The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 379

Just Friends – Nothing but Love


Opening with a skit reminiscent of early 90’s rap, it very quickly becomes clear that Just Friends’ album “Nothing but Love” takes influence from a wide range of artists.

First track proper “Never Gonna Bring You Down” is perhaps my favourite on the album, and it showcases the most consistent elements of their sounds. It combines ska and punk like many bands before them, however there are hip-hop elements present, and the song structures and instrumentation themselves are very ramshackle and quick, reminding me of a ska Joyce Manor. It’s fun and rowdy at all times and benefits from the shorter paced songs, but it does have some longer tracks further into the record.

There are both male and female vocals, however they have very different styles. The former tends to be more shouty vocals that definitely take influence from hardcore and hip hop, whilst the latter is more traditionally melodic.

Lyrically the album didn’t particularly stand out to me, but the instrumentation was interesting and unpredictable, although as someone who doesn’t listen to ska, I found it did wear on me later into the 13 song tracklisting.

Despite this, it was a very fun listen. They seem like they would be a great booking for early on the Slam Dunk Fireball stage, which is the festivals ska stage, and I’d consider checking them out if they played.

7/10

RIYL: Reel Big Fish, Joyce Manor, Alcohol, the 90’s

Recommended tracks: Never Gonna Bring You Down, Supersonic


Cheers to @summertimejesus for recommending me something out of my comfort zone and pushing me a little.

 

I was genuinely unaware of this meaning. Another reason to uphold the ruling of linguistic authority @teebs41

 

Yeah. Being from Glasgow I was confused about why this was a good thing hahaha

 

Myself and @marioeatworld have finally traded.

They will listen to Deaf Havana - RITUALS

I will listen to Hop Along - Bark Your Head Off, Dog as I only heard the lead single from it.

 

That Hop Along album is great! I like the previous one by them better though, but still good.

 

Great trade!

 

Rituals is really good, definitely my favourite thing Deaf Havana have done since Fools and Worthless Liars.

 

The Sun and The Sea - American Empire 8/10


I really enjoyed this album. American Empire by The Sun and The Sea is a pop/rock(?) album with soothing electronic beats. It reminded me of Mutemath and Minus the Bear. The vocalist’s voice is smooth and makes great melodies you can sing to, similar to Aaron Marsh. I recommend this. My favorite track is There’s Nothing We Can Do.
Thanks, @Patterns in Traffic !

 

Tigers Jaw
Spin
2017



Last session I was paired with @xapplexpiex who assigned me Tigers Jaw's 2017 release Spin. I have heard some of their past material, but I had not gotten around to listening to their latest release until now. Tigers Jaw is a band from Scranton, Pennsylvania that currently has two official members - Ben Walsh (guitars, vocals, drums, bass) and Brianna Collins (keyboards, vocals). They have three touring musicians for bass, drums, and guitars. Spin is the band's fifth full-length studio album and it falls somewhere on the alternative rock/indie rock/pop rock spectrum. Also of note - this album was produced by Will Yip (Circa Survive, Citizen, The Menzingers, mewithoutYou, Pianos Become The Teeth, etc.).

One thing that makes this band unique is that the lead vocal duties are shared between Ben and Brianna. It's not quite an even split (Ben takes the lead on 9 of the tracks while Brianna takes the lead on 3 of the tracks), but I do appreciate the diversity. The album kicks off with two songs of which Ben is the lead vocalist - Follows and Favorite. These are two of my favorite songs on the album. The vocals are really well done and the music itself sounds great. Both songs have catchy choruses and these first two tracks definitely made me want to keep listening. I found the lyrics on this album overall to be quite enjoyable, but I particularly enjoyed the lyrics in Favorite's chorus:

What's your favorite way to dull the pain?
I haven't found a way to replace you
What's your favorite way to dull the pain?
I haven't found a way to replace you, but I wish I could

Next up is the first Brianna fronted track on the album, June. It's also my favorite of her three lead vocal efforts. The chorus is very hooky and dreamy sounding. Escape Plan follows and it's another highlight on this album full of highlights. The song starts off a bit slower and it builds throughout, which is a nice change of pace. I liked the lyrics a lot here too:

Under the surface you confront yourself
You wonder what life would be like if I was someone else
But I am patient, I refuse to concede or believe
That I am only what you want me to be

A couple tracks later is Guardian, the album's lead single. This song features the word spin in the line "and your head starts to spin" and this song has the band firing on all cylinders. The hooks are again extremely catchy and the instrumentation is again top notch.

