The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 319

I’m super pumped you dug all 3 albums! You’re reviews made me enjoy each of these albums even more than I already did. I definitely look forward to trading again and I hope other people check out these bands too. They all deserve some more love!

 

Alright, time to knock out a couple more reviews tonight.

First up, my second one from @Night_Sky

Delta Sleep- Twin Galaxies

This is a band I was not familiar with, and in a genre that I have only heard of recently. Though I am sure its been around for a while and I have heard bands from the genre before, it was only this year I began hearing the term 'math rock'. Delta Sleep is described as pop math rock by all accounts I could find, so with only that little bit to go on I decided to jump into this record. I am not a musician or a mathematician, so I will not pretend to say that I notice time signatures and the like that make math rock what it is by its definition(which I never really agreed with anyway). I will say what I did hear was some very nice, bright and beautiful yet choppy guitar rhythms and drums, and some odd vocal stylings dealing with romance and the philosophy on relationships. This album is supposed to tell a story about a man whose house is swallowed up by the ocean and he is stranded out to sea, reflecting on the relationship he was stuck in and unhappy with. If I had not read that, I would never had picked up on that, so concept album this is not. It does hold up decently well on its own as an album though even without those elements.

There are some very interesting things going on sonically on this album. '21 Letters' starts out very smooth and poppy for the beginning of the song, but as it progresses to the 2:00 mark and the vocals come in, the guitars begin to distort and almost take on a post-hardcore persona; which was surprising but pleasant to me. My only complaint was that sometimes I felt like the vocals on this song could have used some turning up on the mic, they were far too soft for my taste. 'Lake Sprinkle Sprankle' for example, has this. The guitars on this song sound very groovy and smooth, and the vocals are turned up to match the sound of the guitars; and it works surprisingly well. It makes sense that this is the lead single from this album as well, as this is the most accessible song on the album in my opinion. It has such a jamming sense to it and smooth beat that you cannot help but groove along with it; its a dang catchy song and it kind of sounds like old school Brand New in certain spots. 'Spy Turtle' is another cool song that sounds very electronic, with muffled distorted vocals along with an ambient synth beat and crackling speakers, its a very relaxed and somber song. To fit with the concept, a lot of these songs have themes of the ocean and aquatic life, along with that of a broken down relationship. Look at 'Spy Dolphin' for a good example of this, one of the more energetic songs on the album sonically; the lyrics deal with the character reflecting on his relationship and how it was running out of time long before his house was destroyed. This is one of the songs that shows this band's talents off nicely, and I would have loved to have heard more songs like this one on the album. 'Hungry For Love' is an insanely heavier song for them, and is a completely musical song with no lyrics and yes it is a standout for me. As the album progresses, the lyrics begin to take on a more positive note; which leads me to believe the character finds his way to shore. Again, if I had not read about the concept, I would have just thought this was a nice rock album with a band obsessed with ocean life.

This album was a good listen over the three times I spun it, but I don't know if I will really return to it much. I say this, and I know that sounds band, but it is not because these guys are awful or anything. Far from it, this album commands your respect with all the different sounds they have going on and how the music literally sounds like you are on an ocean in certain moments. It just was not something I normally would listen to very often, so this may be one of those ones I come back to only occasionally or when I am in a really long car ride and am picking albums for the hours of driving. But for rides to work or relaxing on my couch, this won't be. It is still a very good album that is worthy of a listen, especially if you like oceanic songs, pop rock, math rock, and ambient sounds. Give it a listen if that suits your tastes!
Stand out songs: 21 Letters, Lake Sprinkle Sparkle, Spy Turtles, Spy Dolphin, Hungry For Love, Strongthany

 

Next is one from @Anthony Brooks

Elliott-False Cathedrals

Here it is. The album of hype. The moment I said I was given this album to review, I had several of you saying you knew I would love this album and that they could already guess what my favorite song on there was going to be. I had no idea going in what to expect, and what I was treated to was a very fine example of emo rock, and a very catchy one at that but also one that was drenched in dark overtones and melancholy emotions. The album was already off to a good start the moment I started listening to it, 'Voices' was a cool way to begin the album, with these subtle and soft pianos and the faint echo of a church quite hauntingly hanging in the background. It seamlessly blends and moves into the true opener of the album, 'Calm Americans'. This song was what sold me on this album as something I could potentially really like. It has such a nice beat, carried forth by this soft piano line through the foreground, along with the soft and somber vocals that have these moments of escalation that kind of remind me of the singer from AFI in places. Theres some screaming/yelling moments to further emphasize the emotions behind the lyrics, and it works very nicely. And the lyrics are powerful, causing not sadness but the horror of your emotions, with lyrics such as “You come for suicides and break necks, It's alright I've already made my dream. It's alright I convince myself, it's over let's get it right.” Loved it. After hearing this song, and repeating it a couple of times, I quickly dove head first into the album to take a bigger bite.

'Blessed By Your Own Ghost' is absolutely beautiful. This song is ridiculously smooth in the first half of the song, and the feeling of loneliness that they are trying to convey lyrically is so ever present that you actually get the chills. And then the last 3/4th of the song reaches its breaking point, and all the building comes to something more grand and powerful, and the chorus becomes even more haunting with the full band firing off. 'Drive On To Me' is the next song, and this is where the band shows what they really have going for them; the song is just great. Its powerful, the chorus is one of a somber tranquility, and musically this is one of the more energetic moments of the album. This may be one of my favorite songs on the album, just for how melodic and catchy this song is. Its something you will have stuck in your head, and you'll get the chills. The whole album is really just this passion filled emotional ride, and the song structures work very well to aide with this. Every song sounds fresh, nothing melds together so much that you cannot tell which song is which. Each song has its own distinct characteristics, and you sometimes think you know where a song is going to go sonically and then it takes a sharp right on you when you expected a left. I have to hand it to this band, they are very creative. 'Dying Midwestern' is another favorite of mine, it has this firey aggression to the guitars in a lot of places, and they can sound downright horror soundtrack like in places. And the chorus, my word the chorus is powerful and probably one of the more aggressive moments of this album. This leads well into 'Shallow Like Your Breath' which does this amazing job of slowly and surely building up from something soft and somber at the start with these cool sound effects, until new layers and elements are naturally added into the song building higher until everything just comes together in a grand showing of beauty. Its hard not to get caught up in the emotion of the song and what its trying to convey when they are executing the song so well. Even the more up beat and fantastic rocker 'Lie Close' fits into this woven puzzle perfectly; this song is one that musically is my favorite on the album as it just shows the band letting loose and giving it all they got, which is great near the end of the album. The closing track 'Speed Of Film' keeps up this passion and energy, ending the album with a bang; between the distorted heavy riffs and the electronic drums running in the background of this song it was a great way to end the album.

This is a damn good album. Its not one that will click with you on that very first listen; there are deeper emotions and thoughts going on here both musically and sonically and its one that begs to be listened to multiple times to really connect to what you are listening to. When you do finally connect to it though, that moment when you finally hear this album for what it is; its just too good.
Stand out songs: Calm Americans, Blessed By Your Own Ghost, Drive On To Me, Dying Midwestern, Shallow Like Your Breath, Lie Close, Speed Of Film

 

Alright everyone, new pairings are here. Now for our newbies, keep in mind that these pairings do not officially begin until Monday the 18th at midnight. So if you have not done your reviews for this week, no worries! (You are still welcome to talk to your partner, trade, and get a head start though if you are caught up!)

CMCS PAIRINGS
(06/18/18-06/25/18)

@JRGComedy // @highfidelity203

@Bad Frequencies // @edisnfg

@Nate_Johnson // @bachna84

@Kiana // @PaulTheAudio

@Larry David // @Chase Tremaine

@nickyeatworld // @cshadows2887

@broken22 // @anonimito

@Patterns in Traffic // @Bad Frequencies

@Davjs // @disambigujason

@Anthony Brooks // @ejsz

@Micool1 // @SamLevi11

@skurt // @jorbjorb

@CSWAPPO // @teebs41

@iCarly Rae Jepsen // @Nate_Johnson

Did I miss you? Honest mistake, let me know! Were you benched and want to come back? Just let me know!

 

Yuuup, you really touched on about all of my favorite tracks/moments. Shallow Like Your Breath, Calm Americans, Dying Midwestern all hit me hard emotionally every time. It’s a special album. I do enjoy the follow up but it doesn’t quite have the same energy. I wish they could come back some day, I’d kill to see these guys live.

Glad you liked it!

 

hi it looks like I got off the list somehow

 

I really do like it. I can’t wait for it to grow on me even more. It’s got this powerful drive to it that a lot of albums are missing

 

Last you told me you wanted to be benched. You didn’t tell me you wanted back lol! No worries. @Nate_Johnson will take you

 

Oh I meant just for the one week, no biggie okay back on board

 

LoL kevo did you just take me off the bench bc you felt like it was time?

 

Hey, do you want to stay in his top 10 or not?

 

tru

 

No I was like 90% sure this was when you said you’d come back. Was i early?

 

June 19th lol but I can come back

 

Bro

 

Yeah I think you can handle one day early

 

I'm gonna have to be out for this week, but I should be good soon. Quitting my job next week

 

Quitting your job to spend more time here? MVP right here

 

Hey that day was gonna be my time to watch YouTube videos or something really important

 

@disambigujason I am going to give you an album by a band you've probably never heard before, "Disambiguation" by Underoath. They are a indie rock band that never broke big and are very underground. It will appeal to your pop tastes. Let me know if you like it.

 

@inwaves you should join when you can my dude! Miss talking music with you

 

Haha!

 

@edisnfg and I did one last bonus before we had to part ways and they gave me:

Misser: Every Day I Tell Myself I'm Going to Be a Better Person (2012) Rise Records

Misser are a rock band that are the side project of Transit's Tim Landers and This Time Next Year's Brad Wiseman. This is their first official full length and sees them give us 13 tracks of infectious indie pop punk that brings to mind earlier Taking Back Sunday and Hot Rod Circuit. Although, when the band really slows things down on tracks such as Stay Asleep, Sanity and intro Permanently, they bring to mind earlier Brand New. The one aspect of their sound that is instantly noticeable is the back and forth exchange between Tim and Brad, much like that of Adam Lazarra and John Nolan. This almost feels like the missing record Taking Back Sunday wanted to write and reminds me so much of their first few records. Their chemistry is great and feels as though it was meant to be.

Lyrically, the themes on this album are a bit cliché: dealing with loss and being away from someone for a period of time. (I think the title of the band speaks for itself. ) But they are wrapped in shimmery goodness that makes you forget them for the most part. Like Tim's other project, Cold Collective, he has a knack for writing an amazing pop rock hook. Look no further than my favorite track on the album, Weightless, with it's shimmery guitars mixed with a pop punk flare. The album is 40 minutes long but never feels that way, thanks in part to the albums infectiousness and the perfect placement of some of slower numbers interwoven throughout the pop goodness.

In the end, I do prefer Cold Collective over this a little more, as it tends to take itself less serious and doesn't have the cliché lyrical topics. With that being said, this is still a fantastic record and one I think that everyone should check out. The thing I have to come to learn about Tim is that he is a musical genius and is the master of the hook. I need to go back and check out the Transit records where he was behind the guitar because I feel as though I missed out on that part of his life.

Once again, I can't recommend this album enough if you are a fan of earlier Taking Back Sunday. I will spin this, along with the Cold Collective album, for a long time.

Thank you for another great recommendation @edisnfg!!!

RIYL: Early Taking Back Sunday, Hot Rod Circuit, Pop Punk

Favorite Songs:
Bridges
Weightless
I'm Sick?
The Waits

 

I wonder who my first victim should be with this new Christina Aguilera album @Bad Frequencies when r we pairing up again

 

Meadowlark: Postcards

Before I tried out this album, I knew to expect indie with pop and electronic elements. Albums with those features tend to be in my wheelhouse, and this album was not an exception!

The instrumentation on this album was really great - I heard a lot of incredibly interesting and enjoyable parts. The piano and synths were my favorites (and were the big stars of this album musically), and the strings (when they were used) were gorgeous!

As usual, I have yet to pick up a lot of the lyrics, but I do enjoy the ones I've heard so far! The vocals and melodies were great - the vocals reminded me of Ellie Goulding a bit. Also, the melodies were incredibly catchy!

No major critiques here! I will say that with 15 tracks (maybe a couple are bonus tracks?) it's taken me a number of listens to figure out which track is which at times, but that's a minor issue that should be cleared up with even more listens.

"Headlights" opens the album with a nifty pop track, complete with some cool piano work and a bit of an oriental feel to the music that I really enjoyed! "Sunlight" is a bit slower and more dramatic, and it has some incredibly catchy melodies! I really enjoyed the synth elements here - the bridge was especially beautiful. "Pink Heart" has a jazzy feel to it, complete with some awesome keys/synth work. The bridge is simple, yet lovely. "One" again features a wonderful piano part, and it has a really cool beat! It's a pretty simple track, but sometimes less is more. Again the bridge is fantastic! "Eyes Wide" has more lovely piano and a bit of jazzy feel at times, again. This was an early standout track for me - the melodies are so infectious! The bridge features some of the "biggest" piano work on the album. There's even a substantial amount of guitars and a bit of strings, too. "Fly" is on the album twice - this track and an acoustic version later on. It's a very strong song, so I can see why they chose to record two versions. The piano is once again featured, especially during the powerful chorus. In addition, the percussion is also really impressive here. "Interlude" is just that - a lovely piano-heavy instrumental interlude. I feel like I could listen to it on repeat for hours and be very happy! (I should try that soon!) "Body Loose" picks up with a quiet piano part and some really cool percussion work. This is another incredibly catchy track (I really hope this was a single!) and is a big highlight on the album and probably my top favorite. "Paraffin" has a cool synth- and effect-heavy sound to it, with another strong piano part as well. This was another early standout track for me (it's not every day you hear the word "paraffin" in a song, either). "That's Life" is a beautiful ballad with some fantastic piano and emotional vocals. I was thrilled to hear the addition of some gorgeous strings on this track, too. "Satellite" has such great vocals, and the piano is awesome! The percussion was also very impressive on this track. I really loved the bridge, too! "Undercover" hits the ground running, and once again features some cool piano and synth work. I'm a huge fan of the chorus and the bit of strings I hear there! The title track is a pretty chill acoustic-based track. The vocals are excellent here and convey vulnerability really well. I feel like I should also comment about the excellent acoustic guitars, since guitars are not too heavily featured on this album. "Fly - Acousitc" is a more relaxed version of the track earlier on the album. I guess I spoke too soon about the acoustic guitars, because this song not only features some beautiful strings, but also some awesome guitar work. I think I prefer this to the other version, but it's probably mostly for the strings, since I love when strings are used in pop music. "Little Boxes" is yet another chill song with some pretty acoustic guitars. The vocals are fantastic and so full of emotion and longing.

Verdict: 10/10

Favorite tracks: all of them!

Reminds me of: Ivory Circle, Ellie Goulding, everything I enjoy about indie pop


(Thanks for sharing this really cool album, @ugman_2000! And again, sorry for the delay!)