The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 233

Cecil Frena - The Gridlock

I made sure for this album that I had zero knowledge of what to expect, and I think this actually aided my listen. Starting with Nerves Grow Rust, it is an electronic pop song, with a slow beat and some nice melodies, and because of this, I was caught completely unaware when second track All of My Heroes opens with a fantastic winding guitar line reminiscient of the new Nervus album, and quickly becomes a great electronic rock song, with background noises and elements that reminded me of White-album era Weezer.

Third track Unknow Yourself was another curve ball, sounding like fuzzy pop punk, with some screamed vocals and an almost horror-movie sound. Unfortunately the end of the track had some pig squeeling noises that put me off. Luckily the fourth track I Want to Guard You From Boredom was one of my favourites, with a calm intro with keys and samples turning into a euphoric electronic rock track, with soaring vocals and airy spacious moments.

Track eight, Die Old, is by far my favourite. Another poppy electronic rock track, this song has some hugely memorable lyrics, as Cecil sings about the passing of time, and looking back on your life. It is a theme continued on the relaxed I Believe In Dancing too. You Are My Compass meanwhile, sees heavy use of a vocoder and some electronic drum beats, with a female voice also helping the song to feel like a breath of fresh air.

I did feel the album slumped in the middle, with little memorable content on tracks five, six or interlude-like track seven. Alongside this, closer Human Math was an interesting song, but it felt a little over dramatic and I'm not sure the lyrics truly sat right with me. Despite this, I found the album an enjoyable listen and I would definitely listen to certain songs again.

7/10

Recommended tracks: Die Old, I Want To Guard You From Boredom, You Are My Compass

 

Thanks for giving this a listen! Nice write-up :)

 

Nice review! I need to post my review for this as well but the whole move thing has pushed back my writing them up. I agree on a lot of your points and would probably give it the same score.

 

I'm falling behind on reviews so I'm going to make the next few rather brief.

Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour (MCA Nashville; 2018)

Last week I received this record from @iCarly Rae Jepsen - I'm familiar with Musgraves' material somewhat having listened to Same Trailer Different Park in the year it was released. I didn't have strong feelings towards that record in either direction so ultimately I never returned to her work. After seeing all the hype surrounding her third full length Golden Hour I was ready to give her another go. Upon listening to this record I can appreciate the arrangements, production work and songwriting which are all top notch but Kacey herself doesn't click with me. Her vocal mannerisms and the general sound of her vocal performances do nothing for me. At times I feel as though she lacks personality in her performances with the exception of a few songs. I did enjoy "Love Is a Wild Thing" and "Space Cowboy". In the end this isn't a record I will frequent.

 

@highfidelity203 Will listen to Tei Shi - Crawl Space

I will listen to The New Amsterdams - At the Foot of My Rival

 

Oh man Bobby gave you a great one. Mad I didn't think to assign it to someone first

 

@sophos34 WE NEED TO TRADE ALBUMS sophgod

 

Dm me fool

 

I will be doing a day one review tomorrow night for ‘Breaking Benjamin- Ember’

 

last week @JediMasterKevo182 and i swapped, and i was given Coheed & Cambria's In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3.
I'd previously only heard Good Apollo IV as well as a smattering of others, and had even seen them live before, but never really delved into the catalogue. Given they're touring with taking back sunday this summer, what better time to delve than now. I'm aware all (most?) of their albums center around a story but tbh i've never really cared to look much into it. i think it's kinda cheesy and, while very ambitious and creative, is generally not really what I'm looking for in my music and in this case i like to prescribe my own meanings. I guess I don't actually have too much to say otherwise, I think at this point people know what coheed sound like so i'll focus on my thoughts more than the music. First off, i already knew A Favor House Atlantic and was happy to revisit that song. the "good eye sniper" line has always been a massive earworm for me. in past reviews i've written how fun guitar work is a good way to get me interested, and of course, this album is pretty much non-stop that, so i was a happy camper. The Ring of Return starts the album off with a more orchestral/epic bang which was not wholly unexpected but well executed. i'm not the world's biggest fan of sanchez's voice but i can overlook it; the music plays off it well and i buy in. i tended to like the less poppy moments and preferred the heavier and more epic-sounding tunes. the songs are really long so its a bit of an exhausting listen, and i didn't think it too different from anything else i'd heard by them, but its a very enjoyable listen and i'm glad i finally got around to it; ill be checking out the rest of their stuff before the tour for sure.
favorite songs: title track, the crowing, a favor house atlantic


in other news, @cshadows2887 and i exchanged this week.
he's listening to:
This Town Needs Guns - 13.0.0.0.0.