I personally don't believe that there is a single bad song on this album, but the stretch of songs from Brass Ring through Same Stone is probably my least favorite on the album. The songs were all solid enough, but I didn't find them particularly memorable. The final two songs on the album, however, are two of my favorites. Make It Up features another catchy chorus and the closing track, Window, has some unique music that I really enjoyed. Similar to Guardian, there are also lyrics in this song that feature the word spin - "Why does the room still spin at the very mention your name?"

All in all, this was a very pleasant experience and an album that's right up my alley. I only have two very minor complaints. The first is that I found this album to be a bit "top heavy" as the majority of my favorite tracks were on the first half of the album. Again, that's a very minor issue here. I just found the first half of the album to overall be more enjoyable than the last half. My second minor issue is that I wish the vocals would have been split a little closer to 50/50. Both vocalists absolutely shine when given the opportunity - I just wish that Brianna would have had a bit more of an opportunity!

These are some of my favorite songs on the album - Follows, Favorite, June, Escape Plan, Guardian, Bullet, Make It Up, and Window. That's 8 of the 12 songs on the album, so just go ahead and listen to the whole thing!

I'd recommend this album to fans of bands including Balance & Composure, Citizen, and Turnover.

Here are a couple of their songs to check out now if you're so inclined! I've included one with Ben as the primary vocalist (Guardian) and one with Brianna as the primary vocalist (June).

Thank you for the terrific recommendation @xapplexpiex ! I can see why this album is so beloved by critics and fans alike.

 

love Tigers Jaw. Their previous effort Charmer is great too.

Seems like we have similar favourites (pun intended). Favorite, June, Escape Plan and Window are mine, I just wish they shared vocals more, maybe in the same song like on Hum from the previous album.

 

I’m so very happy you enjoyed this as much as you did. I echo your thoughts. It really is top-heavy and I wish the vocalists traded off a bit more. Nonetheless, it’s an amazing album.

 

The other album @Nate_Johnson recommended to me last week is Cave In's 2003 album Antenna. I know this band is pretty well-respected as a post-hardcore/progressive rock band, and I also know that Antenna is their major label debut and their most pure alt-rock style album, which was met with a negative reception from many of their fans. However, having never heard a Cave In album in full (though I do remember listening to the single from this album, "Anchor," quite a bit when it was released) this is probably the best entrance point to the band for me since it aligns with my general tastes. After multiple listens, I found this album really accessible and would be interested to branch out into their other albums which feature their more signature, aggressive sound.



"Stained Silver" opens the proceedings with a wall of heavy rock guitars and a nice pop structure with a catchy chorus. This sound reminds me a lot of the heavier alternative rock bands of the time. I kept drawing comparisons to Moments in Grace, but while the sound is comparable I think this connection was put into my mind mostly because of how similar the cover art is between these two albums.

"Inspire" opens up a little bit with more space in the instrumentation, a more clean vocal delivery, and more intricate bass work. The soaring chorus which ends with the question "Who inspires you?" is an instant classic. It also has a heavy rock riff thrown in after the chorus for good measure. This is definitely one of my favorite tracks on the album and is the kind of jam I could picture coming out of Make Yourself- or Crow-era Incubus.

"Anchor" was super awesome to hear again as I remember loving this song and I probably hadn't heard it in over 10 years. It is the obvious choice as a single as it has a great clean hook and would sound right at home on rock radio in 2003. The good ol' days

The next track "Beautiful Sun" is fairly simple acoustic track, though it has some cool staccato lead guitar that brings an element of tension. This leads into the 9-minute epic "Seafrost." The song starts with some heavily-reverbed guitar or synth and some intermittent bass riffing. The rest of the band enters with some building drums and smooth vocals. The drums and bass then start to pick up the pace and the guitar riffing gets more prominent and technical. Around six minutes in, musical elements begin to drop out and the final three minutes of the song consist primarily of experimental droning guitar textures. This gives a pretty good idea of the depth and talent of the band, and this passage alone makes them stand out from many of their peers. It makes it clear that the band can embrace other styles outside of the alt rock on this album, which would have been obvious even if I didn't already know that this rock album was an oddity in their discography. I love how this song keeps the listener engaged throughout its 9-minute runtime without ever really reaching a high-energy climax. It has enough elements weaving in and out that it doesn't need to adjust the intensity to stay compelling. It serves as a great centerpiece to the album, and it was a brave choice by the band to put it in the middle of the tracklist. I love how the bass kind of drives the first section of this song and accentuates the transitions between parts.

