Well slap on that repeat button and let's get Tuesday started! Hopefully everyone had a good week spinning through a few of last week's releases. But time waits for no person and the next batch of releases is already upon us. Good thing too since I am getting a wide range of genres this time around. From the synth oriented trances of I Break Horses, to the pummeling beats of Periphery's new EP, there should be no reason to not head to a music store sometime this week.
Veteran musicians such as David Crosby, Neal Morse, and Mike Portnoy all have new material surfacing today. Which goes to show that age makes no difference in composing great music. Especially since we haven't seen much of those artists (minus Portnoy...he's everywhere) in some time. The of course the filler tunes (as I like to call them) where there isn't a specific time or place to listen to the likes of Primal Fear, The Gaslight Anthem, You Me At Six, or Of Mice & Men. All worth checking out nonetheless.
Veteran musicians such as David Crosby, Neal Morse, and Mike Portnoy all have new material surfacing today. Which goes to show that age makes no difference in composing great music. Especially since we haven't seen much of those artists (minus Portnoy...he's everywhere) in some time. The of course the filler tunes (as I like to call them) where there isn't a specific time or place to listen to the likes of Primal Fear, The Gaslight Anthem, You Me At Six, or Of Mice & Men. All worth checking out nonetheless.
So like I stated previsouly above, I am confident that this week's releases will have you taking an extra few minutes and walking down to your local record shop, or at least an online retailer. If digital is more your thing, then the legal sources online will certainly help you out. Cheers and enjoy!
(I Break Horses - Chiaroscuro)
While Chiaroscuro represents an admirable turn from what I Break Horses were doing on Hearts, the problem is that they’re moving in lockstep with their peers; even if Chiaroscuro doesn’t make the quick-strike, short-impact impression of Hearts, it lacks any means of impressing itself on the listener, something to distinguish I Break Horses from the countless electronic pop bands stuck in that vast netherworld between Chvrches’ diamond-cutting, laser-guided melodies and the pitch black abstractions of pure production acts such as the Haxan Cloak or Holy Other. None of this makes Chiaroscuro anything less than pleasant, just a record whose middling between arena aspirations and headphones listening feels less of a fusion and more of a compromise. - Pitchfork
(David Crosby - Croz)
"I wanted to challenge myself. Most guys my age would have done a covers record or duets on old material. This won't be a huge hit. It'll probably sell nineteen copies. I don't think kids are gonna dig it, but I'm not making it for them. I'm making it for me. I have this stuff that I need to get off my chest." -David Crosby
Croz is a mellow, moody record unlike anything else in Crosby's vast catalog and many songs were written while Crosby was touring with Crosby, Stills and Nash. -Rolling Stone
(The Gaslight Anthem - The B-Sides)
The B-Sides seems to function primarily as a way to get these songs to Gaslight Anthem fans who don’t own the recent Singles Collection or the original pressings of those records, and I certainly won’t fault them for that. Fallon and company are great musicians, and I want as much of their music in as many hands as possible. For a diehard fan who has been listening to these tracks for years, however, The B-Sides offers little in the way of incentives for purchasing outside of maintaining a complete collection. -Under The Gun
(Transatlantic - Kaleidoscope)
This album will be the usual food for discussion on prog message boards and Facebook pages but I think if you liked Transatlantic's three previous studio albums then you will like this one too.
This is four great musicians working together in a surprisingly unpretentious way, even the long songs come across as the music being more important than the need for any particular member to shine. Of course the playing and singing is all superb.
If you haven't tried Transatlantic before this is as good a place to start as any. If you have you'll know what to expect and just buy it anyway. -Metal Talk
(You Me At Six - Cavalier Youth)
When you reach the point in your career that you can sell out Wembley Arena, you're going to have some pretty huge expectations placed on you, and such is the case for You Me At Six this time around. Fortunately for the boys, they've gone from strength to strength, and 'Cavalier Youth' is a showcase of that. At a point in their career where they need to make a big statement to stay relevant, You Me At Six have released what will likely be their career-defining album. -Kill Your Stereo
The promotional run for Restoring Force featured a lot of talk about Of Mice & Men finding a ‘balance’ in their sound with this release. While I am not entirely sold on that being the case, I will say it is the most engaging record in their discography, and it features a number of fantastic surprises that will only serve to further the group’s career in 2014. If true, Of Mice & Men will be one of the few bands from the recent heavy era in alternative music to find life outside the Warped Tour scene, and in my opinion no one could be more deserving. Through lineup changes and the seemingly endless controversy that surrounds frontman Austin Carlile Of Mice & Men have forged ahead with a drive to succeed that is unmatched by their peers. They’ve channeled their struggles into songs that are as memorable as they are abrasive, and as it stands now they are the heavy band to beat in the new year.
Restoring Force raises the bar for heavy bands in alternative music and marks the beginning of a new chapter for Of Mice & Men. It’s without a doubt the best album of their career, not to mention the first great hard rock release of 2014, and I am hopeful it won’t be their last. -Under The Gun
This album is a very long one, clocking in at over 50 minutes. Every single minute of the play time is enjoyable, and not even a single second can be termed as filler. All ten tracks in the album do a thorough job in entertaining, while also offering a great deal on variety.
The production is stellar and gives room for the grandeur of every instrument to be heard clearly. The best aspect of this record is that all the ten tracks are incredibly catchy and addictive. The songs are laden with so many vocal and melodic hooks that one cant help but hum away every track of the albums, in just a few listens. There is a fine line between sounding grandly stellar and cheesy. Primal Fear sound heavy and grand while managing not to cross that line.
This year has barely seen a month go by, and already we have a contender for the title of album of the year, as Primal Fear get ready to release their best album yet. -Axis of Metal
EPs:
(Periphery - Clear)
There seems to be much more structure to songs from Clear, and you could even argue that they are perhaps a little more mainstream (as much as we hate to use that word) than where the band started with their first self titled release, but it works damn well. The Periphery boys might have soured a few tastebuds as they’ve progressed musically as a band, but they certainly deserve a good pat on the back for mixing up their style and giving it a slightly new direction, all the while staying true to their sound. If this is a lead up to a taste of a future album from Periphery, there’s plenty to look forward to. If you’re looking for some metal goodness to bring in the new year with, you could certainly do much worse. -Bring The Noise
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