The Chorus Music Club Society • Page 187

Five reviews left to go for the week. Tonight, I will be writing a pair of reviews for @theagentcoma

The Hotelier-Goodness


My only exposure to this group has been through this group, where I reviewed 'Home, Like Noplace Is There' in one of the very first few sessions of this club. I liked it enough, but it wasn't something that grabbed me enough to return to it all that often except on some occasions when the chat thread was ranting about them mainly thanks to @Kennedy . So going into this one, I was unsure of what the outcome would be. I am happy to say that despite getting a "what the hell.." reaction from me with that speaking opening track, this one clicked with me a lot better than I had anticipated.

This 2016 album shows Hotelier doing everything I liked on the previous album I had heard, but a lot better and more refined. This is evident as soon as the first real track, 'Goodness Pt. 2' kicks in, and is a certified fun time to listen to. Sounding a lot more confident in their sound, this indie rock album is a great time overall. One thing I can recommend while listening to this album is to listen to the lyrics and read them as you do; the front man of this band knows what he is doing with his wordplay, and he uses that to his advantage in many of these tracks. The lyrics in this album are well crafted, and his vocal prowess on these songs is a lot better than their previous effort in my opinion. Songs like 'Two Deliverances' and 'Opening Mail For My Grandmother' contain lyrics that will hit you right in the feels, especially the latter one which deals with the passing of a love one and moving on while facing death. Musically, they sound awesome on this. Whether its slower indie style guitars or up beat chords with amazing bass lines like in 'Soft Animal', they show their chops excellently on this album. This album is bold in places as well, it goes places you wouldn't expect. There is a lot of spirit and imagery in these songs, and if you listen closely you can imagine exactly what picture they are trying to paint. 'Sun' is an excellent example of this, and is one of the more upbeat songs on the album while painting a picture of a love that reaches the sun and the stars. Whether its a sound of ballads or a sound of a man remorseful as he sits by the fire at night, there are emotions running through every song of this album.

I recommend this album to fans of acts like Tiny Moving Parts, or indie rock in general. Its a very good listen, and its one that merits repeat listening even if its just to get a better grasp on the lyrics and musical nuances of the tracks. The poem intro is a bit jarring at first, but in the context of the album it actually begins to work. I will revist this album, and I advise anyone out there to do the same if they like some good old indie rock. Standout tracks: 'Goodness Pt.2', 'Two Deliverances', 'Settle The Scar', 'Opening Main For My Grandmother,' 'Soft Animal', 'Sun'.
8/10

Copeland-Ixora

Venturing into the indie rock spectrum again, this was a band that I had heard of before but never listened to; my younger brother was a huge fan of this band. This band seems to be a bit softer than The Hotelier, especially in the first couple tracks. This album is very laid back and subdued, but it honestly works well. This is a very low key sound and album, best listened to in the dark with headphones; so if you check them out this is what I recommend.

As soon as I hit play and heard the song 'Have I Always Loved You?', which is this melodic and somber love ballad esque of an intro track, I knew I was hearing something different. Something sonically pleasing. 'Disjointed', the second track which literally sounds like you are floating while listening to it confirmed this thought. The majority of this album is very relaxing, with the more 'upbeat' songs like 'Lavender' still being very subdued and laid back. Its a calm album, and it uses everything from piano, drum synths, to even an honest to god Sax solo during 'World Turn' to really get you in the melancholy mood these guys want you to be in while listening to this album. The closing track 'In Her Arms You Will Never Starve' is absolutely beautiful; its a love ballad of the best proportions, and while possibly the longest track on the album it encompasses everything from piano, a violin solo, and soft lyrics like 'What if you cant turn back when you're finally tired of running?', this song is the best possible way that this album could have ended. I will admit that while I enjoyed this album for its melodic mood setting and its calm and reserved music, it is not an album for every situation. Best listened to as I stated before, it doesn't work so well when you are driving in your car or you are out for a run (Unless its perhaps snowing or a quiet cold night outside). This album's crooning sounds are carried by the vocals, each of these crafted songs are filled with passionate lyrics and his voice perfectly fits these reflections of love, emotions, and reflection that the band is painting.

As I said before, listen to this album in the dark with headphones. That is where it really works. This is different than what you would expect, as its much more held to the chest reserved as opposed to letting loose. Sometimes, I feel like this album could have benefited from a little less restraint; but that would have ruined the work of art that they were so obviously trying to craft. If you like moody pieces, ballads, and soft indie rock this album is worth exploring and is definitely something good for those quieter moments in your life. Recommended Tracks: ‘Have I Always Loved You?’ ‘Disjointed’ ‘Lavender’ ‘In Her Arms You Will Never Starve’
7/10

 

Three Sevendust albums courtesy of @Davjs and @Nate_Johnson tomorrow night.

 

Didn’t read this yet but both albums are 10/10 for me, no lie.

