it was a portable stereo with a proper needle that played real records and music or those read along storybooks with the record in the back cover.

So back to the point of scrobbling, I've had an I-Pod for a few years now which I do enjoy but it doesn't scrobble live to Last.FM I have to rely on the terrible I-Tunes program to work with Last.FM's scrobbler plug-in which doesn't work very well at all. Since I've had such issues getting the plays from my I-Pod to Last.FM I've been using it less and less the past few months and moved to using my smartphone and a great music player app called CloudSkipper which works perfectly and instantly with Last.FM. I have to admit that I love the large display of album art as the music plays as well. This app is solid as a rock as well it never crashes or locks up and it never fails to scrobble which I-Tunes does on a regular basis in a Windows 7 environment.

The whole computer music listing option is wonderful for me because I've moved easily into the digital age and leaving my cassettes in their cases far away in my bedroom. Sure I'd love to have them out on display because their presence is very cool to have in view. I still have my one CD shelf made by my stepfather as a gift which houses a few hundred CD's. From time to time I grab something and encode it to mp3 for my digital music collection. At some point I will get a computer room/office space again and at that point the purchase of a USB cassette deck and USB turntable will be made. That way I can pull all the music I want from my collection off the old formats and bring them into the digital age to be scrobbled to Last.FM.

The whole idea of being able to see what my music listening life has been when I'm an old man will be very gratifying to me and that future opportunity is part of my drive to scrobble and be an efficient member of Last.FM. I can only hope that it stays around long enough to outlast me and maybe when my kid/kids have children of their own they can go see who and what their grandpa was and what fueled my passion for music. I can only hope more of my friends can find their way to Last.FM and join the addiction of scrobbling their musical history. Get Glue is another cool app that might be of interest if you enjoy the whole idea of leaving your entertainment DNA on the internet. Remember don't be afraid to be honest about your listening habits so you can get a real identity of what rocks your world.

45th CMA Awards

2011-11-10T08:58:00.001-08:00

This show has a glorious history of being the best awards show on TV yearafter year. This year opened up with Blake Shelton performing his cover of"Footloose" and it was good but it got great when Kenny Loggins cameout and finished it up with him. The duo of Carrie Underwood and the alwaysexcellent Brad Paisley did a wonderful introduction segment which included aspot with legendary musical genius Hank Williams Jr. who pretty much stole thewhole segment with his massive presence.

The awards got right underway with one of the non country, pop acts with TheBand Perry winning said award. A back to back performance segment which hadKeith Urban sounding pitchy and otherwise lame then it blended right into SaraEvans doing a really bland ballad which nearly had me reaching for the mutebutton. That woman seems to be jinxed since the excellent "Suds In TheBucket" rocketed her to super stardom a few years ago. I can only hopethat there are much better performances on the way maybe Kellie Pickler andMiranda Lambert will show all how its done and I'd really love to see Bradperform "Old Alabama" with Alabama who I saw pieces of in theaudience.

Truth be told this show never disappoints outside of the winners usuallybeing wrong most of the time and nominations being a little weighted to promotesome real garbage. Speaking of quality Miranda Lambert hits the stage and doesa great live TV version of "Baggage Claim" looking about as hot as afemale can all dolled up in black and sparkles. She proves without a doubtshe's the real deal and every other female artist in the room better watch howit's done. The only lady seated that comes to her level is Reba who's so greatshe goes by her first name because that's all she needs for everyone to knowexactly who your talking about.

The arrival of one of the hottest ladies on planet earth Kellie Picklergives away song of the year. The nominees are obviously not really the bestcountry songs but Taylor Swift's "Mean" was at least given a nod anddeserved to win over "If I Die Young" for the second time. Again Idon't hate the song but I don't think its song of the year caliber either. ZackBrown Band hit the stage and do a really nice cover of "Georgia" whichhas a guest along for the ride as is common with country award showperformances. Greg Allman did have a blues record this year so I understand whyhe's there on this bluesy jazz classic. The audience is too nice though it wasnot stand worthy in slightest.

Rascal Flatts Featuring Natasha Bedingfield performed an bloody awful torchsong that couldn't suck anymore if it was by Lady Antebellum. The song ispainfully bad and hopefully will never be played or heard again. Just freakinghorrid and Rascal Flatts continue releasing terrible slow songs so their recordis in tact. The next award Vocal Duo went to the right artist this time beingSugarland. I wasn't a fan of them for a long time but they won me over withtheir super catchy ditties the past couple years.

I love the new country acts doing a little tune as part of their nomination.Eric Church pretty much owns this award in my opinion because he's just sogreat and real country not this fake pop crap that rules the charts. His albumshould be considered for album of the year because its really a good countryalbum but it won't be there I'm sure of that. There are some other new actsthat are pretty good too this year like Thompson Square that aren't much livebut on record have a good sound. Then you get Billy B. Badd (listen to song byGeorge Jones explains everything) named Chris Young this time who is just awanna be packaged no talent hack. His album blew chunks with so much blandfaceless country pop that you might fall into a coma while listening.

Taylor Swift's choice of song wasn't a hit yet again which I don'tunderstand she seems to always to do some offbeat slow song. I wish she'd singsomething that would be enjoyable like her excellent "Mean" but alaswe get what we get and I'm sure all her tween fans loved every off key note.She's truly a phenomenon and deserves every single bit of her success.Following Taylor is another nominee for best new act Luke Bryan and if you'veread my review of his album you'll already know how lame this guy is outside ofhis one and only good song "Country Girls Shake It For Me". Nothingelse sounds like this which is why he's a member of my fake country club if hewas really this sort of artist he'd have other honky tonk floor fillers earninghim some credibility.

