- Listener
RAMENOV
darkenthestars
Ottawa, ON
musikchic
United States
omgdorkrules
United States
identityxcrysis
Parlin, NJ
I listen to music and that's why I'm here. I'm a nerd.
My "Best Music Of the First Half of 2006" super fantastic blog entry
Best Debut Albums(EPs don't count as debut albums, fool)
Every year hundreds of bands release a debut album. They usually suck out loud because kids today like fashion before function. But not all of them. These are the best exceptions:
3. Flee The Seen - "Doubt Becomes The New Addiction"
-So someone I barely knew recommended this band to me and told me I could buy the album without even listening to any songs first. So I did. A female-fronted post-hardcore band isn't exactly the most common thing to see. When I first popped this album into my car's CD player, I listened to the entire thing without wanting to skip a song, all the while stunned at how good it actually was. If I thought Post-Hardcore was a deity, I would consider this album it's gift to mankind.
2. No Trigger - "Canyoneer"
-Making an impressive melodic hardcore album is no easy task to accomplish. And yet, these guys seem to know exactly what they're doing. This is pretty definitive punk rock music, driven by emphatic bass lines and ecstatic guitars with a constant stream of urgent vocals. It has more hooks than a tackle box. This album is so good, that my mind would implode if I even began to comprehend how wonderful their next album will be. I'll be keeping this one handy for a long, long time.
1. The Loved Ones - "Keep Your Heart"
-Remember that band that released that critically acclaimed EP on Jade Tree last year? Neither did I, until Fat Wreck signed them up to release their debut full-length. The band sports ex-members of Paint It Back, Kid Dynamite, and Trial By Fire. With a line-up like that, you might expect something completely different whn you listen to the album. What you get is one of the most pain-stakingly honest and sincere punk rock n' roll masterpieces in existence. From the outbursting opening of "Suture Self" to the ballad-esque closing in "Player Hater Anthem", you'll find your mood lifted several levels higher and your feet in pain from restraining the urge to bust a move. This album completely knocked me on my back with surprise, and that easily wins it the #1 debut album of the first half of 2006.
Best Releases From Bands You Already Know About(and maybe some you don't know about)
3. The Cardinal Sin - "Hurry Up And Wait"
-Yea I know, this is their first full-length album, but they've already released like two split albums or something over quite a long time. Anyway. This album doesn't have that deliciously dark tone that last year's "Oil and Water EP" portrayed, but while it still has the same manner of lyrics, the music is peculiarly more upbeat. It sounds like Cadillac Blindside's "Allegory of Death and Fame" having a car crash with that first Alkaline Trio album while Neil Henessey throws snowballs at the ensuing chaos. The unrestrained post-punk energy is really quite beautiful when it's mixed with the mid-90's-Minneanapolis-area punk rock sound. Guitar hooks adorn every track with lovable modesty. The drums are some of the best you will ever hear (thanks to ex-Cadillac Blindside drummer Becky Hanten). The deeply personal feel of the album is what landed this album in my #3 slot. And who wants to miss a brief Brendan Kelly vocal cameo towards the end of "Keep You Guessing"? Not I.
2. Motion City Soundtrack - "Commit This To Memory"
-With their second full-length album, Motion City brings a more energetic sound to the table. It's more instantly enjoyable than the first album and has a slightly faster tempo. Although their keyboard player seems to be comparitively less present, I don't mind because too much keyboard is like too much Red Bull: it's just not a smart thing to do. And when MCS decides to slow things down a bit, you won't be complaining, especially on the song "Hold Me Down" which has excellent rolling drums with a complimentary piano. Motion City seems to be grasping their own unique sound and are intent on developing it, and that's something I highly appreciate. Justin Pierre's smart lyrics, big vocabulary, and crazy hairdo land this at my #2 spot.
1. The Lawrence Arms - "Oh! Calcutta!"
-If you know me (and nobody really does), you'd know that a Larry Arms album is going to be #1 no matter how good or bad it is. Luckily for you, this one is fantastic. I don't care if "The Greatest Story" was better, it wasn't released in the first half of 2006, and therefore is irrelevant. With "Calcutta", this trio gives us a more raw, yet no less intellectually stimulating, interpretation of their unique brand of punk rock. The best part of this album is Chris and Brendan singing in unison, whereas on previous endeavors it would be either one or the other singing a song. Also, I don't think Neil's drumming has ever been better. I really like how Brendan's singing sounds somewhat hostile and agitated while Chris's vocals are newly raspy and off-key. I've had this album since it was released, and I'm still listening to it more often than I sleep at night. If you're a fan of their past work, then you probably already have this album and are too busy listening to it to read my review. If you've never heard The Lawrence Arms, then you either need to go listen to them right now or kill yourself because you are missing out on one of the better parts of living.
I'll be back with another of these blogs at the end of the year. Stay tuned.
<3 Jesse
Back In The USSA tour: not coming to Louisiana
Lagwagon. The Lawrence Arms. A Wilhelm Scream. That combination is something I'd kill a dead guy to see.
And yet, this tour is not coming to this acrid state. Going through Florida then straight to Texas. Louisana, Alabama, and Mississippi are like the no-zone for punk rock tours. That sucks hardcore.
Curse you, Fat Wreck Chords. Curse you.
On the bright side, the new Dead To Me album is sounding fantastic.
<3 Jesse
blog entry #38745
So I just signed up here and this site is pretty awesome. Only downside is that I can't find some bands that aren't together anymore. Oh well.
<3 Jesse
x3mogrlx
but you\'re a cute nerd so it\'s okay
posted Jan 31
xXliaRseniC452Xx
h hello to you as well =P
posted Sep 19
musikchic
mhm pretty much the same, boreeed u got good taste in
music btw^_^
posted Jul 18
musikchic
hey ther new buddy! wats up?
posted Jul 17
jessss
i\'m pretty sure thats correct haha. i have profiles
everywhere. its rediculous.
posted Jul 17
identityxcrysis
Haha, yea. i messed up my sleep schedule, so now I
sleep from liek 6-3, it sucks, haha.
posted Jul 15