tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26411871043821429832024-01-02T16:04:30.566-05:00The Old Man's Music VaultReviews and reflections on a lifetime's worth of music.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.comBlogger852125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-82473618322272357292024-01-02T16:03:00.005-05:002024-01-02T16:03:31.969-05:00Favorite Albums of 2023<p><i>Well, another year in the
books. I can say this year was slightly better than previous years, personally
speaking. But only marginally. Music wise, however, it was absolutely fantastic.
A literal deluge of great albums. I’ve decided to break up my top five picks
and my favorite death metal picks. It seems like there was just SO much good
stuff. I couldn’t limit myself to just five. So without further ado…</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Top Five Favorite Albums of
2023</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Haken, <i>Fauna </i></b>– I’ve
enjoyed Haken’s output since I first discovered them with <i>The Mountain. </i>However,
<i>Fauna </i>is probably the first album since then that’s reached the heights
of that classic album. I listened to this over and over when it came out. There’s
so many good hooks on this one. And so much emotion.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Fall Out Boy, <i>So Much For
Stardust </i></b>– I’ve always been a fan of Fall Out Boy, but there later
albums are…lacking… to be polite. I heard the “Love From the Other Side” and
was blown away. This album could have been a follow up to <i>Infinity on High. </i>It’s
everything I always liked from that era of the band. Except the two spoken work
interludes, which I deleted after I heard them.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Randy Rose, <i>The Masquerade</i></b>
– I wasn’t big on Rose’s previous album, <i>Songs for the Ritually Abused. The
Masquerade, </i>however, is exactly what I wanted from him. Maybe a bit more
sludgey and doomy – but this only makes it better. The grooves on this album
just hit hard and are immediately infectious. Easily stacks up against <i>Sacrificium
</i>and <i>Healing.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Alice Cooper, <i>Road </i></b>–
I was a bit concerned after <i>Detroit Stories </i>did absolutely nothing for
me. <i>Road </i>won me over pretty quickly. This album finds Alice excelling in
his niche. I also really liked the whole “touring band” theme. It felt like it
gave this album some motivation and energy. Much like <i>Paranormal, </i>Alice isn’t doing
anything new or groundbreaking, but everything here is vintage Alice.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Mutoid Man, <i>Mutants </i></b>–
I hadn’t heard about this band until YouTube dropped “Call of the Void” into my
feed. I was immediately impressed and intrigued and bought the album the day it
came out. The rest of the album is also impressive. It’s kind of noisy, sludgey
punk metal. With awesome vocals. This is a band that I’m going to have to keep
tabs on and maybe check out their back catalogue.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Honorable Mentions</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Paramore, <i>This is Why</i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>D’Virgilio, Morse, and Jennings,
<i>Sophomore</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Gama Bomb, <i>Bats<o:p></o:p></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Favorite Death/Black Metal
Album of 2023</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Wayfarer, <i>American Gothic – </i></b>Here’s
a thing I didn’t know existed, country black metal. Now, this isn’t “trucks,
girls, beer” country. This is definitely “outlaw” country. And honestly, it’s
not really THAT country. What it does is give you a very clear, evocative
picture of the American West at the turn of the century. Cowboys, oil fields, the
struggle living during that time and place. The riffs are like nothing you
would normally hear in black metal. Now that I listen to a lot of it all the
time, I’m really happy when something really out of left field shows up.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Honorable Mentions</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Mangled Carpenter, <i>Salvation
Syndrome</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Fleshvessel, <i>Yearning: Promethean
Fates Sealed<o:p></o:p></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Tomb Mold, <i>The Enduring
Spirit<o:p></o:p></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Favorite Album of 2023 That
Came Out in 2022</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Blind Guardian, <i>The God
Machine </i></b>– I’ve always liked vocalist, Hansi Kirsch’s voice. But the music
of Blind Guardian itself has never really dug it’s hooks into me. It’s always
been a little….too theatrical. But <i>The God Machine </i>is a great balance of
hooks, riffs, and the theatrical. One day last January I was listening to this
as the sun rose while I was driving to get groceries. It was one of those times
when you think, “Hey, life is pretty grand, ain’t it?” I hope the band
continues on this path because I dug the heck out of this one.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Disappointments of 2023</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Applehead, <i>The Light Side of
the Apple </i></b>– Ya’ll don’t know how much it kills me to put this album on
here. I wanted to love this. It’s got great songs, strong riffs, and it’s
really heavy. Now, a lot of people love this album. So I’m going to chalk it up
to something being wrong on my side, because it’s definitely not bad. I just
didn’t get into like everyone else did. Love Greg Minier though and I hope he
keeps putting out music and maybe the next one will grab me.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Favorite Random Album I
Picked Up in 2023</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Dream Evil, <i>Evilized </i></b>–
Back in college I heard “Children of the Night” from this album. I absolutely
loved that song. Still love it today. I realized at some point that I wanted to
hear that song again and decided to pick up the full album. Naturally, it’s
full of awesome power metal songs that get the blood pumping and make you feel
like you can take on a dragon. I’m not sure I’d rush out and buy the rest of
their albums (famous last words) but this one was money well spent for sure.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>And there you have it, folks.
The best of the best. This was legitimately one of the hardest ones I’ve had to
do. There’s so many on here that I feel bad that I didn’t put on this list.
Albums from Last Battle, Fires in the Distance, Ritual Servant, Troparion,
Adorned Graves, Jimmy P. Brown, Vials of Wrath, Municipal Waste… I could go on.
But then this would just be a list of stuff. Have a great year everyone!</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-5718150902115645382023-01-01T17:58:00.010-05:002023-01-01T17:58:53.580-05:00Favorite Albums of 2022<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Well here we are again. Another
year in the books. It was…definitely a year. With like…months in it and holidays
and whatnot. Life did improve and there is definitely light at the end of the
very dark tunnel that has been my life for the past few years. Luckily, this year
was absolutely fantastic for music. So many new releases, reissues, and random
stuff I found that I didn’t know how I was only going to pick five favorites. I
did manage it somehow… and without further ado…<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><o:p> </o:p></i><b><u>Favorite Albums of 2022</u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Voivod, <i>Synchro Anarchy </i></b>–
I got into a Voivod kick at the tail end of 2021. Imagine my good fortune when
I found out they were releasing a new album in ’22. I’m not a long-time fan but
<i>Synchro Anarchy </i>certainly seemed like it came from a band that had not
lost one ounce of energy since their glory days. I know they’d lost their
guitarist who really developed the sound of the band. But I’d put <i>Synchro </i>up
against <i>Dimension Hatross </i>or <i>Nothingface </i>any day.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Chagall Guevara, <i>Halcyon
Days – </i></b>At first glance this could almost be considered a disappointment
– it’s only nine songs long and half of them are older ones that just never
made it on an album and I think there’s…two covers? But….it’s just so good! I
listened to it over and over – its brevity being a strength in that regard. I
do wish this had at least two more tracks on it, but it’s a stellar record and
I’m glad I kickstarted it.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Imperial Triumphant, <i>Spirit
of Ecstasy </i></b>– Ah, yes, another band where I said “I don’t think I’d want
album after album of this oops I bought more albums.” This album hit at a time
where the chaotic avant-garde black metal jazz was exactly how I was feeling
inside. Also features Kenny G on one track.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>King’s X, <i>Three Sides of One
</i></b>– Come on…there was probably no way this wasn’t going to make the list.
It’s a different sort of release for this band. Dug Pinnick isn’t quite as out
front as usual which allows Ty and Jerry to sing more. Some of the tracks on
here are the best they’ve written in a long time. Not every track is a winner (“Festival”
for example), but overall this is a great release from a great band and
hopefully we won’t have to wait another friggin’ fourteen years or however long
for the next one.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Queensryche, <i>Digital Noise
Alliance </i></b>– Queensryche was pretty terrible after Chris DeGarmo left and
Geoff Tate took over. It became more of a Tate vanity project than anything
else. Todd LaTorre is a phenomenal vocalist and a perfect addition to the band
after Tate left and lost the rights to the band name. The albums with LaTorre,
however, have been…good…but not great. They’ve always seemed to be missing
something. <i>Digital Noise Alliance </i>was the first LaTorre album that I felt
complete. Nothing was missing. The band was firing on all cylinders and every
track was a banger. I hope this trend continues!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p><b><u>Honorable Mentions</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>The Reconciled, <i>Skin and
Bones</i></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>D’Virgilio, Morse &
Jennings, <i>Troika</i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Skid Row, <i>The Gang’s All
Here<o:p></o:p></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u><br /></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Disappointments of 2022</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Star One, <i>Revel In Time </i></b>–
I used to love Arjen Lucassen but lately I’ve been getting the feeling that I’ve
kind of heard everything he has to offer. I’m familiar with all his tricks.
Nothing has really wowed me from him since maybe <i>The Source. Revel In Time </i>is
definitely not a bad album. But it’s not ground-breaking. It doesn’t offer
anything new that you haven’t heard on any other Ayreon or Star One album. It’s
perfectly pleasant but totally forgettable. And I can say that because I
completely forgot this album while I was listening to Voivod and Amorphis.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Devin Townsend, <i>Lightwork </i></b>–
Much like Arjen Lucassen, I feel like I’ve heard all of Devin’s tricks. <i>Lightwork
</i>is actually a good album. Probably the best thing he’s done since <i>Z2 </i>in
2014. But even with some of the smooth Peter Gabriel-esque pop that comprises
the bulk of <i>Lightwork</i>, I can still hear a lot of old Devin tropes. And I’m
not sure whether the problem is on my end or what. I enjoyed my time with <i>Lightwork
</i>but I don’t quite salivate at the prospect of a new Devin album like I used
to.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p><b><u>Best Album from 2021 I Didn’t
Find Until 2022</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Flotsam and Jetsam, <i>Blood in
the Water </i></b>– I am a full on Flots fan at this point. <i>Blood in the
Water </i>released sometime in ’21 but I snagged it in January of ’22 and it
pretty much dominated the first quarter of the year. Huge hooks, infectious
riffs, tight vocals. Everything you could want from a Flots album and a great
album in general.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Best Reissue of 2022</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Slamcat, <i>Greatest Hits and
Misconducts</i></b> – Slamcat was a band I heard about back in the day but
never got to listen to. Roxx reissued the band’s <i>El Gato De La Slam </i>and
combined it with all their demo material – this comprises <i>Greatest Hits and
Misconducts</i>. If I would have heard this when it came out in ’95 or ’96 I
would have adored it. Tons of groove. Lots of hooks. I’m glad they put this
collection together because it made the spring a little easier to deal with.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>I Have to Talk About Camelot
21</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Deliverance released the
rerecording of their 1995 album <i>Camelot-in-Smithereens. </i>The original was
a good album. Maybe not one of my absolute favorites, but it was good. It was a
concept album that was kind of robbed of its concept. The original plan was to
have voice-overs and a book to tell the story of the album. Jimmy Brown always
wanted to redo this album and make it what he always wanted. Boy howdy did he
succeed. This is like the difference from watching a tv show on an old tube television
to watching a show on a HD4K curved television. Everything about this album is
a million times better than the original. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Best Random Album I Found in
2022</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Phil Keaggy, <i>Beyond Nature </i></b>–
I’m not usually one to groove on instrumental albums, but this is an exception.
I found a copy of this at Goodwill. Once I listened to it, it got in my bones.
I listened to it almost every day in the summer. I would literally start each
day with a listen of <i>Beyond Nature. </i>Truly a masterwork of guitar if
there ever was one.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>I think that just about wraps
it up for this year. I feel like I’m missing some things. We got new albums
from Soccer Mommy, Alvvays, and Megadeth that were all wonderful. I listened to
a ton of cool death and black metal albums from the likes of Marble Tomb,
Drudkh, Artificial Brain, and GODIA. Amoprhis put out a new album that was
absolutely amazing. So much good stuff. I was truly blessed to hear as much
great music as I did this year. I can only hope 2023 brings a good bounty as
well. See ya’ll next time!</i></p>The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-53943982744516145712022-01-01T11:09:00.010-05:002022-01-02T11:43:07.660-05:00Favorite Albums of 2021<p><i>Boy, these years don’t get any
better do they? Not only did we still have COVID everywhere, I got divorced,
lost my mom, and got diabetes. Oh, and there was some other not fun stuff too
that I don’t want to talk about here. As far as music goes… not much for new
releases. At least, new releases that weren’t death metal. So this is more of a
“favorite stuff I found this year.” There’s gonna be a LOT of death metal here.