The Miss Piggy segment made me laugh out loud Paisley never disappoints butwhat followed was a mute button masterpiece being the lamest act in countrymusic Lady Antebellum. What a junk drawer mess they are everytime they perform.I just hate how paint by numbers boring they are and the song was a soft rocksong that is a million miles from anything remotely resembling country music.That pig faced hog in the band drives me nuts and I've got the volume turneddown. I just can't stand them and I will never ever like them it is just notgoing to happen. Promote them all they want I'm not buying their stale cookies.

Album of the year comes and what the F! The bloody voting committee actuallygot it wrong again! Oh wait that happens almost every single year in the showshistory. Jason Aldean can't sing at all whether on album or live his voice isweak and sounds forced all the time. I don't like any of the music the albumhad on it but Nashville wants him to be so they make it so. Kenny Chesney thankgoodness performs a nice little ditty which is a great singer-songwriter typetune. He's usually a solid bet when it comes to being entertaining andenjoyable and the stripped down version of "You & Tequila" Thatfeatured Grace Porter he won again.

I am a little perplexed to why Lionel Ritchie is a featured eventperformance on a country show considering he's a pop/R&B artist that has nocountry connection outside of being black like Darius Rucker and Cowboy Troy ohand Charlie Pride. It's kinda weird when they could have done something likeinvite Hank to do a medley or have Alan Jackson or hell even Joe Diffie, SammyKershaw, Clint Black or Travis Tritt perform hits medley's which are allcountry acts and real ones that deserve to be given back some spotlight ofwhich they had a major hand in creating over the great decade of the 90'scountry movement. Still it wasn't horrible and I like Lionel a lot myself hewas a huge part of my teenage years. I just hope his so called country recordis good and not just an attempt to be popular again like so many other pop androck artists have been doing. BTW Darius Rucker sucked ass singing the great"Stuck On You" Hootie get the fuck off the stage you idiot. I have toadmit that The Band Perry sounded great and Rascal Flatts were decent as well.

On their own performance The Band Perry hit a lot of sour notes and flatnotes and were not impressive at all. Billy Currington and LeAnn Rimes wereeasily the best looking couple on the stage tonight presenting. Billy shouldhave been nominated for a few awards as his album had better songs than most ofthe shite that was given award nominations. Matt Nathanson and Sugarlandperformed and did so incredibly. Matt just has a great stage presence and wellNettles pretty owns the stage when she's on it like her or not she's a strongperformer. I was happy she was wearing a shirt and jacket that didn't show herindented chest lacking of weight and boobs this year. That was a nice changethe low cut neckline was obscured enough that I didn't feel sick to my stomach.If it wasn't best performance of the night it was damn close for sure.

Although I don't really like the song Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwoodperformed ok. Carrie sounded kinda lame but she pulled it out I guess. Not herbest live moment that's for sure and she sounded very nasal on the song I guessthat's why she was buried in the live mix in hopes to hide her off night. Sheusually nails it and because of her history of doing just that I will give hera pass. Let's all hope she picks better songs for her new album this comingyear. OMG Lauren Alaina looked fantastic and she's so damn likable too. Newartist of the year again wrong! Eric Church is the best new artist and in tenyears he'll still be going strong The Band Perry will be long forgotten historyplaying small club and free stages at county fairs.

Scotty comes out and sings "Walk In The Country" from KeithUrban's first band The Ranch and did a really good job of it. He lookedcomfortable and didn't seem nervous at all considering Urban was not far away.I like how he did the country radio announcements with how they have been veryreluctant to add his singles to rotation. One of the major US radio programmerswas quoted as saying he wanted to be warned so he could hide when Scotty wasbrought around on the radio tour for Idol. It was good little screw you tothose bigots hating on the kid even though his album was pretty poor overall.But what do you expect when the producers and record label wanted Lauren to bethe winner.

This award show nominee and winner wise would be completely different if I was picking them but the presenters, performance & bit writing havebeen good so far. Jason Aldean can't sing and he proves it right away hittingbum notes all over the place. He just sounds fake like he's trying to sing witha twang while imitating Dwight Yoakam's nasal tone but missing the point on aconsistent basis. I don't know what's wrong with the industry in the 2000's butthey complain about ticket sales and album sales when they push crap artistslike him. Male vocalist of the year is not even close Brad Paisley is the onlychoice and clear-cut winner. So I was shocked when Shelton won it but I guessbeing Mr. Miranda Lambert did him well. Another wrong choice even though I dolove Shelton's music and he's a good performer but c'mon.

Martina McBride sang the same song she's sang every year for like whattwelve years now. I don't even care anymore because she's always doing a torchsong of some sort and we all know far and few torch songs are good. She waslucky to have one really good one and tonight was not one of them. It is timefor that lady to fire her handlers and hire some that will tell her no on aregular basis and maybe she will be able to find the top of the charts again.Pretty lady though and has a great voice in that hot little five footpackage.

The whole tribute to Glen Campbell which is for him being sick now andtouring before he can't perform any longer is a nice moment on the show andit's too bad about his Alzheimer's diagnosis. Everyone gets old and all we cando is wish him well and hope the media don't exploit him once he's fallendeeply into the disease. The moment was near tear jerking considering thebreadth of what is coming for such a great performer. It's entirely too badthat the old school gets no respect from country radio. I'd rather hear theirclassics than a good portion of what is on the stations rotation now.

The return of Faith Hill for me is a who gives a crap feeling because thiswoman has sucked for years now singing painfully overblown ballad or torch songafter another. She's been so far out of touch with what a hit song is that allI can expect is she will do yet another boring one tonight. Ok so I was right for themost part but the song didn't suck nearly as much I expected. She did lookgreat as expected and hopefully this will be her return and she'll have somemore uptempo fun numbers in her new catalog.

Female VocalistOf The Year: Miranda Lambert! Whoop! Whoop! Whoop! The most deserving of allgets rewarded for her excellence.

