The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 267

DUDE!!

 

xoxoxoxo!

 

And this is why I love Architects....

 

Dan's tweets are my favourite.

 

Alright time for some overdue reviews. First up, @Mary V

Death Cab For Cutie- Transatlanticism

Death Cab For Cutie is one of those bands that I actually used to listen to quite a bit, but somehow drifted away from them and also missed a couple of their albums that were out before I got into them. This album came out in 2003, and I was full fledged listening to hip hop only at that time. So I was happy to receive this album from Mary and catch up on an album that I was missing in my catalogue of a band I used to like. Out of their seven albums, this was one of three I missed, and from what I told it was their best. So, how did it stack up to the hype?

This is a very indulging album, and what I mean by this is that when you sit down and listen to the thing in full, the soft and somber sounds of these songs kind of just envelop you in the parts of the band; all of which are fine crafted, and you just cannot get enough through the 11 songs resulting in a smooth ride of 46 minutes until it ends and leaves you wanting more but with a sense of completion as well. You don't feel cheated or hollow when all is said and done, you feel full and with a buzz; kind of like after a concert where you had a blast but you just didn't want it to end. As always, the guitar on this album is mellow and fantastic, the vocals are great (Just look at my favorite song on the album 'Expo 86' for an example of that), and the cool effects that they add to songs such as xylophones, hand claps, distorted rhythm guitars, and more are just so finely crafted that this album flows as a cohesive whole the entire way through. Songs such as the title track 'Transatlanticism' just start off so melancholy, but the songs build upon themselves with additional layers, lyrics that paint a picture of love and regret of hardship in a relationship, pianos, guitars, and soothing melodies that you cannot help but admire. The title track alone is a prime example of this, ever building slowly until the epitome end of the song where chanting vocals of "So come on" just highlight a song that just pulls at the heart strings. Some songs such as 'Passenger Seat' are just simply beautiful, with hauntingly sweet piano keys playing through very emotional songs.

There isn't a bad song on this album, and if you are one of those like me who hadn't heard it yet but are looking for an emotionally sweet album that will flow along beautifully from front to back and have you get lost in it, then this is the one for you. If you like the idea of something that sounds like The Postal Service meets Andrew McMahon, than this is something you will want to check out. This album is a master of its craft, and it just flows so well its hard not to love it. Stand out tracks for me were: The New Year, Title And Registration, Expo '86, Transatlanticism, Passenger Seat, We Looked Like Giants, A Lack of Color

10/10

Stonefield-Far From Earth

I had literally never heard of this band. When Mary suggested them to me I had not a clue what to expect going into this. And then I heard the first song 'Delusion'. First of all, anyone who has read my reviews on here knows female vocals in rock songs is a way to get huge plus points from me. The vocals on the first track were simply gorgeous, and the haunting distorted guitar of this alternative rock band had me sold from the get go. This was something that sounded different. It wasn't Paramore, it wasn't Evanesence, or any of those other common female fronted bands that you see bands like this compared to. This 2018 album has its own sound, its own presence, which is absolutely awesome.

This album has everything you could want. Haunting and beautiful vocals, crunching guitars, great lyrics, the whole package. The title track, only second on the album, more than confirmed my liking of this band from the first track. The songs are adventurous; they are long and take risks; and almost every single time they pay off with great reward. There are very few moments where I wanted a song to have a bit more umph to it, but even when that did happen I wasn't disappointed with what I got. Everything is cohesive and works together, nothing feels out of place. The production on this album is top notch, the songs sound full and well fleshed; every shred of the guitar and beat of the drum is placed well and works to enhance the vocals, playing to strengthen them but not make them the focus but rather work as a well made machine. Songs like 'Together' are down right trippy in nature and have this melodic groove to them that lingers with you long after you are done listening to the album. It gets heavy at moments, 'In My Head' being a bit more on the grit side sonically as well as lyrically; though many of the songs on this album contain powerful realistic lyrics that paint a vivid picture of what the artist is wanting to say. 'Sleepyhead' is another stand out, and its a bit more dialed back musically with a bit more of a plucked guitar string sound; but the vocals are bound to send chills down your spine.

