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joshua0Whenever I can, I listen to music. This is just a fact of life for me; if you come to the 412lab, you'll most likely find me listening to music of some kind. When I get into a good work groove, I fire up some music to sustain it. When I'm just relaxing, I fire up some music. When I'm socializing, probably I've got some music in the background, too. I like to think, too, that I vary the sort of music that I listen to, although there are certainly specific genres that you'll find me more likely to be listening to at any given time.
Recently, I've been aggressively expanding the set of music that I listen to, and since I think that everyone should get the opportunity to enjoy music, I figured that I'd post about a few of the albums that I've listened to recently. I should note that these aren't all necessarily new albums -- just new to me!
So, let me begin.
Audioslave - Out of Exile
Ok, this album is *really* not new. And it's not entirely new to me, either -- I first heard the track off of it that got me into it a year or so ago. I found the track Be Yourself while listening to Pandora; I punched in Muse - Time is Running Out, and Pandora came up with that. I liked it. In fact, I really liked it. And then it fell out of my consciousness for a while.
Then, tonight, it came to me that I should investigate the rest of the album! I was, overall, pretty pleased to have heard it. You might think of Audioslave, if you haven't heard any of their work, and say "Ok, so it's... well... Rage Against the Machine, and Chris Cornell. Great. More rap metal.". There's an element of that, to be sure, in their self-titled CD, which I've heard fragments of also on Pandora. But if you dismissed this album because of that, you're totally missing out! Sure, there are times where Tom Morello's trademark guitar style shines through, but Chris Cornell does a pretty damn good job of taming Rage with, well... well-executed vocals.
I'd say that off of this album, there are two tracks that really stand out to me -- Be Yourself, and Yesterday to Tomorrow, but the rest of the album isn't half bad, either. Recommended for people who like rock-ish stuff.
Infected Mushroom - Legend of the Black Shawarma
I hope that everyone was expecting this album to show up here! Now, let me admit, I haven't given this a particularly careful listen, but I've listened to the first half of the album while working, and I've listened to it all twice through while driving. And you know what?
Absolutely nothing stood out to me. For some artists, this would be OK -- getting a nice clean album that just sounds like them would be exactly what we wanted. (Arguably, this is what I wanted but didn't get out of The Resistance.) But for Mushroom, the usual is anything but the usual. I mean, let's take a few other albums as examples. Vicious Delicious? Becoming Insane absolutely stood out; Artillery came right up on its tail with something entirely different! Also memorable include In Front of Me, and Change the Formality.
Not convinced? How about Converting Vegetarians, I Wish, and Elevation off of Converting Vegetarians (The Other Side)? I'm the Supervisor, Muse Breaks Rmx, and Cities of the Future off of I'm the Supervisor? All different in style, and all new in fresh in their respective contexts on their CDs.
But what about Legend of the Black Shawarma? I can't name any single track off of it that stuck out to me -- well, maybe Sa'eed, and Can't Stop by virtue of the fact that it's![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
j4cbo's song, but beyond that... what on the CD was new and different? It all sounded like Infected Mushroom, and that's the problem. I don't want more generic Mushroom -- when I play a Mushroom album, I want to be kept on my toes for the whole thing.
My friend James, who is a music snob of sorts, saw the tracklist, and said "Smashing the Opponent -- that sounds like a good name for a Mushroom song! Oh wait. Featuring Jonathan Davis.". I should note that Jonathan Davis is the lead singer for Korn, and James just can't stand his voice. So for James, Smashing the Opponent was a disappointment of a single just for that reason. But for me, it's a disappointment of a single, simply because it's not very good. I mean, it's not bad ... but it's just another ... Mushroom song.
Recommended, grudgingly, for Mushroom fans. It doesn't suck, but it should have been much better than it was.
High Contrast - Tough Guys Don't Dance
Speaking of mediocre techno, this brings me to Tough Guys Don't Dance. The album reminded me a lot of The Crystal Method - Vegas, which I actually like a fair bit.
I really tried to like this album. The problem, though, is that the guy has one sampler, and he just keeps hitting the button all goddamn day. The first two minutes of each song are kind of new and different, but the other six minutes are the first two repeated over and over again. Seriously, change it up some. Also, speaking of repetitive, the beat (boom...TISK! boomTISK!) -- also known as "the Pendulum Beat" -- pervades the album. It's not disguised -- just looped, over and over.