Reba gets to giveTaylor Swift her award for Entertainer Of The Year and anyone with a brain andmusic knowledge knows that girl deserves it and is easily the winner. She'ssold more tickets than most of the acts on the show combined, she's most likelysold more albums than them as well. Taylor Swift is one of the biggest stars inthe world today and she more than even my favorite Miranda Lambert deserves theaward hands down. Swift is gracious and cute and honest in her acceptance fromthe immortal Reba who herself has won a couple of these and knows how importantit is to a career and having longevity. My favorite part of the whole show isher reading the list of people to thank off her arm. That says it all, she'sjust so damn nice and normal.

Overall the showwas good and I enjoyed the three hours well almost all of the three hours.

Katie Waissel - Self Titled

2011-11-06T09:56:00.000-08:00

Katie was one of my favorites from last season on X-Factor UK where she was showcasing her overtly crazy and manic personality which nearly outshined her serious singing talent. She made it to eighth place I believe maybe seventh but deserved to be there a much longer time. I believe seeing her weekly and the producers using her bi-polar like emotional breaks in most of the editing of her content didn't help the British public fall in love with her. I on the other hand wasn't put off by that I fell in love with her more each week because of her vocal talent and her ability to draw me into whatever she was singing. Her album, post X-Factor is giving the people what they want and that is her unorthodox style with all the schizophrenic genius that the show exploited more than it needed to be.

The music has a very 60's retro sound on most of the songs but always sounds current with the slick production and her ability to stay up to date while letting her modern influences breath deeply. This album is almost as good as her competitor from the same season Cher Lloyd. Albeit a completely different record with little similarities outside of strong productions and quality songwriting. Her duet with David Reed is a really good modern ballad that with little effort should be a hit single for her. Another of the standout songs is "Bone To Pick" which again has a girl group era sound that could have been produced by Phil Spector as it uses much of his style in the overall colorization of the song.

From one song to the next there isn't a misstep to be had and Katie has found her sound which is even more likable than her indie release as Katie Vogel in the US. Other tracks I really, really enjoy from this record are "What's It Gonna Be", "A Little Strange", "Brighter Than Sunshine" and "The Ugly Truth" all are total winners these songs just stand out a little more to me when I'm listening to this delightful platter of digital matter. UK X-Factor again hit a home-run discovering yet another awesome talent.

Cher Lloyd - Sticks + Stones

2011-11-06T01:25:00.000-07:00

Finally the album has dropped and all I can say is Cher Lloyd welcome to the party! This album has been crafted to near perfection with all the great quirks and swagger she exuded on the X-Factor UK. Her sound is undeniably good with more of the slick pop meets hip-hop wrapped up in electro-pop that she slayed audiences with all season long on the show. This is one of those rare finds for the elongated audition process we've all come to love as singing competition shows.

Cher's album kicks off with "Grow Up" that is a hot number featuring Busta Rhymes who sounds better than I've ever heard him sound before. The album features few others that all get to come along for one of this years best pop rides named Sticks + Stones. The entire album carries huge hits from the beginning to the end with little to no filler to be found. The very Lilly Allen sounding "Beautiful People" allows her to expand her sound further. The track includes Carolina Liar doing a good job of keeping up with Cher's huge talents. The sample of Nena Cherry's "Buffalo Stance" on "Playa Boi" brings that songs catchy melody back to life improving on the original with a cool little dub-step breakdown in the middle.

On the technical side this album is produced to an absolute superlative level. There really is nothing that could be done to improve on the records sound quality. Another of the fantastic tracks is "Superhero" that has so much gregarious fun mixed into it that you should be giddy with gladness after one listen. Probably the only dub-step song I've ever enjoyed to the point of near addiction is "Over The Moon" that isn't completely a dub-step song but it has enough of the style in it to be acceptable in naming it from that genre. Cher continues to drop potential hit song after hit song and this album is easily in the top five of best albums of 2011. I will be listening to Sticks + Stones a lot and for a long time as the music is just so enjoyable that I can't help feeding my addiction to bubblegum pop.

This girl is the future of pop music and her debut album rivals Ke$ha's and Katy Perry's debut as one of the best pop records of 2000's. If the X-Factor UK can find another popster this good (Misha B maybe?) it will be the most credible talent show being aired, even over American Idol which is more famous for finding country stars at this point than genre defining pop stars like Kelly Clarkson. I look forward to seeing Cher take over the world with "Swagger Jagger"!

Michael Bublé - Christmas

2011-11-01T21:09:00.001-07:00

There have been some good Christmas albums like Randy Travis's or The Tractors but there has been way too many terrible ones to mention. Most of them are full of boring drivel slow sappy crap that really puts you to sleep. This is not one of those holiday records at all. Bublé delivers the single greatest Christmas record in my collection. I've always been good for purchasing one new album of holiday music every year even since the ability to download from the internet I've still spent the money to grab one new to add to my collection. This season I'm so excited that it gets to Michael Bublé because he deserves every single penny in the price tag. I'm am so happy to have been able to get all my seasonal favorites, ok almost all there are a couple of songs missing but I will have them added to a playlist with the music here and it will be the best Christmas music anyone could ask for bar none.

Most wouldn't believe how much of a fan of this stuff I really am because I don't usually profess my adoration for it to my friends and family. I'm a little bit more quiet about it than I should be really because I'm not quiet about much when it comes to music and what sucks and what doesn't suck. This album has nineteen tracks of pure white snowy joy. The only album that I can recommend to absolutely every single person I know from old to young to metal head to country or jazz fan. You won't spend money any wiser than when you add this to the holiday shopping list. Make sure to purchase this album for all your secret Santa parties and your parents, grandparents, neighbours and so forth. This is the Christmas album of the millennium 5 Ho Ho Ho's!

Another Canuck kicks ass!

