All reviews - Movies (3) - TV Shows (6) - DVDs (6) - Books (5) - Music (25)

A Step in the Wrong Direction.

Posted : 9 months ago on 19 February 2009 04:57 (A review of The Fray)

If I hadn't already known what The Fray were capable of I would have been happy enough with this cd. But this feels like a step back instead of a step forward in The Fray's musical growth. That's not to say there aren't any good songs on this eponymous sophomore release. But in my mind it doesn't measure up to the brilliance of How to Save a Life. This album starts strong but falls apart in the second half with only a few high points to speak of there.

I was completely bored with 'Ungodly Hour' after just the first listen. In my mind it's the weakest of the songs on this self-titled album. But while there were very few risks taken through the course of this album at least one of them stands out as a winner. 'We Build Then We Break' is like nothing I've heard from The Fray before and I love it. Definitely my favourite song on the album. Some other solid songs: 'Syndicate', 'Say When' and the lead single 'You Found Me'.

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The Good Outweighs the Bad.

Posted : 10 months, 1 week ago on 11 January 2009 04:40 (A review of Read Between the Lines)

I have mixed feelings about Read Between the Lines.

The behind the scenes documentary was well shot and a great way to learn about the band. The footage was at various times silly, amazing, moving, hilarious and full of stupid boy moments. Definitely my favorite part of this dvd.

The concert footage I'm less impressed with. The Dvd is misleading when it says the concert section was all shot at one show. I hope they don't think their viewers are too stupid to notice that the concert is two entirely different shows in two different venues. The show itself was pretty good though the cinematography could have been better.

Overall though, I'd say the good outweighs the bad on Read Between the Lines.

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Excellent Live Performance.

Posted : 10 months, 1 week ago on 11 January 2009 04:20 (A review of The Final Riot!)

The Final Riot is, in my opinion, one of the top quality music dvds of '08. The behind the scenes documentary was well shot and gives interesting insight into the inner workings of the band and what life is like for a band on tour. While I have a few quibbles about how the concert was filmed they were never enough to take me out of the moment while watching the show.

Haley Williams has a commanding stage presence as the band's frontwoman, charming both the viewer and the audience she is interacting with. The actual performance itself was one of the best I've seen captured on film, high energy and you could nearly see the joy the band and the audience felt in that moment.

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Rockin' Pop Rock.

Posted : 10 months, 1 week ago on 11 January 2009 03:08 (A review of When The World Comes Down)

When The World Comes Down is possibly the most pop rock album I've heard all year. But that doesn't mean it isn't good music. The Rejects have put together a solid album, there isn't a song on it that I don't like - even after weeks of listening to it.

They've expanded and refined their sound some on When The World Comes Down, bringing in a little country on the duet 'Another Heart Calls' (they are after all Oklahoma boys). While on other songs their love of '80's rock shines through, most especially on the song 'The Wind Blows' a ballad like song that seems to seep '80's rock from it's pores. And yet I love it in-spite of it's ballady-ness. My favorite song by far is 'Breakin' closely followed by 'The Real World' and the lead single 'Gives You Hell'.

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Favourite of '08.

Posted : 10 months, 3 weeks ago on 2 January 2009 05:21 (A review of Folie A Deux)

Once again Fall Out Boy has managed to produce my favourite album of the year. I bought Folie a Deux the day it was released and haven't stopped listening to it yet. There's not a song on this album that I don't like and I have yet to find only one absolute favourite.

Fall Out Boy have done some truly interesting things with their sound this go around. They've really come together as a band on Folie a Deux and instead of just one truly great part there are four. Of the 14 songs on this album (13 songs and a hidden track) there's a few songs that I'm drawn to, that I listen to over and over again.

It's so hard to narrow down though there's so many awesome things about all of the songs. I can't help listening to 'She's My Winona' and 'West Coast Smoker' (oh hell yes!) but '(Coffee's for Closers)' and '20 Dollar Nose Bleed' make me happy in my soul. and and and... I could go on. In my mind there is nothing on Folie a Deux that is not to love.

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Much More than Expected.

Posted : 1 year, 2 months ago on 14 September 2008 10:52 (A review of Raise The Dead)

I never expected to like Phantom Planet as much as I've grown to. When I first heard about them they'd been label a 'Garage Band', one of the few labels in rock that'll turn me off a band. But Raise The Dead is a well crafted album that truly displays their talent. I can't stop listening to it. I was taken in by Alex Greenwald's voice (that man can wail no doubt about it.) and Sam Farrar's deft bass lines. If Raise The Dead is the embodiment of the garage band sound then all the other garage band acts need to step up their game.

My favourites are hard to narrow done with this album. I think the top three would be 'Demon Daughters', 'Dropped' and 'Confess'. But there's truly no song on Raise The Dead that I don't enjoy.

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Patchwork Brillance.