This is a damn good album and has now firmly made my top 10 of 2018 album list now. I am curious to see where this band goes from here, and I highly recommend it to people who are looking for a good psych rock album, or a good melodic and entrancing rock album. Its definitely worth a spin and will most likely have you hooked just a few tracks in. My stand out songs for this album are: Delusion, Far From Earth, Visions, Together, Through The Storm, In My Head, Sleepyhead
9/10

Next up, @Micool1

The Longshot- Love Is For Losers

Hey guys, you ever heard of a little band called Green Day? I'd assume so. Well this is their front man Billie Joe Armstrong's solo project. I was not even aware he had one; though I admittedly fell away from Green Day and Billie after American Idiot died down. This 2018 album sounds a lot more simplified than some of Green Day's later work (I have tried to return to them a couple times after AI), but I mean that in the BEST way possible. The opening track 'The Last Time' sounds almost like an 80s rock song, and its absolutely glorious. I may not have liked all of Green Day's albums, but I have always liked Billie's voice, and he sounds glorious and right at home on these songs that are somehow a return to form for him but also sound like something new and fresh from him. I was intrigued after two songs in, and the rest of the album unfolded.

These songs sound simple and classic rock in their energy and sonic output. These songs have a groove to them, you can see yourself dancing to these songs. You can also tell that these songs were made out of Billie having fun; instead of political statements and social outlooks, the lyrics look at life and just downright goofy fun. 'Chasing A Ghost' has some of my favorite lyrics on the album "I aint the same, Ain't it a shame? Yes to the painkillers on a Saturday night" as Billie full and well admits over amazing riffs that he is aging and getting older (something I jokingly admit I can relate to). A fun energetic rock album, there are bound to be some hiccups when having this much carefree feeling to the songs. 'Body Bag' is a song I just could not find myself getting into, but by the next song that is quickly washed away. The guitars on this album are fun, bright, and contain many riffs that are pure classic rock bliss. The production is done really well, and somewhere between 'Taxi Driver' and the best song on the album in my opinion 'Turn me Loose', you will find yourself up and dancing like you are in some sort of diner dive from a movie. Turn Me Loose is the best song on the album if I wanted to show someone what the album is about; its energetic, up beat, slightly dark lyrics, and just pure fun. The chorus of this song is one of the catchiest damn things I have heard from Billie, and had be tapping my foot and bobbing my head within seconds.

This is a fun album, and I may dare to say Billie's best work since American Idiot. If Green Day took a page from this album, I might actually be able to get back into the band. Turn Me Loose is going to be one of my favorite songs of the year, I can already tell. The album is just a great time, and while there are a few weaker songs on here, there are no truly bad songs that will keep you from enjoying the album. The closer, also, is one I must address. 'Goodbye To Romance' sounds like it should be played ironically at the end of a highschool dance (sound wise it fits, but the lyrics are anti dance material), and I mean all of this in an endearing way, I liked this song a lot. I recommend this album if you are a fan of Green Day's older work, the Back To The Future sound track, and classic rock sounds. Stand out tracks are: The Last Time, Taxi Driver, Chasing A Ghost, Love Is For Losers, Happiness, Turn Me Loose, Goodbye To Romance

9/10

Sing Me A Fiction- Hole In The Sail

I for the life of me could not locate the album cover for this album online, even though it clearly is shown on Apple Music. I also usually like to research these bands a bit before listening, but my god this band was so scarce on google or anything that I tried to use to look them up. It was if they didn't exist or something. That being said, I decided to just go in completely blind without any idea of what genre of music I was to expect, their history, or anything. The opening track, 'The Overture (Narrative 1)' did not do much to help me know what I was about to experience, except that this was a sort of concept album. As you experience the rest of the album, it seems to be a couple short stories in a way about a man named Noah and his life of piracy on the open waves. However, as a whole this stands on its own legs as a rock album. The band features dual vocals from a female and male vocalist respectively, so I was on board.