Miranda Lambert - Four The Record

2011-11-01T20:12:00.001-07:00

Miranda Lambert has been a favorite of mine since she was a runner-up on season one of Nashville Star. Obviously she was best the show had to offer and has continued to prove it since her debut presentation. The thing that makes Miranda a standout is that she's like nobody else out today. She doesn't make typical sounding Nashville records and she's a little gritty and dirty while being stunning and charmingly elegant all at the same time. The most important factor of Miranda Lambert is she's a songwriter which gives her tons more credibility than any of her peers who sing professionally written material nearly all the time. On her new album she opens with a nice country tune and then follows it up with a groovy little vaudevillian inspired pop country tune with vocal effects in place adding to her grit.

When the inevitable Nashville pro's clean her up enough she still has all the piss and vinegar we've come to love and spews out a nasty little number "Fastest Girl In Town" which is probably about as honest she's ever been on record. The torch song "Safe" is obscured with loose production and a laid back groove that allows her snarl to soften enough to be emotional without being all gooey and sappy. Country artists like this don't really exist in the mainstream market much and never have when it comes to Nashville country stars. Miranda Lambert is giving the genre credibility which is sorely lacks when your garbage pop stars like Carrie Underwood, Lady Antebellum and so forth running awful songs up the charts on a consistent basis. Proving that marketing and payola can make any no talent hack a star (Underwood can sing admittedly but chooses terrible songs).

When a pure country song like "Dear Diamond" plays through it grabs you and doesn't let go. That's partly her voice and the quality songwriting that makes the song so wonderfully satisfying. I would have been satisfied with this album after hearing "Same Old You" which is now at this point one of the my favorite songs of 2011. I'd have to even add it to my all-time favorites list because I wanted to sing along to it from the 20 second mark. This is one of those tunes that just grabs me and stays with me forever. I've been lucky to enjoy some pretty great music in my life and this song takes me to a place very few have. Now this album is fifteen tracks deep and usually that is a sign of filler material but honestly I can't find anything to complain about on this record. It is one of them special albums that is the sum of its parts nothing can be taken away to make it better, it would only make it worse because it's all so bloody good. There is a small section in the second half that slows it way down but great music is to be had even when she conforms for the Nashville process.

"Oklahoma Sky" is spectacular and can't be missed the song is just glorious and beautiful. She closes the album with "Hurts To Think" which is an obvious candidate for single. Another good old girl saucy tune that I'd love to experience her singing live in concert. I believe it would be a little more aggressive and nasty bringing out her feisty side a little more. A wicked country album that doesn't sellout or disappoint ever, unlike much of the pop music that is running around on the country charts in the 2000's.

Benny Benassi - Electroman

2011-11-01T19:46:00.001-07:00

Benny Benassi's latest album has some pretty average club grooves and thumping bass to drive your car sub to the extreme. It has been out awhile but I've been a little busy listening to other stuff and pretty much forgot this one until now. On the opening cut "Good Girl" he uses the electronic voice which instantly has familiarity bringing his audience into his world immediately. The album has more in common with top 40 pop than one might assume right off the top. When songs like "Spaceship" play through you know that your tween will be all over it because it sings to that crowd with the dumb lyrics and BEP rapping from apl.de.ap, and Jean-Baptiste and the undeniably homogenized Kelis vocalizing 'get high over and over and over again. The single released with Chris Brown guesting is a very boring and does very little for me. I just don't find it catchy or fun at all and there is the problem with the majority of this album.

But then he hits a 450 foot homerun over the scoreboard with a killer track like "House Music" that just drives you to your feet to shake your ass. If this album has more of these type of songs it would be a classic and one of the best dance albums ever made but it doesn't. Gary Go and T-Pain are good enough and improve their tracks enough to make them stand above most of the other tunes on Electroman. Gary Go's "Control" has an immediately lovable intro then breaks into another of the albums best moments. This should have been the albums lead single which would have driven the sales and bringing many new listeners who wouldn't be able to ignore how good this song is.

The inclusion of Skrillex's dub-step remix of "Cinema" to be honest kinda works for me and I am not a dub-step fan at this point. I enjoy a little touch of it now and again but a whole song makes me feel sick. This however works well enough to recommend giving it a listen. Bonus tracks include the Skrillex remix as well as "Put It On Me" with Pitbull and some other extra's which help give the album value but really just buy the three or four tunes that really cook and leave the rest in obscurity where they belong.

Retro Rewind Track: Megadeth - Reckoning Day

2011-10-24T18:09:00.001-07:00

Megadeth - TH1RT3EN

2011-10-24T18:02:00.000-07:00

The second best version of the band drops TH1RT3EN and all I can say is what a solid album. The production is stellar keeping all the power and aggression contained within a nice tight package and the attack of Chris Broderick is nothing short of amazing. He has such precise picking that you can tell when Dave's playing a solo and Chris is playing a solo because Dave doesn't come close. Dave's great don't get me wrong but there is a seriously talented guitar player standing beside him now and it shows just like when Marty joined the party on Rust In Pieces. The opening cut is a pretty standard Megadeth song and isn't as invigorating as the last two albums opening cuts.

I like the metal assault of "Whose Life (Is It Anyway)" which is a good bet for single from the album and is one of the bands most accessible to date. That is sure to piss off their fans who only live in the past with the first four albums never expecting the band to grow or change. I really think this album is on par with their complete return to excellence Endgame. The heavy groove of "We The People" has Dave sounding as snarky as ever and the band backing him up puts it all down just right. Even as good as Rust, Endgame or Countdown were they were not perfect as they have been romanticized to be. The same can be said about TH1RT3EN easily too because its not. This is a band that's been around for what 26 years and never completely sucked ever. Sure they had some mis-steps in the 90's but never did those albums lose complete sight of the metal history. This album is like that it is for sure more accessible and that is because of the seriously good and tight production.

