Mega Music Talent

Archive for the ‘Record Reviews’ Category

“Late Of The Pier” are a four-piece indie rock band from Castle Donington, London. Late Of The Pier are Samuel Eastgate (Vocals, Guitar and Synthesizers), Andrew Faley (Bass and Synthesizers), Sam Potter (Sampler) and Ross Dawson (Drums). All of them have pseudonyms and known as Samuel Dust, Francis Dudley Dance, Jack Paradise and Red Dog Consuela respectively. Late Of The Pier are very much into electronica and their music genres cover indie rock, electronica, synth pop and dance-punk.

Late Of The Pier’s Fantasy Black Channel opens with roaring guitar instrumental “Hot Tent Blues”. It seems that Late Of The Pier have been using a sampler to make this track. The guitar on this track revives the 80s rock scene where it’s filled with pitching and echoic guitar. The bass and drums provide cushion in the background as the guitar plays on. Once it reaches the remaining 13 seconds, the track gallops again but this time, with some start/stop guitar riffs. It’ll gradually bring you to the next track. Very energetic opening!

Once entering “Broken”, oh my god the guitar just brings you on. You couldn’t help it but to move your body to this crazy filler track. Very awesome guitar work i would say. Shortly after that, it’s followed by a series of music created by synthesizers and sampler. Only by the time Samuel enters with his vocals, Broken seems to slow down a bit to allow him to express himself. Broken is filled with various guitar playing, you can’t help but to love this track. Just my first listen, Broken already got me wanting for more. Very addictive!

“Space And The Woods” comes in right after Broken. If i’m not mistaken, it sounds like Late Of The Pier are playing keyboards here. Catchy keyboards playing by them. Samuel has a robotic voice-like as he sings on. When it comes to the part which i assume is the chorus, the guitar just comes in, without affecting the earlier keyboards that we first heard. In the bridge, Samuel sings in a very ignorant voice that goes, “I’m shit hot so say what you think about me, i’m not gonna cry because I don’t care…” It sounds kind of cool here. The music on Space And The Woods definitely matches the previous track. Love the keyboards!

“The Bears Are Coming” has a very cool opening. African-influenced percussion belting with the synthesizers. Once Samuel comes in, it just adds extra weight to the already really good music. After each paragraph of his singing, the music just plays on. And it’s not just some ordinary music, it’s the type of music which is going to at least make you nod your heard. The Bears Are Coming also vibrates some disco-feel to it. In the bridge, Late Of The Pier just takes a short break with the slow tempo and Samuel enters with his yell-like vocals layered with heavy-heart elements, “I saw you wading in the water, i saw you ride along the sea, shine on a nightmare, shine through the trees…” Once after that, the music again kills me on the spot. With some voice in the background, it’s like a party track in the making. Before ending, it seems that Late Of The Pier are not done with the track yet, they just play around with their synthesizers and sampler. Amazing feeling!

On “Random Firl”, the music in the beginning is just way too cute. The synthesizers-influenced guitar are very cheeky as well. If you pay attention, you would notice a slight sound of exclaimation (Like a woman’s gasp) in the background when the music are just warming up to get to the verse. It just sounds so funny to me. Slowly, Late Of The Pier seem to be adding more instruments to this track, making it sounds much better gradually. The cheeky and catchy guitar just work its way throughout the track, very sweet feeling.

“Heartbeat” begins with some 80s-like music before the real deal comes in where Late Of The Pier enter with loud guitar riffs. When it gets to the chorus, Heartbeat seems to get into another level, it gets rougher and groovier here with Samuel going, “A heartbeat, a flicker, a line…. It’s just a line…” in repetition. The best moment on Heartbeat definitely. Entering the second verse, the bass also gets groovier and louder. It just never fails to pump up my blood and the volume. It’s not a line, it’s the music!

“White Snake” has a somewhat slow beginning. But it suddenly bursts with the loud guitar of Late Of The Pier. Samuel also seems to be gasping for air when singing as it’s fast and loud here. The guitar also plays at a speedy rate. When it gets to the chorus, the whole track just loosen up slightly. Piano can be heard playing in a repetition of notes rapidly as the track goes on from here. In the bridge, Late Of The Pier add some creepy music to White Snake, it comes in as a surprise, really. But it’s still good as the track is so fast until it gets you rocking as well. Even Samuel sings and yells like a true rock star!