No apologies. Well, without further ado….</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Favorite Albums of 2021</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Imperial Triumphant, <i>Alphaville
</i></b>– This came out in 2020 but I found it in January. The band’s brand of
chaotic, discordant avant-garde jazz black metal is just what I needed. Not
sure I would listen to album after album of this but <i>Alphaville </i>is compelling
and disturbing in the best possible way.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Detritus, <i>Myths – </i></b>I
was super excited for this one because I’ve always loved this band from my
short pants days. <i>Myths </i>did not disappoint. It’s a little more on the
progressive side than the thrash side but the songs were all earworms. It also
seems like there’s some LGBTQ support in the lyrics which is a good thing to
see from a Christian band.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Mangled Carpenter, <i>Under the
Shadow </i></b>– Good heavens…this is probably the most intense thing I’ve ever
listened too. Just crushing and brutal and wonderful. I’m still not convinced
there isn’t like four drummers in this band.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Shadowmourne, <i>The Frozen
Throne</i></b> – I heard “Frostmourne Hungers” from somewhere and I was
instantly hooked. Death/black metal with a sort of atmospheric edge to it. It’s
haunting, dark, and cold. Awesome sounding growls (a weird thing to compliment,
I know).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Frost Like Ashes, <i>The
Fellowship of Suffering </i></b>– I’ve always heard of Frost Like Ashes but
never actually listened to them. Their new album is awesome. It’s short but in
a good way that leaves you wanting more.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Gospod, <i>Israel’s Exodus</i></b>
– Hey, who wouldn’t love some Russian Orthodox death metal about Israel’s
Exodus? In all the extreme music I heard this was definitely a novel take on
the genre and great album in its own right.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>XL’s Innovation, <i>Dynamics of
Relation </i></b>– XL takes a break from doing his rap/metal combo to put out a
jangly alt-pop record. Who’d have known this would, hands down, be one of my
favorite albums this year. The songs are so catchy and will get stuck in your
brain forever. The lyrical content, regarding XL’s marriage struggles, nearly
wrecked me sometimes. I really hope he does a couple more of these because this
was top tier.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Favorite Band I Discovered
This Year</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Vials of Wrath </b>– You ever
find a band that is just what you need at just the right time in your life? Vials
of Wrath was that for me. It was atmospheric, ambient black metal. It’s intense
yet oddly peaceful at the same time. The lyrics center around communing with
God in nature and seeking peace in solitude. I never got tired of listening to
this band. I immediately bought everything I could get my hands on. <i>Seeking
Refuge, Days Without Names, </i>and<i> Dark Winter Memories </i>are the
full-length albums, but they have other EPs and stuff that I devoured as well.
I love this band so much they might join the great four (i.e. my four favorite
bands of all time).</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Favorite Reissues of
this Year</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Petra – </b>Girder Records
released a slew of Petra reissues this year: <i>Washes Whiter Than, Never Say
Die, More Power To Ya, Not of This World, Beat the System, Back to the Street,
This Means War, </i>and <i>On Fire! </i>I didn’t buy all of them because no one
likes <i>Washes Whiter Than </i>and I already have the original of <i>On Fire! </i>But
I did pick up the rest. These are probably the most high-quality reissues I’ve
ever seen. Everything is fantastic – from the packaging to the remastering. I
could have maybe used some liner notes or reflections from the band members but
that’s nitpicking. I’m so glad they reissued these because my vault had a big
hole where these albums needed to go.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Undercover, <i>Balance of Power
</i></b>– Missed out on this one back in the day but this reissue is awesome.
Great packaging, naturally. I think this one was Kickstarted.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Disappointments of 2021</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>The Choir, <i>Deep Cuts – </i></b>I
didn’t have a good feeling about this album when Steve Hindalong posted a video
of him reading some of the lyrics from the title track. They seemed…well….kind
of generic. And unfortunately, the album also seems kind of generic. Granted
there are some great tracks here that I really like. But there’s also too many
tracks I can only describe as “lazy.” Like…these guys are not interested in
innovating any more. It’s not a bad album, but these guys can do way better.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Starflyer 59, <i>Vanity – </i></b>I
really enjoyed <i>Young In My Head</i> when it came out. This album, like <i>Deep
Cuts</i>, isn’t bad. Just…really mellow. But not necessarily in a good way. I
listened to it several times and it just didn’t make much of an impression on
me.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Well…that’s what I got. I’m
glad to see this horrible, wretched year end. I’m not even sure I can say I
have “hope” for next year. I just need it to be a little easier than this year.
Even a fraction.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Until next time!</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-56634157918718934672021-06-15T13:42:00.002-04:002021-06-15T13:42:12.956-04:00Summer Recap 2021<p> <i>I’ve toyed with the idea of
bringing back full reviews. Honestly, though, I quite like the “round up”
format. It lets me review music but not have to stick to any schedule and not
have to stress out over it. It also lets me sit with albums for longer so I can
really figure out how I feel about them. So… I think round ups is how I’m going
to do things from now on. Buckle your seat belts…there’s a lot. Guess I’m going
to have to stop calling these quarantine posts.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><o:p> </o:p></i><b><u>Music</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Trytan, <i>Celestial Messenger </i>–
This is Trytan’s first album. It’s definitely the most Rush-like of their
discography. It’s definitely not a bad album, but it’s not my favorite of the
three, either.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Barren Cross, <i>Rattle Your Cage</i>
– By the time this album came out (1994), I don’t think anyone cared if Barren
Cross had a new album out. I know I didn’t. I missed out, though, as I am
confident in saying this is the band’s best album. They’ve modernized their
sound just enough to not sound dated but not so much that they don’t sound like
the same band. It also makes the album their heaviest. Great stuff. Wish I
would have caught this the first time.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Xalt, <i>Under the Ruins </i>–
File this one under “really cool album covers.” The music is great too. I mean,
it’s traditional heavy metal without any bells and whistles but the songs are strong,
and the hooks are good. The production hurts it, though. This is a remaster,
which does help – but there’s only so much you can do if the recording was
flawed. Glad this one got reissued.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The Choir, <i>Deep Cuts</i> – I
was kind of ambivalent about this one. I wasn’t wild about the lyric samples
Steve posted on You Tube and I was kind of afraid that without a marriage to
write about we’d get another <i>Loudest Sound. </i>Well… it’s not so bad as
that. There are some really great tracks on here. Unfortunately, there’s also
several “fluffy” love songs that just don’t seem to have much weight to them.
Happy Choir is not the best Choir, methinks. Not their worst by a long shot,
but I’m not sure I’ll be reaching for this one first when I want my Choir fix.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Plank Eye, <i>Spill </i>–
Sometimes my “awesome oldies” aren’t quite as awesome as I once thought. Such
is the case with <i>Spill. </i>I wore out my tape of this back in the day. Now,
however, it sounds kind of repetitive. Doesn’t quite speak to middle aged me
like it did teenage me. Oh well.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Rage of Angels, <i>Rage of Angels</i>
– Hey kids! Do you like Poison and Motely Crue? Do you want them to sing about
Jesus? Then Rage of Angels is for you! Okay, I’m bagging on them, but this
album isn’t bad for what it is. I think they had some potential, but this album
has a lot of “rockin’ for the rock” type stuff. I think this band got really
screwed by the record label and it’s one of the reasons they only made one
disc. Some of the guys went on to play in the secular band Steelheart.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Veni Domine, <i>Light – </i>Oh
wow. Like…I enjoyed their first album years ago (<i>Fall Babylon Fall</i>) but
didn’t keep up with them after that. Don’t know why – this is amazing. It’s
their final album and now I want to get all the albums in between. The
ten-minute epic “In Memoriam” was like…just the tune I needed. The whole album
slaps.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Royal Anguish, <i>Mysterion </i>–
Royal Anguish was a band I was only familiar with because I’d heard their name
in various Christian metal zines from back in the day. They had (and still
have) a really cool logo. They put out a few demos but never got on any of the
big labels. This album is sort of a mix of gothic metal, death metal, and
progressive metal. It’s got a lot of growls but also clean female and male
vocals. Overall pretty compelling. Quite enjoy this one.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">The Jelly Jam, <i>The Jelly Jam – </i>This
is a side project of King’s X guitarist Ty Tabor, Dream Theater bassist John
Myung and…some drummer. Who I am too lazy to look up. It sounds pretty King’s
X-ey which is right up my alley. Now if only King’s X would release their new
album at some point…</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Mangled Carpenter, <i>Under the
Shadow</i> – I think this ties with Revulsed for the most intense music I’ve
listened to. Like… this is just not for beginners or the faint of heart. The
label says there’s only three guys in this band, but I’m convinced there’s at
least four drummers alone. This is the apex of death metal. I love it it. Give
me more.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Horde, <i>Hellig Usvart</i> – So I
skipped this one back in the day because I thought it’d be too heavy for me.
Well, now that I’m all about death and unblack metal in my old age I gave it a
shot. Turns out, it’s just as awesome as I’ve heard it was. Completely written
and recorded by Jayson Sherlock (ex-Mortification, Revulsed) it actually caused
a stir in the Norwegian Black metal scene back in the day.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Hortor, <i>Dios De Dioses </i>–
Hortor is a Mexican unblack metal band in the tradition of Horde. So, it
probably goes without saying that I pretty much love this. Everything is in
Spanish but since it’s all growled, I guess it doesn’t really matter. These
guys even do the whole face paint thing – which I find ridiculous. Unless
you’re KISS or King Diamond you need to put down the face paint.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Traxter, <i>Rock N’ Race </i>–
Yes, that’s Traxter – not Trixter. There’s a difference. I think my cousin
brought this to youth group ages ago and we all kind of made fun of it because
of the Traxter/Trixter thing. Truth be told it’s not a bad album at all. I
think if these guys would have been on Intense or REX or something they
probably could have gotten farther.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Lightforce, <i>Mystical Thieves</i>
– Lightforce is basically what Mortification was before they were
Mortification. I saw the tape at a Christian bookstore back in the day but passed
it up for Bride’s <i>Live to Die. </i>A correct decision, I feel. Though this
album isn’t bad. A lot of people complain about the vocals but I kind of like
them. The guy’s Australian accent comes through pretty clearly and I think it
gives them a little bit of a punk feel. It’s also good to hear Steve Rowe’s
bass just right out front.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Day of Atonement, <i>Cremation of
the Guilty</i> – Speaking of Mortification, Day of Atonement features two
former Mortification alums in a more intense version of their former band.
Like…if Mortification went more death metal after <i>Scrolls of the Megilloth. </i>That’s
kind of the vibe here. Good stuff. Too bad they only did one album.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Sacrificium, <i>Cold Black Piece
of Flesh </i>– Another technical death metal band a la Crimson Thorn. Nice thick,
chunky riffs. Feeds the soul, it does.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Undercover, <i>Balance of Power</i>
– A lot of people cite this particular album as their favorite of the band’s
catalogue. I can see why. I missed out on it the first time but went ahead and
snagged the reissue. It’s brilliant. A classic for sure. And I can see why
people prefer this one over <i>Devotion </i>or <i>Forum. </i>Might actually end
up being my favorite as well.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Demoniciduth, <i>Enemy of Satan – </i>Unblack
metal again. Good stuff. Just sort of stumbled on it on You Tube and then had
to have the album. I don’t know what happened and why I’m so ravenous for super
intense music, but here we are.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">Kekal, <i>Acidity</i> – I’ve been
aware of this band for a while. Never really gave them a shot though. They used
to be death/black metal but I guess they’ve gotten a lot more progressive. I
would classify this album as progressive metal with death/black influences.
Heavy on the prog. I’ve only listened to it twice but am looking forward to
listening to it more.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Video Games</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Bravely Default II</i> – I
wasn’t wild about the original Bravely Default. It was decent but the
super-repetitive endgame definitely put me off. I never played Bravely Second
for that very reason. I’m happy to say that Bravely Default II avoids that
pitfall and ends up being really fun. The boss battles seem more like puzzle
battles because it’s usually more about experimenting with abilities and jobs
than power leveling. I played for about 75 hours and reached the very final for
reals boss. Can’t seem to beat her though. I’ll probably pick it up again and
try at some point.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Double Dragon/Kunio Kun
Collection</i> – I had some online credit and this was on sale so I got it for
three bucks or something. It’s a collection of all the Double Dragon and River
City Ransom type games. I’ve mostly played the first Double Dragon because I’ve
been trying for thirty years to get past that part on Mission 3 with the two
Abobos. I can finally do it pretty reliably but still haven’t actually finished
the mission.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Star Wars Squadrons</i> – Ugh.