Cave In continues to produce standout tracks on the back half of the album, such as the driving "Youth Overrided" and intense "Breath of Water," which features an impressively passionate vocal performance. "Penny Racer" has a real hard rock feel that kind of reminded me of classic rock at points, and has a great dissonant guitar solo and more awesome bass work. "Woodword" ends the album with another anthemic vocal hook and an extended guitar solo.

This is a great album that does the alt/hard rock thing really well while also showcasing influences from the heavier and more experimental genres where Cave In also excels. If I would have purchased this album back in 2003 after hearing "Anchor" I'm sure I would have loved it just as much back then, and I would probably be intimately familiar with their entire discography by now. As I stated before, this is a band that I will need to hear more of. I am interested to make my own observations as to how different their other albums are from this one.

 

Fantastic job and I love Stephen Brodsky as a vocalist. I would highly recommend Mutoid Man (the band) as it's less "heavy" and more rock and in line with this album. If you are looking for their signature sound I would definitely recommend their post hiatus come back record: White Silence. It is a nice blend of their old HEAVY sound and what is on Antenna.

 

Sweet, I've heard of Mutoid Man but had no idea it was the same singer as Cave In. I also love the bass work on this album so much, I was really sad to see that the bass player passed away earlier this year.

 

Wooo I'm glad you mostly enjoyed it! It's such a fun listen--I actually went to high school with a couple of the members so it's super exciting seeing them get bigger. And I love the combination of the male/female vocals, I think it adds an extra layer of depth to the songs. Happy you got out of your comfort zone!

 

This week I was paired with @xapplexpiex and was recommended Future's 2017 album HNDRXX. The last time we were paired, I reviewed some Japanese death metal, and now I'm reviewing what I believe is my first CMCS rap album, so it is safe to say that @xapplexpiex is succeeding in taking me out of my comfort zone and introducing me to some genres of music that I don't normally frequent. Which is good!



This is clearly an ambitious album, clocking in at an hour and 17 minutes over 19 tracks (all of which are full songs, no intros/skits/interludes/etc.). It also comes out of a prolific period of writing and recording for Future, who released a self titled album (another 20 tracks!) just one week before this album.

This is a vulnerable record, as most of these tracks feature relatively simple beats with Future's vocals front and center. For the most part, there isn't any big or heavily-featured instrumentation. It is just there in the background to accentuate the vocal delivery. There are bits of background vocals, synths, and other percussion sprinkled throughout the songs. "Selfish (feat. Rihanna)" is an exception to this, with some pulsing synth in the chorus that serves as a nice change of pace.

Future is an impressive vocalist, transitioning seamlessly between rapping and singing on these songs. The vocals are heavily auto-tuned (this is used tastefully and purposefully as a vocal effect, not as an attempt at artificial pitch correction). The 7 1/2 minute long "Sorry" has a bunch of great vocal runs that keep the track engaging all the way through. It's impressive when Future gets going and just smoothly chains together clever line after clever line. It is easy to just sit back and enjoy his flow and get lost in the atmosphere of this album. Everything sounds washed over in a warm and welcoming reverb.

Thank you @xapplexpiex for allowing me to experience this album in a genre that I am not too familiar with!

Standout Tracks: Comin Out Strong (feat. The Weeknd), Lookin Exotic, Incredible, Testify, Selfish (feat. Rihanna), Sorry

 

I’m glad you enjoyed it.
I was weary after giving it to you, but cool. Btw, the last two tracks were just added recently. I didn’t know this until I listened to this yesterday. It’s a shame, since I can’t stand Chris Brown.

 

Interesting. I noticed the beats seem to be more prominent in those two tracks and they were listed on Wikipedia as being "streaming version" bonus tracks.

 

My girl went and dislocated here foot so I'm at her every whim this weekend. I'll get the reviews for @xapplexpiex and @Nate_Johnson as soon as I can!

 

Ouch

 

I wish her a speedy recovery and no rush.

 

She's a dancer so, unfortunately, it's a regular occurrence haha. She has one of those moon boots on so it's actually pretty funny.

Thanks very much. No doubt I'll have them playing anyway. I've listened, just need a write up .

 

It was good

 

Yo I'm gonna miss next weeks pairings if that is okay. Wanna catch up on my current recs before I promise anything to anyone else :)