and I'm listening to:
Francis & The Lights - It'll Be Better

 

Always been curious about This Town Needs Guns - I want to hear your thoughts @cshadows2887

 

Hey everyone! I apologize for my slacking in here but it was for a valid reason. I recently just moved 10 hours away to North Carolina and finally got internet today! I will try my best to catch up in between starting a new job, getting my house together, etc. I am glad to be back though!

 

Ok, first step in catching up is actually trading!

@JRGComedy and I will be trading:

He will be listening to:
City Calm Down: Echoes in Blue

I will be listening to:
Jukebox the Ghost: Off to the Races

 

@sophos34 and I will be trading.

He will be listening to:
Gorilla Stomp: Life In A Jam and Reunion: True Values

I will be listening to:
At The Gates - Slaughter Of The Soul.

holla.

 

welcome to the world of Swedish melodic death metal

 

I should have up within the next couple hours the release day review for

Breaking Benjamin- Ember

 

Sorry for the delay on getting this posted. But without further delay, allow me to bring you

CHORUS MUSIC CLUB SOCIETY RELEASE DAY REVIEWS

Breaking Benjamin- Ember
(04/13/2018)


Breaking Benjamin is a band that needs no introduction; they are an alternative/melodic metalcore band that has been operating on and off since 1999. Their fan base is sort of all over the place when it comes to Chorus; I have seen people who love them, people who just kind of like them, and some who find it funny to poke fun at them and those who like them. I am not ashamed to admit that I fall in the first category, and this album release was one that I was looking forward to. With the release of lead single 'Red Cold River', the sound seemed that Breaking Benjamin was bringing it back to their heavier roots with a sound that was reminiscent of their first album. With the album out today, and my preordered CD in hand, I dove into this record and am happy to report that Breaking Benjamin has succeeded in a return to form. If you were in the latter category of the fan spectrum I listed, this album will not change your mind. However, if you were in either of the first two; I will come out and say TL;DR this album is worth your attention.

Sounding very much like a continuation of their sound from 'We Are Not Alone' mixed with tinges of where they left off with 'Dark Before Dawn', Breaking Benjamin is back with a very heavy and dark vengeance on this album. After a cool little intro, the album dives in strong with one of the pre-release tracks, 'Feed The Wolf', which contains the quintessential power of Breaking Benjamin, heavy guitars, great bass, and a mix of melodic singing and some heavy screams. This song also contains one of the coolest and ripping bridges on a Breaking Benjamin song, starting off strong. What proceeds forward from this is a trip down what Breaking Benjamin's strengths are, with a heavy hand on dark lyricism and sound. Benjamin sounds fantastic on this album, with his vocals and loud, guttural screams sounding very good on these new songs. There is a heavy focus on the guitars and prominent sound of bass in these songs as well, something I really admire. By the time you get to track 4, 'Tourniquet', it is very clear that as always these guys know how to write a hefty and catchy chorus, with verses that compliment their respective choruses nicely. There are some nuance differences to this album than their previous as well; while this is very much a Breaking Benjamin album there are subtle nuances that make these songs have a clear defined sound when compared to their previous albums, and this song is one of them.

Its not all fist pumping anthems though, as Breaking Benjamin shows off their softer side in 'The Dark Of You', a haunting and quite well made ballad that takes it down a notch from the rest of the album and stands out as a much slower song than their usual with lyrics about giving in to the darkness of the world and a fractured relationship in this fleeting world and its inevitable finality. Its a welcome breath of fresh air on this album, with some of my favorite lyrics on the album:

"Fade away to the wicked world we left, and I become the dark of you
Say a prayer for the wounded heart within, as I become the dark of you
Let go, when all has come to life
We live, we breathe, we die
They call me to the light, forever lost in time."