This album sounds expensive and once again lays down the heavy metal gauntlet to all the current ear metal bands to catch up. Dave Ellefson's return to the fold also makes this album sound more cohesive. He is the other 50% of Megadeth and with him missing over the last while still made a difference to the sound of Megadeth. The band have a couple of classic tunes here "Never Dead" which harkens back to the sound of Countdown where the band was at its creative best. Listen to Chris's solo too it's awesome and Dave's vocals never sounded better. It is followed by "New World Order" another stellar tune that includes all the Megadeth tricks and stylistic rhythms we've come to love as fans of one of the greatest metal bands of all-time.

Mega-Dave and his gang of thrashers continue to write some pretty slick material that should please most of the bands legions of headbangers. The one thing I hope is that the band do more of this album live I'd like to hear "Fast Lane", "Black Swan" and "Never Dead" live. Considering the album has thirteen tracks which is a long player I don't get bored at all listening to the new music. The back half of the album might even be better than the front overall too. I mean just listen to "Wrecker" and its excellent riffing and drum fills. Yeah he's actually pretty good on this album too but he's still no Nick Menza. Now I must go and start the album over again because two listens is nowhere near enough of a new Megadeth album. Last.FM stats will be full of TH1RT3EN scrobbles for the next while and that's for sure. "Deadly Nightshade" will probably be the most listened to by the end of the week.

The Kentucky Headhunters - Dixie Lullabies

2011-10-23T12:59:00.000-07:00

A band that has seen a lot of turmoil and change in members and style over their long career. It's been a lot longer than most would think considering they were plugging away for years before the rocket ride to the top of the industry back in 1989. The band was known as the Itchy Brothers from 1968 - 1982 never moving past the cover circuit. The band has a large catalog of 8 albums that has seen three lead vocalists none of the changes saw the sort of success of their first leader Ricky Lee Phelps who was their best front man for sure. 2011 sees the band playing their swampy version of southern rock mixed with some country flavor one more time. Nothing has really changed here if you are familiar with their last couple of albums.

I wasn't impressed with the overall production on this platter because the usually snappy drum sound is not anywhere near usual and the vocal production is either too tiny or too up-front in the mix. The otherwise lack of good material is another case for indifference to the Kentucky Headhunters in 2011. This band is much less "Dumas Walker" now than ever before and that's a shame because when they indulge their country side they cook. Now not every track is a stinker "Tumblin' Rose" is a good song but it's got some awful lead vocals layed over top of it. Another shame because its a really good song being obscured by shite singing and production. I've heard bands record in their garage get better quality out of a cheap four track that's how pathetic the sound is now.

Obviously this album is an indie record and shows just how important it is to have a seriously good producer turning the knobs in a real studio. "In A Perfect World" sounds like the band if hammered while putting this together and all the instruments sound seperate as if they are all playing in different rooms trying to hear what the tempo is and where they bass player is with little success. I'd think the pot smoking has taken its toll on their brains and the beer and whiskey for breakfast and dinner is not working in their favour any longer.

I'd love to hear this album put together in Nashville with a serious budget and someone like Toby Keith or the like working with them to round out the songs. The glorious boogie of "Sugar Daddy" deserves better treatment and another sure fire smoker if only it didn't sound like lame wanna be band at the town fair. The bands need to drop a Blue Cheer meets Mountain style blues number called "Little Miss Blues Breaker" could be a demo it's so distressed in sound quality. The it gives way to another song that drives me crazy "Little Angel" easily a comeback quality song that might have given this band a change to play some big clubs and theatre's again or even get on a major acts tour as opener. But nope again another cheap rushed through rendition of a solid tune that could be hit for Billy Currington or Joe Nichols. "Ain't That A Shame" apes the Rolling Stones in style and another sad moment because of the poor recording. I don't think the performances are as bad as you'd think because if they had sounded big and expensive (Pro Tools and a Mac could do it) the songs would be ok. The albums closing number is '50's doo wop ballad type song that sounds out of place and has some of the worst vocals the album has offered. I'd love to hear this song covered by many other artists George Strait or Willie Nelson come to mind right away.

Don't buy this album or download it for free unless you are a completest and have to have all their stuff no matter what. The album will leave you sad, disappointed and annoyed especially if you are as much of a fan as I am of their previous stuff.

Top 20 U2 Songs Of All-Time

2011-10-21T22:14:00.000-07:00

20. Even Better Than The Real Thing
19. Beautiful Day
18. With Or Without You
17. In God's Country
16. Desire
15. Where The Streets Have No Name
14. Red Hill Mining Town
13. All I Want Is You
12. Numb
11. Get On Your Boots
10. God, Pt. 2
09. Vertigo
08. I Will Follow
07. Two Hearts Beat As One
06. New Year's Day
05. Gloria
04. Sunday Bloody Sunday
03. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
02. Angel Of Harlem
01. Elevation

Retro Rewind Track: Shotgun Messiah - Don't Care About Nothing

2011-10-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

The Goods

2011-10-21T21:09:00.000-07:00

10 Songs That Should Be On Everybody's I-Pod

2011-10-21T20:57:00.000-07:00

Since Josh cleaned up his library and a welcomed 17GB's of free space on his I-Pod I'm inspired to help him and the rest fill up some more space.