'Drifting' was the song that sold me on this album and is still my favorite on the album. Its a face, upbeat song that features dual vocals from both a male and female vocalist, so of course I was going to love it. The chorus is catchy and I like the line 'feeding at the bottom, there's blood in the water, and the sharks are coming, the sharks are coming.' a lot. Musically, these guys kind of remind me of Armor For Sleep, which is a good thing for me. There is a grandness to this album, not just from the concept aspect of the album but songs like 'My Mistress The Sea (Part 1)' are just huge in their scope; rolling drums, passionate and screamed vocals mixed with soft and clean ones from both vocalists, shredding guitars. Its hard not to find something to like on this album. The female vocalist in this has a gorgeous voice; my runner up favorite song 'The Storm' is a great example of what she can do on this album. The other vocalist also excels on this song, this is one of the major highlights of the album that shows this band working with everything they can. The album runs at about 50 minutes and contains 14 songs, (4 of which are Overture narrative tracks), all of which fit into the narrative of Noah and his doomed journey on the open seas. I will admit, unlike with bands like My Chemical Romance or Starset or Creeper that do concept stories on their albums, I had a hard time latching onto the details of the album's story; but that didn't hinder my experience because these songs stand on their own.

This is a good album, and one I look forward to listening to a lot more. The instrumentation in these songs is skilled (the shredding guitar riff in 'I Need A Sign' is awesome) and the vocals are performed great. If you are a fan of bands such as Armor For Sleep, you will like this one a lot. Its a great rock album, with both breakneck and somber moments. There are a few points on the album where things start to get a little stale, but then the band kicks it into full gear and fires on all cylinders and you are right back into it. Standout tracks on this album are: Drifting, Bottom Of The Locker, My Mistress The Sea (Part 1), The Storm, Stay, How Did You Get So Good

8/10

 

Now that I’ve posted those reviews @Mary V and @Micool1 will be happy to see my current AOTY list for 2018

UPDATED AOTY 2018 LIST

1. Hawthorne Heights- Bad Frequencies
2. Senses Fail- If There Is Light, It Will Find You
3. A Perfect Circle- Eat The Elephant
4. Cecil Frena- The Gridlock
5. The Longshot- Love Is For Losers
6. Brian Fallon- Sleepwalkers
7. Stonefield- Far From Earth
8. Pianos Become The Teeth-Wait For Love
9. Out Of Service- Morning
10. Tiny Moving Parts- Swell

 

Great reviews! Glad you liked my two albums!

 

Nice reviews! I'll have to check out Stonefield.

 

Yeah me too definitely gonna check that one out

 

Great write ups! Transatlanticism might be my favourite album of all time, but I didn't want to tell you that since too much hype can tarnish your first listen to an album. It means a lot to me. And I highly doubt Stonefield will gather much attention overseas (the delights of being in a band from Australia or New Zealand...), so I'll highlight their talent as much as I can!

 

Trans is a top 10 album ever for me. So hyped for the new record.

 

@highfidelity203 and I will be trading this week.
They will be listening to:
Heaving Things: Glimpse

I will be listening to:
Towkio: WWW

 

Nice reviews! My favorite part: When you are reviewing Longshot and RIYL: Back to the Future! Haha!

 

I realised today I was going to recommend someone Frightened Rabbit - The Midnight Organ Fight on here. Listening back it's far too heavy a listen now.

