Too Much Good Music
Okay, now that I’ve finally got around to taking some time off from work, I can sit down and write up some music reviews.
Velvet Revolver, Contraband
This is a surprisingly solid effort from what seemed like a just another Hollywood pick-up supergroup. Given that 3 of the band member are from Guns ‘N Roses (Slash, Duff McKagen, and Matt Sorum), and one outcast from Stone Temple Pilots (guess who? Scott Weiland of course), what’s really surprising is that this is one of best STP albums ever. I would have thought this album would sound more like GNR with Scott Weiland singing, but turns out it sound a lot more like early STP, which is a good thing (okay I got in my Martha quote). What’s even weirder is hearing these guys play old STP and GNR songs, these songs aren’t on the album, but they are around on the internet.
Beastie Boys, To The 5 Boroughs
This is the Beastie Boys doing straight up Hip Hop without any of the punky type stuff that they’ve been throwing into the last few albums. The beats and production are minimal which pushes the Beasties rap talent right up front. Dare I say that this is also the most mature Beastie Boys album to date, but don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty of humor to be found here. As you might have guessed, this album is dedicated to post 911 NYC.
PJ Harvey, Uh Huh Her
PJ Harvey returns to raw style that she was known for early on. As with her other albums the production is fairly lo-hi here, but thankfully the songwriting is strong as usual and the performances rise to the occasion. PJ writes and plays all the instruments with the exception of the drums. Should she decide to use more bass guitar in future recordings, I’ve got just the guy in mind ; ), in case you don’t get this, that guy would be me!
Alanis Morissette, So-Called Chaos
Compared to the last couple of albums, this is a really relaxed version of Alanis, which works really well in her favor. The songs sound less contrived and flow so much better, it doesn’t sound so forced. Its safe to listen to Alanis Morissette again.
Slipknot, Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses) This is a head-banger, really loud and twisted music. In case you don’t who these guys are, they are the ones that wear all the crazy, scary masks and customs on stage, sorta like GWAR from back in the day. There is so much chaos and noise going on here, that it becomes a thing of beauty. Like a train wreck you have to watch or a slow motion action sequence from John Woo, these guys prove that brutal force can be poetic and artful.