10. Coconuts by Reckless Love
09. Rock N' Roll Romance by State Of Shock
08. Radio Surgery by New Found Glory
07. Tupelo by Lauren Alaina
06. She's Not There by The Zombies
05. My Mockingbird by Count Zero
04. I Love You by Yellow
03. Your Love by Marie Digby
02. Mercenary by Panic! At The Disco
01. Hang It Up by The Ting Tings

Steel Panther - Balls Out

2011-10-21T19:59:00.001-07:00

The dirty boys return with a new album and all I can say is I wish they'd just recorded the album with decent lyrics and stop with the degrading juvenile shit. This album isn't smart or funny it's just plane dumb now and kinda sad because there are some seriously good riffs and song ideas in the music. "Supersonic Sex Machine" is a good slice of hair metal that just has ridiculously bad lyrics. Then the following tune "Just Like Tiger Woods" has a melody of a winner for sure murdered by terrible lyrics once again. The band strike a perfect melodic tune called "If You Really, Really Love Me" that could have been a hit today in this rock market. I think that's what really drives me to dislike the lyrics this time around and find nothing entertaining coming from Michael Starr's mouth.

It's just not funny anymore and I'm totally a fan of the stupidity of "I Want Your Tits", "Fat Girl (Thar She Blows)", "Death To All But Metal" & "I Want Pussy" but nothing on this album compares to the whit or fun of those tracks. This is just stupid trying to out do itself.

Sawyer Brown - Travelin' Band

2011-10-21T19:58:00.000-07:00

A blast from the past is to be had with a new Sawyer Brown album which hasn't been a listening option for a long time six years to be exact and well that album wasn't worthy of anyone's attention to be honest. I've been a fan of this band for as long most could be as I watched them tear apart the competition on Star Search back in the 80's. The band sound classy and polished on Travelin' Band and I love the albums opening track "Ain't Goin' Out That Way" as it reminds me of their earlier material which I find intoxicatingly fun. The first single is the island influenced "Smokin' Hot Wife" that is cheesy as hell but such a wonderful guilty pleasure. That's kinda what Sawyer Brown excels at and that's being good cheesy fun.

They follow the single with a wonderful cha cha called "Walk Out Of The Rain" which is instantly enjoyable. It's one of those songs that gets your feet tapping and your head bopping side to side immediately. They hit the gospel, southern gospel feel and really their classic up-tempo sound with "Come Along" that begs you to turn the volume dial up and get your ass off the couch and shake that tail feather for all your worth. This is a serious return to form for a band I didn't have much faith in any longer. They take inspiration from "Get Back" by the Beatles for "New Set Of Tires" which might not be the greatest Sawyer Brown song ever but it's a damn good time to be had for sure.

As with all their albums the band pull a couple of boners and here they go by the names "Cool Night" and "Deliver Me" but redemption is had on the albums last two cuts. Both up beat songs that are worth hearing and the closer "Runaway Heart" is totally another classic era sounding tune. Good verses and a great chorus that all their fans should always expect from this band and hold the feet to the fire when they don't put the proper work in to their songs. This album is for their fans and if you like them at all is a good addition to your Sawyer Brown collection.

Montgomery Gentry - Rebels On The Run

2011-10-21T19:41:00.000-07:00

Here is a perfect example of why Nashville sucks ass, Montgomery Gentry a short couple of years ago were the darlings of the country duo genre. They got some of the best songs for their albums from the resources of the pro's writing songs. Now since they've aged a little and aren't the monster hit achievers it seems the quality of material has been downgraded for them. This album has some really typical bullshit pro America numbers for their biker and military fans a couple of religious christian crap tunes and third rate outlaw country numbers.

They really don't get a truly good song until "Simple Things" graces our speakers and I used that word because the drivel that's preceded it this song is the albums saving grace for not completely sucking. They do lame Skynrd meets Carrie Underwood on the tune "So Called Life" that sounds as if was lifted from the filler section of Underwoods last album. At this point I don't care if these guys ever release another album because if we get more of the shit material on Rebels On The Run there is no reason to listen let alone care.

Jane's Addiction - The Great Escape Artist

2011-10-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

Hmmm.....

I really like this band but not from a song stand point but from a sonic one. I enjoy the soundscapes they create together much more than individual songs they write. With that being said I do enjoy their singles like "Jane Says" or "Been Caught Stealing" very much. On the bands latest album they seem to be looking for a hit instead of just creating music. I also hear this album as more towards Perry Farrell's baby than a group or duet collaboration with Dave Navarro. I find it sounds more like a Porno For Pyro's than Jane's Addiction.

I do find many strong songs here but as far as an album it doesn't have the grit that Strays did and it is easily a better record than Dave's awful band The Panic Channel's (ONe) or Perry's Satellite Party albums. If you are looking for the first two or three records this will not satisfy your thirst at all. If you want a middle aged Jane who's more introspective, satisfied and serene then this album can fill your needs. Overall it's a solid record but more of a song oriented creation and less of a large sonic sound storm.

Cold Play - Mylo Xyloto

2011-10-21T18:52:00.000-07:00

The inevitable return of Cold Play has arrived with their new album Mylo Xyloto a fourteen track journey for one of the worlds most popular bands. Now I've never been much of a fan of this band outside of their singles now and again. This hasn't changed with their 2011 release as in part the band can't seem to put together enough catchy or engaging material to keep me interested for their entire record. This album does have some really good songs like "Hurts Like Heaven" which I could listen to over and over and over again. It is a brilliant tune and has so much good going on in the 4:02 that one listen just isn't enough.

They do not reach this level of glory at any point on the rest of the album but they do have some good songs and one of their very best tunes so far in "Us Against The World" which is nearly as captivating as "Hurts Like Heaven". I think its my second favorite song they've written and released so far as a band and is a hair behind the a fore mentioned slice of genius. The album is going to please their fans easily and most who like Cold Play should be very impressed and happy with what this album delivers. I can see "Charlie Brown" doing good business as a single as it's a decent candidate for a radio release. The first single "Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall" is likeable but doesn't hold up after a few listens I find it gets to a point where I don't really pay attention to it but don't turn it off either. That is pretty much how I feel about the entire album outside of the select few songs. So if you are a fan of Cold Play you should buy this album because it is exactly what their legions of fans have come to expect.