“VW” continues with some clever music playing. Horn can be heard here as the music goes fast and slow throughout the track. When it’s fast, the horn seems to be louder and the music sounds kind of eerie, as if something bad is bound to happen. When it gets to the slower part, Later Of The Pier seem to be getting ready for the next speedy break. Listening to VW makes you think that you’re running out of time and something bad is about to happen. Dangerously fast!

“Focker” has a very strong electronic influences to it. On the verse, Samuel sings very fast as if he’s gulping down the lyrics. However in the chorus, things get a different approach. Samuel just sings and drags on, “I wanna be you friend… Oh yeah…” With the heavy electronic music in the background, sometimes it just drowns out the voice of Samuel. Focker can be said one of the wildest tracks on Fantasy Black Channel. Even the remaining 30 seconds are filled loud guitar and synthesizers, looping and echoing to the end.

“The Enemy Are the Future” has a cute beginning. You would know what i mean after listening to it. It seems that this time Samuel share his vocals part with other members of Late Of The Pier. It has a deep and playful voice once it comes in. As the chorus comes, the whole track as i never expect, sounds very good with the bass going on. With Samuel going catchily in repetition, “Easy life, is it an easy life?…”, i feel obliged to sing along as well. I just don’t know why, the way Late Of The Pier play and sing is really good! Needless to say, the music is just great on The Enemy Are The Future. Deeper into the track, it just turns into another track totally. The sampler and synthesizers just hit the invisible magic button as it’s no longer a rock track, it’s a dance track. Very, very highly evolved.

“Mad Dogs and Englishmen” starts with a bell chiming from afar. Sooner than later, the bass comes in and eventually it gets louder with a certain rhythm to it. The guitar and the bass on this track seems to be working together here, layering and covering one another. When the bass goes, the guitar waits; when the guitar goes, the bass waits. The bass especially, makes me smile as it possesses some funny elements in it. In the bridge and until the end, Late Of The Pier just play their stuffs which resulting in some playful and great music. It makes you want to play…

“Bathroom Gurgle” opens with steady drum beats (That resembles “Chelsea Dagger” by The Fratellis) and soon joined by synthesizers. The music itself is already catchy enough to make me want to get up and dance. It’s infectiously groovy! In the chorus, Samuel yells, “Find yourself a new boy…” with the music adding in some xylophone-like sound. I really enjoyed myself listening to that particular moment. Other than that, Late Of The Pier’s Samuel also plays around with his vocals on Bathroom Gurgle as he imitates the voice of females at some points of the track. Few seconds after the chorus, Bathroom Gurgle surprises us with a cheering part that goes, “So put your hands on your waistline, and move you body to the bassline, and get your hands on some cheap wine…” Late Of The Pier really show everything they have on this track. One track that covers a variety of singing and playful music.

Cheers!
Darren Tan
Indiesurf.com

Related Music Review Articles

Music Review of A Mouthful by The Do

“The Do” are a French two-piece or duo indie band based in Paris. The Do were formed in 2007 and they are Dan Levy (Musician) and Olivia Merilahti (Vocals). Their music covers a wide variety of genres that include indie rock, indie pop, folk rock and a bit of electronic stuffs.

A Mouthful has an album appetizer that everyone of us will definitely give at least a thumb-up to it. In “Playground Hustle”, a group of children cover most of the singing part while Olivia just adds in some extra weights here and there. The music in this track is exceptional as well. The flute on Playground Hustle reminds me of my younger days when i had to learn flute-playing in school. The music which is mainly contributed by synthesizers also creates a very good opener impression here. Love the cheeky part where it almost sounds like the movie “Jaw” theme. Read the rest of this entry »

Annuals is a six-piece (Indie) band from Raleigh, North Carolina. Their band members consist of Adam Baker (Songwriter/Vocals), Kenny Florence (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Mike Robinson (Bass/Backing Vocals), Anna Spence (keyboard/Piano/Backing Vocals), Zak Oden (Drums/Guitar) and Donzel Radford (Drums/Percussion). Their genre are mostly Indie rock, Alternative rock, Indie pop, Experimental rock. Their first album “Be He Me”, was released when they were just around the age of 19. And according to major music critic from Rolling Stone to NME to Pitchforkmedia, “Be He Me” received incredible positive reviews. Very impressive if you ask me. Such a young band, but already so big at such young age. What more would I ask for if I were a part of Annuals!

