There is a reason why Arcade Fire’s Neon Bible is in here instead of Funeral. It’s just a better album overall. The lyrics are better and arguably more interesting, the composition of the musics is as brilliant as in their debut and the vocals… Well, they are there and they do their job.
Win Butler may not be the best vocalist in his range (that award goes to Guy Garvey) but he definitely is an extraordinary lyricist, writing lyrics full of mistery, mixing them with French and refering to neon bibles and black mirrors. They aren’t your typical lyrics but in the moment they hook you, you will be amazed throughout the whole album up to the last minute.
“Keep The Car Running” stands out as the best song in the album, with an upbeat momentum and nice lyrics, “Black Mirror” is an excellent opener for a mystical album and “Neon Bible” is an interesting and compelling album.
I’m not going to say much about Neon Bible because it isn’t an album that deserves to be written about. It deserves to be felt, to be experienced and to be enjoyed. A must-have album.
Listen to: Keep The Car Running, Black Mirror, Ocean Of Noise.
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With a sexually suggestive cover, you’d think … is a Real Boy is nothing more than just another pop-punk album. Well, I’m here to tell you you’re wrong. In fact, this isn’t even a pop-punk album! Say Anything are an indie band portrayed by frontman Max Bemis, who writes the majority of the lyrics that he bases on his life.
Initially planned as a rock-opera, …is a Real Boy quickly developed to much more than that by adding layers and layers of emotion, shyness and lyrics about… sex. It’s an album that goes through the ages 15-18 of Max Bemis’ life so what did you expect?
“Alive With The Glory Of Love” is a fantastic showcase of the band, with harmonies, simple riffs yet a complicated structure in the song and simple lyrics about love. There are songs that are either better from a lyrical point of view (“Woe”) and even songs that watch Max focus better on the lyrics (“An Orgy Of Critics”) but still “Alive” is the best song on the album because it is nothing short of brilliant.
… is a Real Boy is an amazing album. With excellent songs, great variety and a complex look at teenagers nowadays, Say Anything did here an amazing album. If you like this album, … was a Real Boy is a collection of excellent demos, featuring the surprisingly catchy “Wow, I Can Get Sexual Too” each will make you sing a chorus that isn’t exactly appropriate for your family (“I called her on the phone and she touched herself / I laughed myself to sleep”).
Listen to from … is a Real Boy: Woe, Alive With The Glory Of Love, Spidersong.
Listen to from … was a Real Boy: Wow, I Can Sexual Too; Little Girls; It’s A Metaphor Fool.
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Pop. Some people love it, other people hate it. There are many reasons to hate it, as it as easily spawned some of the worst musicians of this decade (as well as rap) but when you want to find a band that knows exactly how to make catchy songs, clever lyrics and as a fantastic vocalist, you have to go search this genre. Maroon 5 could easily be the definition of pop. Adam Levine’s vocals are amazing and make even the worst song at least listenable (he should cover PCD songs) and he is just the best singer in the genre right now.
But Maroon 5 aren’t all about the vocals. Their about the witty hooks, the smug lyrics and the synthesizer. Songs like “Makes Me Wonder” and “Nothing Lasts Forever” may all wear the same theme (love, obviously) but they always sound fresh.
The band combines numerous elements from different genres and puts them into a pop song. But they don’t do it like Fall Out Boy, who basically try to mix as much things as possible into a song (I still don’t know how they make their songs sound so good). No, Maroon 5 are more careful and approach their songs with better care, making them sound much more stripped (in a good way) and worked than most bands.
There are the essential ballads here, like the fantastic “Not Falling Apart” and the catchy “Goodnight, Goodnight” but there are a couple of surprises too. Specifically, a song named “Kiwi”. Beggining with only the bass and drums, the song starts to slowly build until it just ends in a monumental rock sound, filled with guitars, drums, basses and even synthesizers in the mix. It’s a mind-blowing song and it surprises you in a way most pop songs just can’t.
It Won’t Be Soon Before Long is a fantastic album. It’s not revolutionary or original, but by taking the best elements from different genres, Maroon 5 made here one of the best albums this decade and quite possibly the best pop album of the decade, hands down.
Listen to: Kiwi, If I Never See Your Face Again, Wake Up Call.
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It’s not as effective as X & Y is. It’s not as surprising as A Rush Of Blood To The Head. But still, Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends is an amazing album, that does more in 45 minutes than Coldplay’s previous efforts ever did.
Spawning 10 amazing songs, filled with fantastic vocals, intricate lyrics and a composition approaching genius, Coldplay’s latest effort is as effective as any of their previous albums is, or even more.
Songs like “Strawberry Swing” and “Lovers In Japan” see the band stray away from their comfortable sound to a more abrasive, energetic one, instead of the typical ballads. Chris Martin’s voice is the obvious standout here, showing much confidence in the vocals and singing each line with emotion and pride.
Coldplay have always brought beauty to their music and obviously this album is no different. Just look at “Viva La Vida” or “Violet Hill”, the head singles and their best songs in the album too.
It’s a fantastic album. Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends shows so much confidence from the arena-rocking band that you just can’t resist the harmonies, the lyrics about love or the rockers the band shows here. A classic album.