Kelly Clarkson - Stronger

2011-10-17T15:16:00.000-07:00

Kelly has too much to live up to with her last record being such a pleasure to listen to as it was for so many. Her new album's title Stronger is a little telling because almost always a female vocalists album that takes on a similar title are full of weak pop ballads and overwrought torch songs. This also is a common trait for many female singers in general that are the same level as Kelly Clarkson has worked up to. The album's first single is also the one that kicks off the album which I find pretty average as it comes and goes.

The album is as I suspected full of dull overblown almost over sung pop ballads of gooey bullshit. She has obviously found a few too many yes men to surround herself with while recording this album. The album does have some really good songs like "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)" that is a trademark mid-paced dance pop tune of Ms. Clarkson. The slide begins with "Dark Side" that is boring until the chorus but that isn't all that strong. It continues through the next track "Honestly" which is more drivel and Kelly can do better which she's proved many times before. The quality in the writing improves greatly with "You Love Me" that again is more akin to her pedigree.

After two more pathetic attempts at song writing pass she gives us "I Forgive You" that redeems her one more time. Still a good tune but on the weak side follows called "Hello" followed by two more that should have been left off the album cuts filler material for sure which is pretty much how most of the album plays two bad one decent or good repeat pattern. The album includes that absolutely overrated piece of shit ballad "Don't You Wanna Stay" which I don't understand why it was a hit because his voice is awful and the song is boring as hell. The additional tracks includes "Alone" which is a solid number and should be on the regular release not the expanded or the deluxe version as its nearly better than all the other tracks on the album. "Don't Be A Girl About It" is also another of the bonus tracks that eclipse much of the other stuff on the album.

This isn't a terrible record it just has a lot of filler material which is unnecessary considering how many pro song writers are out there today. She could have found much better material to record than what has appeared on Stronger. Also to get the better songs you will have to shell out extra cash for the deluxe version because that's where her better songs are located.

Retro Rewind Track: Damn Yankees - Coming Of Age

2011-10-08T22:26:00.001-07:00

Styx - Regeneration

2011-10-08T21:34:00.000-07:00

The current line-up of Styx has re-recorded some of their best material which is cool with me as I love when bands do this because sometimes you get a real gem. I have to say that this album is a complete surprise to me as they sound bloody brilliant on nearly every song that's included on the two discs. It's almost like getting a live Styx concert minus the vocal mistakes that happen in a live show. When the Grand Illusion starts you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference until the uber fans hear the slight differences in Gowan's vocals. Don't get me wrong he's damn close but he's got a fuller voice than Dennis has/had and that slight difference can be heard when you are as familiar with their material as I am being one of those uber fans of Styx.

I was a little surprised the Larry didn't have lead vocals on "Lorelei" almost disappointed to be honest. I guess Ricky Phillips is singing it because I don't believe J.Y. can sing that well. But alas it is J.Y. and he's not terrible but it is lesser than the original in every way. With that said Gowan's singing of "Come Sail Away" is a good cover of a great song that can never be done better by any other artist. Dennis's vocal on this track perfect beginning to end and the musicality the band surrounded that absolutely perfect vocal with can't be touch no matter how anyone may try. The original is the best version and will forever be the best version.

The second disc continues with the remakes and includes a couple of Damn Yankee covers as well. We all know Tommy was a Damn Yankee along with one of my favorite musicians/song writers Jack Blades and the overrated Ted Nugent on guitar. The band do a great version of "Blue Collar Man" that rivals the original but still lacks the spirit of that first recording. Tommy does himself no favors singing "Renegade" in a different key much lower than what we have been hearing for over 30 years. The bands new version is almost terrible once it kicks in and they sound so devoid of emotion and lack of fire as they run through their cover version of their own song.

Then "Too Much Time On My Hands" is played differently and Tommy sounds old not to mention like a parody of himself trying to sing a tribute to his own band and song. It's like a cover band at the bar who's singer almost sounds like Tommy and when your drunk singing along he's a dead ringer for Tommy Shaw. Now to the Damn Yankees covers, well first things "Coming Of Age" was sung by Jack Blades - JACK FREAKING BLADES! Whomever is attempting to do it here hasn't got a fucking hope in hell of matching the AOR genius. The version is an ok cover but I'd never listen to this when I can hear the real thing there is no reason to listen to some assclown trying to be one of the greatest AOR vocalists on planet earth. Then we get "High Enough" which actually isn't awful it's a pretty good version from Tommy. It's shows the flaws in his aged voice because he doesn't have that Blades harmony to cover them up. Overall I'd say this is a pass just go buy Greatest Hits from 1992 and be happy or really do yourself a favour and buy Equinox, Crystal Ball, The Grand Illusion & Cornerstone to enjoy the brilliance of this most glorious band.

Mastodon - Hunter

2011-10-08T20:54:00.000-07:00

With heavy music floodgates roaring we have another album to enjoy. Mastadon return with Hunter and they don't sell-out to make a dollar here either. The band continue to be just as furiously wonderful as on previous albums but they are a little more polished this time around. I believe that's more so because of experience than attempts of making a commercial impact.

The bands Black Sabbath influence is highly visible all the way though the album that balances their stoner rock elements nicely not allowing them to fall to far into the blatant jamming that often results in stoner rock. I really like that they embrace some of the psychedelic on their album like the excellent "Octopus Has No Friends" which could be from a very different time. I really did find much to enjoy on this album like "Dry Bone Valley", "Creature Lives" which was most definitely influenced by the Beach Boys pet sounds era or a little later into the 70's. The vicious "Spectrelight" is another pretty raging heavy tune that just begs to be played as loud as you can possibly handle. On the closing song I hear a very Pink Floyd sound the Roger Waters darkness from the wall era and another of the songs I really enjoyed. A good album with its flaws but still worth a listen for sure.