Such Fun contains a variety of musical arrangement and landscape, from relaxing country to orchestra ballad.

Their title track, “Confessor” starts off with Adam Baker singing “Pack up and leave…” When it comes to the chorus, everything seems so right, Adam sings in a voice that somehow sounds so soft to my ears. And with the delicious music that blend in so well with the vocals, anyone will have to confess to any mistakes/deeds that he/she committed after listening to song. The Guitar of Kenny can also be heard on and off. Wonderful opener from Such Fun!

“Hot Night Hounds” has a cheerful and fun piano sound to it. It kinda reminds me of my sister’s younger days where she played piano in our house every weekend or during her free time. This song can arguably be separated into 2 parts, where the first part is the piano-playing and the second part is the jamming and riffing of the guitar. 2 parts of this song make this song hot and cool!

“Springtime” is a slow and indie pop ballad where it starts off slow and steady. It gradually picks up in the chorus and the tempo of this song suddenly explode and all of a sudden the music background is getting richer, make this song sound so full and rich! Like Annuals are performing at an orchestra show! When Adam is not singing, the rest of the Annuals back it up with “Ba, ba, ba ba ba….” It’s beautiful, and it made me want to sing along!

“Down The Mountain” Wow! This song sounds like a song taken from a Cowboy Motion Picture. When I plugged in my earphones to my ears and listened to this song. I was imagining myself in a cowboy movie where I was riding on a horse and chasing, catching and hunting a group of cows/deers/goats/ or other wildlife. It’s such fun and cute song to listen to. You can bet to play this song when you are having a game of “getting to the seat when the music stops”! It’s just a suggestion. But this song is definitely cute and funny! It made you wanna smile and sometimes, laugh.

“Always Do” made an impression on me that it is a beautiful love song. It’s a love song, but angry love song. It seems that this song recalls the old memory of the love between 2 people. Annuals made an impact by exploding in this song. Remember “Brother” from their previous album, “Be He Me”? Well this song recalls me of “Brother”. Where it started off slow, and gradually picked up and exploded near the end of the song! It’s like building the momentum of this song, or even climbing up to the top of a hill or mountain and screams at his/her peak upon reaching the peak. Those who love “Brother”, will definitely love “Always Do”.

“Talking” is a fast track where the sound of the guitar can be mostly heard throughout the whole track. The chorus is the only part of the song that made an impression on me, where Adam sings, “Don’t let your love decay…” It sounds like Adam is really tired of talking. Honestly, I really think Annuals play and perform perfectly when they are doing a ballad orchestra or in other words, a slower tempo song. “Talking” is a good effort and it ended in a sudden after the riff of the guitar, but if you asked me, I prefer Annuals on indie pop, indie ballad or even indie orchestra if there’s such a genre.

“Hardwood Floor” This song is just so awesome! And I really mean it! It’s supposed to be a sad song but I can’t help but feeling good whenever listening to this beautiful song. Adam starts off with “I’m so scared I just can’t go anymore, I keep patching my rooftop…” From the first listen, it’s like singing about a wound that hasn’t healed completely. But in reality, after listening to this song, all my wounds are gone, this song is capable of doing so. The part where Annuals sing what sounded to me like, “didn’t told dai yo”, it is one of the best moment on Such Fun. Well, if you asked me what does it mean, frankly I don’t know but it really sound like some African langauge.

“Hair Don’t Grow” From the beginning to the end of this song, Kenny’s guitar is awesome! Again, it resembles “Down The Mountain” as if it were taken from a Cowboy Motion Picture. But only this time, “Hair Don’t Grow” sounds packer, heavier and louder. It’s best when you play this song when you’re watching some Cowboy movies when the good Cowboys are fighting and shooting against the bad Cowboys. And oh yes, this song would be perfect when Annuals perform them in a gig or concert. The guitar, bass, drum, hand claps and some whistling instrument (Maybe it’s violin) just blend in and got together so well and tastefully. Don’t blame me if you find yourself nodding your head or tapping your foot away when listening to “Hair Don’t Grow”.

“The Tape” After listening to this song, I can’t help but think that this song is kinda cute and can be used to replace the old and somewhat boring “Silent Night” Christmas Song. A picture of a man playing piano in front of the Christmas tree and his family came to my mind when I listened to this song. Or is it because of the Piano-playing that made this song embraces the atmosphere of the Christmas Season. Not only that, “The Tape” is well accompanied by a number of musical instruments which can be found in a brass band. On second listen, “The Tape” can be a wonderful song for children’s brass band.

“Blue Ridge” Yet again, another beautiful song. It begins with a man talking and whispering to a baby. Reminds me of fatherly love. Forget Barney! Let your baby listen to Annuals’ “Blue Ridge”! Throughout the journey of this song, the music and vocals fit in so well. When Annuals sing together, “To be first in the Sun, to be cursed it might be fun, such fun…” The music that comes along will blow you away. It’ll melt you away like a box of chocolate. The violin is brilliant. I wish this song can be longer..

“Wake” started off somewhat in a creepy way. But it continued with a cheerful and happy note. The chorus is a very happy one and the backup vocals done by the rest of the Annuals suits in just well. It also kinda reminds me of the Arctic Monkeys’ “A Certain Romance” where it ended on a strong and powerful note! Wonderful indie pop rock song (If there’s such a genre).

Rating: Compared to their previous full length album , “Be He Me”. “Such Fun” showed that Annuals are evolving as an indie band/artist. They tried to venture into new musical landscape and sound in “Such Fun” while “Be He Me” was somewhat very consistent in their landscape and sound. Overall “Such Fun” was a really good ride. No kidding! It garnered a rating of 7.5 out of 10 from me.

Stand-Out Tracks (My Picks): Springtime, Hardwood Floor, Hair Don’t Grow and Blue Ridge.

Cheers!

Darren Tan

Avid Indie Music Fan

Find More Music Review Articles

Match Annual 2011: From the Makers of the UK's Bestselling Football Magazine (Annuals)

Match Annual 2011 : From the Makers of the UK's Bestselling Football Magazine Title: Match Annual 2011 : From the Makers of the UK's Bestselling Football Magazine Binding: Hardcover Publication date: 2010

List Price: £6.99 Price: £2.87

What more can be said about the most famous rock album of all time? I think Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band has almost become too legendary for it’s own good. It’s become so legendary that many people seem to not really properly listen to it before dismissing it. I think it’s like that with anything that becomes very popular. There are always those who want to be “different” by rejecting it and it’s clear that’s exactly what’s happened with those who reject Sgt. Pepper on principle.

On the other hand I can understand the argument that Pepper is overrated in comparison to some of The Beatles other albums. People often give it all of the credit for being “groundbreaking” while neglecting the very groundbreaking album that came out the year before, Revolver. That 1966 album brought the tape loops and general psychedelic madness of “Tomorrow Never Knows” to the world. It also brought the sad beauty of “Eleanor Rigby” and the heavy rock of “Taxman” and the Indian music of “Love You To.” The point is that Sgt. Pepper didn’t come out of nowhere, it was something the band had been building towards.

But what set Pepper apart from Revolver is how it flowed as an album rather than as a collection of excellent songs. As wildly different as Pepper’s songs are from each other (consider the “Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite” to “Within You Without You” to “When I’m 64″ sequence) they all somehow fit together within the flow of this album. It’s not so much that Pepper brought experimental psychedelic rock music to the world for the first time (clearly it did not) it was that it brought the album as a real “work of art” to the forefront for the first time.

Many bands would go on to take the “concept album” idea much farther than The Beatles did with Sgt. Pepper. But in so doing they would create albums that were a bit overbearing and dull. I think this Beatles classic works so well precisely because the concept of it is really very “loose.” The songs don’t really have anything to do with each other as far as a whole story. They are held together with a “sleight of hand” that is the way the first couple of songs are connected and how there’s a reprise of the opening song before the last song.

Of course this album wouldn’t have become so legendary and wouldn’t still be among the all time favorite albums for many people if it wasn’t for the many excellent songs that it contains. To my ears there is not a single weak song on the album and I think they are all an essential part of what makes the album excellent.

“Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” “When I’m 64,” “With a Little Help from My Friends,” “A Day in the Life,” & the title track are probably the most well known songs on the album but I really appreciate the group of three Paul McCartney penned songs on tracks four through six: “Getting Better,” “Fixing a Hole,” & “She’s Leaving Home.” These songs seem to most exemplify the “art pop” mentality of the album.

