500 Word Review: 21 Savage “Issa Album”

“Issa Album” sounds too familiar. It’s disappointing to listen to a record that can’t separate itself from the herds of new rappers. Then again, who knows. The volume of trap artists could potentially be important in helping rap evolve its sound.

Perhaps it would be too harsh to say that this album is a waste of time, but I cannot say that it was time well spent in good faith. “Issa Album” is something of a Future knock off. To be just another mumble rapper riding off Future’s coattail’s is inconsequential, but to borrow his signature auto-tune effect and to hold some of the same producers in common (Metro Boomin) makes this album a Future clone. Based off his own heated reaction to other rappers using stage names like his own, one would think 21 Savage has a commitment to originality, unfortunately he seems to be a relentless hypocrite.

This album lacks any truly interesting qualities. Neither the lyrics nor the production are anything to fuss about. Sure, there are several cool beats, such as “7 Minute Freestyle”, but they lack dynamics. In other words, you won’t find any slick beat changes like the ones Kendrick Lamar often pulls off. The lyrics scarcely leave the subjects of wealth, fame, cars, and trapping. They’re boring. When 21 Savage does switch things up just a bit on tracks like “Face Time” and “Special”, he goes uncharacteristically soft and talks about feelings and girl problems the way a bad Drake song might. In fact, his vocal style intentionally emulates that of Drake on those two tracks. Not for a single moment does this feel like an intelligent album, and this is largely the fault of the ceaseless hype track. The “skrrt”’s and the “21 21 21 21”’s get annoying very quickly, although I’m hesitant to say that they take away from the album. Without the excessive hype, 21’s rapping would be as awkward as a sit-com without a laugh track.

A track by track analysis of this album would not be useful to anyone. “Issa Album” is too consistent all the way through for such, and that trait is certainly a liability given its length. Had 21 Savage kept it a track or two shorter it would have felt less of a chore to listen through. The time could have been cut down by trimming the repetitive hooks in songs like “Bank Account” and limiting Metro’s unnecessary watermarks. Frankly, there are too many skilled hip-hop artists to listen to unexceptional stuff like this.

 

Score: 6.9/10

 

Album Review by Zach Norton, July 2017

“Issa Album”:

Breaking News: Thy Art Is Murder Announce New Album and Release New Single

Late last week, deathcore titans, Thy Art Is Murder, released a brand new single to accompany their upcoming fourth studio album, “Dear Desolation”, which will be released on all platforms August 18th.  The new album, whose sinister artwork can be seen above, is the first album by the group since vocalist CJ McMahon’s brief exit/re-entry with the band.  Despite the internal struggles the band has gone through recently, the sound of the band has been unwavering, and is debatably better than ever.

“Slaves Beyond Death” is the first track released from the upcoming album and it is a great first impression. A fast tempo, chug heavy track filled with a plethora of death growls pretty much sums up the near 4 minute long TAIM track.  Besides being a little too repetitive, I believe “Dear Desolation”, based off what has been heard on “Slaves Beyond Death” alone, has the potential to be the greatest, or at least the second greatest, Thy Art Is Murder album in their discography.  What truly is the most significant aspect of track, that might also reflect on the entire album, is that it seems to be a “transition” track that could showcase Thy Art Is Murder moving from a deathcore genre to a straight up death metal genre.  This genre bridge by an album, which Job For A Cowboy exemplified early on in their career, could be what “Dear Desolation” is remembered for, and if so, the anticipation for the fourth studio album by the Australian metal act would be through the roof.  Personally, I would love to see TAIM eventually become a death metal band, but until more sure to be fantastic singles are released, the speculation of how the band’s sound will evolve will have to be based off just one superb first impression.

The first single, “Slaves Beyond Death”, is attached below!  Of course, as we get closer to “Dear Desolation’s” release date, more reviews and news about the album will be posted here, so stay locked in to Erik’s Album Reviews.  Give the first single a listen, let us know what you think in the comments below, and stay tuned for more reviews and news due out this week!

 

“Slaves Beyond Death”:

Breaking News: The 2017 Summer Slaughter Tour Lineup and Dates Have Been Announced

Recently, one of the heaviest touring festivals in extreme music, or as they like to brand themselves, “The Most Extreme Tour of the Year”, has finally announced their lineup and tour dates for the 2017 summer.  The Summer Slaughter tour, which is primarily run and funded by Sumerian Records and Sumerian Films (explains why the film “American Satan” is funding the tour and why there are multiple Sumerian bands on nearly every Summer Slaughter lineup), will run from July 27th until August 26th and will feature some of the biggest names in deathcore and death metal.