It doesn't help this album's case that the first song has sirens in the samples. Not good when I'm driving.
Not recommended, unless you like repetitive techno, in which case you probably like The Prodigy too. But this isn't really as good as that, either.
Imogen Heap - Ellipse
I don't have a whole lot to say about this, other than that it's Imogen Heap. I haven't made it all the way through the album yet, mostly because it's Imogen Heap. But, the first track, is really pretty good! I was a big fan of Hide and Seek (off of Speak For Yourself), which I thought was beautifully composed and executed; First Train Home seems to have a lot of the same elements that I liked from Hide and Seek.
On the drive back to CMU after Thanksgiving Break, we listened to a bunch of this album, and in general, I liked what I was listening to. Then we got out of the car, and got some food, and when we got back in the car, nobody was in the mood for more Imogen Heap. I think that that is the essence of the problem for me with this album -- it's really rare that I'm in the mood to listen to much Imogen Heap. Oh, well.
Recommended for those that like Imogen Heap; first track recommended in general.
Sound Tribe Sector 9 - Artifact
OK, now here's an album that I really think stands out among things that I've listened to lately, mostly because it's so hard to find things in this genre that I really like. I was looking for more chill-out electronica like Kruder & Dorfmeister - The K&D Sessions, and I just couldn't find anything like that for the longest time.
But on this album, STS9 does a brilliant job of assembling a tasty selection of jazzy melodies, along with brilliantly sampled drum patterns and catchy rhythms and beats overall. The vocal tracks Possibilities and Music, Us really appeal to the jazzy side within me. The track set is so calm, but not boringly so. It's quickly earned one of the spots on my current list of favorite albums. Great for listening to while doing work, great for listening to while driving, great for cranking up and listening to to relax.
Recommended, along with STS9's new album, Ad Explorata, for anyone into jazz and electronica, or anyone just looking to chill out, or anyone in general.
Ok, that was fun. I should do music reviews like that more often. Actually, what I should really do is listen to more music.
Recently, I've been aggressively expanding the set of music that I listen to, and since I think that everyone should get the opportunity to enjoy music, I figured that I'd post about a few of the albums that I've listened to recently. I should note that these aren't all necessarily new albums -- just new to me!
So, let me begin.
Audioslave - Out of Exile
Ok, this album is *really* not new. And it's not entirely new to me, either -- I first heard the track off of it that got me into it a year or so ago. I found the track Be Yourself while listening to Pandora; I punched in Muse - Time is Running Out, and Pandora came up with that. I liked it. In fact, I really liked it. And then it fell out of my consciousness for a while.
Then, tonight, it came to me that I should investigate the rest of the album! I was, overall, pretty pleased to have heard it. You might think of Audioslave, if you haven't heard any of their work, and say "Ok, so it's... well... Rage Against the Machine, and Chris Cornell. Great. More rap metal.". There's an element of that, to be sure, in their self-titled CD, which I've heard fragments of also on Pandora. But if you dismissed this album because of that, you're totally missing out! Sure, there are times where Tom Morello's trademark guitar style shines through, but Chris Cornell does a pretty damn good job of taming Rage with, well... well-executed vocals.
I'd say that off of this album, there are two tracks that really stand out to me -- Be Yourself, and Yesterday to Tomorrow, but the rest of the album isn't half bad, either. Recommended for people who like rock-ish stuff.
Infected Mushroom - Legend of the Black Shawarma
I hope that everyone was expecting this album to show up here! Now, let me admit, I haven't given this a particularly careful listen, but I've listened to the first half of the album while working, and I've listened to it all twice through while driving. And you know what?
Absolutely nothing stood out to me. For some artists, this would be OK -- getting a nice clean album that just sounds like them would be exactly what we wanted. (Arguably, this is what I wanted but didn't get out of The Resistance.) But for Mushroom, the usual is anything but the usual. I mean, let's take a few other albums as examples. Vicious Delicious? Becoming Insane absolutely stood out; Artillery came right up on its tail with something entirely different! Also memorable include In Front of Me, and Change the Formality.