Author Bio: The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Album is among James Randall Twist’s favorite albums of all time. Pepper is included in both of The Beatles Remastered Box Sets. It sounds great in both Mono and Stereo Mixes.

The remastered double CD Past Masters compilation contains every Beatles song that came out from ’62 through ’70 that were not included on any of their UK album releases. These CDs are designed to make it easy to collect all of The Beatles original 1960s releases and obviously it’s very easy to collect them all now with The Remastered Beatles In Stereo Box Set which, of course, includes the Past Masters compilation along with all of their UK albums.

Some people may think that these songs must not have been “good enough” to make it onto their albums but really that’s not true at all.

The Beatles thought of their albums and their singles as being entirely separate from each other. They made every effort to not include their singles on their album releases because they believed that would be unfair to their fans who had already purchased the singles. Because of this, many of their biggest hit singles were never included on their albums and likewise many of their albums didn’t include any UK singles at all (they only had control of their UK singles at the beginning of their career) such as Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Rubber Soul, and The White Album.

So The Beatles Past Masters compilation isn’t just a bunch of “rarities” or “B-Sides” it’s really an essential part of the band’s discography. The set contains some of their most famous songs like “Hey Jude,” “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” “She Loves You,” “Day Tripper,” “I Feel Fine,” “Paperback Writer,” “We Can Work It Out,” and the single version of “Revolution” (which is much different than the slow version included on The White Album.)

Along with those huge hits Past Masters does include some great “rarities” like the German versions of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” and “She Loves You” as well as some really good B-Sides like “Don’t Let Me Down,” “Old Brown Shoe,” & “Rain.” On top of that it includes some excellent alternate versions of songs such as “Let It Be,” “Get Back,” and “Across The Universe.” In fact the versions of “Let It Be” & “Get Back” on this collection are the “single versions” that you are probably more familiar with than the versions that are on the Let It Be album.

I also think the Mono Masters version of the Past Masters collection is vital too. It’s basically the mono mix version of the Past Masters compilation as it contains most of the same songs as Past Masters with a few differences because the band stopped mixing their songs in mono towards the end of their career. While the the Past Masters set is available both for individual purchase and as a part of the The Beatles In Stereo Box Set, Mono Masters is only available as a part of The Beatles In Mono Box Set (which is very highly recommended.)

In closing, the remastered Past & Mono Masters sets are excellent (and essential) additions to The Beatles catalog which show beyond any doubt that their singles are just as classic as their albums.

Author Bio: George Kane recommends buying both Beatles Remastered Box Sets. The Beatles Stereo Box Set. The Beatles Mono Box Set.

Article Source: http://bb-articles.com/the-beatles-remastered-past-masters-review

JIMMY SCREECH ALBUM

”THE REMEDY”

THE MEANING BEHIND THE SONGS ON THE ALBUM ”THE REMEDY”

The Remedy”

Is called the REMEDY because:

“is a self – served tonic for me and hopefully this will be the same for anyone else listening”.

DUBSTYLE ?

This is an introduction to those who don’t know what I do and a re-introduction to those who do. The track is about playing on a sound system and is also about being able to use music without using violence.

WOOD 4 THE TREEZ ?

A relationship song from a male pespective when a relationship doesn’t seem to be going anywhere and you can’t work out what to do next.

JAMAICA -

This track is about escapism. At some point in our lives we find a place in our minds to go when things aren’t going our way. And mine is JAMAICA (the beaches) it is an image that I would see in my head when the city is grinding me down.

BULLSEYE ?

This track is about taking a chance and working your hardest to achieve your goals.

PARANOIA ?

This track is about my experience working in the music industry when the situations arise you sometimes wonder are there glaring problems in the media or am I just being paranoid?

I’ll leave that question out there!

DUST OFF ?

This track is about trial and error. It is about picking yourself up and trying again. Learning from your mistakes and being honest enough to know that you make them.

FLY AWAY ?

This is a dancehall track about getting to know my girl better.

ENGLAND ?

This track is about touring around the UK and in between growing up in the music industry.

TOAST TO FATE ?