Personally, while I am a huge fan of literally every artist on this year’s bill, I am slightly disappointed to see a lack of diversity in the lineup.  Featuring a plethora of big name deathcore bands, and including some accomplished death metal acts with the likes of Origin, The Black Dahlia Murder, the Faceless, and of course, Dying Fetus, the Summer Slaughter tour is perfectly fit for one specific group of extreme music fans.  If you like the more aggressive styles of deathcore and modern death metal, then this tour is a dream come true.  However, for the metal fans that listen to a wide variety of heavy music, the streamlined roster may be slightly disappointing when comparing the 2017 lineup to past ones.  For example, the 2008 lineup featured a vast group of metal bands with everything from Vader to Cryptopsy, Aborted to Whitechapel, Despised Icon to Born of Osiris, and The Black Dahlia Murder to the Faceless.  In comparison, only 5 years ago in 2012, the Summer Slaughter lineup featured GoatWhore, Exhumed, and Periphery, and even featured Between the Buried and Me going on stage right before the headliner, Cannibal Corpse!  This extreme variation in styles of metal and sizes of recognition and fan base within the metal community exemplifies how diverse the Summer Slaughter lineup can get.  While this year’s lineup is sure to feature great live bands who are some of the heavyweights in their respective genres and are guaranteed to bring in some of the greatest ticket sales the tour has ever seen (due of course to their relevancy and more “radio friendly” sound compared to other artists in past lineups), the lack of true metal diversity is hopefully a trend that does not stick with the annual Summer Slaughter tour.

2008’s lineup:

2012’s lineup:

This is, however, the first year that I am a big fan of every artist on the roster.  This, of course, means I will be able to witness hours upon hours of my favorite deathcore and death metal bands play live in a row, but will unfortunately prevent me from discovering new artists that I might become extremely found of, like how I became a huge fan of Beyond Creation after seeing them on the 2015 Summer Slaughter tour.  The full tour poster for the 2017 tour is attached below.  To see complete lineups, visit your local venue’s website to see what local bands will also find a spot on the festival’s date nearest you!  Also, maybe next year we will finally see a black metal band play the Summer Slaughter tour, but until then, enjoy the greatest deathcore and death metal roster the Summer Slaughter tour has ever created!

Breaking News: Chris Cornell Has Passed Away at the Age of 52

Before I discuss the tragic news of the death of grunge legend Chris Cornell, I want to mention the lack of content at Erik’s Album Reviews lately. For the past month and a half, the staff at Erik’s Album Reviews have dealt with serious issues involving school, family, and other personal situations that forced us to take time away from the website. We apologize to our fans for not having content for a long period of time, but we hope we can get back to providing all of you with daily content immediately! We are very grateful for your support and are excited to share with you new reviews, news stories, YouTube videos, and more!

During our extended break from writing last month, some absolutely crushing news made headlines across the globe. While standing outside my apartment at 3:30 am in the rain waiting for a shuttle to pick me up to take me to the airport, I decided to check my Twitter feed only to see that moments before checking my phone, grunge legend, and a simply impeccable artist who I looked up to for years, Chris Cornell, had passed away. In the first few hours of May 18th, I was completely stunned. I couldn’t believe that at only 52, Chris Cornell was dead. I couldn’t believe that the iconic singer, who seemed healthy and well at the time, abruptly passed away. I couldn’t believe that the singer who made Soundgarden and Audioslave so important to me growing up will never get to take the stage again and do what he loves to do. It was a complete shock that left me stunned in disbelief to say the least. 

According to reports following his death, it appears that the cause of death for Cornell was suicide. Personally, I’d much rather focus on the beautiful life of Chris Cornell than the painful reasons as to why the singer is dead, so in rememberance of the Seattle singer, please give a listen to the two tracks below.

The first is “Gasoline” by Audioslave. Growing up, Rage Against the Machine were sacred to me. Their agressive lyricism and mind numbingly perfect songwriting helped RATM become one of the most impactful bands in my life. That being said, discovering Audioslave, which of course features everyone from RATM besides Zach de la Rocha and has Chris Cornell on vocals, was extremely significant to me and my initial discovery of my favorite artists, and “Gasoline” was the reason for that specific musical discovery. The track itself is upbeat, catchy, well written, and of course heavy, and listening to it today is essential! 