I heard a lot of good things about this one, so I picked it up on sale. It’s
definitely not for me. Way to heavy on the simulation part and not the shooty
laser part. I never really got the hang of the controls. I also was made at my
AI teammates because it seemed like I had to do everything. You guys can’t
handle that one shuttle? C’mon. I rage quit this one.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Mass Effect Legendary Edition</i>
– I freaking love Mass Effect. Love It. Replaying these three games has been an
absolute joy. Here’s some thoughts on each game:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Mass Effect</i>: The remaster
looks fantastic. The reworked HUD is nice. This game was so good at world
building and character building right off the jump. The story is still as
engrossing as it was. The Mako hasn’t improved any, though. And the actual
combat is still light and floaty. I’m also kind of miffed that they didn’t add
a galaxy tracker or something to mark off what systems you’ve explored. Despite
those complaints this still remains a gem of a game and worth playing. Seems a
bit easier than I remember.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Mass Effect 2</i>: This one is
just about perfect. The combat has weight to it and feels really good. It’s
easy to use a mix of powers and guns. The cast is beyond stellar. The writing
is superb. The side quests are fun. Tali is ultimate waifu. Seems harder than I
remember.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Mass Effect 3</i>: Honestly, I
think this one is great too. I think a lot of the flaws are due to EA meddling
and wanting this to be out by a certain time so they could make their first
quarter numbers. As a result, a lot of corners got cut originally. This version
includes all the DLC which alleviates some of those flaws. But the ending still
boils down to a choice of three colors. And the Reapers motivations still
really don’t make any sense. The combat is exquisite and probably the most fun
to engage in. I think that it’s still amazing even with its flaws. Tali is
still ultimate waifu. Also, should have had the option to have a Shepard wins
and retires with his love interest ending. Seems way easier than I remember.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>New Pokemon Snap – </i>I only
played the original on a kiosk at Toys R Us. I loved doing that one level
though. I jumped at the chance to play a Snap game in its entirety. It’s very
relaxing and fun to take pictures of all the different Pokemon and interact
with them to get different photos. However, it can get a little boring when you
have to just go through a track again to level up and unlock another track.
Still want to see this one through to the end.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>Mega Man 3</i> – Ran through
this one last night. It’s probably one of my favorites even though I’m not
super wild about the Doc Robot revisit stages. I even used the rewind feature
because I’m old and don’t have anything to prove anymore.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-23999163374794720072021-03-26T13:16:00.007-04:002021-03-26T13:17:43.320-04:00Quarantine Bonus Post 3: Tokyo Drift<p> <i>Let’s see…when was the last
time I did one of these? JULY?! Wow. Okay I guess it’s time to update a little.
I never even did a year end favorites list. Life’s been kind of chaotic lately
and I haven’t been that motivated to write much. Let’s change that today!</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><o:p> </o:p></i><b><u>Albums</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Gama Bomb, <i>Sea Savage </i></b>–
I love Gama Bomb. This album is no exception. While I don’t think it’s quite as
good as their last two it’s still a pretty good one – and honestly, for me, any
Gama Bomb is good Gama Bomb.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Bride, <i>Here is Your God</i></b>
– Someone should really tell these Christian metal bands not to put images of
God on their covers. Anyway, <i>Here is Your God </i>is better than their last
effort, <i>Snake Eyes</i>. Partly because it’s allowed to be its own thing
instead of a sequel to <i>Snakes in the Playground </i>and partly because the
songs are just better. It’s decent, but like the last one, still feels like it’s
missing something.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Warbringer, <i>Weapons of
Tomorrow</i></b> – Dang. Now this is some thrash. Fast. Heavy. Lyrics about war
and what not. Riffs galore. This was a fun one and I’m glad I found it. I think
it was Scott Waters from No Life Til Metal that had it on one of his You Tube
videos.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Michael Peace, <i>Outta Control</i></b>
– I never heard this one the first time it came out because I think the Christian
scene was kind of done with Michael Peace by 1994. At least I never saw it in
any store at the time. It’s…okay. I mean you kind of know what you’re getting. I
disagreed with a lot of the lyrics for various reason. One in particular where
he’s arguing against the legalization of drugs and says something to the effect
of “What if your surgeon was high on crack because it was legal?” My response
is “I could probably sue him because jobs have regulations about what you can
and can’t do on the job. That’s why you can’t work drunk.” But, whatever. It
was nice hearing this but it won’t ever overtake <i>Loud N’ Clear </i>or <i>Threat
to Society </i>that’s for sure.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Paramaecium, <i>Echoes From the
Ground</i></b> – Paramaecium is one of those bands I’ve warmed up to over the
last couple years and now absolutely adore. <i>Echoes </i>is a concept album
about a man visiting the Holy Lands in order to find justification for his faith.
Goes without saying that I like it. It’s not as deathy as the previous albums
but that’s okay.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Corpse, <i>From the Grave </i></b>–
An obscure Christian death metal band. They only put out one album and it’s
pretty decent. Not groundbreaking or anything but a solid listen. The mastering
is kind of crap though.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Imperial Triumphant, <i>Alphaville
</i></b>– Usually this kind of thing wouldn’t be for me. Honestly, I’m not
really sure it’s for anyone. It’s a combination of death metal/jazz/Avant Garde
craziness. It’s discordant and chaotic. It’s weird and unsettling. It’s utterly
compelling and I’ve been digging it way more than I thought I would. They lyrics
are mostly about the how awful the rich are. Gives me total <i>Bioshock </i>vibes.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Detritus, <i>Myths </i></b>– I’m
so glad these guys came back. I’m a huge fan of their first two albums. This
new one is a lot less Metallica/UK thrash and a bit more experimental but still
very heavy. They also seem to have some LGBTQ supporting lyrics here and there.
It’s nice to see since that sort of thing is rare in Christian music and even
more rare in Christian metal.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Taking the Head of Goliath, </b>Self-titled
– More death metal. Contains Luke Reno from Crimson Thorn and I loves me some
Crimson Thorn. Not surprisingly I love this EP too. Can’t wait for a full length.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Trytan, <i>Blood of Kings</i></b>
– Christian music has their own version of Rush, it’s Trytan. Well, that’s not fair.
Trytan is a lot more on the metal/hard rock side than Rush is. It’s mostly the
vocalist who is a dead ringer for Geddy Lee. However, the music is absolutely
stunning. I think this is probably the most progressive album they’ve done, but
also the heaviest. However, being the bleeding-heart liberal I am some of the
lyrics didn’t sit well with me, but I’m kind of used to that by now.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>The Prize Fighter Inferno, <i>My
Brother’s Blood Machine </i></b>– This originally came out in 2006. How in the
world did I not sit down and listen to it before now? This is a side project of
Claudio Sanchez of Coheed & Cambria. It’s acoustic electronica and it’s
just as catchy as Coheed stuff. So if you like Coheed you’ll probably like this
too. I know I did.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><u>Video Games</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Kingdom Hearts 3 </b>– For some
reason I got it in my head to play the Kingdom Hearts series again. The good
thing was that I was able to enjoy KH2 in a way I hadn’t before. KH3 is kind of
a mixed bag though. Like…they added a little too much to the combat. KH2’s was
pretty much perfect. The environments are gorgeous, however. The story is… a
story. I kind of resent that the series makes the player be familiar with
twenty-some odd games across several platforms to be familiar with the story.
Also, after a while, bopping around these worlds just wasn’t that fun anymore.
I’m glad I played it but KH2 is still the best in a flawed series.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Neir: Automata – </b>The concept
of this one is cool. You’re an android in a post-apocalyptic world destroying
machines for humans on the moon. There’s more too it, of course, but I never
got to see it. See once you beat the game once it wants you to beat it again
with only slight variations in the campaign. I think you have to do this three
or four times to get all the story. I don’t have that kind of time and combat
wasn’t fun enough to motivate me to care.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>CTR: Nitro Fueled – </b>I’ve
owned this for awhile but haven’t given it much attention. I decided to beat
the main campaign to unlock some racers. This version suffers from awful
micro-transactiony stuff and some horrible rubber band AI. I don’t remember the
original being so bad about that. I’d stick with the original if possible.
Though the upgraded graphics are beautiful.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Resident Evil 3 </b>– I never
played the original but this version is awesome. Loved every minute of it. If
they ever remake 4 with modern controls I will be there in a heartbeat.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>The Legend of Zelda </b>– This game
is 35 years old! Nintendo didn’t feel like doing anything to celebrate so I did
a vanilla run. After doing two swordless runs this was like playing on easy
mode. It also inspired me to download a randomizer and do a randomizer run for
You Tube which I still have to finish recording.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Super Metroid – </b>I’d been
watching a lot of one You Tube person’s Super Metroid runs and got inspired. I
wanted to see if I could do some sequence-breaking tricks like he did. I’m
proud to say I’ve figured out wall-jumping, mid-air morphing, and was even able
to pull off the mock ball and skip Spore Spawn. I ended up with 91% of items
collected which is my highest amount ever. May do a run of this for You Tube.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Mega Man X Collection </b>– I’ve
had this one for awhile but hadn’t given it much attention. I finally sat down
and really dug in and learned some new things:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Mega
Man X: Still awesome and wonderful and pretty much perfect.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Mega
Man X2: Just as awesome. And if you have the skill you can really minimize backtracking (I do not have the skill).<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Mega
ManX3: Ugh. This was way worse than I remembered. Too hard and too much stuff
to collect. You’ll have to revisit stages several times to get everything. The
upgraded X-Buster sucks too.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Mega
ManX4: A nice return to form. You get to play as Zero if you want. Gorgeous
graphics. Liked this one a lot more this time through.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Persona 5 Strikers </b>– I loved
both Persona 4 and 5 (even though I never finished 5). It was great to get to
spend more time with these characters. I also enjoyed the action-oriented
battle system. Honestly, it was nice to play Persona without the stress of the
time crunch and worrying about building skills and confidants. Story was good
too, serving as a direct sequel. No option to carry over your romance option
from the original though. I had to settle for asking Ann on a chaste date to
the Ferris wheel instead of a real romance. I spent about 45 hours with this
one but if you really wanted to grind the post-game I could see someone putting
in 60-70 hours.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b>Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – </b>Just
started playing this one. I’d always heard about this series but never played
it. Never really played any kind of “visual novel” game period. This one is
pretty engaging – especially the trail scenes. It’s also fun to figure out the
holes in the witnesses’ testimonies and see what you have on hand to disprove
them. Looking forward to going through this one all the way.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p><b><u>Books</u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><i>Solutions and Other Problems</i>
by Allie Brosh </b>– I really loved <i>Hyperbole and a Half</i> and have read
it several times. This one, however…yeesh. It’s…depressing. I know she has
struggled with depression so of course that’s going to come out in her writing.
But man…this is just bordering on nihilistic at times. Which, honestly, wouldn’t
be a problem if it was funny. Unfortunately, I didn’t find a lot of it funny –
just really depressing.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p><i>J</i></o:p><b><i>esus and John Wayne</i> by
Kristin Kobes Du Mez – </b>This one was interesting. If you’re like me and
wonder how Christians could follow someone like Trump despite him being pretty
much the opposite of what one would consider Christian, this book will give you
some insight. Tracing misogyny and patriarchy throughout decades. And how
conservative Christians have sought political power and allied themselves with
anyone who could give that power whether or not they were Christlike. If you’re
conservative, you’ll probably hate this book.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><i>Star Trek, Voyager: To Lose
the Earth </i>by Kristen Beyer </b>– Kristen Beyer’s run on the Voyager books
has been nothing short of amazing. I would say that I almost like the book versions
of the crew better than the show. Beyer knows exactly what makes all these
characters tick and she’s got a knack for putting them in compelling situations
to boot. I’m disappointed that this will probably be her last Voyager novel and
that this continuity is invalidated by <i>Picard. </i>I mean, I’m glad we got <i>Picard
</i>but still. She was also involved in that show and I hope she gets to do
more in the future.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-89860701579848770102020-07-27T15:55:00.000-04:002020-07-27T15:56:06.194-04:00Quarantine Bonus Post 2: Electric Bugaloo<i>Oh, look.
COVID is still around. I mean…we’ve done almost nothing to stop it. I’m
surprised that didn’t work. Anyway, while we do go out a little more than we used
to, we are still very much at home. The school year is delayed and my oldest is
going to be doing the online option versus the in class option. However, this
leaves a lot of time for music and games and what not, so here’s what I’ve been
into lately.</i><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><u>Albums</u></b></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Hayley
Williams, <i>Petals for Armor</i> – I do agree with Crash Thompson that
staggering the release of this album kind of hurt the buzz. However, it’s
great. Melancholy yet hopeful. Kind of minimalist instrumentation. Honest
lyrics. I’m glad she didn’t go total pop or country or whatever the flavor of
the day is. It really is unique and well worth your time.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Rose, <i>Crazy
Little World </i>– I hated this album originally. It is just so far removed
from the band’s stoner metal/Danzig-esque output that I just couldn’t bring
myself to like it. Now, however, I can dig it. It’s still not my favorite Rose disc,
but I can appreciate what they were doing and enjoy it for what it is.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
My Silent
Wake, <i>Shadow of Sorrow </i>– Still on my doom/death metal kick. My Silent
Wake features Ian Arkley, formerly of Seventh Angel. This was the band’s debut
and you can still kind of hear that old Seventh Angel sound, especially in the
leads and stuff. Really like this one. Definitely meant to be listened to in
the winter with the snow falling outside. </div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Lament, <i>Tears
of a Leper</i> – More death meal. From Mexico this time. Though this is less
pure death metal pounding and more like classic metal with death metal
elements. Or death metal with classic metal elements. I don’t know. I do know
it’s good and I like it.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Magdallan, <i>Big
Bang </i>– This is another one I didn’t love originally. I don’t know why. The
hooks are huge. The production is bright, clean, and shiny. Also – great bass.