It is a celebration of the fact that fate has brought me to the point of wanting to stop making music. At the same time fate has also put good people and allies in my path which has brought me success.

TELLING LIES ?

Exactly what it says on the tin? rappers who are mummy’s boys outside of the booth and gangstars in them.

SCANDALOUS ?

Some women can be a man’s Achilles heel no matter how strong willed we appear to be some women are our weakness.

CAN’T YOU SEE ?

This is about the loop that some young black boys and men find themselves in and its my way of highlighting that.

I’M TO BLAME ?

A song about that talks about when you neglect the person that means the most to you in your life. I wrote it from the perspective of a man to a woman but it could be anyone, your relative or a friend.

DUB STYLE (ALL STARS REMIX) -

One of the highlights of my career is to have 3 artists that I have up most respect for who gave up some of their time to bless the track. I am eternally grateful for their input and I look at this track as the icing on the cake.

Author Bio: http://www.myspace.com/jimscreechofficial http://www.mapmusic.net

“Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin” – What a brilliant way to start this album. It’s a totally over the top song stuffed with so many beats, riffs, and unexpected surprises (“yee haw”) that it still sounds ridiculously fresh 27 years after it was first released. I think it’s worth noting that Jackson as a sole songwriting credit on this song. Not enough people give him credit as a songwriter. They want to write him off simply as an “entertainer” or as someone who just sang and danced but didn’t have any real creative input on his music. While he was an excellent singer and dancer, he was also an extremely creative songwriter.

“Baby Be Mine” – One of just two songs not released as a single which goes to show how great this album really is because this is an excellent song that I think could
have been a hit.

“The Girl Is Mine” – Most would agree this is one of the lesser songs on the album yet it was actually released as the lead single. That’s probably partly because MJ was so thrilled to have done a duet with Paul McCartney. Over the years this song has actually really grown on me and I enjoy it more today than I ever have in the past. Once you accept it for what it is, it’s really quite enjoyable.

“Thriller” – The music video for this song is so famous that I think the song itself actually doesn’t get enough attention. While Jackson didn’t actually write “Thriller,” it’s hard to imagine it being anything close to what it is in the hands of anyone else.

“Beat It” – Michael wrote this classic song himself. The inclusion of the blistering guitar solo by Eddie Van Halen gives this song a lot of crossover appeal to rock fans who may otherwise dismiss MJ’s music. Including such a guitar solo in this song is a great example of Jackson’s creativity and desire to push the boundries.

“Billie Jean” – Probably Jackson’s all time most popular song. It’s the song that he first moonwalked to (at the 1983 Motown awards.) And yes Jackson wrote this brilliant track himself. I’m not sure there’s any other song in the world that makes me want to dance more than “Billie Jean.”

“Human Nature” – This part of the album is probably what I enjoy most at this point because these songs haven’t been quite as “overplayed” as most of the rest of the album. I love this song. It was written by Steve Porcoro and John Bettis. Steve Porcoro was a member of the band Toto.

“P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)” – This song just absolutely rocks. It’s somewhat lesser known because it’s never included on Jackson’s “Greatest Hits” albums but to me it ranks among his best songs.

“The Lady In My Life” – This one has grown on me over time but I’d still probably rank it as my least favorite song on the album. I think it starts off pretty weakly but I do really dig where it goes once it gets going.

Jake Topp recommends Singorama singing lessons if you want to improve your vocal abilities: http://www.MusicByDay.com/singinglessons.html

Paul McCartney’s newest album was released in November of 2008 but it’s not exactly a Paul McCartney album. It’s officially an album by the experimental music group called The Fireman. Hopefully you are now intrigued and are wondering what in the heck I’m talking about. And you should be intrigued if you enjoy interesting music that stretches the boundaries of “normal” song arrangements.

So who is The Fireman and what do they have to do with Paul McCartney? The Fireman is a duo consisting of a producer who goes by the name Youth (his real name is Martin Glover) and a former bass player for a certain influential 1960s band named Paul McCartney (ah yes, how did you guess?)

If you haven’t heard of The Fireman before that’s because they have only released two previous albums which haven’t gained much widespread attention. One of which was basically a remix album (1993′s Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest) and a second that was a psychedelic, almost entirely instrumental, ambient album (1998′s Rushes which I highly recommend.) Neither of these albums were very publicized and neither made the charts in the UK or the US.

Their newest album, Electric Arguments, is a shift for the group in that it has been more heavily promoted (and it did enter the charts in the US and the UK although only at #67 & 71) and in that it includes songs with vocal melodies & lyrics rather than pure instrumentals (in fact every song on the album features vocals.)

This is very exciting for McCartney fans like myself who have greatly enjoyed McCartney’s more experimental tendencies (such as the tape loops on “Tomorrow Never Knows,” the second album from The Fireman (Rushes,) or The Liverpool Sound Collage.) Finally we get to hear the combination of McCartney’s songwriting & singing talents (and his vocals sound amazing on this album) combined with his experimental musical ideas.

It’s a thrilling ride especially when you consider the rather psychedelic notion that this is the same man who basically gave birth to many of the musical styles of today. This 66 year old man who has seen the music he helped give birth to develop into many different styles of music. And here he is in 2008 still producing inventive original music. It’s truly a beautiful thing if you are into music for the art of it and not for the scene (yes I’m looking at you Pitchfork Media.)

One of the really great things about this album is the way that McCartney stretches his vocals. On each song they sound completely different than the song before (or just about any song he’s ever released in the passed.) There’s a rawness to his vocals that is really exciting to listen to.

There’s a lot of different styles of music on Electric Arguments from ragged rock (track 1 opens the album with a noisy Led Zeppelin-esque rocker) to quiet acoustic music (Track 2 “Two Magpies”) to spaced out hard to describe electronica inspired music.

One of the highlights for me is track 6, “Light From Your Lighthouse” which features probably the weirdest vocal on the album (and that’s saying quite a bit.) It’s also probably the catchiest song on the album. It actually reminds me a great deal of Ween which is a very good thing. I don’t think a lot of people realize how inspired by McCartney Ween actually are. It was Paul, after all, who was behind of the “genre pastiches” with The Beatles (“Rocky Raccoon,” “Honey Pie,” “When I’m 64,” “Back In The USSR.”) By the way, if you are more of an old school classic rock fan and you’ve never heard Ween, I recommend you check them out. Start out with something like White Pepper so you don’t get scared away!

All said, I think Electric Arguments is sure to go down as one of the best albums of 2008 and as one of the most essential albums in Paul McCartney’s solo career.

The author Johnny Moon says you should go to http://www.MusicByDay.com for more music magic.

My all time favorite album turned 40 this week. The Beatles self titled double album was released on November 22, 1968. It’s better known as The White Album due to it’s white cover. It was The Beatles only double album and their only self titled album. I also believe it was their best album (and considering the competition that is saying a lot.)

Sure not every one of the album’s 30 tracks is up to The Beatles usual incredibly high standards. Songs like “Goodnight” and “Don’t Pass Me By” (sorry Ringo) won’t ever rank among The Beatles best and in fact they do rank among their worst. But even the not so great songs seem to add to the album’s character. And these few weak tracks are definitely exceptions and not the rule.

Some would say that these weak tracks are an indication that the album should have been a single album instead. I strongly disagree. 13 or so tracks probably would have had to have been cut to make it into a single album and there’s no way there are 13 tracks that could be cut from The White Album.

To me it’s the great variety of The White Album that helps to make it so timeless and so endlessly listenable. It’s the one album I seem to never get bored of. It’s amazing how I still hear new things in the songs all of these years later. I first heard The White Album about 12 years ago and I am still blown away by the nuances and musical layers of these songs. I wouldn’t call the album a “grower” as that term is usually reserved for an album one doesn’t initially enjoy and then grows to like. This is an album I initially loved and then grew to love even more and more over the years.

Songs such as “Martha My Dear” and “Honey Pie” may have seemed like “throwaways” when I first heard it but now they seem essential. These are brilliant songs that show The Beatles at a creative peak. They weren’t merely trying to repeat what they had already done, they were always looking for new song styles to try, new ways to create. If you’re the type that enjoys hearing the same song over and over again (hello Nickelback fans!) then sure this may not work for you but if you’re the type that actually likes to hear imagination at play then it certainly is.

“Revolution #9″ is often brought up as the biggest example of The Beatles “going too far.” Once again I strongly disagree. To me “Revolution #9″ is a vital part of The White Album and I love that it was included. I think, still to this day, it’s the most unusual track ever to be included on a #1 album. That alone would make it an interesting listen. But it’s more than just unusual. It’s an extremely effective track for what it is. It’s aim is to be unsettling. To take the listener on a sort of stream of consciousness journey and to that end it works extremely well. While I do not listen to this track every single time I put on the album (I admit to often stopping the album at “Cry Baby Cry” and thus skipping “Revolution #9″ and “Goodnight.”) when I do listen to it, I enjoy it.

I far prefer that experiments such as that are included rather than hearing an album chock full of average tracks that all sound the same.

The contrasts of The White Album are brilliant. From “Helter Skelter” the album moves to “Long Long Long.” That has to be among the most intense contrasts in rock history. “Helter Skelter” is the heaviest song The Beatles ever recorded and “Long Long Long” is the quietest. These songs are the perfect representation of what The White Album is. Variety, contrast, imagination, and excellence.

The author Matthew Yoho recommends checking out http://www.MusicByDay.com for more Beatles (and other great bands.)

When hip-hop legend, Nas, began promoting the title of his latest CD, I was one of the many that thought that hip-hop had finally taken it too far.

I believed Nas was using the N-word as the CD title as a mere publicity stunt to gain more attention for the project. After months of political pressure and protest by civil rights leaders such as Rev. Al Sharpton, The Island Def Jam Music Group and Columbia Records forced their artist to release the project as a self-titled CD after many retail stores made it clear that they would not stock an album called (N-word).

Despite the controversy that erupted over the original CD title and the negative lyrics of some rappers, what we received from the NAS CD was not the ignorance that many critics thought we would get, but the most intelligent and thought provoking hip-hop CD in over 20 years. Not since Public Enemy’s heyday has a musical artist presented an entire album dedicated to the struggles and the triumphs of African Americans, and caused those who are very critical of rap music to take a critical look at themselves and realize that many rappers are willing to be the leaders of tomorrow if we took the time to understand their struggles and their solutions to the problems plaguing the Black community.

NAS is hip-hop’s version of Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On, and introspective look at the problems confronting the African American community from unhealthy eating habits, sub-par schools and self-hate.

In the song “Sly Fox,” the Queens, N.Y. native takes aim at Bill O’Reilly and Fox news for their conservative slant on the news we see and their tumultuous history with the hip-hop community. Nas rhymes:

“They own YouTube, MySpace

When this ignorant sh*t gon’ stop?

They monopolizing news

Your views

And the channel you choose

Propoganda

Visual cancer”

On “Fried Chicken,” he collaborates with Busta Rhymes for unprecedented depiction of unhealthy eating habits among African Americans, which is the main culprit in the Black community’s battles with high blood pressure and heart disease.

“Mmm, Fried chicken

Fly vixen

Give me heart disease

But need you in my kitchen”

On the track “(N-Word)(The Slave and The Master)”, Nas discusses issues from outdated school books in Black schools to self-hate, while arguing that we are the problem and the solution to the ills plaguing the Black community.

In the chorus Nas raps:

“They say we (N-word)

We are much more,

Still we choose to ignore,

The obvious.

Man this history don’t acknowledge us.

We was scholars long before colleges …

We are the slave and the master,

What you looking for?

You the question and the answer.”

And in the timely track, “Black President,” states:

“I think Obama provides hope and challenges minds

Of all races and colors to erase the hate

And try to love one another, so many political snakes

We in need of a break”

Although the profane lyrics might go too far at times and offend some non-hip-hop heads, the climate is changing in the hip-hop culture from focusing on the frivolous (i.e. materialism) to focusing on the future (i.e. politics). Barack Obama’s presidential bid has done a lot to destroy the stereotypes of African Americans, especially the younger generation. Many television and record company executives (i.e. Black Entertainment Television) believe that the young hip-hop generation is not intelligent enough for socially conscious rappers. However, with the success of Nas, Common and Lupe Fiasco and the attention placed on politics in the Black community, maybe the rappers are the intelligent ones and those in suits and ties are the ones not intelligent enough to appreciate the brilliance of some in the hip-hop community.

Todd A. Smith is the publisher of http://www.regalmag.com, an online magazine dedicated to issues affecting African American men. The website tackles such topics as social and political issues, health, relationships, business, sports and entertainment.

Article Source: www.megamusicsite.com