Posted : 1 year, 2 months ago on 14 September 2008 01:50 (A review of The Quilt)

Gym Class Heroes have really showcased their musicianship on The Quilt. Not only have the beats and melodies grown stronger but Travis's rhymes have as well. Gym Class Heroes seem to have set out to explore their sound and play with styles on this album. They experiment with not only the different sounds in hip-hop today but things like reggae and jazz. The songs on The Quilt remind me of everything from Eminem to The Hush Sound yet still sound uniquely Gym Class Heroes, there are even two songs on the album that are sung instead of rapped.

My favourite songs are 'Live a Little', 'Blinded by the Sun', 'Guilty as Charged' and 'Catch Me if You Can'.

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Debut Done Good

Posted : 1 year, 2 months ago on 3 September 2008 01:08 (A review of Madeline)

I was somewhat hesitant about buying Madeline because the feminist in me has issues with 'Typical' but I shouldn't have been. Other than that issue I've really been enjoying this album. It's a solid rock record with a lot of interesting variations. I don't feel they fell flat with any of the sounds they tried out on Madeline. I'm impressed that I liked even their try at screamo in 'I Can't Breathe' which I typically can't stand. So of my other favourite are 'We Still Dance', 'The Lush Life' and 'The Time is Wrong'. This cd also includes a great live dvd that showcases a majority of the record as well one or two songs not on Madeline.

Tickle Me Pink are one of a handful of bands local to my area that have made it big in the past two years. I've been casually following them since they hit the airwaves of my favourite local station. On the day Madeline was released, I along with the local music scene, was shocked to hear that the bassist (Johnny Schou) had died. It was so very tragic but Tickle Me Pink are carrying on and I'm so very proud of them.

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Catchy Times from The Academy Is...

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 20 August 2008 10:18 (A review of Fast Times at Barrington High)

After giving it much consideration I've come to the conclusion that The Academy Is...'s new album Fast Times at Barringtion High is really damn catchy. After listening to this album for only five days I already feel like I could sing along with the whole thing without much trouble. Fast Times seems like it could be the album that gets them the mainstream recognition they've been hoping for. The Academy Is... has grown a lot musically in just the year since their previous album, Santi, was released. They sound much more cohesive than before and I think that's made the songs more memorable. William's voice has gotten stronger and he seems to be expanding his lower range as well which I think works wonderfully for him. I'm also really impressed with Butcher's drumming on this album particularly 'Beware! Cougar!'. I was surprised by 'After the Last Midtown Show', which sounded like a ballad to me but after repeated listens I realized that was only superficially, it's actually got a very intense build to it and is not a typical ballad at all. Some of my other favourite songs are 'The Test', 'Crowded Room' and 'Paper Chase'.

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More Sweet than Bitter.

Posted : 1 year, 3 months ago on 8 August 2008 12:13 (A review of Bittersweet World)

I'm surprised by how much I enjoy Ashlee Simpson's Bittersweet World. The songs are hooky and catchy without becoming overly repetitive and/or extremely annoying. I've liked nearly every song but one on this album when I was expecting to only like half of the songs. Ashlee's a pretty good singer and she's got an interesting voice. I can see how she did well on Broadway. I was also very pleased to find out that she co-wrote all the songs on Bittersweet World. That's not something that's common in the pop music industry. My absolute favourite song on the album is the title track 'Bittersweet World' with 'Murder' and 'What I've Become' being close seconds. I'm not much of a fan of slow songs so the one song I didn't like was 'Never Dream Alone'.

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Fall Out Boy, Cobra Starship, The Cab, 30 Seconds To Mars, The Academy Is..., Empires, Single File, The All-American Rejects, Paramore, Panic At The Disco, My Chemical Romance, Phantom Planet, Hanson, Hey Monday, I Hate Kate, Tickle Me Pink, Flobots, Gym Class Heroes, Oh Hush!, The Hush Sound, Ozomatli, Backstreet Boys, The Vincent Black Shadow, Ludo, Green Day, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Ashlee Simpson, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Matt Morris, Portugal. The Man

Terry Pratchett, Tamora Pierce, Christopher Stasheff, Madeleine L'Engle, Guy Gavriel Kay, Shel Silverstein, Eric Flint, Michael A. Stackpole, Robin McKinley, David Weber, Roger Zelazny, Patricia C. Wrede, Douglas Adams, Sharon Shinn, Diane Duane, T. A. Barron, Isobel Bird, Aaron Allston, Margaret Ball, Ann M Martin

Matt Damon, George Clooney, Julia Stiles, Carmine Giovinazzo, Minnie Driver, John Cusack, Michael Weatherly, Jonathan Brandis, Robin Williams, Tim Curry, Salma Hayek, Kevin Kline, Matthew Perry, Jeff Goldblum, Val Kilmer, Ben Browder, Harrison Ford, Sean Connery