Lots of good bass here. I guess at the time I just couldn’t get into it but age
has enlightened me and now I like it better.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Ken Tamplin
and Friends, <i>An Axe to Grind </i>– I mostly got this because of the lead
single, “Livin’ for My Lord” which was on the old <i>Hot Metal 4 </i>VHS tape I
used to have. My cousin and I watched that to death one summer. Fortunately,
the rest of <i>Axe </i>is good too. Ken Tamplin’s voice is smooth as butter
sometimes. He also assembles a crack team of studio musicians so there’s always
major chops on his records. </div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Liason, <i>Hard
Hitter </i>– Liason started life as an AOR/rock band whose earlier material
gives me some serious Richard Marx vibes. That’s not bad mind you, just an
observation. <i>Hard Hitter </i>is a straight up hard rock album with cool
riffs and hooks. I would have loved this when it originally came out but never
picked it up for whatever reason. Kind of a shame. I could have been loving it
this whole time.</div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Beyond Creation, <i>Algorythm – </i>More death
metal. But this is progressive death metal. And it is amazing. The bass player
in this band is truly astounding. Who plays a fretless bass in a death metal
band? The bass is pretty out front too, working with the guitars to create
these chaotic soundscapes. There’s also a lot of melody to go along with the
brutality. Special thanks to Scott Waters for introducing me to this band via one
of his You Tube videos. I’m probably going to end up buying all this band’s
albums.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I’ve got Trytan, <i>Sylentiger </i>and Haken,
<i>Virus </i>loaded up on the Ipod (because I am old and still use one) but I
haven’t listened to them enough to have an opinion yet.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>Video Games</u></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– The first Wolfenstein reboot game was a lot
of fun. This one is just as much fun. It’s also got a lot of drama and cool
characters and an interesting story. Basically, it’s great and if you liked the
first one you should definitely play this one.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Control </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– If you’re at all familiar with the SCP Foundation (and you should be –
go look it up) then you’ll get the vibe that <i>Control </i>is going for.
Though maybe a little less on the horror side. This was another game I really
didn’t know anything about but ended up having a great time with. Oh, also kind
of a spiritual successor to <i>Alan Wake </i>(which was also great and needs a
remaster).</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Death Stranding </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– Ugh. Just…ugh. Listen, I <i>love </i>the
Metal Gear Solid series. But this…*sigh*. It’s a game about delivering
packages. No really. That’s the game. Deliver packages and hook people up to
the internet. And honestly – that’s not terrible. I like the world and the
story. Heck, I don’t even mind the hiking/pathfinding aspect. Especially since
you can build structures with other players, which I think is totally cool. The
problem is that doing anything in this game is a major pain in the ass.
Anything. Menu navigation, rearranging cargo, combat, vehicles, friggin’ fast
traveling is a headache. Fast travelling, ya’ll. Then you have to contend with
time-rain wrecking your boxes and invisible spooky things trying to kill you. There’s
a sensor that’s supposed to help but ol’ Clip-Clop (my name for it) didn’t seem
to do much for me. I got so tired of it all. It just wasn’t fun.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Resident Evil VII: Biohazard </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– Boy, did I need something good after <i>Death
Stranding</i>. <i>REVII </i>was fantastic. It was stressful and scary in all
the best ways. Also, no zombies. I’m not a big fan of zombies as a rule. This
was truly a thrill-ride and I would totally play this again at some point.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Timespinner </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– <i>Castlevania: Symphony of the Night </i>is
one of my favorite games of all time. <i>Timespinner </i>is cut from that same
cloth. It feels very familiar. In a good way though. Like… it definitely wears
its SotN pedigree on its sleeve. The game doesn’t really innovate and there
aren’t many surprises to be had power-ups wise. You have a time-stopping power
but not much is done with it beyond using enemies as stepping stones. However,
it was still a blast to play. I <i>liked </i>that it felt so familiar. I also
thought the world and story was unique. This is another one I plan on playing
through again at some point.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Shadow of the Tomb Raider </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– I was never a huge fan of the original
Playstation games, but these reboots are pretty awesome. Though <i>Shadow </i>is
the weakest of the bunch. It’s not a bad game, it’s just the <i>third </i>game.
It does everything the previous two did with the same quality and doesn’t add a
whole lot to the mix. So while I was motivated to push on to see the end of
Lara’s story, these caves and tombs all kind of looked the same after a while.
I didn’t even bother finding all the challenge tombs because I just got sick of
doing them. There’s also a million doohickeys to find that have little bearing
on the actual game. I wasn’t sorry that I played through this, but I was glad
to be done and not motivated to find any of the extras.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Bioshock 2 </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– I realized I hadn’t played through this one when I originally bought
the collection. <i>Bioshock 2 </i>is by far the weakest of the series. Mostly
because of the meandering middle section where the creators didn’t seem to have
anything interesting for Subject Delta to do so they force him to gather ADAM.
I’m also not a fan of the defending Little Sisters parts. It’s another aspect that,
while true to the character, kind of just pads out the playtime. I really wish
they would have remastered the original with this game’s combat because it’s a
lot more fun using plasmids and weapons together.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">GreedFall </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– Wow. Just…wow. Bad wow. I took a risk on this one because it was on
sale and it was a waste of money. I have not had a game test my patience like
this in a very long time. Not even <i>Death Stranding </i>tested my patience like
this game. So you’re supposed to be this aristocrat embarking on a journey to a
new island with fantastic creatures and magic, etc. The game stresses again and
again how the character is just about to board the boat for this wonderous
island. So what does the game make you do? Friggin’ errands for like three-plus
hours. Seriously. You go to a person and tell them you’re leaving. They ask you
to run this errand for them. This errand usually involves running back and
forth all over the map talking to people and/or picking stuff up. I did several
of these and it almost became comical. So…I guess we’re not leaving for this
island then? Also, did I mention that the first town is basically several lovely
shades of brown? Yes. Brown. No, I don’t want to go to the fun island. I want
to run around Brown Town and look for your cousin or some bullshit. I never
even made it out of the first area before I put the controller down in disgust.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Final Fantasy VIII Remastered </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">– I’ve played through this one several times.
I needed some comfort after <i>GreedFail </i>and double dipped this one for
PS4. My goal was to get Squall’s ultimate weapon on the first disc…which I did.
That was pretty cool. I’m also keeping my levels low. There are so many different
ways to tackle this game I’m surprised more people don’t like it. <span style="text-transform: uppercase;"></span></span></div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike>The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-29997911561417537362020-05-11T10:21:00.000-04:002020-05-11T10:21:00.977-04:00Quarantine Bonus Post - What I've Been Into LatelyHey everyone! How is everyone enjoying quarantine? Truth be told, I don't hate it but I've always been pretty introverted. Don't go anywhere? Can do! I thought it might be fun to write a post about some of the stuff I've been into this year so far - albums, books, games, etc. I have even been able to play guitar a lot more. Learned several Tom Petty and Choir songs. Anyway... here we go...<br />
<br />
<b><u>Albums</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
Soccer Mommy,<i> Color Theory</i> - I loved<i> Clean</i> and made it one of my picks for 2018.<i> Color Theory</i> is equally as great. The lyrics are a bit darker here. A lot less "this boy doesn't like me" and more "wow... life sure does suck."<br />
<br />
Paramaecium,<i> Exhumed of the Earth</i> and<i> Within the Ancient Forest</i> - I remembered buying<i> Exhumed</i> when it first came out in '93. I did not like it at all because it was way too slow. I guess my old age has allowed me to enjoy doom/death metal because I love it now. Along with the second album Paramaecium has been a fixture of the year.<i> Forest</i> is the more "progressive" of the two with more clean vocals, female vocals, violins, etc. Love them both equally.<br />
<br />
Crimson Thorn,<i> Anthology of Brutality</i> - So... yeah... big death metal fan now. I snagged this because I loved<i> Unearthed</i> so much. This collection has all three of their albums including<i> Dissection</i> and<i> Purification</i>. Something about the downtuned guitars, blast beats, and brutal vocals just amps me up. Usually people get mellower in their old age and here I am grooving on death metal.<i> Dissection</i> has the worst production out of the three but given their style it doesn't hurt that much.<br />
<br />
Saint,<i> Time's End</i> and<i> Too Late For Living</i> - Missed these guys when I was young. They were kind of billed as the "Christian Judas Priest." Well if that's the case I'm going to friggin' love Judas Priest because these two albums are awesome. Prefer<i> Too Late</i> over<i> Time's End</i> a bit but enjoy both.<br />
<br />
Leviticus,<i> In His Service</i> (Box Set) - So let's just get into all the old Christian metal this year, shall we? I bought<i> The Strongest Power</i> on cassette way back in the day. I didn't like it much then because of the vocals. Fast forward to today and that's one of my favorites out of the four. I also really dig<i> Setting Fire to the Earth</i> because Ez Gomer and Terry Haw from Jet Circus are members. As a result the album has sort of a proto-Jet Circus sound. Oddly enough I like<i> Knights of Heaven</i> the least. Produced by John and Dina Elephante it's got great production but is kind of generic sounding. Not bad - just not distinctive.<br />
<br />
XL & Death Before Dishonor,<i> The Beginning of Closure</i> - Listening to this now. Loving it. It's far more melodic than XL's previous work - which is fine. Not as much rap as the older ones. Hooks are huge though and the instrumentation is on point. Looking forward to listening to this more.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Video Games</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<i>Final Fantasy VII Remake</i> - When this was announced, I was one of the first naysayers. This would never work. How could it? And with an action-oriented battle system? No. I didn't even like the demo when it came out. Then people were raving about it and I tried it. Everything clicked. The battle system is a refined version of<i> Kingdom Hearts</i> and<i> Final Fantasy XV.</i> I took to it pretty quickly. When I lost I could always step away, come up with another plan and load out and find victory. I enjoyed the story embellishments. If there's one thing that surprised me it's that this game was able to make me care about Midgar as a location and the world in general. The original was never my favorite but the remake has engaged me in ways the original never did. So glad I gave this a chance. Can't wait to see how in the world they pull off the rest of the saga.<br />
<br />
<i>Call of Cthulhu</i> - I needed something different after FFVIIR so a slow-paced cosmic horror investigation game seemed like a good palette cleanser. Though it's hard to get into the atmosphere with a little 3-year old jibber-jabbering about Paw Patrol in the next room.<br />
<br />
<i>Animal Crossing: New Horizons</i> - I liked this for a little bit but got bored after 25 or so hours. I guess I just need more of a story to push me along. My wife adores it though. She's logged over one hundred hours. She's never been a console gamer ever so this tickles me to no end.<br />
<br />
<i>Tabletop Simulator</i> - Not really a "game" so much as a means to play board games with people online. I've played a few times and it's fun enough though my wife gets more use out of it because everyone wants to play at like nine at night when I'm already exhausted.<br />
<br />
<i>Collection of Mana</i> - I've been playing through<i> Trials of Mana</i> when I can but my playthrough has kind of ground to a halt because someone has pretty much locked down the Switch with<i> Animal Crossing</i>.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Books</u></b><br />
<b><u><br /></u></b>
<i>The Myth of the American Dream,</i> D.L. Mayfield - Conventional wisdom says that most people get more conservative as they get older. The opposite is true for "Mr. Death Metal at 40" over here. I've gotten more liberal. Mayfield's journey from conservative Evangelical to liberal post-Evangelical is a lot different from mine but we've reached a lot of the same conclusions. Conclusions regarding the place of power, safety, wealth and the like in Christian life. And just what our responsibilities are to the people around us who are different. It's kind of nice to know others are thinking similar things because my Facebook can get a little tiresome.<br />
<br />
<i>Demon Camp</i>, Jennifer Percy - I read this book out of morbid curiosity. For you see... my wife and I were part of the titular "Demon Camp" for many, many years. We left (sorta...long story) in 2014, which was about the time this book came out. (The book didn't have anything to do with it.) Initially our Demon Camp friends told us that the book portrayed them unfairly. I didn't read it then (except for excerpts here and there) because I wanted to support my friends. However, both myself and my views have changed a lot since then so I was interested to see if that would affect my opinion. It didn't. This is not a good book. It fails to offer anything insightful about soldiers, PTSD, religion, or anything. It's like some weird fever dream. A trip down a religious rabbit hole. Every conversation the author has with people is crazy goofballs. Normal people don't talk like this. I was around these people, ya'll. And yeah - some of them were weird. Sometimes we talked about demons but we were able to carry on a normal conversation without sounding like pod people. It's like the author had an interesting idea but absolutely no guidance - and very little editing. Of note, the book totally ends with the author probably sleeping with her subject. No conclusions drawn, no insight gleaned. At the end you're just like, "whoa, that was weird." Not exactly the reaction you want when writing about religion and PTSD.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-41939925667719859222020-01-10T19:48:00.000-05:002020-01-10T19:48:01.438-05:00Favorite Albums of 2019<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i>W</i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ell, well, well…2019 certainly was… a year.
Wasn’t it? Full of…things…that happened. Truth be told, 2019 was kind of crap
for me. I turned 40 and felt every year of it. I didn’t really keep track of
new releases at all because I just didn’t care that much. It didn’t seem like there
were many new albums that really grabbed me. So instead of new albums I did
some deep dives into different bands’ discographies that I hadn’t been that
familiar with. I did end up with quite a few favorites this year despite my mood,
so let’s get started!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2019</span></u><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Leslie Phillips, “The Turning” – </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">I never listened to anything of her’s before
so I bought this on a lark. It’s her final album in the Christian scene before
going off to the secular realm and writing music for the Gilmore Girls. She’d
teamed up with T-Bone Burnett for this one. It pretty much dominated the first
part of the year. While it does sound a bit dated I found it had some great
hooks and a lot of integrity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">The 77’s, “Pray Naked” – </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">While I’ve always been a big fan of The
Choir, Daniel Amos, and Adam Again, I’d never taken much of a shine to the 77’s.
I have no idea why. My first exposure was </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Drowning With Land in Sight </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">and
that was alright. After listening to almost every album they made I ended up
loving them. </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pray Naked, </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">the re-issue of their 1992 album is my pick because
this is the one I returned to again and again. Though I guess I did that with
most of their stuff.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Starflyer 59, “Leave Here a Stranger” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– Of all SF59’s output, I only ever really
liked their debut. I never gave their later, softer material a chance. After
the 77’s I started checking out all the band’s material and…man… what the heck
was wrong with me. </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Leave Here a Stranger
</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is my top pick but their latest, </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Young in My Head </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is awesome too. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b><b>The Walk, “Indianland” </b>– At some point in the year I got a huge
hankering for alt-rock with jangly guitars. Someone on Facebook recommended
this album and it scratched that itch quite nicely. It’s pretty obscure as
well. Fun Fact: It was released on Talkingtown Records. Whose only other release
that I know of is Armageddon’s <i>The
Money Mask</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Polaris, “Music From the Adventures of Pete
and Pete” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– So yeah… jangly
alt-rock. Sure, “Hey Sandy” is great, but the rest of this album is awesome
too. Also – all the nostalgia feels. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Alvvays, “Antisocialites” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– We’re still on the jangly alt-rock kick
here though this one is a little bit more shoe-gazery. Wonderful dreamy female
vocals. Great hooks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Petra, “More Power To Ya” and “Not of this
World” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– A friend gave me a
“best of” CD with a bunch of older Petra material on it. Since I started with </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">On Fire! </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">I’d never heard any of the band’s Greg X. Volz output. Turns out it’s
friggin’ phenomenal. Pretty much everything from </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Never Say Die </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">to </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Beat the System </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is pretty great. Though I picked the above two albums because I really
think they’re the cream of the crop. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Resurrection Band, “Hostage” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– After Petra I immersed myself in the Resurrection
Band. Again, I’d only heard an album or two. Imagine my surprise when I loved
every single album. Seriously, I did not hear even one clunker. I
listened to a Rez Band album almost every morning for a month. So I guess I
picked </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hostage</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"> because it’s the one that fans tend to hate
because it’s all New Wave. Didn’t bother me at all. I loved it. </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Lament, Civil Rites, </i>and<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Colors </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">were other favorites. But…ya’ll… they were
all good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Aunt Bettys, “Aunt Bettys” – </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">I’d always heard about how great this record
was but had never been able to listen to it. I’m kind of a casual fan of
Michael Knott’s output as it is. However, this record lived up to the
expectations. I think it might be the hardest thing he’s done ever. It’s also
super catchy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Angelica, “Without Words</span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"> – I’m not usually into instrumental albums,
but this is an exception. The guitar work is absolutely incredible. Stellar. But
the one thing I really liked about this album was that there are hooks. Even
though there’s no vocals it felt like each song had a “chorus” or something to
hang your brain on. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Crimson Thorn, “Unearthed” – </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">So at the tail end of the year I had a
sudden desire to listen to death metal. That desire is ongoing as of this
moment. I remember I bought this when it came out originally in 1995 and didn’t
love it that much. I bought 2019’s reissue and found myself loving it. The
down-tuned brutal guitars, the cookie monster vocals, the blast beats. Man… couldn’t
get enough. Which leads me to…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Revulsed, “Infernal Atrocity” – </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Dude. This is…. BROOTAL. I’d say this is
probably the heaviest thing I’ve ever listened to and loved. The band features
the virtuoso drumming of Jayson Sherlock of Mortification fame. Everything
about this album is massively heavy and pummels you from start to finish. I started
many morning in December with a dose of Revulsed to get my day going.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<u><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">DISAPPOINTMENTS OF 2019<o:p></o:p></span></u></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Dream Theater, “Distance Over Time” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– Yeah. I’m done with ya’ll. How can a band
that’s so insanely talented make such forgettable music? Seriously. I’d
forgotten I’d bought this. Just like the last one. I was never one to board the
“Mike Portnoy was the talent” wagon but…man…I think I’m on that wagon now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Devin Townsend, “Empath” </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">– Yeah….no. I was a huge fan of Devy for
awhile. But </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Empath </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">is just… *sigh*. Just play the song, man.
Play a song. I feel like he was so into cramming his ideas into this album that
he forgot to write actual songs. I couldn’t even make it through the album
because it just made me tired. All of the transitions and what not that don’t
really make that much sense. Little in the way of hooks. I’m just too old for
this crap.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b>Queensryche, "The Verdict" </b>- This album is not here because it's bad. It's not. It's a pretty good album. Probably the best of the Todd LaTorre era. It's here because it's good... not great. I was hoping that this iteration of the band would finally put out their <i>Rage for Order </i>or <i>Operation: Mindcrime</i>. No such luck. They do keep getting better with each album so I have hope that they'll get their opus magnum yet.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Well…that’s it for me! I hope everyone has a
great 2020!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-18191793534610975262018-12-22T07:33:00.001-05:002018-12-22T07:34:35.997-05:00Favorite Albums of 2018<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Well, well, well…this year has just sucked
out loud hasn’t it? Oh my word. Despite the general awfulness and horror that
was 2018, the music was pretty good. If you liked old Christian rock music it
was a banner year – with releases from a lot of major bands from back in the
day. Anyway, without further ado, I present my favorite albums of 2018!<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2018</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Jimmy P.
Brown , <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Eraserhead</i> – I’m a bit fuzzy
as to whether the band is Eraserhead or is it just the album? Eraserhead is
made up of the team that made some of the best Deliverance albums – Jimmy,
Manny Morales, and Jon Knox. It’s a little more varied than the old Deliverance
records but this is a good thing. I really hope this wasn’t a one-off.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
The Choir, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Bloodshot – </i>My friend Uvulapie and I
might disagree a bit on this one. I found myself going back to this again and
again. Steve Hindalong’s unfortunate divorce providing a lot of angst for
songs, which are overall better. While the bass desperately needs to be turned
up and it’s not quite “instant classic” status, I can say I’ve enjoyed this
album the most of any since <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Midnight Sun</i>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Coheed and
Cambria, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vaxis Act I: The Unheavenly
Creatures </i>– Coheed returns to their dark, progressive roots… kinda. Given
the fact that the story takes place on a prison planet it doesn’t seem as dark
as you would think. The songs here are big and epic, with plenty of hooks. It’s
pretty much been a staple at my house since it came out.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Gama Bomb, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Speed Between the Lines </i>– I love this
band. I thought it was going to be pretty hard to top <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Untouchable Glory</i>. I don’t know if they topped it, but they
definitely matched it. It’s been my go-to when I want some full throttle,
in-your-face thrash.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Amaranthe, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Helix </i>– Talk about getting a lot of
mileage out of a style. The pop/metal fusion they perfected two albums ago on <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Massive Addictive </i>still works. To the
point that I think this is their best album yet. For reals. I’m genuinely
surprised at how good this turned out considering I didn’t like the singles
that much at first.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>Honorable Mentions</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Soccer
Mommy, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Clean<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Haken, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Vector<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Judas Priest,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Firepower<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>Disappointments of 2018<o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Marmozets, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Knowing What You Know Now</i> – I was
anxiously awaiting this one for years after having adored their debut, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Weird and Wonderful</i>. And honestly, this
isn’t a bad album. The problem is that I think they’ve sanded down some of
their rough edges. I liked the rough edges. It gave them character. This album
is a little more commercial (which isn’t always a bad thing) but I miss the
raw, frantic energy of the debut.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Panic! At
the Disco, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pray for the Wicked </i>– I
knew it would be a daunting task to top <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Death
of a Bachelor</i>. But <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pray for the
Wicked </i>is just….boring and bland for the most part. It starts off strong
with the first few tracks. Then it sort of…blaaaaaah – radio music. My family
latched on to this one for some reason and we listened to it over and over and
over. Maybe that explains some of my apathy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>Best Reissue of 2018<o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
Undercover, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Devotion</i> – I was seriously thinking
about putting the two Crystavox reissues here. But the thing about the
Undercover reissue is the attention to detail. I appreciate that the liner
notes look pretty much like the ones in the original album. The packaging is a
little better as is the art design. The album rocks as well. I helped Kickstart
this one so I may be a little biased but I do think it’s a great package. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u>And Finally…<o:p></o:p></u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There’s going to be some changes here at the vault as of
this posting. The biggest change is that, as much as I hate to say it, I’m
going on hiatus for awhile. I don’t know if I’ll stop reviews all together or
whether some will pop up from time to time. The fact is that I’m just tired of
keeping up with it. Honestly, I’m tired of keeping up with music in general.
Some big bands are releasing albums next year and I just…don’t care as much.
There’s also the simple fact that this blog doesn’t get any views. I usually
top out at, like, 11 views. And most of those are Russian bots. I’ve been doing
it for myself all these years and I guess I kind of feel like my work is
complete. Again, I can’t say that I won’t pop up with something from time to
time – but weekly reviews are going away. Thank you to everyone who has ever
read, enjoyed, or kept up with the blog. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-18886172695314000672018-12-18T07:51:00.001-05:002018-12-18T07:52:05.658-05:00Tourniquet - "Gazing At Medusa"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZyBuJN4y5XCoQ8-EtTr8BGXVjw5JM-YVUWDxveOZRcVy-2-2_cYaqC3wDzxSxJBZk7UrApXHYpBEBqq7oCpBQNNa2CRmCJzf7hZlM1KJuyNfVPm2lNP7XyY-BbAYrhZbC3CsxC2rZY7Mb/s1600/tqtgazing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZyBuJN4y5XCoQ8-EtTr8BGXVjw5JM-YVUWDxveOZRcVy-2-2_cYaqC3wDzxSxJBZk7UrApXHYpBEBqq7oCpBQNNa2CRmCJzf7hZlM1KJuyNfVPm2lNP7XyY-BbAYrhZbC3CsxC2rZY7Mb/s200/tqtgazing.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Tourniquet - <i>Gazing At Medusa</i><br />
2018, Pathogenic<br />
<br />
1. Sinister Scherzo<br />
2. Longing For Gondwanaland<br />
3. Memento Mori<br />
4. All Good Things Died Here<br />
5. The Crushing Weight of Eternity<br />
6. The Peaceful Beauty of Brutal Justice<br />
7. Can't Make Me Hate You<br />
8. One Foot In Forever<br />
9. Gazing At Medusa<br />
<br />
<i>Gazing At Medusa </i>hearkens back to the early days of Tourniquet. Not so much in the sound (though we will get to that in a minute) but more in concept I guess. Someone on a Facebook group described it as "nine metal tunes." He wasn't being disparaging. This was evidenced after the title track released and it's simple structure and melodic vocals gave me major <i>Stop the Bleeding </i>vibes (especially the album having snake-themed cover art). After years of Tourniquet playing up the whole progressive thing, it's nice to go back to just having nine metal tunes. The progressiveness is scaled back a bit as is the overall run time. This is another case where brevity helps the album. With the departure of Luke Easter, Tim "Ripper" Owens (of Judas Priest and Iced Earth fame) steps in for vocals. Owens has a bit more range and can do those high registers that Guy Ritter used to do on the older albums. This is no offense to Luke, of course - I really like Luke! But Owen's increased range is another factor that makes this album feel a little old school. Also - no medical terms. The over-arching theme seems to be mortality, eternity, and making the most of one's time on earth. I'm not sure <i>Gazing At Medusa </i>will be remembered as a landmark album or anything, but it doesn't need to be. It's nine solid metal tunes and it's well worth your time.<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: Owens does not sing the title track. Those vocal duties are handled by Dean Castronovo. Chris Poland (ex-Megadeth) handles guitar leads. Aaron Guerra is still on rhythm guitar.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-70738402925430153162018-12-10T08:15:00.000-05:002018-12-10T08:15:05.772-05:00Cash, Johnny - "The Classic Christmas Album"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj25-y7zFZPNtNT9tpksfHb_HXJ5lrDQU_gAn5dU2sAuRrD4yvDCjDT8mPwjUV_9uDW0eDW2qlX3MOmkEj2YLWDakdSW5KBS4W0Ivrvk4w0ht0EVeWfu7XSfRcN2nOa771XkUnOON4gBjF2/s1600/jcchristmas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="355" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj25-y7zFZPNtNT9tpksfHb_HXJ5lrDQU_gAn5dU2sAuRrD4yvDCjDT8mPwjUV_9uDW0eDW2qlX3MOmkEj2YLWDakdSW5KBS4W0Ivrvk4w0ht0EVeWfu7XSfRcN2nOa771XkUnOON4gBjF2/s200/jcchristmas.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Cash, Johnny - <i>The Classic Christmas Album</i><br />
2013, Sony<br />
<br />
1. Christmas As I Knew It<br />
2. Christmas Time's a Comin'<br />
3. That Christmasy Feeling<br />
4. Christmas With You<br />
5. Blue Christmas<br />
6. The Little Drummer Boy<br />
7. The Gifts They Gave<br />
8. The King of Love<br />
9. Merry Christmas Mary<br />
10. I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day<br />
11. Joy to the World<br />
12. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear<br />
13. Ringing the Bells for Jim<br />
14. The Christmas Guest<br />
15. The Christmas Spirit<br />
16. Silent Night<br />
<br />
I've had my eye on this album for awhile and I finally pulled the trigger. It really, really pains me to say this about a Johnny Cash album but... I don't like it much. I really wanted to hear Johnny Cash sing. Not Johnny Cash and the Cash Family. Or Johnny Cash and Tommy Cash. I also want to hear him sing, not talk. He talks way too much. Now I know this is kind of his style in a way but I kind of like his singing voice. There's a few tunes on here I like but the bulk of it just kind of annoys me. Oh well, not everything can be awesome.<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: Johnny Cash was on a One Bad Pig album! If you follow this blog you probably already knew that!<br />
<br />
<br />The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-41434948276424984502018-12-06T08:08:00.001-05:002018-12-06T08:08:11.018-05:00Haken - "Vector"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmUKlDWxczm4ZfKYspL9lT4pytXm6t9bpEEYu1UqmEmQm2tB1hAVz5bKSCMelGLTVS97dHSwKuz8cXfJ7NezDBIQC0JdFhTIefRCIHRGHbx-FxyHPRV56aC0205Whkmi1telHgqc7sg2p_/s1600/Hakenvector.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmUKlDWxczm4ZfKYspL9lT4pytXm6t9bpEEYu1UqmEmQm2tB1hAVz5bKSCMelGLTVS97dHSwKuz8cXfJ7NezDBIQC0JdFhTIefRCIHRGHbx-FxyHPRV56aC0205Whkmi1telHgqc7sg2p_/s200/Hakenvector.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Haken - <i>Vector </i><br />
2018, Inside Out<br />
<br />
1. Clean<br />
2. The Good Doctor<br />
3. Puzzle Box<br />
4. Veil<br />
5. Nil By Mouth<br />
6. Host<br />
7. A Cell Divides<br />
<br />
Where to go after the Eighties love-fest that was <i>Affinity</i>? Apparently, you go back to being heavy. <i>Vector </i>is the heaviest and most aggressive album since <i>Visions. </i>I am okay with this, by the way. The songs are dense, knotted compositions, full of heavy riffs, poly-rhythms, and everything you've come to expect from Haken. I also think there's a bit more in the way of hooks here than there was on <i>Affinity. </i>Also noteworthy, this album is pretty short for Haken. At seven songs (with one being an ambient intro track) and a scant 48 minutes, I think this is the band's shortest full-length album. However, I think the brevity works in the album's favor. The cram a lot in those 48 minutes so you're still getting a full meal. I'm just glad I can listen to the whole thing on the way to and back from work. <i>Vector </i>hasn't overtaken <i>The Mountain </i>but it's immensely enjoyable.<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: There's a story here somewhere about a doctor in an asylum performing dubious experiments. Though there's a lot of room for interpretation as to what it's actually about and what is happening.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-24665658244050540352018-12-04T07:49:00.001-05:002018-12-04T07:49:10.269-05:00MxPx - "Pokinatcha"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_avojzw4SdIwaBJ2x5ICblAkj56zWuhN1Loyeb7iLaRcoz7rXNNPg_uaRfEPByn3y-og738r-1BXmKXPCJuzCw3a1PCTpieHFr6MAM25IsE0rd-wbVFyzTL5476UKdPMP2XBwz_rwbqS7/s1600/mxpxpokinatcha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_avojzw4SdIwaBJ2x5ICblAkj56zWuhN1Loyeb7iLaRcoz7rXNNPg_uaRfEPByn3y-og738r-1BXmKXPCJuzCw3a1PCTpieHFr6MAM25IsE0rd-wbVFyzTL5476UKdPMP2XBwz_rwbqS7/s200/mxpxpokinatcha.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br />
MxPx - <i>Pokinatcha</i><br />
1994, Tooth & Nail<br />
<br />
1. Anywhere But Here<br />
2. Weak<br />
3. Wantad<br />
4. Realize<br />
5. Think Twice<br />
6. Unopposed<br />
7. The Aspect<br />
8. Ears to Hear<br />
9. Bad Hair Day<br />
10. Too Much Thinking<br />
11. PxPx<br />
12. Time Brings Change<br />
13. Jars of Clay<br />
14. High Standards<br />
15. Another Song About T.V.<br />
16. Twisted Words<br />
17. Walking Bye<br />
18. No Room<br />
19. Jay Jay's Song<br />
20. One Way Window<br />
21. Dead End<br />
<br />
MxPx's debut, <i>Pokinatcha</i>, is missing a lot of the spit-shine and polish of <i>Teenage Politics </i>and <i>Life in General</i>. The sound is dirty, raw, and sloppy. And fast! Most tracks race along at full speed, rarely stopping to take a breath except for a few moments. Those moments being "Wantad" and "Bad Hair Day" for which the band received some buzz back in the day. I don't know though... I think I like my MxPx with a bit more polish. While the sound may be raw, the lyrics are not. They're pretty suburban teenage Christian with a little angst. Not that there's anything wrong with that - that was kind of their thing. It's worth a listen, but I prefer their later albums (i.e. the ones I mentioned, not their later - later material where they were really super duper polished and commercial).<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: As I recall the band was originally called Magnified Plaid. It even says that on the spine of this album. However, drummer Yuri was prone to abbreviating it M.P. but with x's instead of periods. So they eventually became known as MxPx. Also, I read in an interview once that the word "pokinatcha" was from a Snickers commercial or something where the narrator says hunger is "pokin' at ya."The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-14047175025127557182018-11-28T08:06:00.000-05:002018-11-28T08:08:26.498-05:00Pentatonix - "Christmas is Here!"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv37g7uyfDGSD_Y3v4C9tv12cQzESEarriE7spMh12dgSAKe2PiBOzla0m7mTr2nL5nf16xD3WofLLz2w3o_NEQ6zqz4OGM4Xut0L2FaycHlIXetSF0WUUhLU2eMq4Lc_w6MiMt3kkpmfi/s1600/ptxxmasishere.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="355" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv37g7uyfDGSD_Y3v4C9tv12cQzESEarriE7spMh12dgSAKe2PiBOzla0m7mTr2nL5nf16xD3WofLLz2w3o_NEQ6zqz4OGM4Xut0L2FaycHlIXetSF0WUUhLU2eMq4Lc_w6MiMt3kkpmfi/s200/ptxxmasishere.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Pentatonix - <i>Christmas is Here!</i><br />
2018, RCA<br />
<br />
1. What Christmas Means to Me<br />
2. Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree<br />
3. It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas<br />
4. Grown Up Christmas List<br />
5. Greensleeves (Interlude)<br />
6. Sweater Weather<br />
7. When You Believe<br />
8. Waltz of the Flowers<br />
9. Here Comes Santa Claus<br />
10. Making Christmas<br />
11. Where Are You, Christmas?<br />
12. Jingle Bells<br />
<br />
So...maybe it's time to give it a rest with the Christmas albums. I can't believe I'm saying this but...I'm kind of disappointed with this one. Part of that has to do with the song selection. I mean, this is their <i>third </i>Christmas album in six years. I never cared for "Grown Up Christmas List" or "Where Are You, Christmas?" to begin with and these versions only make them slightly more palatable. Then we've got the two non-Christmas songs, "Sweater Weather" and "When You Believe." The former of which is okay but the latter is from <i>Prince of Egypt. </i>Another song I wasn't wild about originally (love the movie, though!). The rest of the tracks? It's Pentatonix. It's Christmas. You pretty much know what you're getting. "Making Christmas" (from <i>The Nightmare Before Christmas</i>) is the standout track which really showcases the originality that I fell in love with in the first place. I don't know. Maybe the problem is on my end. I like this okay but it's definitely the bottom of the three.<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: Let's see, I've already mentioned that Avi left and that he and Kristen didn't get along. So... I've got nothing. At least Mitch shaved off that awful mustache.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-47970096860045841402018-11-23T08:39:00.002-05:002018-11-23T08:39:42.781-05:00McKennitt, Loreena - "An Ancient Muse"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOMn18p_7AZFmU7ZnmenE4spHrspyjnrz5WW7n1S-TMv3Ba4zqkBCvMqzNgj8GJPeAM-DLZHXVKaLl_wFkD0Z_c02hr9j_zqFl-g-qa7QP_ZAnJlhtKx__o_u4S9dXjWMQGGfljH2KTdJ/s1600/lmanancientmuse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="537" data-original-width="600" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOMn18p_7AZFmU7ZnmenE4spHrspyjnrz5WW7n1S-TMv3Ba4zqkBCvMqzNgj8GJPeAM-DLZHXVKaLl_wFkD0Z_c02hr9j_zqFl-g-qa7QP_ZAnJlhtKx__o_u4S9dXjWMQGGfljH2KTdJ/s200/lmanancientmuse.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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McKennitt, Loreena - <i>An Ancient Muse</i><br />
2006, Quinlan Road<br />
<br />
1. Incantation<br />
2. The Gates of Istanbul<br />
3. Caravanserai<br />
4. The English Ladye and the Knight<br />
5. Kecharitomene<br />
6. Penelope's Song<br />
7. Sacred Shabbot<br />
8. Beneath a Phrygian Sky<br />
9. Never-Ending Road (Amhran Duit)<br />
<br />
When this album first came out I didn't think it was as good as her previous albums. I have no idea why - I think that the problem was on my end. Listening to it now I love it, naturally. "Caravanserai" and "Penelope's Song" are some of her best. "Beneath a Phrygian Sky" kind of reminds me of "The Bonny Swans" a little bit. I'm glad I went back to this one. I have a lot of memories of listening to this album and working at Coutrywide Home Loans in Florida way back in the day. Just before the secondary loan market burst. Boy that was a sucky job. Anyway, this album is great like the others and past me was a moron.<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: My edition has another remix of "Beneath a Phrygian Sky." It's okay but I prefer the original.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-26454338345031088482018-11-19T07:50:00.000-05:002018-11-19T07:50:36.699-05:00Amaranthe - "Helix"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikixZXxg2Q4etLBfZmOOlGBsN2Q-TCzxZr1_4MEI40b58x4VqDdltE6vtUOHII59fogX8WWMBDM38pswtVGrXr4v_B8ogIO0eRI5yTer_C-jC4RsAShE3XRCXhovvi1Wpa8hH7oviMkbpq/s1600/helixama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikixZXxg2Q4etLBfZmOOlGBsN2Q-TCzxZr1_4MEI40b58x4VqDdltE6vtUOHII59fogX8WWMBDM38pswtVGrXr4v_B8ogIO0eRI5yTer_C-jC4RsAShE3XRCXhovvi1Wpa8hH7oviMkbpq/s200/helixama.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Amaranthe - <i>Helix</i><br />
2018, Spinefarm<br />
<br />
1. The Score<br />
2. 365<br />
3. Inferno<br />
4. Countdown<br />
5. Helix<br />
6. Dream<br />
7. GG6<br />
8. Breakthrough Starshot<br />
9. My Haven<br />
10. Iconic<br />
11. Unified<br />
12. Momentum<br />
Bonus Tracks<br />
13. Say the Word (Acoustic)<br />
14. Dream (Acoustic)<br />
<br />
I was a little concerned about this album at first. Neither single, "365" nor "Countdown," seemed to really do anything for me. I didn't think they were bad, just unremarkable maybe. Thankfully, all my fears were laid to rest listening to the album itself. Even those two tracks were a lot better in the context of the whole album. <i>Helix </i>continues to work the ground laid down by <i>Massive Addictive </i>(where they really defined their sound) and refined on <i>Maximalism. </i>New vocalist Nils Molin is a suitable replacement for Jake E. Though I do miss him. I can't tell if I prefer Jake to Nils or if I'm just old and resistant to change. The Rock Critic said once that it's okay to be a one trick pony as long as you're really good at your trick. Amaranthe proves that they are the absolute masters of their trick. Occasionally I wonder if they'll be able to keep up this level of consistency and quality. I also wonder if I'll ever get tired of their "trick." Though, it's been several albums and I still can't get enough of Gama Bomb's trick. And as <i>Helix </i>has demonstrated to me - I can't get enough of Amaranthe's trick either, so who knows?<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: My CD comes with two acoustic bonus tracks. I didn't have a chance to listen to them because I forgot they were on the CD proper and not part of the album download. Also, Itunes will import "Say the Word" as "Helix."The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-85354471326430424742018-11-14T07:58:00.002-05:002018-11-14T07:58:34.432-05:00Gama Bomb - "Speed Between the Lines"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8v0YCVnU-EZ3KMpGisrGIHkCuENK_CRBk0SKn3NqHSBiJG1XuhfxpQe2kDRH7-bjPR5ZbdJHaG75h_9x_6WK_8lzD4psjuzhFhA62ARhsSENa5leKJpr4mj0RgqFuCcW-Xa6E0D1cUU-z/s1600/gamabspeed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8v0YCVnU-EZ3KMpGisrGIHkCuENK_CRBk0SKn3NqHSBiJG1XuhfxpQe2kDRH7-bjPR5ZbdJHaG75h_9x_6WK_8lzD4psjuzhFhA62ARhsSENa5leKJpr4mj0RgqFuCcW-Xa6E0D1cUU-z/s200/gamabspeed.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br />
Gama Bomb - <i>Speed Between the Lines</i><br />
2018, AFM<br />
<br />
1. Give Me Leather<br />
2. A Hanging<br />
3. 666Teen<br />
4. Bring Out the Monster<br />
5. R.I.P. U<br />
6. Motorgeist<br />
7. Alt-Reich<br />
8. Stay Rotten<br />
9. We R Going 2 Eat U<br />
10. Kurt Russell<br />
11. World Gone to Hell<br />
12. Faceblaster<br />
<br />
Hey, I finally got ahead of the curve on a Gama Bomb album! It's a good thing too because I think this is their best so far. That's high praise considering I thought <i>Untouchable Glory </i>was their best. I've mentioned a time or two about the band sometimes having problems making each song distinct. Well... they've long since gotten over that. Every song here stands out and has a catchy chorus or gang vocal that sticks in your brain. Dare I say there's even a little bit of progressiveness in "Alt-Reich." Maybe. Just a drop. "Alt-Reich" is also an example of a lot more socially conscious lyrics on this release. The band has always had a track or two like that but I think it's a lot more prevalent. here. "Alt-Reich," "We R Going 2 Eat U," and "World Gone to Hell" are the best examples. As much as I like the nostalgia, horror, and silliness, it's cool to hear some tracks that are vicious and fast but also carry a message (that I agree with more often than not). It's actually very in line with old school thrash which could be very socially conscious at times (just look at some old Anthrax records). Every time a new album comes out I always think about when I said I didn't know if wanted album after album of this in my <i>Citizen Brain </i>review. I was so wrong. As long as the band stays this awesome I will never tire of it.<br />
<br />
Useless Fact: The liner notes in this album are inspired by the covers of old pulp novels. I kind of wish they would have put lyrics in their too, though.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-36101605531703420012018-11-11T10:11:00.001-05:002018-11-11T10:16:38.687-05:00Bowie, David - "'Heroes'"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfdGXgx8uOYWdgSPQ4TloKcWfgdr3oSN4gPaLer7aq5y3xvGFFJxV0mAqAueyPRvOqa1CTXApuYZj6b30MZf_3fCtqpxlBy2OwI8bBkNsgsrPXB_9H5txbuDCJHQaXFyWyUXNgewmnwx1z/s1600/dbheroes.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfdGXgx8uOYWdgSPQ4TloKcWfgdr3oSN4gPaLer7aq5y3xvGFFJxV0mAqAueyPRvOqa1CTXApuYZj6b30MZf_3fCtqpxlBy2OwI8bBkNsgsrPXB_9H5txbuDCJHQaXFyWyUXNgewmnwx1z/s200/dbheroes.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br />
Bowie, David - <i>"Heroes"</i><br />
1977/1999, Parlophone<br />
<br />
1. Beauty and the Beast<br />
2. Joe the Lion<br />
3. "Heroes"<br />
4. Sons of the Silent Age<br />
5. Blackout<br />
6. V-2 Schneider<br />
7. Sense of Doubt<br />
8. Moss Garden<br />
9. Neukoln<br />
10. The Secret Life of Arabia<br />
<br />
<div class="yiv8063033863Normal2" style="line-height: 15.3333px; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="background-color: #660000; color: white;"><b style="font-family: "helvetica neue", helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">UVULAPIE</b><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">: </span><span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">After cruising through the absolutely stunning <i>Hunky Dory</i> it seems we’ve hit a wall with<i> "Heroes."</i> Old Man and I keep telling each other that we need to write this review but it’s not getting done, mostly because the album is pretty weak. Finding myself with an extreme need to avoid a current work project I decided that the time had come to kick this one off. Soooo…. <i>"Heroes"</i>. One of the so-called Berlin-trilogy albums. I’ll start off and say that the album cover reminds me of artwork from the dark Daniel Amos classic <i>Doppleganger</i>. I’ll second-off and say that some of the synthesizer instrumental tracks on side two, like “Sense of Doubt”, “Moss Garden” and “Neukoln,” sound a lot like the “just messing around” crap I used to make in the late Eighties when I bought my first synthesizer. Either I’m a genius like Bowie or Bowie was flying high and decided to record his experimenting/noodling around with this then (1977) new toy.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #660000; color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;"><b>OLD MAN</b>: Y'know, I really enjoyed<i> "Heroes" </i>at first. "Beauty and the Beast" is a cool track and I was already familiar with it through Deliverance's cover. The title track is a classic. Absolutely love "Sons of the Silent Age." Then the album kind of crashes and burns in the second half with all these ambient tracks. I mean... I feel like no one had the courage to tell Bowie "no" here. These are just boring and tedious. And there's like...four of them in a row. "Moss Garden" sounds like the generic music they would pipe in at a spa. Seriously, I was so disgusted with the back half of this disc that I didn't listen to it for a couple months. I suppose if I wanted to play devil's advocate I could say these probably have some kind of connection to World War II and the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Doesn't make them any less boring. The last track, "The Secret Life of Arabia," is not ambient (thank goodness!) but it's almost an afterthought. The song (and the album) just sort of peter out. Like "I guess we're done here" - fade out. I guess when you have a reputation as a "risk taker" that must means some risks don't really pay off.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #660000; color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;"><b>UVULAPIE</b>: I will say that the album, as a whole, is dark and twitchy, similar to what I suspect a drug addiction would be like. There’s pretty much just half an album here which means I’m comfortable with just writing half a review.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #660000; color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;"><b>OLD MAN</b>: Word.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #660000; color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13.3333px;">Useless Fact: "Heroes" (the song) was inspired by Bowie watching his producer and his mistress at the Berlin Wall. </span></div>
The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-47188308808885425142018-11-05T08:04:00.002-05:002018-11-05T08:04:30.350-05:00Coheed and Cambria - "Vaxis - Act I: The Unheavenly Creatures"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gILIjGmaT_mnZyDaWDLT1ekdQrs24JKY7PdIFpjz8aicHD9d9lrnjChm3-fVbN1gyN15Yu4LPR-BDijYzflrqKQl-s34YWbvGjhUOmZ6pThE60yn0r3TfjeC0XS8ZDQFL8trn3wpNE01/s1600/ccvaxis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gILIjGmaT_mnZyDaWDLT1ekdQrs24JKY7PdIFpjz8aicHD9d9lrnjChm3-fVbN1gyN15Yu4LPR-BDijYzflrqKQl-s34YWbvGjhUOmZ6pThE60yn0r3TfjeC0XS8ZDQFL8trn3wpNE01/s200/ccvaxis.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Coheed and Cambria - <i>Vaxis - Act I: The Unheavenly Creatures</i><br />
2018, Roadrunner<br />
<br />
1. Prologue<br />
2. The Dark Sentancer<br />
3. Unheavenly Creatures<br />
4. Toys<br />
5. Black Sunday<br />
6. Queen of the Dark<br />
7. True Ugly<br />
8. Love Protocol<br />
9. The Pavillion (A Long Way Back)<br />
10. Night-Time Walkers<br />
11. The Gutter<br />
12. All on Fire<br />
13. It Walks Among Us<br />
14. Old Flames<br />
15. Lucky Stars<br />
<br />
With <i>Vaxis </i>Coheed and Cambria returns to the mult-part sci-fi epics after a brief breather with <i>The Color Before the Sun. </i>You'd be forgiven for thinking this is a return to the <i>Keeping Secrets </i>and <i>Good Apollo </i>era upon hearing "The Dark Sentancer." It's one of those dark progressive songs which are the band's stock and trade. It's got a "No World For Tomorrow" vibe to it. Aside from that, however, I'd venture to say that this album is far more informed by <i>Afterman </i>and <i>Color </i>than most people would want to admit. For one, while the story is about being trapped on a prison planet, the album isn't really that dark. There's too much hope and Claudio's just not a wounded musician anymore - he's a family man in a happy marriage. That stuff has a tendency to brighten up your writing. I feel like this disc is a lot more focus on big hooks and strong, stand alone songs. You'll notice there's not multi-part epic here. Now... this album is amazing. Each track has a huge hook that will stick in your brain forever. "Black Sunday" and "Night-Time Walkers" are the only two songs that I didn't really care for. But two out of fifteen isn't that bad, especially since the other stuff that's here is just so good. "Unheavenly Creatures," "The Gutter," "Old Flames," man... some of the best stuff they've done. This is part one of five so I'm hoping Claudio and the boys can keep this momentum up for the next four albums. Definitely a contender for one of my picks for the year.<br />
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My wife and I sprung for the super deluxe box set for this one. It comes with a mask, a huge hardbound book with the album story and lyrics, a poster, and a black card (for VIP stuff at concerts). It's HUGE! But it's cool to have and I have to read the rest of the story.<br />
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Useless Fact: A lot of fans (myself included) suspect that maybe "The Pavillion (A Long Way Back)" was originally written for <i>The Color Before the Sun</i>. It's basically about Claudio wanting to quit the band so he can spend more time with his family.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-36368003790713694192018-10-20T07:40:00.000-04:002018-10-20T07:40:02.944-04:00McKennitt, Loreena - "The Wind That Shakes the Barley"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97GGA1jfrGIZHjjfHo400wPg3v2S4rWx4HKs54DueoPY9a5-DmehiofYNDCdb7UrfXmuX9aesoAVvpD0HAcA8-w1Yro5syTg3Syd_QIk2vXsaQyOIVmamfUUv5sFE8a3T4yV7Tw2Sd2Wy/s1600/lmwind.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97GGA1jfrGIZHjjfHo400wPg3v2S4rWx4HKs54DueoPY9a5-DmehiofYNDCdb7UrfXmuX9aesoAVvpD0HAcA8-w1Yro5syTg3Syd_QIk2vXsaQyOIVmamfUUv5sFE8a3T4yV7Tw2Sd2Wy/s200/lmwind.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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McKennitt, Loreena - <i>The Wind That Shakes the Barley</i><br />
2010, Quinlan Road<br />
<br />
1. As I Roved Out<br />
2. On a Bright May Morning<br />
3. Brian Boru's March<br />
4. Down By the Sally Gardens<br />
5. The Star of the County Down<br />
6. The Wind That Shakes the Barley<br />
7. The Death of Queen Jane<br />
8. The Emigration Tunes<br />
9. The Parting Glass<br />
<br />
<i>The Wind That Shakes the Barley </i>is a return to traditional Celtic folk songs. There's only one original here ("The Emigration Tunes"). I realized I've got some more of Loreena's music to add to the vault because I was missing quite a few. Naturally, this album is great for dark autumn mornings as you feel the chill in the air. I was disappointed that this album lacks the copious liner notes common to a McKennitt album. However, they are traditional songs so I guess there's not much to note.<br />
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Useless Fact: You know what's sad? I just recently found out she was Canadian.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-68786204418849634062018-10-11T20:02:00.002-04:002018-10-11T20:02:20.021-04:00Band Maid - "World Domination"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDAC2wk0uwOMpbgS2T35jYhkgptaelMbgnDRlHAbqxvZMeUuixVVm4OErX7ulLkRYGqL34RU2UDpo1mjY6IxA8GODW5gv3Hq7AejfOHNvxfKRi-akrdiLPAY1WKOaGVtabZ0LwCQrnE_Bo/s1600/bmworlddom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="355" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDAC2wk0uwOMpbgS2T35jYhkgptaelMbgnDRlHAbqxvZMeUuixVVm4OErX7ulLkRYGqL34RU2UDpo1mjY6IxA8GODW5gv3Hq7AejfOHNvxfKRi-akrdiLPAY1WKOaGVtabZ0LwCQrnE_Bo/s200/bmworlddom.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Band Maid - <i>World Domination</i><br />
2018, JPUD40<br />
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1. I Can't Live Without You<br />
2. Play<br />
3. One and Only<br />
4. Domination<br />
5. Fate<br />
6. Spirit!!<br />
7. Rock in Me<br />
8. Clang<br />
9. Turn Me On<br />
10. Carry On Living<br />
11. Daydreaming<br />
12. Anemone<br />
13. Alive-Or-Dead<br />
14. Dice<br />
15. (Title is in Japanese. I don't know what it is.)<br />
<br />
After loving <i>Just Bring It </i>I had to get their newest, <i>World Domination. </i>For some reason this one was kind of a grower. I just wasn't as much into it at first. I don't really know why as the instrumentation and songs are just as good if not better than the previous album. I did get more into it after several listens. "Anemone" is one of my favorite tracks and it's one of the quieter ones. I don't have too much more to say. It's good. If you like the band, you'll like this one - hopefully it will take less listens than you to get into it.<br />
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Useless Fact: Not really a fact...but...the liner notes fold out into one of those giant welcome mat sized posters. I really hate that. Give me a book. They are easier for me to deal with.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-21548549329818140982018-09-27T06:59:00.001-04:002018-09-27T06:59:24.790-04:00Crystavox - "II: The Bottom Line"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr_ryQIndWSR_056hhAX33AwBkY6YfavJhYYiwhBLi2MEQvqd1CFUibHnafM17gEAFOIqeCTFVNmRHGhuPCQOh2qNYuVbOKEBhsjc5QEJZt4dEnjm2_Nj8tMC0qp2MPnOFMKD6OudZqJGb/s1600/c2bottomline.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1425" data-original-width="1367" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr_ryQIndWSR_056hhAX33AwBkY6YfavJhYYiwhBLi2MEQvqd1CFUibHnafM17gEAFOIqeCTFVNmRHGhuPCQOh2qNYuVbOKEBhsjc5QEJZt4dEnjm2_Nj8tMC0qp2MPnOFMKD6OudZqJGb/s200/c2bottomline.jpg" width="191" /></a></div>
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Crystavox - <i>II: The Bottom Line</i><br />
1992/2018, Roxx Productions<br />
<br />
1. The Big Picture<br />
2. Break Down the Wall<br />
3. Rise Up<br />
4. Snakes in the Grass<br />
5. Stick To Your Guns<br />
6. Paradise<br />
7. Cry Out<br />
8. Shame<br />
9. Rockin' in a Hard Place<br />
10. No Boundaries<br />
Bonus Tracks:<br />
11. Stick to You Guns (20 Year Mix Version)<br />
12. No Boundaries (20 Year Mix Version)<br />
<br />
Now, this one I did not miss out on. I bought it on cassette when it originally came out. I did not really like it that much except for a track here or there. I have no idea why this is - especially listening back now. What was wrong with me? <i>II: The Bottom Line </i>is a bit dirtier, more raw, less commercial. Even the cover art is more low key. This was a common thing back in the day - first album was shiny, slick, and commercial, then the sophomore album was a bit more gritty (see: Ransom, The Brave, etc). This totally works for them though as I think this one is a bit better than the debut. Their look is even a bit more down-to-earth, trading in the mile-high hair and spandex for leather jackets. This is seriously an underrated album. Still kind of reeling about how wrong I was about this album when I was young.<br />
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Useless Fact: Two more tracks from the <i>20 Year Mix.</i> I'm starting to think I might need this album too, just to complete the collection. Y'know... for research purposes. Yeah...that's it...The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-86441739173875168282018-09-24T08:04:00.001-04:002018-09-24T08:04:46.813-04:00Crystavox - "Crystavox"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI1D7gcSzfFw4GA57-6d3l0trDpgmWZyYbLWCiraTtQWtYK0U0uo9gaTn1N40uiNLhYSYQSbTs1VnbMa0dQot8rm1J-SlWsCKVgAWqtG9tXlEkFmchBJxLmfRcK9LZX9YU1jhNLynugTsT/s1600/crystavox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1425" data-original-width="1423" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI1D7gcSzfFw4GA57-6d3l0trDpgmWZyYbLWCiraTtQWtYK0U0uo9gaTn1N40uiNLhYSYQSbTs1VnbMa0dQot8rm1J-SlWsCKVgAWqtG9tXlEkFmchBJxLmfRcK9LZX9YU1jhNLynugTsT/s200/crystavox.jpg" width="199" /></a></div>
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Cyrstavox - <i>Crystavox</i><br />
1990/2018, Roxx Productions<br />
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1. Sacrifice<br />
2. Power Games<br />
3. Wear It Out<br />
4. Turn It On<br />
5. Home Again<br />
6. All the Way<br />
7. It's All Right (To Rock and Roll)<br />
8. All Around the World<br />
9. Never Give In<br />
10. Tough Boys<br />
Bonus Tracks:<br />
11. Home Again (<i>20 Year Mix</i> Version)<br />
12. Power Games (<i>20 Year Mix</i> Version)<br />
<br />
Just look at that cover art, eh? Pretty gorgeous. I saw this on tape way back in the day. I stared at it and tried to figure out if it was metal or not. The logo certainly seemed metal, but while gorgeous, the cover art led me to mistakenly think it could be some Dino-esque piano music. No, I didn't listen to the demo at the store for some reason. I definitely made a mistake that day because Crystavox's debut album is good. Surprisingly good. It's commercial 80's hard rock/heavy metal and listening to it is like going back in time... in a good way. I'm not sure why I'm surprised as to how much I ended up enjoying this. I guess because sometimes I hear these albums now and they just don't do anything for me like the might have way back when. Crystavox is full of big, catchy choruses and anthemic tracks with a lot of power and passion. The recording quality is also much better than I expected. "Sacrifice" and "Home Again" were the big "hits" off this album. At least those are the songs I saw on CCM's charts every month. If you were part of the scene and missed out the first time, you need to check this out. It's good stuff that kind of got lost in the shuffle and I'm glad Roxx reissued it.<br />
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Useless Fact: So <i>The 20 Year Mix </i>is sort of a "best of" that's been remastered, remixed, and rerecorded in some places. I haven't heard it but now that I have the originals I don't know if I need it.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-52718191647774871372018-09-18T08:21:00.002-04:002018-09-18T08:21:46.285-04:00Tribe of Dan - "Shook Up Shook Up"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOJTeLumpSJrb4Xv10a-dOomYQduZloAegREYEFoaDM4B0lJlGNeXTz3dziNMRSKbX-WzNmAdidUGbBA3IUoCjT1FVERbVOEqBSA3okYrwd3v16r0DZPNCeCFYvO4NVqp7Qbd2QvG_yhU/s1600/todshookup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="223" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOJTeLumpSJrb4Xv10a-dOomYQduZloAegREYEFoaDM4B0lJlGNeXTz3dziNMRSKbX-WzNmAdidUGbBA3IUoCjT1FVERbVOEqBSA3okYrwd3v16r0DZPNCeCFYvO4NVqp7Qbd2QvG_yhU/s200/todshookup.jpg" width="197" /></a></div>
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Tribe of Dan - <i>Shook Up Shook Up</i><br />
1992, Blonde Vinyl<br />
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1. Shook Up Shook Up<br />
2. Like You<br />
3. Missin' You<br />
4. I Just Want<br />
5. Be My Friend<br />
6. River Song<br />
7. Barking Dog<br />
8. Blind Lead the Blind<br />
9. Empires<br />
10. Real Heart<br />
11. Beast of Lust<br />
12. Blue I'm Blue<br />
13. Your Hand<br />
<br />
I vividly remember the mockery I received when I told my schoolmates about this album. Of course, I was the only one in my class that listened to any kind of Christian music (except for a few other friends). What's funny is I didn't really like this record except for a few tracks here and there - mostly the title track and "Barking Dog." And...well... I still don't really like it that much, so not much has changed. Though this is one of those instances where I think that this is a disc that's just not for me rather than it being bad. Definitely not bad. Indeed, the guitar work is gritty and raw as are Dan Donovan's vocals. The songs have plenty of energy. It fits into that sort of punk/alt rock/hard rock genre that wasn't really a big thing in general in 1992. I don't know... it just never did anything for me and it still doesn't. I'm putting it up here because it's definitely obscure and I don't think there's much info on it. They only released one other album, <i>The Bootus Red</i>, in 1998. I think maybe if this had come out a little bit later, say '94 or '95 it might have gotten some more traction. Though Blonde Vinyl was always kind of ahead of the curve in terms of genre busting music. I definitely recommend checking this out as I think a lot of people would really dig it even though it isn't for me.<br />
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Useless Fact: Who is Dan Donovan? Did he front any other bands? He sort of came out of the blue and went right back up into it. That is to say, I don't have much in the way of interesting informational nuggets.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2641187104382142983.post-61938839228518082402018-09-16T08:08:00.001-04:002018-09-16T08:08:14.835-04:00Resurrection Band - "Reach of Love"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPmOEGmxy2LhDItTYMfrfEsDd-IQPscy57FFOkz8CQQTrrJz9rzwb-ig0bONezsZyPU_W-UtWSVWpASeTOyZXQC7vPmqt56gxC-jM-ynYP7uZ9xSbo_UkrRBOyO0LJ8r-WVCVHJRZ_lOTE/s1600/rezreachoflove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="220" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPmOEGmxy2LhDItTYMfrfEsDd-IQPscy57FFOkz8CQQTrrJz9rzwb-ig0bONezsZyPU_W-UtWSVWpASeTOyZXQC7vPmqt56gxC-jM-ynYP7uZ9xSbo_UkrRBOyO0LJ8r-WVCVHJRZ_lOTE/s200/rezreachoflove.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Resurrection Band - <i>Reach of Love</i><br />
1994, Grrr<br />
<br />
1. Heart's Desire<br />
2. If Your Love Grows Cold<br />
3. Numbers<br />
4. Sunrise<br />
5. Dead to the World<br />
6. Reach of Love<br />
7. Land of Stolen Breath<br />
8. Mannequin's Dream<br />
9. Empty Hearts<br />
10. Thought I'd Never Love Again<br />
11. White Lies<br />
12. On My Dyin' Bed<br />
13. Heart's Desire (reprise)<br />
<br />
I remember buying this the first time at Kingdom Bound. When we got home there was Tornado watches and stuff that I was scared of because back then I was scared of that stuff. Forget the fact that where we lived tornadoes were pretty uncommon. What does that have to do with <i>Reach of Love</i>? Nothing - but this is my blog and I'll do what I like. AND YOU'LL LIKE IT!<br />
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Ahem... anyway... <i>Reach of Love </i>is the fourth album in the band's hard rock/metal reinvention that began with <i>Silence Screams. </i>In this case it leans more toward the "hard rock" side than the "metal" side. It's still really good though. Not much more to say, really. If you liked the preceding albums, then you'll like this one. Glenn and Wendy Kaiser were (and still are) pretty talented people so the stuff they do is pretty consistently good. Unfortunately, I had to settle for the MP3's from Amazon because I can't find the official CD anywhere. I can't find any of those albums anywhere. Hey, if someone wants to sell their <i>Silence Screams </i>through <i>Lament </i>albums I can find you a buyer real quick!<br />
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Useless Fact: I don't actually have a fact for this one. Like.... I legit know nothing other than the obvious. Hey, that happens sometimes.The Old Manhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06227532873959372472noreply@blogger.com1