The other track is of course “Black Hole Sun” by Soundgarden. Like most Soundgarden fans, the first track I ever heard by the legendary band was “Black Hole Sun” and it instantly made me a huge fan of the group. The eerieness of the track and the creepy, imminent doom portrayed in the lyrical meaning of the song despite its light vocal delivery was unlike anything I had heard at the time and was captivating to put it simply. After about a half hour of searching I found what is probably Chris’s best performance of the song live (attached below). You’ve probably heard the song countless times before, but I still suggest that you take a few minutes to revisit the classic song. 

Despite the sad news of Cornell’s death, we have more positive articles due out very soon at Erik’s Album Reviews, so stay tuned, and of course, RIP Chris Cornell you will truly be missed.
Audioslave’s “Gasoline”:

Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” live:

500 Word Review: Kendrick Lamar “DAMN.”

“DAMN.” was not made for the layman. There aren’t as many straight jams compared to “good kid, m.A.A.d city,” and the tracks that do qualify as such aren’t as instantly memorable as “Bitch, Don’t Kill My Vibe” and its kind. However, this does not lessen the greatness of this album; it just takes time to appreciate. Unlike most popular music, this record focuses on its role as art first, and entertainment second. Unfortunately, its artistic themes take work to understand. Kendrick should not expect the average listener to do a close reading analysis of his lyrics to fully enjoy his music, but “DAMN.’s” popularity shows he can do just that.

Kendrick is still a superb lyricist unrivaled in skill, and so his album’s concepts are explored seamlessly. It discusses the apparent discrimination, or even damnation, towards Black Americans, and a list of emotions and their relationship to the traits of wickedness and weakness. He relates the symbolic curse towards African Americans to the biblical smiting of the Israelites for betraying God. The blindness of white people and the inability of blacks to return from wickedness to weakness are his proposed explanations of the continued plight of Black Americans’ treatment and prejudice by other Americans of different racial backgrounds. In “BLOOD.” he calls attention to the failure of whites to recognize the challenges African Americans face, sampling a shameful FOX news report, and symbolizes this ignorance with a blind woman in his narrative. “DNA.” illuminates the difficulty of abandoning wickedness by simply being being born black, born into what he describes as a “sinful culture”. The power of vicious cycles is further explored in “LUST.”. Specifically, Kendrick argues that people resent change and lust for routine. Even in the face of sudden external changes like the election of Trump, lives on an individual level hardly change, hence the tragedy of the African American struggle. Kendrick stays away from the high levels of braggadocio, common in rap, apart from its satirical use in songs like “HUMBLE.” He balances the volume of such songs depicting wickedness with an equal number dissecting his own weaknesses. The album closes out with “DUCKWORTH.”, which completely illuminates Kendrick’s brilliant ideas. His rapping skill is just as impressive as his detailed concepts. Simply put, he may be the best rapper alive and the album reflects that; there isn’t need to deliberate further.

“DAMN.” has a different style than Kendrick’s previous work. The production is simpler, cleaner, and easier to appreciate than the volume of activity in TPAB. There are trap and pop influences, like the beat in “DNA.”, and multiple featured singers, but they are in good taste. One of my few complaints about the album is regarding its sampling. All the samples are very cool, but are misused in a few places. In “DUCKWORTH.”, the first syllable of the word “darling” is sampled and loudly repeated on the upbeat, competing with Kendrick’s rapping. It is jarring and confusing as to why it was included. Apart from this flaw, and a couple of repetitive hooks like the one in “HUMBLE.”, this album is difficult to criticize. Overall it is an exceptional and original work of art with significant ideas.

 

Score: 8.5/10

 

Album Review by Zachary Norton, May 2017

Breaking News: Of Mice and Men Release New Single and Perform Live For the First Time Since Austin Carlile’s Departure

In case you missed it, in the last few days of 2016 iconic frontman, Austin Carlile, of the successful metalcore act, Of Mice & Men, departed the group due to ongoing medical concerns that prevented him from being a full time member of the band.  The shocking news that the beloved singer would be leaving behind the group he started quickly spread across the metalcore community.  We covered the story here at Erik’s Album Reviews, and if you haven’t had a chance to read our post about it, you can do so now!

Breaking News: Austin Carlile Leaves Of Mice and Men

Shortly after this departure of Carlile, the band was bombarded with questions about how they would continue, and if they would at all.  For those who don’t remember, there was a short period in time, between 2010 and 2011, when Austin Carlile was also not apart of the group and Jerry Roush (Sky Eats Airplane and Glass Cloud) was the main vocalist of the band.  This Roush fronted OM&M only released one cover track of “Blame It”, originally recorded by Jamie Foxx, however it still stood as proof that the group can continue their successes without Carlile as a member of the band.

So, because of this, Of Mice & Men announced early this year that they would continue on as a band and still proceed to write new music.  What is most interesting, however, is that the group decided not to hire a new vocalist and instead promote Aaron Pauley, who previously played bass and sung “clean” vocals for the band, to the frontman, who would perform all vocals while playing bass.  This conversion to a four piece was very interesting to say the least, and despite not following the band as attentively as I used to years ago, I was extremely intrigued to see how the band would do with this new structure.

After a long wait, on April 23rd, with the help of Rise Records, Of Mice & Men released their latest single, “Unbreakable”, featuring the new setup to their lineup.  To be completely honest, this is the first Of Mice & Men track I’ve thoroughly enjoyed in years.  It sounds a lot like the material heard on “Restoring Force”, yet there is a slightly more aggressive and heavier influence heard in this track that was absent, for the most part, on the more recent material.  I’m also shocked at how well Pauley has been handling the harsh vocals for Of Mice & Men on this track.  Not only is his delivery similar to that of Austin Carlile, but I wasn’t even aware that he was capable of this performance, as his harsh vocals for his previous band, Jamie’s Elsewhere, aren’t exactly proficient to say the least.  The lyricism definitely is not stunning, but I can’t remember a time in Of Mice & Men’s history where their lyricism was stellar, so this aspect really does not hurt the band at all.

After hearing the new track I was pleasantly surprised, however, the question of would their live performance live up to such high standards was something I was dying to find an answer to.  Of Mice & Men have been known to put on intense shows that not only are entertaining, but feature a lot of movement and fan interaction, especially since Carlile, who was just a vocalist, was able to move freely across the stage/venue and was absolutely worshipped by fans, allowing his performance to be flawless through the eyes of Of Mice & Men fans.  Because of this, I was uncertain as to how the band would be able to maintain this level of adrenaline and excitement at their shows.  Luckily, one of Of Mice & Men’s first performances without Austin Carlile took place, on April 22nd, the day before the “Unbreakable” music video was released and live footage from fans almost instantly emerged on Youtube.  One of the first Carlile-less appearances from the band occurred at the outdoor festival, Las Rageous, which as you can imagine, takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada.  The two tracks I saw performed live, through these live videos, were “Bones Exposed” and “The Depths”, which are two high energy, fan favorite songs that would serve as good examples as to whether or not the band can still be entertaining live.  After watching both videos, even though there was clearly a lack of movement and fan interaction, I can conclude that the performance, especially when evaluating Aaron Pauley and Alan Ashby’s vocal deliveries, was nearly perfect and the intensity and high energy aspects of Of Mice and Men’s live performance were still very prominent, despite not having a vocalist who is free to move around.  Unfortunately, the Las Rageous crowd was pretty dull, but the band themselves were very entertaining.

The new single, “Unbreakable”, and both live videos I watched are attached below.  Check them out and let us know what you think of them and this new era of Of Mice & Men.  We’ll keep you up to date on any updates about OM&M, so stay tuned for more metalcore content and other extreme music content due out very soon!

 

“Unbreakable”:

“Bones Exposed (live)”:

“The Depths (live)”:

500 Word Review: Azuresands 大麻 “Inner Journey”

A few weeks ago, versatile vaporwave artist, Azuresands 大麻, released his latest project, “Inner Journey”.  For those who might not be familiar with the prominent electronic composer, Azuresands 大麻 has established a reputation of being one of the most innovative artists in the genre’s fairly brief history.  With the release of varying projects that not only directly contrast one another in theme, aesthetic, sound, composition, and influence, but also push the limits of vaporwave itself by creating new subgenres and concepts only imaginable by Azuresands 大麻 himself, Azuresands 大麻 continues to impress the rest of the vaporwave community while simultaneously leaving them on the edge of their seats in anticipation with what he will release next.  That being said, it’s no surprise to see “Inner Journey” recognized as one of the most significant albums in the genre to be released this year.