Listen to: Viva La Vida, Violet Hill, Yes.
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My review of this album is posted here:
http://musiccritics.wordpress.com/2009/06/08/new-again-review/
Note: Do not take in count the B+. After multiple listens, I determined that this album is an A- and should not disappoint anyone who is familiar with the band.
Listen to: New Again, Sink Into Me; Summer, Man.
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“They say I’m just a stupid kid /A crazy radical / Rock and roll is dead / I probably should’ve stayed in school” Mathew Shultz sings in the opener “In One Ear”. And while rock and roll is dead as we knew it back in the 70’s and 80’s, Cage The Elephant’s vocalist is no stupid kid. In fact, by blending style with rhythm, the band created here one of the best albums of the 2000s.
Cage The Elephant is filled with intricate lyrics, dazzling songs and killer hooks. Mixing the rhythm that the Red Hot Chilly Peppers apply so well with the clever lyrics Arctic Monkeys are becoming so well known for, Cage The Elephant manages to sound different from anything you have heard this decade.
Songs like “James Brown” attack the originality of the musicians today, “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked” features a brief story about hookers and thiefs with snappy dialogue and “Lotus” is just plain fun.
There is nothing ambitious here, or even remotely melodic, but it’s for the best. Cage The Elephant are at their best when they aren’t giving us a second to breathe and when Shultz is spouting lyrics about politics.
So, if you have been disappointed with rock and roll in this decade, Cage The Elephant is an excellent alternative to The Rolling Stones’ albums you’ve been rocking to since the 80s.
Listen to: In One Ear, Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked, Lotus.
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Looking back at my Fast Times At Barrington High review, I don’t think it should receive four stars. It is definetly a three stars album because, when compared to the fantastic Santi, that mixed pop-punk with a raw, rock-esque sound, it just sounds much, much worse.
Santi is a wet dream for any pop lover, filled with energized songs typical in the genre (“Neighbors”) and more mature-sounding songs (“Everything We Had”) than their previous album, Almost Here. Lead by Beckett’s voice, the album has an unique shine to it, as it doesn’t sound like anything that you’d usually see in a pop-punk album. The production values aren’t the best and auto-tune could’ve been used to a lesser degree, but for what it is, Santi is one hell of a ride.
You get tunes you can dance with like “LAX to O’hare”, the best song The Academy Is.. has released so far and even angry tunes like “Bulls In Brooklyn”. It’s a very diverse album, but it still manages to be cohesive.
In conclusion, I believe Santi can, without a doubt, change your life. Filled with intricate lyrics, Queen-like choruses and even challenging guitar riffs, The Academy Is.. has released an album fantastic for this day and age.
Listen to: Neighbors, Bulls In Brooklyn, We’ve Got A Big Mess On Our Hands Tonight.
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Featuring a cover reminiscent from the days where TV was still black and white and when our water wasn’t as polluted as it is today, Sherwood’s QU is a fantastic album that uses only a couple of instruments to support its mature lyrics, a sign that Sherwood are growing up.
Lyrics are obviously not the first thing you think about when you hear the word ‘pop’ but Sherwood mix the accessibility that this genre has with Brand New-esque lyrics. Sure, they are not as dark, like shown in the sugary-pop “Hit The Bottom”, but they also see the band venture to previously uncomfortable lands. Dark feelings, loneliness and love are all there, treated in a very compelling way.
But still, the album has an issue and that is, like Brand New’s The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me, the fact that it takes some listens for the album to really click.
Don’t get me wrong, as some songs like the mentioned “Hit The Bottom” and “Not Gonna Love” will get stuck in your head in the moment you listen to them, but apart from the first three songs, the album takes a while to really kick in.
Still, QU is a gem. It needs perseverance and time to grow, but when it finally does, you’ll be leaving this album in repeat for a long time. A classic from the new age.
Listen to: Hit The Bottom, Shelter, Ground Beneath My Feet.
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When a band is named fun. and the cover for their album features a turkey standing in a gun, that is never a good sign. Still, Aim And Ignite is a fantastic pop gem, that focuses on the pop most people don’t usually recognise. It’s a much more balanced and classic style, that makes Aim And Ignite sound like something inspired by the real popular music, not the genre featuring Shakira.
Focused rather on the vocals and hooks than the lyrics, fun.’s frontman Nate Ruess uses his impressive voice to carry over every song with a conviction not seen in a lot of vocalists. He sounds like he is having fun recording this album, something that is best shown in the single “All The Pretty Girls”, a fantastic song that gets stuck in your head from the moment you listen to it.
But not everything is about hooks on this album. Aim And Ignite also features a wide array of instruments, going from the violin to the cello and passing through the acoustic guitar. It is good to see a band using different instruments and various guest vocalists to give their album a new life.
So, to conclude, I believe that this is an impressive album. fun. crafted here one of the most imaginitive pop albums in recent memory, filled with catchy hooks and abstract lyrics. Buy this if you like the real popular genre.
Listen to: All The Pretty Girls, Be Calm, At Least I’m Not As Sad (As I Used To Be).
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