Not convinced? How about Converting Vegetarians, I Wish, and Elevation off of Converting Vegetarians (The Other Side)? I'm the Supervisor, Muse Breaks Rmx, and Cities of the Future off of I'm the Supervisor? All different in style, and all new in fresh in their respective contexts on their CDs.
But what about Legend of the Black Shawarma? I can't name any single track off of it that stuck out to me -- well, maybe Sa'eed, and Can't Stop by virtue of the fact that it's
j4cbo's song, but beyond that... what on the CD was new and different? It all sounded like Infected Mushroom, and that's the problem. I don't want more generic Mushroom -- when I play a Mushroom album, I want to be kept on my toes for the whole thing.My friend James, who is a music snob of sorts, saw the tracklist, and said "Smashing the Opponent -- that sounds like a good name for a Mushroom song! Oh wait. Featuring Jonathan Davis.". I should note that Jonathan Davis is the lead singer for Korn, and James just can't stand his voice. So for James, Smashing the Opponent was a disappointment of a single just for that reason. But for me, it's a disappointment of a single, simply because it's not very good. I mean, it's not bad ... but it's just another ... Mushroom song.
Recommended, grudgingly, for Mushroom fans. It doesn't suck, but it should have been much better than it was.
High Contrast - Tough Guys Don't Dance
Speaking of mediocre techno, this brings me to Tough Guys Don't Dance. The album reminded me a lot of The Crystal Method - Vegas, which I actually like a fair bit.
I really tried to like this album. The problem, though, is that the guy has one sampler, and he just keeps hitting the button all goddamn day. The first two minutes of each song are kind of new and different, but the other six minutes are the first two repeated over and over again. Seriously, change it up some. Also, speaking of repetitive, the beat (boom...TISK! boomTISK!) -- also known as "the Pendulum Beat" -- pervades the album. It's not disguised -- just looped, over and over.
It doesn't help this album's case that the first song has sirens in the samples. Not good when I'm driving.
Not recommended, unless you like repetitive techno, in which case you probably like The Prodigy too. But this isn't really as good as that, either.
Imogen Heap - Ellipse
I don't have a whole lot to say about this, other than that it's Imogen Heap. I haven't made it all the way through the album yet, mostly because it's Imogen Heap. But, the first track, is really pretty good! I was a big fan of Hide and Seek (off of Speak For Yourself), which I thought was beautifully composed and executed; First Train Home seems to have a lot of the same elements that I liked from Hide and Seek.
On the drive back to CMU after Thanksgiving Break, we listened to a bunch of this album, and in general, I liked what I was listening to. Then we got out of the car, and got some food, and when we got back in the car, nobody was in the mood for more Imogen Heap. I think that that is the essence of the problem for me with this album -- it's really rare that I'm in the mood to listen to much Imogen Heap. Oh, well.
Recommended for those that like Imogen Heap; first track recommended in general.
Sound Tribe Sector 9 - Artifact
OK, now here's an album that I really think stands out among things that I've listened to lately, mostly because it's so hard to find things in this genre that I really like. I was looking for more chill-out electronica like Kruder & Dorfmeister - The K&D Sessions, and I just couldn't find anything like that for the longest time.
But on this album, STS9 does a brilliant job of assembling a tasty selection of jazzy melodies, along with brilliantly sampled drum patterns and catchy rhythms and beats overall. The vocal tracks Possibilities and Music, Us really appeal to the jazzy side within me. The track set is so calm, but not boringly so. It's quickly earned one of the spots on my current list of favorite albums. Great for listening to while doing work, great for listening to while driving, great for cranking up and listening to to relax.
Recommended, along with STS9's new album, Ad Explorata, for anyone into jazz and electronica, or anyone just looking to chill out, or anyone in general.
Ok, that was fun. I should do music reviews like that more often. Actually, what I should really do is listen to more music.
no subject
re:legend of the black shawarma... i first heard the album in 8's car, and contrary to your review, *everything* kept grabbing my attention. maybe it's just because i hadn't listened to more than a handful of mushroom songs before, so i didn't think the sound was tired. once i go back and remember what they are i'll tell you what tracks i especially liked -- actually they aren't the same as the ones that initially caught my attention, but are i think all on the second half of the album.