For this project, Azuresands 大麻 is working alone to create an ambient, atmospheric album.  Despite his recent success with collaborative projects like “Compass Rose” and “American Truck Songs 8”, Azuresands 大麻 is returning to writing solo work, and being a huge fan of not just vaporwave, but Azuresands 大麻 specifically, I was very excited to see how the accomplished artist would approach the album as far as composition goes.

For starters, I really enjoyed the diversity of this project. Every single song is distinct and can be recognized within the first few seconds of its playing time.  For example, in the first few measures of the project “Inner Journey” itself, an ominous, nearly inaudible bass is the foundation of a space, and of course, meditation themed ambient track, as the album slowly fades in, making this first track, “Waveswell”, instantly significant and recognizable. From here, the prominent project by Azuresands 大麻 will quickly change and transform as each track takes on a different sound, influence, and even persona, leaving the listener completely clueless as to what is about to come next.  In fact, the sound of the album constantly jumps around from the more traditional ambient vaporwave sound, to multi-layered synths and soundscapes in the form of atmospheric tracks, to even tracks that feature just percussion or vocal samples, which results in a fairly interesting project.  However, while this is fascinating to say the least, I believe that if Azuresands 大麻 narrowed down the core sound of the album itself and shortened the project to only feature the most memorable and well composed tracks heard, the entire project would strengthen as a whole, easily making “Inner Journey” one of the best vaporwave releases of the year.  What is consistent, however, is the integration of prominent altered samples featuring edited tempos and pitch changes, heavy use of reverb, often heard soundscapes that are a staple for this project, and the slight addition of echo effects that give these songs the distinct vaporwave sound and influence.

Personally, I’m not a huge fan of the spoken samples, like those heard on “Tacoshimi” and “Bummerman”.  The overwhelmingly loud samples distract the listener from the superb instrumental tracks through the use of slow, nonsensical ramblings that the album really does not need to be successful.  However, where these songs fail, tracks like “Heartglow” easily exemplify excellence and redeem the previous, underachieving songs.  After “Tacoshimi” finally comes to a close, “Heartglow” enters with utterly captivating and mesmerizing internationally influenced instrumental tracks.  This use of complex composition combined with inspiration from South American culture and music creates an overall sound that is not only catchy but also unlike anything I’ve ever heard in vaporwave before.  Intricate layering of numerous percussion instruments to the point where it sounds like an entire village is recording the track live in one take with simple, unique instruments makes “Heartglow” one of the most memorable Azuresands 大麻 songs in his discography.

Overall, this is definitely a must listen to Azuresands 大麻 project.  While it’s unlike any of his recent material, his experimentation with ambient vaporwave, while also adding in aspects unique to his personal sound, results in a very solid release.  With a track list featuring everything from songs that are unique compared to one another and sound nothing like their album counterparts to a heavy layering of soundscapes, synths, and the occasional light and pleasant arpeggiator heard from the first few measures of “Waveswell” until the last few moment of “Charismaring”, it’s clear that every prominent aspect heard works together collectively to truly make this a relaxing and interesting album.  I will say that the sound quality is pretty low on this project (and not because I listened to the album primarily on cassette tape) compared to my favorite vaporwave releases.  Although, after seeing the aesthetic on the album cover, the muddy recording that features a lack of clarity in sound quality seems to fit the overall theme of the project and doesn’t deteriorate my overall enjoyment of the release.  I give “Inner Journey” an 8.1/10 and highly suggest you listen to the tracks “Waveswell”, “Brookwhisperer”, “Halo Cubed”, “Heartglow”, “Barkcloth Tapestry”, “Many Hands of Fate”, “WishWash”, and “Wholeing”, as these make up the vast majority of the highlights heard throughout the album.  Also, be sure to pick up a copy of “Inner Journey” on cassette (seen below), especially since the tracks “Heartglow”, Osmosis”, “A Dusty Vhial”, and “Many Hands of Fate” have only been released on the cassette format and cannot be heard anywhere else!  Listen to the digital version of the Azuresands 大麻 record below, pick up a copy on cassette, and stay tuned for more vaporwave reviews out soon!

“Inner Journey” cassette:

https://azuresands.bandcamp.com/album/inner-journey

“Inner Journey”:

Album Review: DANNY BROWN Atrocity Exhibition

Last last year accomplished hip-hop artist, Danny Brown, released his latest project, the full length record, “Atrocity Exhibition”.  After switching labels to Warp Records, there was speculation that Danny would yet again venture into a different sound and approach for this 2016 release.  However, no one, including myself, could’ve seen this drastic new change in sound and experimentation coming.