 

Just wait Till listen and you’ll understand the reference

 

Such sad news :(

 

Calabrese
III - They Call Us Death
2010



I was paired with @broken22 again this past session and he assigned me the Calabrese album III - They Call Us Death. I had never heard their music prior to this session and the only time I had ever heard of them prior to being assigned this album was in reading a review that @Nate_Johnson wrote on their 2012 album Dayglo Necros (which @broken22 also assigned). Anyway, I went into this album knowing that it would be a "horror punk" album. The horror part of their genre description is pretty evident in their album cover, song titles (They Call Us Death, Blood Of The Wolf, Within The Abyss, Black Anathema, etc.) and lyrics themes (hell, blood, death, wolves - apparently wolves are scary). Anyway, Calabrese is a three piece band out of Phoenix and they are brothers with the last name of Calabrese. This is their third full-length album (hence the III in the album title) and to date they have six full-length releases.

The album starts off with one of my favorite tracks They Call Us Death. It has a cool intro to it with dialogue that I assume comes from a horror movie. A few other songs on the album have similar intros to them. This song has a very catchy chorus and is reminiscent of Misfits and early My Chemical Romance. The album moves along at a brisk pace - there are no slow songs/ballads on this album and at a total of 12 songs and 36 minutes in length the majority of the songs hover around the three minute mark. The guitar work on this album is pretty impressive as well. The song Near Twilight reminded me of early My Chemical Romance as well and the vocals on many of the tracks show Glenn Danzig's undeniable influence on the band's vocals. I enjoyed the background vocals quite a bit on this album - the layered vocals added some good depth to the songs.

The fifth track Blood Of The Wolf was the shortest track on the album at just about 2 minutes in length and it is a very fast song that borders on hardcore at times. In fact, a lot of the tracks on this album show a bit of their metal tendencies. Venomwolf was another one of my favorite tracks as it had another big, catchy chorus. The verses in most of the tracks were fine and somewhat forgettable at times, but the majority of the choruses were really catchy and well done.

One critique I have of this album is that the songs did tend to blend a bit together and it was a bit difficult to differentiate the songs at times. There were a couple of short, fast songs (like Summon The Beyond and the previously mentioned Blood Of The Wolf), but I actually would have liked one or two slower tracks or an interlude or an instrumental thrown in somewhere to change the pace a bit. Don't get me wrong, this is a good album, but I could see listeners losing interest somewhere around track 8 or 9. Having said that, the last two tracks of the album (Endless Night and Loveless God) were two of my favorite songs on the album.

I'd recommend this to fans of Misfits, early My Chemical Romance, AFI, and Creeper.

If this album sounds intriguing to you, I'd urge you to check out the following tracks: They Call Us Death, Blood Of The Wolf, Venomwolf, Endless Night, and Loveless God.

All in all, a solid album in the "horror punk" genre that has some really catchy songs (particularly choruses)! A big thanks to @broken22 for this recommendation! I very likely would not have discovered this band had it not been for this thread!

 

I'm checking out the tracks you recommended and this album definitely seems heavier than Dayglo Necros. It reminds me a lot of older AFI for sure.

 

According to Wikipedia:

On "They Call Us Death," Calabrese's metal and punk rock roots shine bright. With faster tempos and harder vocals, Calabrese continues to grow as songwriters. "They Call Us Death" is harder, heavier and darker than their previous albums.

I haven't heard any of their other material so I can't really say whether this is true or not (I assume it is since everything on the internet is true) but it seems like this is some of their heavier material.

I'll have to check out some of their other stuff!

 

Glad you liked this! Yeah there is probably not much to find online since they were just a local STL band that never got a break. I only know of them because I shot some videos for them. I highly suggest them to anyone though, there really do have a lot of different styles in just one album.

I agree too about what you said about the concept of the album. As a huge fan of these guys, I still don't latch on or care too much about the story, I just really dig the songs lol.

 

Awesome review ! I'm glad you liked it, Violent Hellfire is my favorite song on the album. Great band to see live as well !

 

@Davjs are you excited for the new Sevendust?

 

@CSWAPPO you should come play with us here :)

 

You listen to nominee yet?

 

How does this work exactly?