Aerosmith - Music From Another Dimension! Review

Being A fan of Aerosmith for a few years now, I was extremely enthusiastic when it was announced that after all the debating as to whether or not they would record together again that they were indeed entering the studio to record their first album of original material in 11 years.

I for one am possibly one of the few who thoroughly enjoyed “Just Push Play” as an album. All this excitement however soon began to diminish when I began listening to “Music From Another Dimension!”

The album opens with “Luv XXX” and whilst some of Aerosmith’s trademark sound is there, it’s lacking soul and that raw blues emotion that makes Aerosmith sound so great is missing, as if the album is being recorded simply for the sake of it rather than to serve a purpose. 

I can only hope that given the albums 15 tracks it has to get better, but it doesn’t, its 15 tracks of what I can only describe as a band without new inspiration going through the motions and constructing an album of half-baked ideas (a lot of which sound awfully close to previous Aerosmith songs).

The Album’s first single “Legendary Child” is the first track on the album that is actually not as poorly thought out as the albums preceding tracks. It does however have a feel of it being an older track, it seems to remind me of previous singles and doesn’t give me that sense of excitement that Aerosmith once did, but it is considerably better than anything on the album thus far.

“What Could Have Been Love” is the next track on the album, and this thus far is the albums exceptional track, its true to Aerosmith’s style, the emotion and blues feel is there, and my hope for the album is somewhat rekindled by these 3 minutes and 44 seconds, and these are kept burning with “Street Jesus”, a fast paced track that’s reminiscent of the bands early days.

“Can’t Stop Lovin’ You” soon dashes my re-ignited belief in this album in an instant, there’s an almost country feel to the track, and it throws the already disjointed album into more disarray. This should have been left off and used as a track for a solo venture or should have been a solo track for Carrie Underwood with Steven as a guest rather than the arrangement it is in.

“Lover Alot” is written for radio play and may well be a radio hit due to the catchy style in which the lyrics are written and the bounce of the song itself and in this song we find another good track on the album.

The next few songs on the album become lost within each other and it’s hard to notice anything that makes any of the tracks stand alone, apart from Joe Perry handling lead vocals on “Freedom Fighter” (which features Johnny Depp on backing vocals, with which he doesn’t do too bad a job) and “Something”, Joe Perry it would seem could stand to learn a thing or two from Depp’s backing vocals, as it just becomes a monotonous drone without any sort of degree of musical inclination.

“Another Last Goodbye” closes the album, and an album that has been such a let-down as this can only end like this, with a poorly written ballad. If Aerosmith are going to continue writing music after this I hope they do it with conviction rather than for the sake of it.

As an Aerosmith fan I hope they work on what made this album poor, as a critic, I can only hope they step back and think about what they are doing before they do it.

Luminova - Luminova EP Review

Not many new bands really grab my attention, Most seem to be an unimaginative rehash of something that's come before, Luminova's Debut release however, is not unimaginative and is not a rehash as such, but more of a sum of influences that create an EP that could go toe to toe with the best of the best.

Consisting of only three tracks, the EP packs more punches than most full length albums that have come from more established bands in recent times.

"M.I.B." is a track filled with that spirit that gives you the sense of greater things are about to come, great vocal melodies, phenomenal fretwork, and thunderous drums drive this track on a road of relentlessness.

"The New" kicks off with a rolling drums and outstanding vocals before going into a very maidenesque harmonized guitar part, but the grit and attitude of this band soon shines through again and the track is a great follow up to "M.I.B." as it is indeed one of the great things that it foretold.

"Pain For Pleasure" closes the EP in the only way possible, with a bang. Its fast paced hard rock with a level of integrity that's hard to find in the music scene today, all too often have I seen bands that will release an EP or perform a gig and its all to obvious that the band lacks soul, and this single track is a testament to how much spirit this band has, and if its any indication of what this band is capable of, they are destined for great things

This is hard rock/ metal at its finest, the hunger and raw energy of a band determined to go against the grain.

Shinedown - Amaryllis Review

There’s no two ways about it, Shinedown have been one of the most consistent bands of the last decade, with three studio albums and a double live album under their belts, the band has maintained a steady stream of radio hits, one of the most successful of which is “Bully” the debut single from their fourth studio album “Amaryllis.”

“Bully”, the second track of the album, is confrontational and defiant and full to the brim with energy, emotion and spirit and this sets the tone for the entire album. The album itself opens with “Adrenaline” which exactly what it says on the tin, shot straight into the ear canal to give the most effect and instantly grab your attention without giving in.

The album itself shows a clear progression in the bands emotional growth, in spite of the band no longer consisting of all its original members it is clear that this is a band that is part of that rare few that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Brent Smiths vocal delivery has never sounded greater, and it seems that he wears his heart more in his voice than on his sleeve as his emotions shine through in every word he sings. Eric Bass, Zach Myers and Barry Kerch create a relentless wall of perfectly constructed music, this is their craft and they are all too eager to prove their worth, each member knows their place and it is obvious that this band doesn't value ego.

This album highlights everything that has made this band relevant and consistent. Songs like “Enemies”, “Nowhere Kids” and “Miracle” showcase Shinedown’s unique writing style, sound and musicianship.

The penultimate track on the album “My Name (Wearing Me Out)” is the albums high-point, it embodies everything the band is about and stands for. In this single track the band delivers punch after punch in perfect and elaborate lyrics and hard hitting music.

The Closing track on the album “Through the Ghost” is an echo of “Call me” (From the bands previous album “The Sound of Madness”.) It’s a song like this that ends wars instead of starting or fueling them.

This album has more than cemented Shinedown in the world of music and I imagine that given the emotion this band pours out to their fans they are nothing short of grateful for the gift they have been given of being able to write and perform the music that they love so much to the fans they hold in such high regard. This band may be the first in line to thank their fans for helping them achieve the record and ticket sales that they have, but it is us, the fans who are thankful for a band with such emotion to make music that we can all identify with as deeply as this and not some bog standard pop song off the radio.

Halestorm - The Strange Case Of... Review

The follow up to 2009’s Self-titled debut, “The Strange Case Of…” is somewhat peculiar as a full album, it has a feeling of being two albums joined into one, one album consisting of entirely hard rock songs and heavy hitters, the second of soft ballad type songs.

The album kicks off in high spirits with “Love Bites (So Do I)”, this hard hitter is unrelenting, the band show their influences in classic rock instantaneously, it’s obvious to see that this is one band that are determined to be merited for their music and not their looks, and it could be argued that whilst sex sells, fantastic songs sell better.

“Mz. Hyde” and “Miss The Misery” maintain the high octane, powerhouse style of rock that kicked the album off before we are presented with “Freak Like Me” which acts as a call to arms to any rock fan who has ever felt like the outsider, and in the music we love we are unified by this feeling and I for one have no issue in raising my fist and roaring “I’m a freak!” if only for that sense of unity through individuality.

However it’s at this point the album takes a turn, not for the worst but to a much softer style that is maintained few the next few songs. The softer tone starts with “Beautiful with you” the albums initial dark and gritty tone is lost in this poppy upbeat track. “In Your Room” and “Break In” uphold this softer side of the band and it’s hard to believe the same band is performing these tracks.

“Rock Show is a mild return to form, as though the band want to ease the listener back into the darkness, the epic feel and energy of the track is more than perfect to guide us into “Daughters Of Darkness” possibly the grittiest track on the record which is written for the live environment not just the studio.

The remaining 3 tracks of the album are each very different, “You Call Me A Bitch (Like It’s a Bad Thing)” is a straight up hard rock song with attitude that may as well smash you in the face with a sledgehammer whilst “American Boys” has that Rock feel, but the lyrical content is questionable, the album ends with a fitting ballad that draws the album to a close in the most appropriate way possible.

In Short, this is one hell of a hard rock album, even with its softer points, but this only shows the diversity of the band in question and I hope Halestorm go on to greater things and continue making great records.

Demon – Unbroken Review

Stoke based Rock legends return with their first album since 2005’s “Better the Devil You Know”, and it shows that in the 7 years we have waited for “Unbroken” that a band of Demon’s stature can only get better and “Unbroken” is a statement to this.

“Unbroken” opens in true Demon style, going for the throat with the opening track “Prey”, a track that would fit easily on “Night of the Demon” (Demon’s Debut Album.) Songs like “Shine a Light”, “Fill Your Head with Rock” and “Private Lives” are straight up, balls to the wall hard rock songs that portray Demon’s style as a NWOBHM band perfectly, a showcase of skill, phenomenal vocals and well written and structured material.

The Title track is a testament not only to the band themselves but also their song writing skills. It highlights why this band is still around and still very much relevant in this day and age.

“Take Me to Your Leader” vividly paints a story of the future, that whilst being rooted deeply in science fiction it instils hope in the listener and gives a sense of comfort that the future is going to be “alright”.

The Album ends on a high and hopeful note, every fan of rock music dreams of a day when rock rules the world. No one believes this more than Dave Hill and Co. with “I Still Believe” and with an album like “Unbroken” it’s easy to see such a future and I for one hope Demon are still around to see it.

The Devin Townsend Project – Epicloud Review

Having only heard snippets of Strapping Young Lad, I had an idea in my head that “Epicloud” by the Devin Townsend Project was going to be a very different beast to what it actually is, my expectations were that of a heavy, dark and vicious album filled with fury and loathing at the world around us and the society we live in, but within the opening seconds of “Effervescent”, all my preconceptions are shattered and instead I find myself amazed and somewhat confused as to what it is exactly this album has in store for me as a critic and as a first time listener of Devin’s work.

The choir sings a soulful acapella that builds up slowly and acts as a perfect yet subtle introduction to an album that I can only expect to contain more surprises, instantly I am soothed slowly into the soft intro and almost angelic voice of Anneke Van Giersbergen in “True North”, the soft underlying musical melody soon builds and soon Devin himself is singing in response to Anneke, with a full band performing such a well-constructed basis for the vocals it’s not long before we find Devin asking “Where Do We Go From Here?” (it is here I must add that I had to research “The Devin Townsend Project” and discovered that the 4 albums he planned under this name had now become 5 with “Epicloud” so I can only assume that he is questioning where will he go from this album, what will the future hold for this project and what possible path can his music take next?.)  The track itself has an almost anthemic  feel to it, and it’s hard to take everything in upon first listen as there is so much hidden within it, the track ends with “Effervescent” making a return slightly so it ends as it begins, however the album is far from over.

 “Lucky Animals” is instantly memorable and is carried by a tribal drum beat and a simplistic riff that simply makes the track bounce and is an obvious choice for a single as it screams radio friendly. “Liberation” is very much a song that insists you let your troubles melt away, if only for 3 minutes or so and “rock”. The last minute or so is made for the live environment, developed solely for the purpose of throwing your fist in the air and enjoying the tribal therapy of it all.

“Where We Belong?” is almost ballad like for the most part, a strong chorus and soft verses but gets an intense build up towards the end and leads straight into “Save our Now” showing that this is no ordinary album, but instead a musical journey, not meant to be listened to in parts but as a whole, “Save Our Now” remains somewhat soft with a somewhat dance music style to it, the soft side of things however soon cease (at least for the time being) as we dive head first into “Kingdom” (a re-recorded track from a previous Devin Townsend Album, “Physicist”). It becomes clear why the album is called “Epicloud”, this track has become the embodiment of such a title, epic and loud and it too could very well be a single aimed at listeners who like Devin’s heavier material.

 “Divine” is the albums U-turn as I find myself listening to Devin sing a soft melody over a soft guitar chord progression, a love song in every sense of the word but by no means clichéd, the track fades and I am now being re-introduced to Anneke in the track “Grace” and it retains the soft and gentle feel of its predecessor, this however only lasts for 1 minute or so before we are introduced a thunderous double kick drum beat that shows off the skills of Ryan Van Poederooyen, Devin adds his 2 cents by offsetting Anneke’s vocals incredibly. The question that Devin poised in “True North” of “Where Do We Go from Here?” is answered almost in his vocalization of “I know the way”.

“More!” is for all names sake “Epic”, a rocky, fast paced track with more well written vocal lines and even distribution between both Devin and Anneke. A track that is about as heavy as the album gets, and within reason of the rest of the track listing, “Lessons” is somewhat of a link between songs and bridges the gap beautiful between “More!” and “Hold On” as this track itself is another anthemic soul mover.

“Angel” is where I find myself saddened at the fact that the album is coming to an end, and it embodies everything the album set out to be, Different, different from anything that Devin has done before, and I imagine will do again, the album is a prime example of how going outside of your comfort zone can result in something truly awe inspiring. It stands as a testament to the greatness of Devin Townsend and the musicians he has drafted in as part of this project. For those of you however who enjoy just single tracks, this album is best understood and listened to in its entirety, exactly how Devin has envisioned it. “Angel” ends with the “Effervescent” chorus sung by the Choir that introduced us to the journey and is the only possible way to end an album as well written as this, ending it as it began.