One again, the gods have blessed us with a great mix of albums being released this week. From the mellow classical tunings of Howard Shore and his soundtrack to "The Hobbit" to the down tuned breakdowns of Honour Crest, there's a lil something for everyone. Good timing in a holiday sense.
Evergreen Terrace took me by surprise with their newest release "Dead Horses", as well as Childish Gambino as I follow Donald Glover on his show "Community" but never took me for an MC. And this is his second album...where have I been?! Anyways, looking forward to listening to it as well as the many others below.
The usual debacle bestowed before you as well folks. Do I:
A) Download the album(s) and save my money for their live performances.
B) Buy the album and leave it at that.
C) Download and do nothing.
Don't be the dick and pick "C" because you're just cheap. Show some love either way and pick up a physical copy at your local record shop or online retailer. If digital is your thing, then make sure to buy from a legal source. Cheers and enjoy!
(Neil Young - Live At The Cellar Door)
Although cobbled from six different shows, Live at the Cellar Door sounds like a cohesive entity. The recordings have been remastered with such love; each string on Young’s acoustic rings with clarity and weight, and each crack in his voice stings with resonance. And yet, a distant haze pervades the record that could convince listeners that this is an actual bootleg on wax. -Paste Magazine
(Howard Shore - The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Composer Howard Shore's magnificent, appropriately epic work on director Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy garnered the Canadian composer three Academy awards, and rightly so. When Jackson decided to tackle The Hobbit in 2012, it took little convincing to bring Shore back to Middle Earth along with him, and the resulting Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first of three installments, dutifully reflected the lighter tone of the pre-Fellowship film while paying homage to the darker adventures that follow. For The Desolation of Smaug, Shore honed the themes introduced in An Unexpected Journey and amped up the darkness and bombast, introducing a memorable new cue to accompany the arrival of the film's scaly antagonist. -All Music
(Childish Gambino - Because of the Internet)
Truth be told, the album doesn't know if it wants to be a competent standalone piece or part of a larger multimedia device, but like anything else on the internet, it's up to the consumer to figure that out, and maybe that's the point. Either way, Because the Internet is a vast improvement over his debut effort, showcasing an artist who has confidently found a way to coalesce his love for music and films into one hybrid effort. -Exclaim
The production and the sound are very good - as expected I would say. Actually it is bit too good. A few more edges could have been good.
This album might be needed by some 'hardcore Scorpions collectors' who needs to have everything from the band. All the ones who want to have a good Scorpions overview - go for "World wide live". And everybody who wants to listen to a good acoustic album I recommend Tesla's "Five man acoustical jam". Fore sure a better investment. -Markus' Heavy Music Blog
(Honour Crest - Spilled Ink)
Honour Crest recorded their Rise Records debut with acclaimed producer Cameron Mizell (Sleeping With Sirens, Memphis May Fire) who perfectly compliments the group's unique blend of heavy rhythmic guitar work and intricate programming. The right touch of Electronica, intertwined with super techy guitar sets this record apart from similar bands in the Metalcore scene, propelling songs into epic anthems without losing any of the edge. Spilled Ink is sure to be a fan favorite for metal core fans everywhere! -Amazon
(Evergreen Terrace - Dead Horses)
Dead Horses is consistently catchy and overstuffed with the raw energy that feeds directly from their “drunk-off-punk” brand of hardcore. Intelligently retaining a few tried and true tricks from the earlier days, Evergreen Terrace excels at keeping things kosher with the cool kids of today by strategically placing their signature pop culture references throughout the album. Overall a solid listen for any melodic hardcore fan. -Substream Magazine
(Polkadot Cadaver - From Bethlehem To Oblivion)
Whether you like it or not, the time of giving and goodwill to all men and women is upon us and with that comes the ever present horror of Christmas songs that aren’t The Pogues’ ‘Fairytale Of New York‘. However, with the upcoming release of a new Christmas-themed EP, entitled From Bethlehem To Oblivion, from everybody’s favourite weirdo metallers Polkadot Cadaver we can start adding a few tracks to the Christmas playlist. -Heavy Blog Is Heavy
(Velvet Underground - White Light White Heat: 45th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition)
The recording is muddled in spots, sometimes coated in an almost white noise of treble, but it’s fuzzy nature is part of its charm, and part of the story this tells, of a band that was always practicing, always experimenting, even on stage, and how they translated that to this challenging record. But White Light/White Heat is less a lofty experiment that keeps the listener out than a curious twisting of structures and conventions that lures them in. It’s songwriting and storytelling. It’s melody- and noise-making. It’s high art and low-brow punk. It’s all these things and none of them at once, as incongruous and inventive and fascinating as the man at the center of it all, Lou Reed. And if he made harder records later, none of them spoke to who he was as an artist, and what he would become, more than this one did. -Pop Matters
CD/DVD/Blu-Ray:
(Mastodon - Live At Brixton 2012)
If you’re listening to the soundtrack rather than watching the digital video, disc 2 is where the magic really happens. It kicks off with a four song onslaught of some of the strongest moments on ‘The Hunter’ ‘All The Heavy Lifting’, is followed by a thunderous version of ‘Spectelight.’ 'Curl of the Burl’ is next, its huge, grooving riffs sounding even weightier live than they do on record, followed by ‘Bedazzled Fingernails,’ its off-kilter rhythms demonstrating just how tight and virtuous Mastodon are when playing at their peak. They show off how brutally heavy they are capable of being with ‘Where Strides The Behemoth’ and ‘Iron Tusk’.
This digital video and audio package will be a perfect stocking filler for any Mastodon fan, though if you’ve already got their albums it’s probably only worth watching the digital video due to the live audio recording of the vocals slightly letting the original versions of the songs down. That said, as an album the Live At Brixton is a fantastic collection of the best songs of one of metals most unique and revered bands. -Alt Sounds
(Nightwish - Showtime, Storytime)
Overall the DVD brings to the table many new elements within Nightwish. It reflects the mood of the band, the good energy, and the enjoyment that they had when they play a show, something that it was missing last time I saw them at the North American kick off tour show in Atlanta, GA in September 2012. I am personally glad they survived another change and that people had received the new members with arms wide open. I am really eager to see what is next for Nightwish, and of course to listen the music they can created in this new era. This is definitely a must have DVD, not only because is another piece of Nightwish‘s history, but because it shows a more intimate part of the band. -The Age of Metal
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