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Friday, May 31, 2013

Favorites: May 31, 2013

Anarbor is one of my favorite bands and they just happen to have a new album out June 4th. So, in anticipation, I've been listening to "The Words You Don't Swallow" on repeat.

This is one of those rare records that just doesn't have a bad song on it. If you're into the grunge thing, jam to this for a bit. Trust me.

Get it here:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-words-you-dont-swallow/id485973082

www.anarbor.net/
twitter.com/Anarbor
facebook.com/Anarbor

Friday, May 24, 2013

Favorites: May 24, 2013


This week: Go Radio's "Lucky Street".

Jason Lancaster: Mayday Parade had him, he was good. Now Go Radio has him and he's great. Combining pop-rock music with poetic lyrics, the album has kind of a vintage feel, well captured by the worn design on the cover.

Listen to it and buy it:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/lucky-street/id434786807

wearegoradio.com
twitter.com/goradio
facebook.com/goradio

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Dana DeStefano & Dollparts, March 27, 2013

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/dana-destefano-dollparts/id627973172
It's still not an easy world for a female rocker. No matter how talented you are, you can still be victim to degrading comments and Taylor Swift references, especially when you don't exactly sound like a rock star.

Although there are small technical issues commonly associated with independent releases, Dana DeStefano and Dollparts first album combines punk attitude with pop instrumentals, effectively destroying musical stereotypes.

There are brief moments on songs like "Change the Theme" and "New Years Eve" when the music is too much and overpowers the vocals, as well as an audio quality difficulty on "Trouble Sleeping", but for a group just starting out these moments are surprisingly rare.

The album gets better as it progresses with standout tracks like "Trailer Park Sharks", lyrics like "I hope you die" paired with a catchy pop tune, and "Naperville", a rebellious breakout from social norms.

This record is worth downloading at the very least for it's potential. This band knows what it's doing and there is a real lesson here about doing what works instead of what is familiar and overdone.

Dana DeStefano and Dollparts are out on tour this summer. For updates on their stops check out Facebook.com/DanaDeStefanoDollparts

Friday, May 17, 2013

Favorites: May 17, 2013


This week: radiosepia's "Digital Scars".

I've probably listened to this album twenty times this week. It's good for your imagination. It sounds like nature, but not like someone recorded crickets chirping in their backyard. It sounds like nature translated into music, which makes it a perfect soundtrack for basically everything.

Listen to it and buy it.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/digital-scars/id574904508

radiosepia.com
twitter.com/radiosepia
facebook.com/radiosepia

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Paramore, April 5, 2013

It's taken me a long time to get around to this review, mostly because I haven't known what to say. I've spent a lot of time listening to this album and trying to change my initial reaction, but every time I get the same thing. What happened to Hayley Williams?

Of course I was expecting a different sound from this record and even a bit of a different writing style since the departure of Josh and Zac Farro, but I wasn't expecting an entirely new sound from the singer.

The vocals don't just differ from past Paramore records, but vary track to track in such a way that makes it almost impossible to get used to what you're hearing. To make matters worse, the album is broken up by a series of weird interludes that throw off the flow completely.

The record starts with the drum-heavy "Fast In My Car" that seems more like a showcase of the bands new sounds than a song and ends with the much too long "Future", a nearly eight minute, slow instrumental that fakes you out several times by slowing down and fading out only to come back.

The truly low points come from "Ain't It Fun", an R&B/rock track featuring a full choir, and "Anklebiters", an upbeat pop song with cynical lyrics about learning to love yourself because "Someday you're gonna be alone".

On "Part II", Hayley throws back to RIOT!, reprising "Let the Flames Begin" with depressing lyrics like "What a shame we all remain such fragile broken things" and "Oh glory, come and find me". It's a far cry from the original "I believe that there's hope growing beneath it all".

By far, the weirdest moment comes on "(One Of Those) Crazy Girls". Musically, this song isn't bad, but the lyrics tell a story of some seriously twisted ex boyfriend stalking. When calling a hundred times fails, she shows up at the door with a copied key saying "If you're not here when I break in, I'm gonna go to your closet just so I can smell your skin" quickly followed by repeating "I'm not one of those crazy girls".

It's really not completely terrible though. Like anything, it has it's high points too. "Grow up" is one of the best songs on the record, making the difficult decision to grow up even though it means letting go of someone you love. This is also the only song that breaks away from the constant change ups and inconsistent beats on the record. Sometimes, stripping something down is the best thing you can do for it.

Mostly, good parts on this record are few and far between and buried in an unfortunate excess of sounds, but they are there and hopefully, those parts will be the ones carried to the future Paramore projects. Trial and error, right?

Thursday, May 9, 2013

A Rocket To The Moon splits up


It's never easy to say goodbye to a favorite band, but A Rocket To The Moon has decided that after five years, it's time to part ways. 

"You need to get lost before you get found." front-man Nick Santino titled the blog post on arockettothemoon.net announcing the bands decision to move past their Rocket days. 

The band started out on tour with The Maine, so it only feels fitting that they should go out that way. This summer you can catch A Rocket To The Moon on tour with The Maine for the last time. They're encouraging all their fans to come out, share stories, sing, laugh and cry with them one more time. 

The tour will kick off June 4th in Tempe, AZ with an album release show for The Maine's new record "Forever Halloween" and will continue through the summer. You can check out dates and pick up tickets at http://8123.me/themaine/ 

Come out for a final Rocket show, and get ready for whatever comes next from Nick, Justin, Eric and Andrew.