Scotty McCreery - Clear As Day

2011-10-08T20:33:00.000-07:00

The American Idol winners album release is here and it's well, what one would expect from the Idol machine. Albeit the album doesn't 100% suck but c'mon this is completely pedestrian, professionally written modern country. When Scotty sings the songs I'm not convinced he even likes most of them. The cover version of "Walk In The Country" originally done by The Ranch who was Keith Urban's band is decent but it pales in comparison because the guitar and banjo aren't present enough and Scotty's voice is too um gurplely if that makes sense kinda almost muppet-ish.

The over reaching production has taken any personality out of his vocals for sure and that was his best asset on the show. The first song on the album that I really like and want to listen to a second or third time even is "Write My Number On Your Hand" as it sounds like it could have been a hit from Neal McCoy or Kenny Chesney dare I say George Strait even. It has that sort of feel and I'm not going to lie I really like this song so hopefully it will be a single quickly so the kid has a tiny chance to get on the radio. He does have another winner on here called "You Make That Look Good" which should be another single for him but I tell ya if Trace Adkins or Blake Shelton was singing it the song would already be number one and sold a truck load of singles. Here is the trouble with the album overall; too many freaking ballads and bad, weak run-of-the-mill heard it all before done better garbage ballads too.

This kid was handed some really lame material to sing and if I was in his camp I would have refused at minimum six of the twelve tracks here. Scotty has some talent and he deserves a much better set of songs to sing than piss poor wanna be pop ballads with a twang installed for country status. The alternate Idol single "Out Of Summertime" is a far better song than that awkward sounding "I Love You This Big" kinda proving the American Idol powers didn't want him to be the winner. I will admit he didn't deserve to be crowned the winner over Lauren and anybody with ears and eyes know that but somehow stupid American's got it wrong again for the third straight year. Again this album is pretty cookie cutter fluff that lacks spirit and emotion from Scotty who obviously doesn't like a good portion of the junk they forced him to sing. Maybe his next album will be a little better.

Five Finger Death Punch - American Capitalist

2011-10-08T20:11:00.000-07:00

This is a kick ass, face melting, ear bleeding slice of metal happiness. FFDP deliver the goods on American Capitalist in a big way. The title track which opens the album with the lyrics 'I'm a red blooded Rough neck, Son of a bitch, I'm a goddamned American capitalist" that are instantly engrained into your brain and tells you with authority what this album has in-store for you the listener. Another excellent metal record release in the second half of 2011 continuing the current streak which is awesome for us fans heavy metal. The band's first single "Under & Over It" is a crushing elephant stampede with a lyrical kick in the face that just puts a huge smile on my face. As the album blazes across it's eleven tracks some of the music is a little off the pace of greatness the first two songs for sure. The bands attempt at a crossover type tune "Coming Down" is actually a really good tune and doesn't sound like a selling of their soul at all. See this band has the ability to be themselves even when trying to grow or be dynamic. That is not easy for a lot nu-metal acts but FFDP do it easily and honestly as its just another part of their own sound so it transitions smoothly. I have to admit I do not care for the very weak "I'll Fall" it is just a bad song but the closing song "100 Ways To Hate" makes up for it ten times over. If you like nu-metal or power metal than this album is a wicked choice. The album art is also brilliant as you can see in the picture here. Listen to the playlist and enjoy the metal, HORNS UP!

Hollowick - Beautiful People

2011-10-08T19:43:00.000-07:00

Upon first listen to this band I had no expectations of who or what they were which turned out a good thing considering most bands never live up to the anticipation or hype. As aggressive musically as Hollowick are lyrically, they tread the line neatly between the Alt. Rock/pop punk of the likes of Green Day and Foo Fighters, and the vintage arena rock of guitar driven bands from the '70's and ‘80’s, but with a style and sound that’s all their own. The albums opening cut is an aggressive rocker that has a solid chorus and excellent groove from note one "Just Another Day" delivers in spades. The album progresses along quite nicely weaving some straight ahead hard rock into pop rock tunes almost hitting power pop status. The first three songs are the best the band have to offer and don't return to quite as solid ground until you're far into the record where the power ballad "There Goes Another One" presents itself. Another really good tune called "Gimme Gimme" closes the album on the full song front which is again stands high a-top the middle of the albums more filler material. Overall this album is uneven but it plays good enough on a full listen and when the band hit they do so hard and heavy.

Jessie J Acoustic Domino

2011-10-08T18:48:00.001-07:00

The Goods This Week

2011-10-08T13:58:00.001-07:00

10 Songs That Should Be On Everybody's I-Pod

2011-10-08T13:25:00.000-07:00

Music has been slowly improving over the past couple months with some really good pop stuff and some excellent metal that's been released. Here is a ten pack of stuff I'm currently familiarizing my neighbors with.

10. The Fight's About To Begin by Hinder

09. Domino by Jessie J.

08. Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen

07. Different by Ximena Sarinana

06. Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 Feat. Christina Aguilera

05. World Wide Rebel Songs by Tom Morello

04. Public Enemy No. 1 by Megadeth

03. Bottom's Up by Nickelback

02. Stand Up by James Durbin

01. I Like How It Feels by Enrique Iglesias Feat. Pitbull

Warbringer - Worlds Torn Asunder

2011-10-01T00:42:00.000-07:00

Not the biggest fan of Warbringer because until now I had no idea who they were. This band is inspired by the mighty thrash-tastic goodness of early Testament, Anthrax, Metallica, Overkill and Exodus for sure. Not bad bands to draw from if I do say so myself. These guys know how to keep it simple enough to appeal to the casual thrasher and then pull out a crusher for the more die hard fan. This music is tailor made for the mosh pit and will give you a soar neck from headbanging into oblivion as it roars from your speakers

Song Highlights: Treacherous Tongue, Living Weapon, Savagery, Behind The Veils Of Night & Enemies Of The State