This song is followed up by one of my other favorites on the album, 'Down'. This song is just kicks, starting off with a haunting intro before erupting into a song that is both ferocious, but contains a pre chorus and chorus that are extremely catchy and seeping with rhythmic anthem quality that you will find yourself singing along with its chorus by the second time it comes around. Its a song almost the opposite of the previous track, being an anthem about rising up and not letting this life bring someone down to their lowest point; though the fight will be hard. There are a lot of songs with this firey passion that you cannot help but just delve into when you hear them; songs like 'Torn In Two', 'Blood', and 'Save Yourself' are songs of this caliber, and round out the bottom half of the track list with varying ranges of aggression and passion, showcasing Breaking Benjamin putting some of their best feet forward. Breaking Benjamin may not change their sound too often on their albums, but they sure as hell know how to craft their sound to different degrees that create a theme on each album and perfect it. 'Save Yourself' is an example of this, with the formula being switched and the verses being screamed while the chorus is a melodic clean sung stand out of the album. I will also say that closer 'Close Your Eyes' may be one of my favorite closers from one of their albums, containing a breaking of the clouds In the darker theme of this album:

"Take away the dark inside, and lead me to the light
All will fade before your eyes, as we turn the tide
I will bring the dream to life, hold on, just hold on
I will keep you here inside, just close your eyes"

Overall, I will have to say there is not a bad song on this album in my opinion. As I said previously, if you were never a fan of this band; this album won't offer you anything to change your mind. However, if you ever liked anything they've done, this album will have something for you. Sometimes the heaviness of the album can kind of blend together on your first listen, but as these songs start to form into their own entities you come to appreciate their nuanced differences between each other. Breaking Benjamin has put out a strong effort, and I may even dare to say that its their best album since 'Phobia', though with this being the first day of its release I will have to let time decide that one. I will be listening to this one a lot; its aggressive, its catchy, its melodic, it has bite, its passionate, its dark, it feels real. This is Breaking Benjamin putting out their best effort, and its a damn good listen if you are into this type of music.

Stand Out Tracks:
Feed The Wolf
Tourniquet
The Dark of You
Down
Torn In Two
Blood
Close Your Eyes

8.5/10

 

Great review! This is a solid release for them and sits up there with some of their best material. With that being said, if you aren't a fan of the band, I don't think this album will win you over. As @JediMasterKevo182 mentioned, the whole album is full of great songs, but it does tend to blend together.

 

Excited for their new mike Sapone produced record

 

Now that new releases have slowed down for me I think I’d be down to rejoin @JediMasterKevo182

 

Welcome back @teebs41 !

 

@Larry David gave me the Spanish Love Songs record, Schmaltz a few weeks back and I have been listening to it a lot. For those that don't know who the band is, they are an LA punk/indie band. On the surface they remind you of the Menzingers because of their lead vocalist. However, once you get past that aspect, there are some cool things to dig into with this band. Sonically, they sort bridge the Fest punk sound and some of the bands in the Manchester Orchestra space. Lyrically, they tend to sing sad songs about relationships, which is not really unique but always easy to relate. On Schmaltz, it seems like the band made a choice to do more than just write songs about relationships. There seems to be more themes about society and social issues. Gun violence is a re-occurring theme on the record. There is no one song dedicated to that topic, but there are lines throughout the album that mention it.

The whole album is really good, but I would say this is one of those records that gets better as you let it play out. I like how it's an upbeat album that is book ended with two quiet songs. I think right around Otis/Carl is where the record goes from good to really good. That song and Beer and NyQuil were the ones that stood out the most me, but again, the whole album is super good. Thank you for the recommendation!

 

@Larry David put this album on my radar also. What a guy!

 

Glad you enjoyed it! Funny you said that Otis/Carl is where is goes from good to really good, because this is my post from the album thread: