Inevitable End - The Oculus

 

Sweden has always been know as a hotbed for really good metal. Sweden’s Inevitable End
are no different. These Swedes offer up brand new album entitled The Oculus. Known on previous albums as being more of a straight forward Death Metal and Thrash act.Inevitable End takes a different musical spin on The Oculus, combing a more frantic and aggressive style.

This album hits you like a freight train! The first track on the album, “Tell us, Parasites” . The track is almost The Locust like. Combining frantic drums and guitars. Vocals on this track are top notch. Both frantic and aggressive with an underling Death Metalish guttural.

“Zen” the third tack off The Oculus is awesome. The intro is a weird guitar riff then boom, drums and vocals kick in. This song is all over the place, mixing Death, Thrash, and Noise seamlessly. My favorite track on the album is called “The Oculus” which by now you know is the name of the album. The song again is frantic, making you want to bang your head and do a some moshing.

“Vergelmer”  is a Southern Metal inspired instrumental (maybe they are from Southern Sweden) that leads into the track “Chamber of Apathy”. If you like breakdowns, this song has a great one.  A hard hitting double bass and blast beats make this song stand out.

All in all Inevitable End’s The Oculus is a solid metal album. However you take you’re metal, (I’ll take mine with three Grinds and a dash of Power Violence please) you will find a track if not all of them that you dig.

Inevitable End goes great with: The Locust, Through The Eyes of The Dead, old Norma Jean, and countless other Grind, Death and Thrash bands. Be sure to check out Inevitable End’s The Oculus. It hit shelves and digital downloads on May 24th.

-Cicatriz

Buy here: Oculus
Buy here mp3: The Oculus

Milk Maid- Yucca

 

Yucca is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the family Asparagaceae subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40-50 species are notable for their rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped leaves and large terminal panicles of white or whitish flowers. They are native to arid parts of North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean. It is also the debut album of Milk Maid.

Yucca was recorded in Martin Cohen's flat with fellow Milk Maid members, Ian Hodson, Rick Entezari and Adam Carless. The rough recording suits the rough subject matter, but not the silky smooth music.

It all starts with “Such Fun” opening up with some really fun guitar riff that seems like it would be in place in some Fall Out Boy song but then the lyrics start and you realise that it far more NIN. In fact, these lyrics make Trent Renzor seem positively euphoric.
“I know a man who will cut your throat out for a buck or two”
Yep. No happy pop happening here...

What really trips me out though is that it is almost subliminal because the vocals are distorted by the happy pop melody. You really have to pay attention to understand that these are quite... messed up songs.... However, in the same stroke you are bopping along anyway!

This continues happening through the album with the next stand out being “Dead Wrong.” I had to listen to the song a few times to get the exact lyrics, but even though I didn't know what he was singing I was tapping along to the music. When I found out what he was singing, I was singing too! 
“Dead wrong, your killing yourself to cut your arms off.
Stabbing yourself in the guts,
You keep on holding on to a heavy stone,
That will drag you under if you don't let go.”

Don't freak out though! Not all of the songs are dark and dank!

“Girl” is the example I will whip out now. It's a sweet song about a lost love and the home recorded sound rough rock sound transforms into something soft and kind. The music supports this song really well, cleaner, smoother but still fun.

I love the fingerpicking in “Same As What” and the lyrics somewhat glum lyrics
“You're not worth the family that carries your name,
And you just say, you need more time,
 You can't have mine.”

Yucca is tied off with “Someone You Thought You Forgot,” a sad slow ballad. Very nice.

I really love how Milk Maid has managed to mix the pop music to their dark lyrics without making it sound try hard. It does have a certain air of eeriness. Yucca- great album, best savoured loudly when a couple in front of you on the train INSISTS on sucking face. Worst savoured walking home alone in the dark. Don't do that. It makes you jump at leaves. Creepy.... 

- Koala


Buy here: Yucca

No youtube links, but a sound cloud one!
http://soundcloud.com/suffering-jukebox/such-fun-milk-maid

Queensryche - Operation: Mindcrime and Rage For Order

 

1988.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prime impressionable/adolescent years.

Operation: Mindcrime.

Progressive metal laden with heavy hooks,  complex guitar solos, and political messages.

Everyone's "greatest album ever" is usually indelibly linked to the most emotionally-impressionable times in their life: usually mid/late high school, though it obviously varies.

This emotional connection can obviously bias listening-- maybe I wouldn't like Operation: Mindcrime if I heard it for the first time today.

But the fact is, I did hear it for the first time, on cassette, after a glowing review of it in People magazine --of all places-- in 1988.

If I absolutely had to pick-- was forced to at gunpoint to-- just above Master of Puppets, I'd have to place Operation: Mindcrime as my Greatest Album Ever.

Tracks: "I Remember Now," the spoken intro to the concept album that Mindcrime describes, then "Anarchy X," a rousing militaristic instrumental... and then--

"Revolution Calling" and its clarion call to action... nearly 25 years later and it still gets me the same way it did in the late 80s... at 0:32 Chris DeGarmo and Michael Wilton's solos still represent to me the Ultimate Musical Statement of Revolution, however idealistic and naive that statement....

I know every Goddamn note by heart. Seriously. Not a single sound coming from this record --bass, guitar, drums-- do I not know like I know my own dick.

"I used to trust the media to tell me the truth, tell us the truth... but now I see the payoffs everywhere I look... who do you trust when everyone's a crook...? Revolution Calling...!"

My teenage world was completely rocked. Ideologically, musically, in all ways, really....

Maybe for old(er) readers Crosby Stills Nash & Young represent what I'm talking about... maybe it's Hendrix, or Dylan... for me, Operation: Mindcrime was the last gasp of angry political comment or activism (one that to this day makes me angry about political deception... makes me worry that the current generation is too hip/ironic enough to be angry about these political maneuvers....)-- one that taught me, whether intentionally or not, that we (as plebians, as groundlings, as common citizens) were consistently being lied to, and we should respond with anger and outrage to effect legitimate change in the political system....

See? I'm getting carried away already.

"Operation Mindcrime," the title track,  with its minor third Riff of Riffs (unusual for a progressive band to have a riff like this): F# to C# or D, and back again.... "I'm gonna take away the questions, yeah-- I'm gonna make you sure...." Exactly what you did, Geoff Tate and Company....

"Speak" with its Epic lick and riff... a guitar solo worthy of any other, anywhere....

"Spreading the Disease," with its innocence-shredding lyrics and verse riffaliciousness.... This song made me angry I wasn't an assassin in Service of the Truth... "He takes her once a week, on the altar like a sacrifice... religion and sex are power plays, manipulate the people for the money they pay, selling skin... selling God, the numbers look the same on their credit cards....Fighting fire with empty words, while the banks get fat, the poor stay poor... the rich get rich*, the cops get paid, to look away-- as the one percent rules America...."

It pierces that facade of irony, even now-- it makes me energetic and pissed off, it makes me wanna find a way to effect change and impact the political system....

"Suite Sister Mary," the greatest metal ballad ever. It begins with:

"Kill her. That's all you have to do."

"Kill Mary?"

"She's a risk. And get the priest as well...."

"The Needle Lies," perhaps the most rocking/metal tune ever, describes the narrator's struggles with heroin after his beloved dies... "Now, every time I'm weak, words scream from my arm...."

In all seriousness: my most perfect album ever.

20/10. A perfect record.

*Which references several literary allusions, from Adam X's book about politics, to Shelley, who also applied the idiom (scylla and charybdis) politically in an analogy of how society is poised between anarchy and despotism in his essay A Defense of Poetry (1820). The passage reads: 'The rich have become richer, and the poor have become poorer; and the vessel of the state is driven between the Scylla and Charybdis of anarchy and despotism'.

With Operation: Mindcrime in my top 5 albums of all time, if not the top, and Empire in the top 20... it seemed as though Queensrÿche's Rage For Order should be reviewed.

Great tracks:

"Walk in the Shadows," Geoff Tate's voice full of menace and self-loathing ("Our secret's safe for one more night... But when the morning comes, remember--I'll be with you.")

There's a ton of early/mid-20s self-loathing, hating the relationship we're in yet unable to get out vibe to this record, but it also solves Queensrÿche's primary (if only at the time) flaw: they're borderline fruity/too abstract progressive metal, in danger of disappearing up their own butt, BUT: the anger ("Rage"?) present in this record (and in Operation: Mindcrime, though already diminishing to an appreciable extent in Empire) makes it a Truly Great Record, one immune to age and trends, one that can be as appreciable in 2011 as in 1986.

The first side (fucking records and cassettes, how do they work?) is perfect: the second not nearly as, but still great. "I Dream In Infrared" with its haunting, gut-wrenching lyrics ("When you woke this morning, and opened up your eyes... did you notice the tear stains lining your face were mine?" and "I even feel alone when you're near, 'cause you... never understand. When we first met, I must've seemed... a million miles away. Strange, how our lives have touched, but... the time is right... I leave tonight... don't look in my eyes 'cause you've never seen them so black....")

Obviously, I am biased, but only because of the awesomeness.

Go listen to either one, or even Empire. I'm not completely full of shit. See what you think.

 

--Horn

Buy here: Amazon Queensryche page

Delaney & Bonnie And Friends - On Tour With Eric Clapton

 

Racer’s been sending me links for all kinds of cool digital promos of new music but I’m having trouble with the computer again. They installed some new systems on my box at work and it’s been slowing everything down. The past two weeks lots of things have been stalling on me and causing me to reboot. The upshot of all this is that a friend of mine loaned me this Delaney & Bonnie box set and I’ve been playing the hell out of it and it’s brought back some great memories.

Way back when I was first starting to get into rock music in the late 70’s I used to go to the local public library and borrow records to help me determine just what kind of music I liked. The rock section was pretty small so I would grab just about anything available. This is the reason why I know that I don’t like Steeleye Span at all and that I find Procol Harum a little dull. One week I stumbled across an album by Delaney & Bonnie And Friends called On Tour With Eric Clapton. I’d heard plenty of Clapton on the radio, some I liked some I didn’t but I brought it home and gave it a spin and fell in love with it. Through an older brother I had been exposed to a lot of soul music like Booker T. & The MG’s and James Brown as well as a healthy dose rock & roll originators like Chuck Berry and Little Richard. This Delaney & Bonnie album appealed to me immediately and I made a cassette copy of it that I played all the time. A few years later the tape broke and I had started my path to heavy metal madness and never bothered to pick it up again.

So about 30 years later I’m at a friends place and he mentions that he just acquired a box set of 4 complete shows recorded on the tour that produced the album with Eric Clapton and would I like to hear some of it. From the first note, memories came flooding back and the music sounded better than I remembered. Jeezus, what a band! In 1969 Delaney & Bonnie were touring as the opening act for Blind Faith. Eric Clapton was so smitten with them that when Blind Faith broke up he joined their band for their next tour and brought along his friend George Harrison. It’s easy to see why these British musicians would be so impressed. England has produced a lot of great players and bands but it’s pretty hard to compete with a rhythm section of American dudes from the south. The core of the band is Bobby Whitlock on organ, Carl Radle on bass and Jim Gordon on drums. Do those names sound familiar? George Harrison used them on his album All Things Must Pass before they formed Derek & The Dominos with Clapton. The horn section of Bobby Keys and Jim Price would later join the Rolling Stones. Even backing vocalist Rita Coolidge went on to be a pretty big star not long after this. Dave Mason and Leon Russell turn up from time to time as special guests.

The original LP was only about 40 minutes edited down from 4 concerts recorded in December 1969. This box presents all the shows in complete form. It’s probably overkill for most but that’s why it’s a limited edition box set. The Royal Albert Hall show is the longest of all 4 shows and captures the band in peak form. There haven’t been too many bands that have been able to blend soul music with rock & roll and blues this well. This is southern music but not “southern rock” although it does rock. They boogie like no other on the uptempo songs like “Things Get Better,” “Coming Home,” “Where There’s A Will There’s A Way” and on Dave Mason’s “Only You Know & I Know.” Delaney and Bonnie’s vocals really shine on the slower ballads like “Poor Elija” and “Everybody Loves A Winner.” A highlight of most of the shows is a medley of the songs “Pour Your Love On Me/Just Plain Beautiful.” The band really smokes on this and there’s some great guitar interplay between all the guitarists. Most of the songs are repeated on each disc but there are some cool one time performances. A great version of “Will The Circle Be Unbroken” and a cover of Booker T.’s “Pigmy” are highlights of disc 4.

The original album is still in print and worth picking up if you’re low on funds, but if this sounds at all interesting to you go for the box. The packaging is very cool and it will probably be out of print soon. MP3’s from itunes do not due music like this any justice. Don’t be afraid to turn it up and get funky. And support your local library!

--Woody

Buy here: Delaney & Bonnie On Tour With Eric Clapton
Buy here mp3: On Tour With Eric Clapton

The House Harkonnen - Vol. 6

 

A film by Penfold.

Episode 6: 2009 – Present Day

Previously, we explored the rich history of The House Harkonnen. Thanks to the scarcity of true first-hand accounts, the House’s covert formation in 2003 has remained a mystery to much of the world. Historians only agreed on the 2003 formation date due to that being the origin year displayed on honorific patches worn by all House members. 2004 proved to be the year the House went public, actively promoting its ideals and endeavors in ever expanding circles of influence. In this episode, we pick up the history towards the end of 2009.

Countries around the globe were descending into chaos. Tumultuous protests were occurring on an almost weekly basis. Some of these protests lasted only hours before they were forcibly broken up. Others amassed so many people that they could not be stopped, lasting for several days before the crowds dispersed. Trained observers noted that the only thing holding back massive societal change was the lack of a unifying leader who could bring these disparate protesters together. Essentially, the world was a powder keg primed and ready to explode.

The House Harkonnen had bided its time until it was absolutely convinced its efforts would result in success. On October 15th, 2009 the four leaders of the House emerged from their lair, a modified lighthouse located in Silo Town, U.S.A., and traveled to central points on the continents of Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America. Electronic and physical pamphlets had been liberally dispersed among the population centers of these continents prior to the House leaders’ arrival. This being the case, each leader was able to instantly connect with an army of eager converts ready to do their bidding.

According to plan, the House leaders spent a week and a half sermonizing how the priorities of The House Harkonnen mirrored those of the common man. New influxes of supporters streamed into House controlled campsites daily. It is estimated that the amount of supporters eventually numbered around 300,000 per House leader. Understandably, the local governments began to fear the power wielded by these four outsiders. They sent envoys in order to gauge the House leaders’ intentions. All of these couriers were sent back with the same response. It stated ‘We, The House Harkonnen, have come to your land to take over. If you don’t like it, that’s tough fucking news’. Cut and dried to say the least.

A few of the nearby politicians took the House’s statement of intent seriously, but most met their words with laughter and scorn. Unfortunately for them they were not aware of the secret weapon that House archeologists had unearthed back in the United States. Exactly one year prior those archeologists found a sealed urn buried deep underground. Inside that urn was a knife. It appeared plain and unvarnished. The only distinguishing element to the knife appeared to be some indecipherable text along the knife’s hilt. Detailed examination revealed that this knife was actually the famed ‘blade to take the world’. Historical precedent established that whoever possessed this fabled blade was destined to rule over everyone and everything.

Pity the world’s former powers. Praise The House Harkonnen.

Look waveriders. I know what you’re thinking. You’ve had yourself a nice, pleasant little run. Happiness and good fortune have proven reliable companions lately. During this time you’ve become enamored with some light and airy, poppy tunes that perfectly complement your current mind state. But wait. Hold on a moment. I also hear what that prophetic inner voice is whispering to you from the shadows. It’s foretelling that these good times can’t last. Pretty soon, you’re going to fall back to earth and need to listen to something merciless; something that takes no prisoners in its relentless effort to rock your socks off! It’s inevitable. And when that happens The House Harkonnen will be there, ready to bring the hammer down.

It appears that the state of Texas has another secret to tell. What may seem strange to some people is that this secret doesn’t call Austin home. The House Harkonnen is a self described ‘slop rock’ band that hails from Arlington, a large city inside the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. The band has been plying their trade since the early years of the new millennium. In that time they have released six slabs of scathing rock upon the masses (although I can personally vouch for only four of those six slabs, I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt on the remaining two), appropriately titled Volume 1 through 6. Volume 6, the newest to be released into the wild back in October of 2009, is the focus of our attention today.

There is no way around it people. Volume 6 is an absolute monster! It’s beastly! This album does more to rock my world during its half hour running length than most anything I’ve come across in recent memory. After a brief muscle flexing wall of heavy guitar tonality provides the proper introduction, the band mashes on the accelerator and never lets up. Honestly, this album…it completes me. So what kind of sonic template am I talking about exactly? What does this ‘slop rock’ sound like? Allow me to provide some insight.

First of all you have dueling guitars mounting a riff based assault upon your senses. The guitars are inescapable! They fill any void with a deep, rich, aggressive sound all the while in powerful harmony with one another. Second, the bass and drums lay down an incredibly thick, meaty groove on every song in perfect lockstep. Seriously, the propulsion they provide should come with a warning indicator about possible radiation exposure. Last but not least we have the vocals. During the majority of Volume 6 the vocals are very hardcore-ish in nature. They exhibit a primal urgency that connects deeply with any soul seeking honest, genuine emotion from their singers. To top that off, there is plenty of vocal variety on offer throughout the album. As stated you have the hardcore stuff, but there are also songs with clean singing, and others mixing the two approaches.

I could easily break down every song on this album. In truth, I would do so happily! Now let me explain why I’m not going to do that. It’s very simple. I don’t feel that my writing can do this music justice. Reading about tunes like these is all well and good, but actually hearing them will be far more impressive. Consider this a challenge waveriders; from me to you. Point your browser over to The House Harkonnen’s website (www.thehouseharkonnen.com), click on the audio tab, start the player, and let Volume 6 energize you. To sum up, if you listen to “A Blade To Take The World” and remain calm and unaffected, you need to seek emergency medical assistance. Something is dreadfully wrong!

--Penfold

 Buy here: Vol. 6

An Electrying Edifice of Ebullient EP's - Featuring Frost Hammer, Aaron Zimmer, Prevenge/Dig It Up, and Bacchus Baracus

Frost Hammer - Live at Reeds

Sometimes you just get lucky.  There I was, minding my own business, sharing a club sandwich with my father-in-law, when an email pops across my iPhone.  Nothing too unusual.  At the Ripple we get over 400 band submissions a month.  But something about this email caught my eye.  First, they were local boys, coming from San Jose, and I always want to support local music.  Second, this wasn't a demo or a first ep, or some fine studio recording.  What came across were 3 tracks, all recorded live at Reeds Studios, the first of many to come from these guys.  Now, that takes balls. To introduce yourself to the world through three songs cut live.  No overdubs.  No glossy production.  Just guitars, bass, drum, and occasional vocal.  Yes, we have balls.  Welcome to our world.  We are Frost Hammer.

And fuck if they aren't!  Forget the overdubs.  What we got here are three searing tracks of guitar fury, detuned and bottom end heavy.  We're mixing the root of Sabbath with some retro-70's Nugent guitar histrionics and groove and tossing in a hint of NWOBHM riffing.  "Master of Weapon" is my off the cuff favorite.  But that's not to say the others aren't killer.  "Void" and "Wizard Tooth" both decimate with earthquake inducing doom riffing and guitar work that comes across like a cross between Iommi and Satriani.  In other words, the cat can shread when he wants to but knows the value of keeping it simple and clean.  "Wizard Tooth," is just a monster of post-Sabbath riffery that tosses in some furious NWOBHM finese, and stop-start time changes.  "Void" is an instrumental that never loses focus and simply terrorizes.

This isn't really an EP. More songs from these sessions are coming and a full length is due soon.  So keep your eyes open.  But I just couldn't wait til then to give these guys some press.  Retro-riff rockers, seek them out!

Hear them at the Frost Hammer Band Page.

Aaron Zimmer - This Time Next Year

It was last year sometime that we at the Ripple fell under the spell of earnest singer/songwriter Aaron Zimmer, and his full throttle pop.  Now after spending a year playing in the NY area, Aaron comes back with his first new EP, This Time Next Year, and the maturation in song-writing is like a new day dawning.  Playing it a bit looser and rootsier than most of the debut album, This Time Next Year is a knock out of a follow up.  Aaron seems to be a bit more relaxed, some loose strumming of his acoustic guiding most songs like the erstwhile "Broken Records."  The single "Honey, Give Me a Hand," we'd already reviewed in these pages after we got wrapped up in its giddy with spontaneity, and it's still my favorite song here.  "Cab Fare," a languid ballad, brings out some of Aaron's more country roots while "Conspiracy Theorist" surprises with its horn-section accompaniment. 

Just as he did with Live Wires, Aaron has crafted an EP of indy rock perfection.  As with all Aaron’s songs, the melody is right in the forefront, bringing me in, letting me know I’m in good hands.  The casual rush of the song sweeps over me in a moment of shear pop delight.

Aaron Zimmer band page

Prevenge/Dig It Up - Split

Hyper-adrenalinized punk from Montreal.  We got us two bands fresh from the recording studio after pounding six cases of Red Bull and tossing in a Rockstar chaser.  Jittery hands and flailing hearts avoid the Emergency Room by burning off that chemical concoction pounding away on buzzsaw guitars and pulverized drum skins.

It just doesn't get much better than this.  Prevenge's two tracks, "Berry'd Alive" and " Wicked Mess," combine old-school punk chops with modern pop-punk melodic chops and enough blister-riddled fingers and knuckles to make it all work.  Guitars chug and spit and slobber and it's all f'ing perfect.  Vocals that dig into the punk larynx without ever becoming annoying or whiny are a major plus.  I just may have found my new favorite true punk band. 

Then comes Dig It Up, spitting and shouting, generally causing a ruckus and setting a bad example for youth everywhere.  Slightly choppier, definitely dirtier.  Dropping the melody for an extra dose of spleen venting, Dig It Up are the perfect foil for the slightly more polished Prevenge.  "Move My Way," is a chaotic blast of poor impulse control in all the best ways.  Drums are attacked with no signs of mercy.  Guitars leap and jump seemingly at random but altogether forming a cohesive whole.  Less pop.  More punk.  Bring on that big bass line 3/4 in and I'm in heaven.  "Cops on Horses," adds even more hardcore intensity with some seriously surprising musical chops.  What the hell are they doing when the crunching chords drop out?    Punk with a touch of crust?  Don't know what to call it.   I just want to hear it.  Again and again.

Punk rockers look out.  This split is for real.

Get it here for free (but please donate)  Juicebox Recording Co.

Bacchus Baracus - Growler

Another find from the brilliant musical minds of the Soda Shop.  Here comes a four-song, double whiskey shot of blurred, alcohol dazed retro-stoner power.  Massively heavy.  Detuned to the point of rattling spleens out of their audience's bodies.  Bacchus Baracus bring a lacerated larynx to the tobacco and weed stained proceedings.  Going way beyond any Sabbath influence, these cats jump deep into the puddle of Nazareth, spit out the fluid of a sweaty Nugent, and ride the riff waves of Mountain.  Thick, ropy chords propel this smoke-fest ever onward through the fuzzy haze.  Named after the God of wine, Bacchus and whatever the hell Baracus means, these cats are not content to wallow in the doom misery of much fuzzed-riff rock. They want a party and damn it, if there ain't one, they're gonna get it started.

"The Longest Day," simply terrorizes, ripping through it's riffs with an orgy-feeding frenzy.   "Dr Chu" marries a post-Fu Manchu fuzzmania to a serious beat.  Damn, this song cooks.  The pummeling, dirty, and bottom-heavy blues riffs of "Rock and Roll Man," probably serves as the band's morning mantra.  And by morning, of course I mean three in the afternoon when they finally get their asses out of bed to deal with the hangover from the night before.  This song even sounds like a Roman chant to me, getting the testosterone burning as the gladiators are paraded out for a night of pagan delights with the wives of all the old and frigid senators. 

Seriously cool stuff.

Listen and get it here:  Bacchus Baracus

The Black Dahlia Murder - Ritual

(In my best Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson voice) Finally!! The Black Dahlia Murder!! has come back...to your stereo!! Yes Waiveriders, The Black Dahlia Murder is back! Detroit's resident death metal superstars bring you their new album Ritual. I've been waiting to get my hands on this album for months and now it is finally in my possession. Excited, yes I am!! Ritual is the 5th studio album from The Black Dahlia Murder and damn it is epic as fuck!

Before we get to the awesome music, let's touch on the awesome cover art. Back in the day, (when I purchased cd's every week) I would stumble into my local record store and buy metal albums based on how “cool” the album art was. If I was 16 again and saw Ritual on the shelf I would definitely be picking it based on cover alone. The amazingly talented Valnoir Mortsonge is the man behind the epic artwork. Some of you may recognize his work on passed Watain, Morbid Angel and Ulver albums. The cover to Ritual is made to look like a demonic book. Complete with Satan himself and your fair share of pentagrams and other demonic imagery. Awesome!

Now on to the music. “A Shrine to Madness” gets the death metal party started. “A Shrine to Madness” starts off very melodic. At the 53 second mark you are hit with the opening guitar lick and soon follows Trevor Strnad's unmistakable vocal structure, a combination of black, death and guttural vocals. Overall a great opening track.“A Shrine to Madness” flow seamlessly into “Moonlight Equilibrium”. “Moonlight Equilibrium has by far the most “classic” feel to it. It is very reminiscent of their early work but you can hear former Arsis axeman Ryan Knight's contributions clearly.

“Conspiring With the Damned” is by far my favorite track on Ritual. When Trevor screams, “CONSPIRING WITH THE DAMNED!!!”, it instantly sends chills down your spine. This song clocks in at just under 4 minutes. If you get a chance to listen to just a few tracks of this album, “Conspiring With the Damned” has to be one of them. This song has it all. Trevor's amazing vocal presence, Shannon Lucas' unrelenting drums, Ryan (Don't Call Me Bart ) Williams' signature bass style and Ryan Knight and Brian Eschbach's dueling guitars.

There is something about the 7th track on albums. The theory I have is it's always one of the best tracks on album. I don't know, listen to any of your favorite albums, I'm sure number 7 doesn't suck. “Den of the Picquerist” is no different. This song is awesome, it's almost punk like in how short it is. Clocking in under a mere 2 minutes. It has the urgency of a punk song with all the melodic death metal tendencies you would expect from the band.

The Black Dahlia Murder have been around for quite a few years now. It seems as though they are constantly one -upping themselves in terms of musicianship. They progressively get better and better with each album they put out. Always trying new things. Ritual is very much all of those things. Musically it's a great album, and there are lots of new things on the album. One, the much higher screams Trevor hits and Two, the addition of Ryan Knight. You really get the feeling they put there all into the album and it shows on all 12 tracks. If you are an old Dahlia fan or this is your first time hearing about them, you should definitely pick up Ritual.

This is an awesome year for metal! Ritual is one of the many great albums being produced this year. I'm personally looking forward to the new The Faceless album and The HAARP Machine. Get excited!
Oh and go check out this years Summer Slaughter Tour, a bunch of great bands will be on it. Including: The Black Dahlia Murder, Whitechapel, Darkest Hour, Six Feet Under, Dying Fetus, As Blood Runs Black, Oceano, Power Glove, and Fleshgod Apocalypse...shit's gonna be sick!

--Cicatriz

Buy here: Ritual

Buy here vinyl: Ritual

More Revenge of the Quick Ripple Bursts - Featuring Acid Bath, Autistic Youth, Black Spiders, and Brutus

Acid Bath – Paegan Terrorism Tactics

Nola Stoner Rock is the genre that pops up on my iTunes when Acid Bath comes up and I ain’t gonna argue.  Mean, nasty, throaty, fuzzy, and heavy.  “Paegan Love Song” runs through its riff with the intensity of a felon dashing from the law.  Drums blitz me like bullets from the outlaw’s guns.  Bass thunders like the getaway car’s motor.  It’s impossible not to wrapped up in this song, slash the sleeves from my tee-shirt, go out and get tattooed and join the gang in nefarious pursuits.  “Bleed Me an Ocean” is even heavier with a riff so covered in fuzz it sounds like it was gargled from the bowels of Hell.   Vocalist Riggs screams with the torment of a thousand souls wailing in the shady abyss.  Pain, torment, suffering, and massively distorted, sludgeified Sabbath riffs.  Not new, but recently re-mastered and re-released. Well worth tracking down.

buy here: Paegan Terrorism Tactics
buy here mp3: Paegan Terrorism Tactics



Autistic Youth – Idle Minds

Coming from Dirtnap records, one of  the best purveyors of punk out there today, we got this raging platter of pure hardcore aggression mixed with enough smoothness to make Leatherface proud.   Think Adolescents here, then keep thinking of them as the bass blasts out in galloping runs, the guitars slice like cutting buzzsaws, and the singer manages to find melodies where no melodies should rightfully be.  Pure, unadulterated punk and viciously cool because of it.  The lead-off 2:26 of “Soldiers” just may be my favorite punk anthem of the year.  Powering three-chord blitzkrieg with scattershot drums and hyperkinetic bass should keep the pit moshing with years to come.  Flying elbows and fists, dislocating limbs and loosening teeth.  Beautiful.

Buy here mp3: Idle Minds
Buy here vinyl: Autistic Youth - Idle Minds - LP


Black Spiders – Sons of the North

Tearing up the stage and magazines currently.  Hailed by the high and mighty like Ozzy and Duff McKagan.  Featured on a recently cover-mounted CD with Classic Rock.  It’s all enough for The Ripple not to write about these guys.  After all, we are the best music that you “haven’t “ heard.  But truth be told, Black Spiders are too good not to appear in these pages.  A while back, my brethren the Pope predicted that real rock and roll was destined to make a comeback blowing the over-produced schmaltz off the charts and heralding the return of gut-check rock and roll.  Black Spiders are proof.  With raw, BTO- Blue Oyster Cult riff mongering like “Stay Down” and “Just Like a Woman,” this is pure-retro 70’s mashed with hair metal ‘80’s rock madness.  Special mention has to go to “Kiss Tried to Kill Me,” an unadulterated riff-fest about being chased cross the country and hunted down and murdered by Gene Simmons.  With the chorus “Kiss tried to kill me/It was Gene not Paul/Kiss tried to kill me/It wasn’t Ace’s fault” this song is a can’t miss stab at the most memorable rock song of the year.  Jump on the bandwagon now.

 Buy here: Sons Of The North

Brutus – Demo 2008

Inseminated by Blue Cheer.  Raised in the womb of Sabbath.  Suckling at the teet of Grand Funk.  That’s a pedigree that we can get behind here at the Ripple, and it’s a pedigree that sums up Scandinavian’s Brutus to a tee.   To me, these retro-stoned rocks sound like a perfect incarnation of the bluesy 70’s approach of Stone Axe and the dreamier, fully-stoned psychedelia of Dead Man. Somehow, their original 2008 5-track demo found it’s way onto my hard drive and I could be happier than a pyromaniac in a candle factory.  Huge retro riffs spun with fuzzed out perfection and bottom heavy grooviness.   Apparently, the cats had gone on from here to release their first full-length CD and vinyl with Finnish Svart records and have a split 10” coming on Transbutans with Graviators.  If this demo assortment is any indication, both are a must by for the retro-stoner minded.

Get demo for free here

--Racer

City and Colour - Little Hell

Hello Wave Riders!! On the ole' Ripple Effect I am known for reviewing my fair share of Metal and Hardcore albums. Non stop Brutality is just one side of the many facets of my musical make up. Today I want to share a kinder more heart felt side. Today I bring you City and Colour's new album, Little Hell.

Canadian born Dallas Green is the master mind behind City and Colour. The name City and Colour comes from his own name: Dallas a city, and Green, a colour (color for the Americans). Most people know Dallas as the clean singer in alexisonfire but Dallas has been doing solo work and writing material as early as the age of 18. Little Hell is City and Colour's third release and second proper release in the United States. His debut album Sometimes was only released in Canada through Dine Alone Records in 2005 and re-released by Vagrant Records in the states in 2009, a year after his follow up album, Bring Me Your Love was released.

Little Hell starts off strong with the track, "We Found Each Other in the Dark". This opener sounds much like City and Colour's classic tracks. Full on acoustic guitars and minimal backing band. It has a very alt-country feel to it. The song it self seems to be about the act of getting married and staying together for ever and finding that true love.

The first single off Little Hell, "Fragile Bird" is by far my one of my favorite tracks on this album. I first had a listen to this song a few months back on a random fan made youtube video form one of City and Colour's Canadian tours. Instantly I fell in love with it despite the poor sound quality and granulated video. For me, City and Colour's music is not so much the music but the lyrical content in that music. He always seems to hit a cord with me. As if he knows what I am thinking or thoughts that I have had.

"When she sleeps there is a fever dream, yeah
It brings the night terrors to harm this fragile bird
She speaks in tongues, the words they come undone, yeah
Then with a wayward mind she struggles through the night

All that I can do, is hope she makes it through the night
Through the night

These cold nightmares they make her worse for wear
Lost in the dark, she's got a heavy heart
And when she wakes in her fragile state,
Well, she calls my name hoping that I keep her safe

All that I can do, is hope she makes it through
All that I can do, is hope she makes it through

Through the night
Through the night
Through the night
Through the night

All that I can do, is hope she makes it through
All that I can do, is hope she makes it through
Through the night"

"Northern Wind" is the 6th track on this album. Again, it is a song that I can personally relate to. It hits a cord with me that makes me kind of sad but it's worth it.

"You're the Northern Wind
Sending shivers down my spine
You're like fallen leaves
In an autumn night

You're the lullaby
Singing me to sleep
You are the other half
You're like the missing piece

Oh my love
Oh my love
Oh my love
You don't know
What you do to me

You are all four seasons
Rolled into one
You're like the cold December snow
In the warm July sun

I'm the jet black sky
That's just before the rain
Like the mighty current
Pulling you under the waves

Oh my love
Oh my love
Oh my love
You don't know
What you do to me

I'm the darkest hour
Just before the dawn
I'm slowly sinking
Into the slough of despond

Like an old guitar
Worn out and left behind
I have stories still to tell
Of the healing kind

Oh my love
Oh my love
Oh my love
If I could just find you tonight
If I could just find you tonight
Oh my love

Do do do "

The last track I want to touch on is the song, "Weightless". For older City and Colour fans, you may remember so of the lyrics from the song, "The Urgency". "The Urgency" was an un-released early track that many City and Colour fans got a hold of. The reworking of this song is pure bliss. It has the same heart felt pain that made "The Urgency" but feels like a totally different song.

"Come close,
Lay next to me

Come close,
Lay next to me
I need to tell you something important

Stay close,
Lay next to me
I need to feel important

Because it's your eyes I don't believe
And my heart, I know, you will deceive
Do you know the consequence that comes with such confidence?

Holding all the weight in my life
Now you turn and walk away from me

So what is this now, you ask of me?
What's makes your pain such an urgency?
Now I want out, so plain to see
Once again my dear, a new tragedy

Holding all the weight in my life
Now you turn and walk away from me
Holding all the weight in my life
Now you turn and walk away from me

Needing all the strength in my life
Now you turn and run away from me
Needing all the strength in my life
Now you turn and run away from me"

Dallas Green has been my favorite artist since around 2003. As much as I like the screaming vocals from George Pettit in alexisonfire,  I always loved Dallas' clean vocals the best. I am always happy when I hear a new City and Colour song or an alexisonfire song, let alone a new album. With that said, Little Hell has now become one of my favorite City and Colour albums. The album has a different feel to the previous ones. It's a little less sad and the songs are a bit more catchy...but that's a good thing. Normally I dislike people liking bands that I feel like I discovered long ago and no one knew about. I can honestly say it is time for the World to know about City and Colour. No longer will I be selfish and keep them to myself. I expect them to blow up this year. This album makes me happy, this album makes me sad. It makes me feel things I haven't felt in a long time. I hope it makes you feel forgotten emotions as well.

Little Hell is set to release this Tuesday, June 7th. Do yourself a favor and pick it up.

-Cicatriz

Buy here: Little Hell + Limited Edition 7" (Amazon Exclusive Bundle)
buy here: Little Hell

www.cityandcolour.ca

Priory-S/T

Since becoming a part of the Ripple Clan I have been given twenty six (give or take one or two) artists to listen to and I have only reviewed eight (this is the ninth). No, it isn't slack of me, the others just didn't click. Priory didn't click with me either. It snapped. So loudly my hermit crab hid in its shell. So loudly that there was a noise complaint put in by the neighbours. So loudly the stray cat that insists on sleeping on my car and getting it's foot prints everywhere didn't show up for a week. So loudly... Well, you get the picture.

This is Priory's debut full length release and it is self titled earlier they released an EP titled Cold Hands. They describe themselves as indie-pop/electronic-folk and are based in Oregon. They consist of four members- Brandon Johnson (vocals, bass) Kyle Deiker (acoustic guitar, keys, bells, falsetto), Rich Preinesberger (drums) and Greg Harpel (lead guitae, bells, keys) Priory is released in June this year.

The songs on the album are catchy, electronic, acoustic, brilliantly written and sung perfectly. It is important to note that despite their catchy, pop appearance some of the songs tackle some quite dark subjects.

“Worthy Dreams” is the first song on the album and it is mirrored with the last song. “smearD yhtroW” is the reverse of the first and it is an interesting way to tie things off. It sounds quite electric and is a happy, cheery way to start us off.

It is then followed with the clean, acoustic “Kings of Troy” being about a man who's girlfriend is constantly sought after by other men.

“Lady of Late” goes back into the more electronic sounds. It has catchy lyrics that are quite heavy.
“I was born, with a heart of stone
Till you came along, and you broke my throne
Now, Here I stand with your hand in mine
Still a humble man till the end of time”


“Alone”
“Don't look in my face, said the girl with a scar”
However, it is paired with really, really good music.


Following the electronic “Coal Mine”, “Red Sun” and the acoustic “Searching” and “Devil vs Heater” is “Cold Hands.” A song about two lovers dying in a car accident together.
“I was by your side when your hands went cold
When your hands went cold
You were by my side when my eyes went closed”


“Wait” has lighter content compared to the other songs on the album and it is accompanied by a mixture of acoustic and electronic sounds.
“I think I'm falling in love again,
Wait.
I think I'm falling out of love again”


“White Coats” a predominately acoustic song follows, then the reverse song, “smaerD yhtroW”.

Priory is a pretty fun album music wise as it is varied, interesting and well composed. The lyrics add a darker meaning that you sometimes have to listen a few times to really get. Over all, very good.


-Koala

USX - The Valley Path

 

The Valley Path is your local bar's alt-country band, in the aftermath of some tragedy, jamming,  having just discovered both pot and Black Sabbath.

US Christmas (USX) are Allison Krause gone stoner/dark psychedelic rock. Discerning minds might have already postulated this, seeing their logo, aka the "deer ouroboros."

It's one song, 39 minutes long. Like Sleep's Dopesmoker. Or Roareth's Acts I-VI.

Not a true 39-minute epic, like Roareth, not a great 5-minute song the band was too stoned to stop playing, like Dopesmoker--  it's more of a 39-minute remix of a single.

There's surprisingly little hyperbole, though, to the above metaphors-- there's all sorts of "non-metal" instruments, which totally work, there's a violin/fiddle in there, a female singer who tends to just double/harmonize with lead singer/guitarist Nate's vocals... listening to it late at night in the dark is intensely soothing, as different instruments come and go, and it remains nearly silent for stretches of a minute or so at a time....

Sounds like it could've been improvised...? Are USX the laziest jam band in the world? I dig it.

The Valley Path transmits a feeling of isolation, of a dimly-hopeful solitude, like nothing's around you now but something good might be coming-- like looking out to see at night, with a CB radio you hope with come back with someone's voice on it....

Great? Definitely not. But definitely very good.

USX Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/USX.APPALACHIA

Ghost - Opus Eponymous

These days you gotta have a gimmick. And Ghost, a new band from Sweden, has a lot of them. They wear robes, pope hats and face paint (even the drummer when they play live). Their lyrics are Satanic but sound like they picked up most of their occult knowledge from King Diamond interviews. There are rumors that under the costumes there are well known musicians from other metal bands. They’ve also received negative attention because there’s already a long-running Japanese band with the same band name. All of this has resulted in strong opinions in the metal world about this band. Some say it’s all hype, others say Ghost are the best new band in years. Like most cases where opinions are so polarized there’s a bit of truth on both sides.

Whoever is in the band or not, Ghost’s debut album Opus Eponymous is a nice change of pace in the heavy music world. Most underground bands are either working the doom Black Sabbath angle or are part of the speed/thrash/grind brigade. Ghost’s sound is about 60% Blue Oyster Cult (especially Agents Of Fortune), 20% Mercyful Fate and 20% other ingredients (mainly 70’s Priest/Scorps/UFO and Angelwitch).

The funeral organ instrumental “Deus Culpa” starts the album off on a somber tone before being taken over by the fast “Con Clavi Con Dio.” The verses are fast and sinister but the chorus is very melodic and would probably get some commercial radio play if it wasn’t praising Lucifer. The single “Ritual” really sounds like if BOC time traveled from 1976 to 1984 to steal some riffs from Mercyful Fate’s “A Dangerous Meeting” to use in “Don’t Fear The Reaper.”

“Elizabeth” is full on Mercyful Fate “Melissa” worship, down to the Herman Rarebell/Les Binks metal oompah beat. The vocalist (no names credited in the liner notes) bears a resemblance to Buck Dharma and occasionally drifts into Queen Rhinestone territory but doesn’t resort to screeching for vengeance. The presence of keyboards add some nice texture and are rarely overbearing. The guitars sound like they might even be in standard tuning and have crunch but not full on metal distortion. “Stand By Him” is another strongly BOC influenced moody song with a Thin Lizzy-ish guitar solo (“Thunder and Lighning?”) in the middle.

“Prime Mover” has some nice bass fills and good Stained Class style chugga-chugga riffs. Album closing “Genesis” brings the keyboards to the front and sounds more like The Alan Parsons Project than Genesis and has an acoustic guitar interlude. Back in the 70’s rock radio stations used to love songs like these as background music while reading the local concert calendar. Get your local paper and try it out yourself.

Despite the hype I really like this album. The Satanic lyrics and costumes are a little corny but the music is solid.


--Woody


Buy here: Opus Eponymous



www.myspace.com/thebandghost

 

The Live Ones - Yer Quite Welcome

I unearthed my battered copy of Tapping The Source by the Lazy Cowgirls recently and then the very next day this new LP by Brooklyn’s Live Ones shows up. Before even hearing a note of the Live Ones, I knew the similarities were pretty obvious. Both albums have black and white no frills covers and contain high energy punk influenced rock & roll. Yer Quite Welcome’s album cover is an action shot of the band playing at NYC’s notorious dirtbag rock bar the Ding Dong Lounge. I can tell because the Ding Dong has an awesome Motorhead poster for a show they played at the Calderone Theater on Long Island in 1983. The Rods and Virgin Steele opened (legend has it V.Steele got booed off the stage). The poster’s covered up by their logo but is there for you to drool over on the back cover.

Yer Quite Welcome really reminds me of my old favorite Cowgirls album but also of Australian maniacs like Cosmic Psychos or even the Hard-Ons. Album opener “Disowned” gives you everything you need to know about this band - fast, pissed off punk (but not hardcore) played by 3 gruel dudes old enough to know better but too tired to care. Other side one highlights includes “Lifeline,” which starts off with an almost Blackfoot feel before veering into Rolling Stones territory and the Johnny Thunders “So Alone” influenced song “Haunted.” They even have a song called “We’ll Take You Higher” that sounds like something the Brought Low would write but, unfortunately, there’s no mention of weeed in the lyrics.

Side 2 has a great song called “Writing’s On The Wall” that is vintage 1974 Kiss. “We’re The Ones” jumps ahead a few years to 1977 and brings to mind the Dead Boys classic “Caught With The Meat In Your Mouth.” “Get Up & Move” is a nice autobiographical number that mentions that they got their start at the Charleston, one of Brooklyn’s dumpiest bars to play in, as well as getting shut down by the cops in Greenpoint. These are all topics near and dear to my heart.

You can’t go wrong with this one. It’s brought to you by Drug Front Records, a new label run New York’s #1 Joe Lynn Turner fan Dean Rispler. But don’t hold that against him. Dean’s worked with some fine bands like the Candy Snatchers and Bad Wizard and is foolish enough with his money to release this on LP and CD. If you like it raw, loud and snotty check out the Live Ones.


--Woody



Listen and Buy here: The Live Ones





Drug Front Records

Urizen - Universe: Red

Can you hear it?  The sounds of familiar 8-bit noises and metallic riffs ring through the air. “What is this sound.”, you ask yourself. This is the sound of Urizen. Born from a secret laboratory in Colorado and transported to Texas, Urizen are on the rise. There latest record, Universe:Red sets a new standard for progressive metal.

Universe:Red is the third installment from Texas Avant-Metalers Urizen. From the first track, “A Noiseless Flash” you can already tell this will be a special album. Reminiscent of your favorite 1980’s video game, the tack makes you wonder if you will be saving the Princess or shooting some Asteroids.

“A Noiseless Flash” seemingly integrates into the powerful blast beat laden, “A Budding Consciousness”. The vocal styling of Thomas add a much needed wittiness to an otherwise dull metal scene. Thomas has an almost Phil Collins flavor to him (please do not ask to taste him). His Collins-esque vocals can be heard predominately on the track, “Nothing Is Epic”. A groovy mix of metal and jazz. Also included on this album is the  highly catchy single called “Boxmen”. It makes you want to see the world through that of a box and scream BOXMEN!! BOXMEN!! over and over. By God, you will never get the beat out of your head, and that’s a good thing.

As great as the album is, their live show is something someone must truly witness. I have been fortunate enough to have been able to see them at least once every few months for the last 5 plus years. From their birth during the “Autocratopolis” era to the current “Universe” era, Urizen stage shows continue to progress.

Robots, blob monsters and Urimen. These are but a few things that are a Urizen show. They are something that must be witnessed live to truly get the whole feeling of how great this band is.
I mean there’s a giant f’n robot on stage through half their set. What more do you need?

Go to www.urizenonline.com and pick up your copy of Universe:Red. It's is the perfect gift for weddings, Bat Mitzvahs, shuttle launches, corporate retreats, or even just as an afternoon pick-me-up!


--Cicatriz

buy here: Universe Red
or from the band: www.urizenonline.com

The Good Kids - Odyssey 225

Recently I was nicknamed Steve Perry by one of my professors and I couldn’t understand why. I don’t have an awesome singing voice and bear no resemblance to the former Journey lead singer. Still I embraced the new moniker and figured it could have been worse. Two of my classmates in the same class are nicknamed Bono and Hillary Swank because one is a pretentious guy who wears weird sunglasses all the time and the other has a similar overbite to the Academy Award winning actress respectively.

Then it hit me- I have grown out my hair and have a classic Steve Perry-like natural hairstyle. I couldn’t stop laughing when I realized that and I decided to check out some classic arena rock bands. Immediately I went through my iTunes and starting playing bands like Journey, Bon Jovi, Queen, Blue Öyster Cult, etc. It was about that time I received a digital album of The Good Kids to review and it was perfect timing.

The Good Kids is comprised of Cortez Jordan (lead singer and rhythm guitar), Eric Zann (lead guitar), Christopher V Swanson (bass), and Jared Gray (drums). The Orange County arena-rock quartet was originally a trio that consisted of Jordan, Gray and Swanson. Their debut album, Closing Northwood, was released in January 2010 and their sophomore album, Odyssey 225, was released last fall.

A lot of buzz has been building up about this band. The Good Kids definitely has the potential to become a major player in the next couple of years and will easily be a major figure at the Orange County Music Awards. The Good Kids were recently invited and attended the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards Show on February 13th, 2011.

Considering The Good Kids released two albums last year, who are these guys? After listening to their latest album, Odyssey 225, all my questions went away except, why haven’t I already heard about this band? The moment you listen to the first track, “A Mean Walk,” you’re immediately engulfed in awesome arena rock music.

For a moment there I thought I was listening to the new Pearl Jam album. Cortez Jordan without a doubt sounds like Eddie Vedder and is that good. Jordan’s vocals are phenomenal and is a new undiscovered talent waiting to be discovered.

Sometimes you need heavy guitars and drums to make a good pop/rock song oh so much better. That’s the case with The Good Kids covering Coldplay’s “The Scientist.” This cover is reminiscent of what Alien Ant Farm did with Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal,” the cover sounds superior to the original with a faster and harder sound.

The wicked bass line on “Suckerpunch” knocks you out with a great song that is strikingly similar to classic Pearl Jam songs. It’s abundantly obvious the influence early 90s alternative and grunge music had on the band. Everything from Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains to current bands like the Foo Fighters and the Dave Matthews Band (DMB) have made an impact on this band.

There are two versions of “King of the Day,” including an acoustic version, and they  both feel like a kick ass DMB song. Two songs that really kick out the jams are “Karma’s Alive” and “Behind.” The latter perfectly captures their sound along with the first track, “A Mean Walk.” This band is essential modern hard rock that everyone should be listening to and this music should be played often on the radio.

What Eddie Vedder did for Pearl Jam, what Chris Cornell did for Soundgarden and what Kurt Cobain did for Nirvana, Cortez Jordan is going to do with The Good Kids and lead them to the promised land.

--Brownstone

Buy here mp3: Odyssey 225

The End of America – Steep Bay

“Today we ditched the city for a cabin in the woods.  Gonna write a record.”

With those words, the three friends of The End of America embarked on a journey of reflection, self-discovery, and finally redemption in a cabin in the Adirondacks.  And just as impressively, using nothing but acoustic guitars, a banjo, mandolin, and their voices, they managed to take me along with them.

Now, in truth, I’m probably going to over-analyze the heck out of this album, much the same way some bespectacled intellectual tries to find meaning in a drawing of a soup can hanging on a wall of a modern art museum.  I wasn’t in the head of Brendon, James or Trevor as they loaded up that threadbare canoe and paddled across Steep Bay to their cabin recluse.  I don’t know if they intentionally chose the order of the songs for the reasons that I hear.  I don’t know if they’ve ever felt a moment of existential angst in their lives.  But this is the way the album hit me, and that’s the most important phrase I can write in this whole review-- “Hit me.”  The album hit me.  And still does.

The End of America isn’t a political statement, it’s a literal one.  It’s what they did . . . journeyed to the end of America to find an answer.  With each song being written and recorded at that isolated cabin with the aide of a battery-powered recorder and two mics, the album has a loose, organic, incredibly warm feel to it.  Each song is a free-form meditative excursion into a moment of thought.  None of that takes away from the craft of songwriting and performing, in fact in only makes the beauty of the result that much more impressive. 

Starting with the mournful “Are You Lonely,” The End of America begins their quest with an existential question.  A deeper search for meaning amongst the chaos and impersonal nature of life.  I don’t know if the song is about a lost friend imagined in heaven, a disconnect with a lover, or a pleading to a higher power, but it starts the EP off with a meditative longing.  A search for something more meaningful than whatever they were finding in life.  Immediately, I’m hit by the lush gorgeousness of the harmony vocals.  The three cats blend their voices as effortlessly as Crosby, Stills and Nash, or Simon or Garfunkel.   Gentle acoustic guitar accompanies the thought as the voices linger and float off in search of an answer.  “Are you lonely up there?”

“Running” bursts out next.  Full of vitriol and sneer.  After the philosophical question posed in the opener, this is the theme statement for the EP.  Acoustic guitars strum with energy as the boys harmonize “I gotta get out/ Gotta find my way.  I’ve been running all my life.”  And later, “It’s freaking me out/ it’s a sideshow/ Ain’t no place that’s felt like home/ so I let it all go.”  I don't know about you, but I've sure felt that way before.  A longing to feel at home, a place where we belong.  But as is so often the case, the answer to that plea isn’t in a physical place so much as a mental/spiritual one.  And the rest of the EP explores their journey to find that place.

“These Things are Mine,” follows as the natural next step in that philosophical quest.  After running away and leaving it all behind, it’s time to take stock in what’s left.  What we really own.  What defines us.   Banjo jumps into the acoustic guitar fray adding a sense of lightness to the song that perfectly fits the frame of mind.  A sense of liberation comes from ditching it all.  Feeling no ties, nothing that binds.  Freedom.  Just the clothes on my back, my thoughts, my values.  I’ve been there, ditching it all to spend 6 months hitchhiking around the world.  In truth, there’s no better feeling.  But eventually, that euphoria wears off when we really begin to settle in with our thoughts and what we’re running away from.  That sense of melancholy rears it’s head near the end of “These Things are Mine,” when the joyful strumming evaporates, leaving behind the stark harmonies of the boys and a weighty guitar. "Home, lady, I’m leaving home.”  Both physically and metaphorically.  Now alone. 

“Oh Mousey,” is a brief meditative exploration of a mouse the guys encountered, which really serves as a space holder for their thoughts.  The liberation is gone, the weight is setting in.  Observing a mouse becomes a perfect way to reflect before the deeper meaning comes.  Which is what happens with “All, Nothing.”  Perhaps the most spiritually reflective song here, the boys have become to realize what’s important to them.  “I want to be the mountain freeze/ I want to breathe I want to teach/ I want to slip through life unseen/ I want to paint the scenes of dreams/ I want it all/I want nothing.”   The guitar picking is perfect here, somber, weighty, yet hopeful, hinting towards better days ahead. The baggage has been dumped, optimism remains. 

Normally, random sound effects thrust into the middle of an album annoy me, serving as nothing more than an ego statement by the artist rather actually fleshing out the songs, but the 32 seconds of “Diving Rock” seems perfect to me.  Following the liberating thoughts of “All, Nothing,” we hear the three friends leaping off the nearby rock into the Bay.  The splashing and cascading water sounds cathartic to me, like a spiritual cleansing.  A fresh baptism into the waters of healing.  The laughter that follows is a refreshing reaffirmation of the joys of life, the marvel of living, which leads perfectly into “Fiona Grace,” a song of wonder written about a precocious three-year old.   With gentle hand percussion and acoustic picking, they sing about the girl whose old soul somehow takes them back to a place deep inside themselves.  A place where they are capable of seeing and remembering deeper truths.

Which leads directly to “The Hardest Thing,” the heaviest song on the album and the moment of true philosophical discovery.  Just acoustic guitar and banjo, but heavy.  The moment when the real reason for the running away becomes painfully clear.   “Oh, how I wanted to keep this alive/ oh, how hard I tried/ Before it kills me first/ maybe it’s time to let it die.”  Is it a song about a toxic relationship?  A dying dream?  A shattered home?  It really doesn’t matter.  It’s a song about realization and release.  A glimpse into the blackened part of the soul that was driving the pain.  We’ve all been there, the midnight of our discontent.  We all know what it feels like to be driven to our knees by the pain of a situation and the terrible sadness that follows the sudden recognition . . . and the knowing you need to let go.

And with that, the album ends with another soundbite.  Banjo plucking languidly as rain falls.  And falls.  And somehow it all seems fitting.  No more false euphoria.  No more illusions.  Reality, stark and true.  Painful at times, but ultimately cleansing and life-affirming.  Thunder roars in the background as we all know it’s time for the boys to go back home.  They’ve discovered what they came there for.  Part of them has been lost, and they still have need to mourn that, but in the end, more has been gained.  Or rather, reclaimed.

A deeply organic, beautiful album.  And this whole thing was written and recorded in 7 days. 

Over-analyzing?  Again, probably.

But that’s the way the album hit me.  And really, how often does an album hit you?

--Racer

www.facebook.com/theendofamericamusic