 

Glad you liked Goodness!!!! [among the] Best album ever I don’t know why this like show d up all time trying to say is Goodness is one of the best albums ever

 

Awesome reviews!! And man, kinda cool to read about someone's first experience with Copeland.

Also soooooooooooooo looking forward to some Sevendust reviews lol

 

SEASON 14 PAIRINGS
(03/05-03/12)

@Davjs // @skurt

@Larry David // @js977

@Nate_Johnson // @highfidelity203

@thenewmatthewperry // @Kiana

@Jdaniels // @JRGComedy

@duritzfan13 // @nickyeatworld

@bachna84 // @ugman_2000

@JediMasterKevo182 // @broken22

@iCarly Rae Jepsen // @suicidesaints

@Kingjohn_654 // @cshadows2887

@Micool1 // @Michael Schmidt

@Wall Of Arms // @theagentcoma

@JediMasterKevo182 // @Patterns in Traffic

@JediMasterKevo182 // @skogsraet


If I forgot you on here, DM me

 

@Dirty Sanchez
@primavera
@nohandstoholdonto
@ComedownMachine
@manoverboard365
@shanerockey
@electro haikus
@dadbolt
@angrycandy
@DesolateEarth
@LuigiPeppercorn
@carrytheweird
@Raditz
@bradsonemanband
@Drewski
@Mister Lyrical
@manoverboard365
@Zac Djamoos
@ShadowTh2b
@Kennedy
@Dumblecore
@teebs41
@SaveTheEarth
@EmmanuelSCastle
@AlwaysEvolving21
@sophos34
@Mary V

If anyone wants to be unbenched before the next session let me know we’d love to have you back

 

@skogsraet and I have traded for next week.

She gave me:

A Voz e o Violão by Djavan
Saturation III by Brockhampton

I gave her:

The Glass Passenger- Jacks Mannequin
Page Avenue- Story Of The Year

 

Same here!!!

 

Great reviews @JediMasterKevo182! Some of your best writing yet!

 

I'll go ahead and do this round but leave me out of future ones for now. I just can't keep up, still need to write up about the last two albums.

 

Bench me. I still haven't done the last one. Though @cshadows2887 is a dear friend and whomever gets paired with him will not be disappointed .

 

@Nate_Johnson ?

 

I’m up for it. I should have a lot of my back log done over the next few days.

 

Actually why don't you leave me off this week while I catch up to @JRGComedy's recs and I'll be good to go again next week.

 

@Patterns in Traffic and I have agreed on a second meeting of patterns in CMCS.

He gave me:

Army of Me - Citizen
Mutemath - Armistice

I gave him:

Coheed And Cambria- Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness

Hawthorne Heights- HOPE

Hawthorne Heights- HURT

 

Alright @broken22 and I have decided.


He gave me:

Matt Skiba and The Sekrets- Kutz

I gave him:

Silverstein- Dead Reflection

 

P

How many people did you partner with this week?!

 

3. Odd pairing and then one that wanted unbenching

 

I hope by saying I want to be benched for the foreseeable future doesn't make you all think that I didn't like your recommendations or don't want participate later on. I liked both recs, I'm just OCD about keeping up with podcasts, and I have like 50 albums from 2018 in my queue that I haven't been able to get to yet.

 

Also excited to hear the reviews on Sevendust. One of my favorite bands. Which albums are you doing?

 

@ugman_2000 check your inbox!

 

Cold day memory
Animosity
ST

 

Ok here goes nothing...

First up, @Nate_Johnson my buddy from the metal thread, recommended something a little lighter than the stuff we normally discuss, Brian Fallon's Sleepwalkers.

I was actually excited for a change of pace, and had been wanting to hear something from Fallon/Gaslight for a while since I've been seeing the praise people give them around here for years, but never really gave them a fair chance.

I don't know if I'd have been better off starting with a full band Gaslight Anthem record, or if starting with Fallon's solo stuff was the way to go, but I will explore further now that I've listened to and enjoyed Sleepwalkers.

The album started with a few tracks that I sonically enjoyed, but didn't really grab me on first listen. But by the time I got to the fourth track "Etta James", I was on board. This was probably the "calmest" song thus far, but I REALLY liked it. The rest of the record was cool too, but it wasn't until "Watson" (near the end of the album) that my ears really perked up again.

After first listen, I thought "this is a cool record, but not really my thing. I might revisit some of it, but it probably won't get a ton of replay" - I could hear some of the Springsteen influence (another artist I should probably dig into more) and thought I should probably just listen to Springsteen, but I decided to listen to it a second time before writing anything, and it really did it's work on the second play. There were lots of hooks and choruses that I hadn't realized had worked their way into my head. On the second round I found myself tapping my toes, singing along to certain parts, etc... I will keep this album around and although it won't be a daily or even weekly listen, I'll probably pop it on from time to time, and I will definitely check out some of Gaslight Anthem's work.

 

Life happens man