Personally, I discovered Danny’s material during the “Old” album cycle and instantly fell in love with the EDM based hip hop tracks.  Songs like “Side B (Dope Song)”, “Kush Coma”, “Dip”, and his collaboration with EDM artist, Rustie, with the song, “Attak” almost immediately became not only some of the greatest rap songs I had ever heard by the Detroit based artist, but some of the most stellar hip hop tracks I ever heard period.  It was clear that Danny’s distinct songwriting and sound was unparalleled to the rest of the noise in the genre, even after hearing only a fraction of his entire discography.

After listening to “Atrocity Exhibition”, my first reaction was complete shock at how Danny Brown was able to take 15 of the most odd, peculiar, and to put it simply, weirdest, beats I had ever heard and turn them into successfully written hip hop tracks.  Especially starting out with tracks off “Old” that follow a very simplistic, catchy, festival-oriented structure, it completely took me off guard to hear such experimentation from Danny on “Atrocity Exhibition”.  Tracks like “Downward Spiral”, “Get Hi”, and “Goldust” left me utterly dumbfounded at how Danny can take these bizarre instrumental tracks and record a vocal performance that not only rhythmically makes sense, but actually results in well-written songs that I actually enjoy.

Despite the odd approach to songwriting, every track seems to fit well in the track listing.  The songs themselves, beats, and song structure may vary greatly, especially when comparing songs like “Really Doe” and “Goldust”, however each track seems to fit perfectly into the overall composition of the album as a whole. On one hand, “Really Doe” features a very modern, almost radio friendly beat with features from Kendrick, Ab-Soul, and Earl Sweatshirt. On the other, “Goldust” features multiple, repetitive horn section parts accompanied by an overly distorted electric guitar strumming barely audible chords.  However, each track features the same avant-garde influences while also including impactful lyricism that is often filled with dark imagery and honest depictions of Danny’s thoughts, experiences, and environment around him, like what is heard on “Ain’t It Funny”, “Really Doe”, “Pneumonia”, “When It Rain”, “Tell Me What I Don’t Know”, and “Get Hi”, showing how each track does not seem out of place on “Atrocity Exhibition”, despite the fact that no two songs are fairly alike in sound or overall composition.  The spectrum of influences, sounds, song structure, differences in beats, and even vocal delivery is extremely broad in Atrocity Exhibition and trying to compare any two songs on the album, whether its “Ain’t It Funny” vs “Hell For It”, “Get Hi” vs “Pneumonia”, or “When It Rain” vs “Downward Spiral”, perfectly exemplifies the blatant diversity that is without a doubt the most memorable aspect throughout the latest Danny Brown project.

There really aren’t any significant complaints I have about this album in general.  The only songs I really don’t like on “Atrocity Exhibition” are the “Downward Spiral” and “Rolling Stone”.  “Downward Spiral’s” beat is so bizarre that it takes multiple listens to just get used to its odd sound.  Also, “Downward Spiral” is a fairly weak way to start out the album.  The lyricism represents what is to come in “Atrocity Exhibition”, however, the very laid back, lazy sounding beat should not be the first thing you hear on this latest Danny Brown project.  Honestly, if “Downward Spiral” and “Pneumonia” switched places in track order I think this album would sound even better when listening to it from start to finish.  I personally can’t imagine how powerful it would sound to have “Pneumonia” as the first track you hear off of “Atrocity Exhibition”.  The haunting, echoing bells heard in the hook that starts the song would instantly grab my attention and keep it unwavering, which is something that “Downward Spiral” simply cannot do.  Also, having “Downward Spiral” at the halfway point of the record would symbolize how the audience is about to dive further into Danny’s unique songwriting and dark lyricism before hearing tracks like “Today, “When It Rain”, and “Dance In The Water”. To me, “Rolling Stone’s” hook is both redundant and annoying and I personally believe it slightly holds the entire album back.  If it had a different hook it might be better overall, but regardless it is definitely one of the weakest songs on the project.

Despite these minor setbacks, there are numerous aspects that I personally thoroughly enjoyed on “Atrocity Exhibition”.  For starters, the sampling on “Lost” is sensational.  The repeated looping of the horn part, keyboard melody, and female vocal track provide a simple, repetitive beat that fits Danny’s vocal performance flawlessly (not to mention this song would fit in well with any of the old Tony Hawk video game soundtracks, as it features the same looping beats heard on hip hop tracks on these soundtracks).  Interestingly enough, “Tell Me What I Don’t Know” and “From the Ground” are songs that don’t feature vocals from Danny himself.  This is something he’s done before on previous releases, but it’s very interesting to hear a song he wrote that does not feature any vocal performance from the rapper personally.  In my opinion, I would love to see more prominent hip hop artists write songs that don’t feature their own vocals, as I think this is a really interesting concept that adds further diversity to projects, but I can see how this idea might cause some negative feedback from these artists respective fan bases.  I absolutely loved “Dance in the Water”, as the internationally influenced beats, backing vocals, and overall melody make it an extremely catchy song that I wouldn’t be surprised to hear on the next FIFA soundtrack.  Lastly, I personally think that “Ain’t It Funny”, which recently saw the release of a music video directed by actor Jonah Hill made for the track itself, despite the criticism the song got.  The beat on “Ain’t It Funny” is stupid catchy, and when mixed with the self-destructive, dark, and honest lyricism featured, “Ain’t It Funny” instantly becomes one of the most significant songs you will hear from Danny Brown on this 2016 project.  My favorite tracks off “Atrocity Exhibition” have to be “Ain’t It Funny”, “Really Doe”, “Pneumonia”, “When It Rain”, and “Dance in the Water”, and the more I listen to the record the closer I get to declaring “Atrocity Exhibition” as the greatest Danny Brown release in his discography.

“Atrocity Exhibition” was the greatest hip hop release of 2016, and was the 6th best album of 2016, only falling behind artists like Saor, Trophy Eyes, Fallujah, Real Friends, and Every Time I Die.  This project truly pushes the limits and creativeness of hip-hop and will hopefully pave the way for future projects at the same caliber of excellence as “Atrocity Exhibition”.  Personally, I still can’t get over my initial reaction of how shook I was after hearing “When It Rain” and waiting for the bass to drop, like in “Dip”, only to never hear the anticipated drop.  Even though I was initially disappointed to not hear more EDM inspired tracks from Danny Brown, I am ecstatic to instead receive one of the best projects ever released in hip hop’s modern history.  Danny Brown will be remembered as a trailblazer in hip hop and his projects will surely inspire countless other phenomenal artists and projects.  In summation, I give “Atrocity Exhibition” a 9.6/10, and I cannot stress enough how important it is to listen to and truly appreciate this album.  Danny Brown’s latest project is attached below.  Give it a listen and stay tuned for more reviews due out very soon!

 

“Atrocity Exhibition”:

Breaking News: A Lot Like Birds Release Third Single Off “DIVISI”

Words cannot describe the shock and pure excitement I had today when I opened up Youtube to see that A Lot Like Birds finally released the track “Trace the Lines”.  If you have been following my coverage of A Lot Like Birds’ upcoming fourth full length album, “DIVISI”, you would know that not only am I extremely excited for this album to be released, but I also was most anticipating hearing the track “Trace the Lines”, as the teaser for it was simply blissful.  Now, the single has officially been released, along with a music video to accompany it, continuing the theme of having every single released so far represented with a music video.

Harmonizing vocals and a slowly plucked, reverb-filled electric guitar gracefully start this track and instantly I find myself having goosebumps from the magnificent sounding first few measures.  Out of nowhere, string sections emerge and I can instantly tell this track will surpass already high expectations in a remarkable way.  Matt Coate and Cory Lockwood effortlessly trade back and forth as the first verse slowly fleshes out further and further as “Trace the Lines” builds up to the chorus heard in the teaser released months ago.  Next, intricate drumming and a slight but noticeable emphasis of suspense is heard as the first verse is about to come to a close.  The moment I heard the lines “I know it tore you up, it wasn’t by design” I uncontrollably starting singing along (at least attempting to) as I was overcome with complete and udder joy at how phenomenal this song sounds.  From hear on out, the song itself is nothing but masterfully written.  An earth-shattering, powerful chorus, slight but noticeable string section harmonies, and heartbreakingly honest lyrics like “I made you sick where I had meant to make you mine”, “Do you care that it’s over”, and “I said I loved you as a way to change the subject” help make “Trace the Lines” easily the most beautiful song I’ve heard this year.

The music video for “Trace the Lines” seems to be a sequel to the video of “The Sound of Us”, as it uses the same characters and themes from “The Sound of Us” video and the main character appears to wake up after experiencing the party and performance that he takes part in in the previous video.  Also, I found it interesting that in the first video, the band is seen wearing white button up shirts, compared to the all black attire and the decorated masks seen in “Trace the Lines”.  This could be symbolic of the relationship Cory and Matt are singing about coming to and end, or how the main character’s emotions went from joyous and happy in the first video to sober and depressive in the second.  Regardless, after watching the first 3 music videos I have decided that “DIVISI” needs a video album to accompany it.  Each music video so far has been rich with symbolism, solid acting, meaning, and an overall heightened representation of the tracks they accompany, and it would only make sense to now have a music video paired with every track heard on “DIVISI”.

At this point, I would do questionable things to hear the entire full length record tomorrow.  I will of course be playing “Trace the Lines” non-stop until May 5th, but the fact that every song released so far is stellar leaves me dying to hear the entire project, as this will definitely be a strong contender for the best album released in 2017.  If you don’t like the “DIVISI” singles, especially “Trace the Lines”, I simply do not understand your apparent odd taste in music.  Check out “Trace the Lines” below and stay tuned for more updates, as we are less than 2 weeks away from its release date!

My last two posts about A Lot Like Birds:

“For Shelley (Unheard)”:

Breaking News: A Lot Like Birds Release First Single of Upcoming Fourth Full Length Album “DIVISI”

“The Sound of Us”:

Breaking News: A Lot Like Birds Release Music Video For New Single “The Sound of Us”

 

“Trace the Lines”:

500 Word Review: Primal Rite “Sensory Link To Pain”

Recently I’ve gotten back into thrash metal by listening to both classic bands like Metallica and Slayer and newer bands like Skeletonwitch and Eternal Champion.  However, through listening to the new era of thrash metal, I was able to discover a recently formed band, Primal Rite, who combine influences from hardcore punk and thrash metal to embody a hard-hitting, completely abrasive thrash metal sound that is simply addicting.  Last month, the San Francisco based metal band released their latest EP, “Sensory Link To Pain”, which showcases the group’s stellar, most recent sound.

The EP begins with a sinister, ominous sound of guitar feedback slowly fading in, leaving the listener anxious and at the edge of their seat as to what is coming next. Suddenly, the whole band enters and a wailing, distorted guitar, pummeling drums, rattling bass, and of course aggressive, hatred filled vocals create the title track, “Sensory Link To Pain”. Sporadic section changes with heavy, yet intriguingly groovy riffs encompass the entire EP with only a few moments of chugging riffs at a slower tempo to give the listener some kind of breathing room in between the chaos filled parts heard throughout each track.

These slower tempo sections can easily become highlights of tracks, however, as the near breakdown heard on “Is It Me?” becomes the most memorable part of the entire track and is easily the catchiest riff you will hear in Primal Rite’s latest project. This hardcore influenced breakdown perfectly exemplifies Primal Rite’s raw, bone-snapping sound of hardcore influenced thrash metal. The project itself, which comes in at just under 8 minutes, leaves its audience feeling like they got hit by a train of pure hardcore and thrash metal, as the project ends just as abruptly as it began with the fast tempo, mosh pit inducing riffs on “Primal Discipline” transitioning directly into the same eerie guitar tone heard at the beginning of “Sensory Link To Pain” slowly fading out. This Primal Rite EP is in your face hardcore thrash metal done right and is full with non-stop, unrelenting heaviness from start to finish.

In summation, this is metal, simply put. Everything from the harsh vocals, to the phenomenal guitar riffing to the upbeat, old school thrash metal inspired drum beats purely encompasses what the new era of thrash metal is all about. The only gripe I have with this project is that it sounds a little too much like Power Trip, who happen to be the most prominent modern hardcore influenced thrash metal band, and my personal favorite thrash metal band as well. I’m sure over time Primal Rite will find their signature style and sound in this crossover subgenre of punk and thrash metal, but their latest material still resembles, and is inspired by, the Texas based act in a very prominent way. However, if you listen to older Counterparts material, you can hear how it is directly influenced by Misery Signals, so it’s not a huge concern to seem Primal Rite paying tribute to the sound of the act they most likely look up to, especially since sounding like Power Trip is far from being an insult. I give “Sensory Link To Pain” an 8.6/10 and highly suggest that you check this EP out by the soon to be household name, Primal Rite.

 

“Sensory Link To Pain”: