A Stranger's music :: #46 Lemetre, Antlers and more Radiohead [video reviews]

[Stranger of Sorts]

Any time, I'm just happy finding that some other people do have my taste in music,

There's a surprising amount of people who are, some don't admit it while others don't bother saying.

 

[Gildan Bladeborn]

I wouldn't mind seeing a review of Symphony X's The Odyssey, but I wouldn't feel right if I didn't warn you that there is a 24 minute track on that album that quite literally retells The Odyssey. I find it to be quite badass, wouldn't mind seeing a second opinion.

^This. Any Symphony X. They're like a less shred-happy Dream Theater.

With a much better vocalist - in point of fact, Russell Allen has one of the best voices in metal period.

On the subject of Them Crooked Vultures: I only own that album because it was on sale for a ridiculous price ($3), but while I'm not especially enthused about it, it's still pleasant enough background listening. Can't say I really disagree with any of the reasons you didn't like it though - I expected better from an album I kept seeing people raving about.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

[HEADING=2]16.[/HEADING]​

[HEADING=1]I'm Like A Virgin Losing a Child[/HEADING]
[HEADING=2]_by Manchester Orchestra[/HEADING]

[h4] Genre = Indie Rock

Number of Songs = 11

Highlights = Wolves at Night, Sleeper 1972 + Alice and Interiors[/h4]

For all the people who are still unaccustomed to my reviewing style on this thread then you should know that this is the part where I ramble on for a bit and today I have a lot to ramble about. I've had a few ideas for this thread which I may or may not implement, one of these is allowing other people to post reviews in the thread in the knowledge that there are a handful of people who look out for these almost daily musings (those people are also coincidental awesome so you'll be getting the best people to read your review). As I've said I'll look at the feedback on this idea before I actually make it happen. In other, rather more shocking news, I find myself with competition with another music thread that's been put up by [user]Gildan Bladeborn[/user]. Thankfully this seems as though it's going to be very metal orientated so it won't clash with
this one too much, go check it out if you haven't [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.188243-Gildans-Guide-to-Good-Music-Orphaned-Land-The-Never-Ending-Way-Of-ORwarriOR].

I'm sorry that I'm reviewing Manchester Orchestra again, it's just that since I climaxed over their other album I couldn't resist listening to this one, especially after hearing that it was even more emotional but, I'm afraid, not quite as brilliant. The word I would use to describe this album would be heavy, but not a Death-Metal, guitar solo heavy, it's more of a a "this album was written just after the death of the singer's dad" heavy. It consists of 11 songs of pure emotion and this shows even in just the titles, such as Don't Let them See you Cry and I Can Barely Breathe.

Unlike Mean Everything To Nothing, this album starts off very well with Wolves at Night, a loud rock song with a stunningly good guitar riff in between verses. The frustration and anguish of the singer is obvious, especially with the repeating line 'So Lonely.' However, the album soon loses pace with songs such as The Neighbourhood is Bleeding, a song that perfectly fits the 'whiny American rock' genre and closely resembles a band called The Format, who aren't very good at all.

The saving grace of the album comes close to the end with Sleeper 1972, which is by far the most emotional song I have ever heard. It describes the feelings and observations of the singer after his father died so is the epitome of "heavy". The main instrument is an organ, symbolising the funeral and the only other things that you can hear are voices and incredibly subtle drumming. Sleeper 1972 is slow and almost dream-like, I was home alone today so I burned the song onto a CD and played it on 3ft high speakers at near to full volume. All that I can say about that experience is... wow. When the backing voices come in at the point the line "I still see you in the godforsaken house" is incredibly moving and beautiful. This has to be one of my favourite songs of all time and were it heard before I did the 'Top 10' article, it would have certainly been up there. Turn up the volume, lie back and have a listen.


Another song worthy of mention is Alice and Interiors, this song is more like Manchester Orchestra's more recent stuff with the quiet verses and loud choruses, it also verges on whiny American rock but it's very good non the less. The chorus is very catchy and the multi-layered guitars work well together, while it's certainly not an outstanding song it's a good example of Indie Rock so well worth a listen.

So no, this album is not as good as Mean Everything to Nothing but it deserves your attention thanks to the wonder that is to be found in Sleeper 1972 and even Wolves at Night. Next week I'll either be reviewing The Odyssey or a Funeral for a Friend album. Suggestions/ Requests are still welcome but it's getting to the point where I'm going to have to miss out a few of them since I don't have time to get through that amount of albums.

- Thanks for your time and thanks especially to those who continue to read these.

 

[alerriixx]

When I first met Andy Hull (Lead singer of Manchester Orchestra), we had a fairly lengthy discussion about his first album, and I found that most of the songs on the album were from their EP,(You Brainstorm, I Brainstorm, But Brilliance Needs A Good Editor) but after the death of someone very close to him, and the dwindling religious community in his hometown. He set about writing the rest of the Album

So I feel almost obligated to stick up for 'The Neighbourhood is Bleeding' as it was written by a distraught man obviously distressed with his religious community shrinking. Sorry for stalking/bothering you. All the best.

 

[alerriixx]

Unless i've misunderstood, you're looking for an orchestra in manchester? Try msoc.org for that specific thing.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

[HEADING=2]17.[/HEADING]​

[HEADING=1]Hours[/HEADING]
[HEADING=2]+by Funeral for a Friend[/HEADING]

[h4]Genre = Rock/ Metal

Number of Songs = 11

Highlights = Roses for the Dead, Drive, History + Sonny[/h4]

My musical journey from liking Green Day to it's present state was both long, arduous and in most part, pointless since I seem to have ended up not too far away from where I began. However, along this journey that saw me go through stages of death metal and emo, to name a few, there were a few albums that I still continue to enjoy today. A prime example of this would be Suicide Season by Bring Me The Horizon, another sterling example would be this album. Hours is by far the best of Funeral for a Friend's albums and still has me coming back for more. Although thankfully, from a reviewers perspective, it is not perfect. None of us want another review like the first Manchester Orchestra one.

Hours kicks off in a very heavy fashion, All The Rage is jam-packed full of loud guitar riffs and shouting. The verses are very fast paced but the pace slows down once you reach the chorus, a slower riff settles in and the singing becomes more melodic, this contrast is something that has been mentioned many times as the thing that makes great music. Roses for the Dead, the single of the album is equally as heavy and follows the same basic formula of frantic verses and calmer choruses. What this song does better though is to throw in a few bridges and then a breakdown in for variety, no part of the song sounds the same and the effect of catching you off guard really allows the song to play around with your emotions. The chorus of "I never listened to a word you never said" is added to the second time it's played and then that's followed by a surprise bridge and then the song suddenly ends. Suprise is a key factor with this song.

Funeral for a Friend do not only play fast-paced metal tracks, as their singer says in one of their live CD's "We mix it up a bit, it keeps this shit interesting ya'know?" Drive is the ballad of the album, it's a lot slower and more 'heartfelt'. While it does border onto melodramatic teenager type music it is good to listen to none the less. The singer's voice varies from calm and melodic to emotional shouting which highlights the variety that is to be found in this album. History is similar in the way that it is not so loud and doesn't contain any metal-riffs but it is not quite as 'whiny' as Drive. There is no shouting to be found and the lyrics incorporate emo observations with nonsensical musings which is slightly off putting if you listen to them too closely.

The strongest song on the album is the final track, Sonny. It starts of incredibly slowly with only the voice, bass and drums and builds up ever so slowly into a crescendo of riffs and shouting by the end of the 3:14 this song lasts for. The guitar is added quite quickly but what it plays and it's volume is often changed. Sonny still has a verse-chorus structure but each chorus is noticeably different from the rest, however this structure is throw away in the last minute in favour of the minute long outro which merges the verse and chorus together for a kind of heavy, farewell bridge.


The problem that's to be had with this album is that every song is good in one way or another, at one point you will like one song and another point you'll be into the next. While this album is by no means the best that I've ever heard I can highly reckomend it to anyone who likes the genre.

[h4]Plug[/h4]

Spoiler: More reviews created with the intention of wasting your time

It's About Time! Final Fantasy XII [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.188075-Poll-Its-About-Time-Final-Fantasy-XII] Fallout 3 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.186956-Its-About-Time-Fallout-3-version-1-2] Dragon Age: Origins [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.185708-Its-About-Time-Dragon-Age-Origins] Little Big Planet [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.184065-Its-About-Time-Little-Big-Planet]
Games Cel Damage Overdrive [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.187437-A-Stranger-reviews-Cel-Damage-Overdrive] The Fall(en) [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.183414-A-Stranger-reviews-The-Fall-en-updated], Plants Vs Zombies [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.183040-Plants-Vs-Zombies-In-a-Nutshell], Borderlands DLC: Secret Armoury [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.179437-A-Stranger-Reviews-Borderlands-Secret-Armoury-Get-you-one],Cod: Modern Warfare 2 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.181561-A-Stranger-reviews-CoD-Modern-Warfare-2-a-review-to-end-all-others-well-hopefully], B:BC2 demo [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.176510-Review-Battlefield-Bad-Company-2-multiplayer-demo]
Movies 2001: A Space Odyssey [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.179870-2001-A-Space-Odyssey-A-Strangers-verdict]
Music [url-http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.183857-Music-for-Dummies-A-collection-of-music-reviews-7-Technicolour-Health-by-Harlem-Shakes]The Music Thread[/url] My Dinosaur Life [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.182845-A-Stranger-reviews-music-My-Dinosaur-Life-by-MCS], Cajun Dance Party [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.181141-Cajun-Dance-Party-A-Strangers-Music-Review], Bloc Party [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.178462-A-Music-Review-Bloc-Party]
Random The Escapist forums [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.182355-A-Stranger-reviews-The-Escapist-Forums] Progress Wars [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.185328-Poll-A-Stranger-reviews-Progress-Wars]

Next time: it's a surprise!
Time after that: I may get round to doing the Odyssey album

I tried not to mention myself so many times in this review and I think I've managed it. Comments or feedback are always wanted.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

Re: Manchester Orchestra... Try some MAHAVISHNU Orchestra... yeah, that will knock your socks off.

Ahhh, jazz-rock fusion. I thought that had been killed long ago but it still has the groove.

 

[Saargston]

You should do Mit Gas and/or Tomahawk by Tomahawk.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

[HEADING=2]18. (Suprise bitches!)[/HEADING]​

[HEADING=1]The Planets[/HEADING]
[HEADING=2]_by Gustav Holst[/HEADING]

[h4]Genre = Classical

Number of Songs = 7

Highlights = Mars + Jupiter[/h4]

Surprise you say? Well yes I hope at least one person is a tiny bit taken a back by this, and with good reason they should. That one person will remember that I said I'd do something a tiny bit different this time, I even didn't write it immediately "to let the suspense build up". I apologise to those who still want me to review their cherished favourites but listening to the albums enough times to review them properly takes a lot of time, and since I'm back at school and working toward my GCSEs it's becoming impossible to find that time. Anyway, all the spare time I could probably fit it into is taken up by the new(ish) Mumford and Sons album, as well as the Animal Collective one and I'm afraid they are rather good so tearing myself away from them will take an implausible amount of effort.

Now there is a reason behind my choice for this review, it is in fact the only classical music CD that I willingly listen to, I'm at the age where I'm beginning to appreciate the complexity of Classical music but I'm not nearly adventurous enough to venture further than The Planets and besides, this album will do for a long time to come yet. What Gustav Holst does very well is to tease his listeners, he will constantly drop in small parts of melodies yet to come, or even reference past parts later on, albeit with a different tone. The compositions themselves are impressively complicated, allowing you to pick up on different parts with each listen, be it the subtle use of percussion or the flute "going to town" in the background.

The suite kicks of with Mars: the Bringer of War, a fitting title for a very dark and moody song. What Gustav Holst does is to create a different feeling in each song such as peace, jollity or, in this case, anger. If I were to describe this song I would first like to remind you of the Star Wars theme, which borrows very heavily from it. The percussion is very loud and plays in an almost marching song fashion, most of the orchestra are equally as rhythmic but there are a few parts where flutes play over in clear, piercing notes. The effect is very powerful and the song continues to change while maintaining the ever constant beat of a drum.

By far my favourite song out of the 7 is Jupiter: Bringer of Jollity, it starts off in a complex and rushed manner, slowly building up into a "jolly" gait as trumpets and strings play very pleasant scales. This then cuts off as the loud, clear horns come in, a subtle hint as to what is about to come. Slowly one by one of the instruments returns and then, once again, they cut off. Only to let in the most beautiful part to any song that I have ever heard. I once told a story of how I heard this song being played live in a field, I have to admit I was still crying a while after it finished. There is nothing left for me to do than let you listen to it for yourselves, if you don't understand me after 3 minutes, you don't have a soul.


The problem with The Planets as a while is that the other songs aren't too great, to me they seem rather dull in comparison to the giant that is Jupiter. I admit Classical music is not my forte but I know good music when I hear it, and this most certainly is good music. This is a short review for such a goliath musical achievement, just go listen to it why don't you!

 

[BiffyClyroEqualsSex]

I'm liking these reviews, haven't read all of them yet but i plan on in the next few days or so,

How about reviewing what is (possibly) one of my favourite albums, Demon Days by Gorillaz.

Or how about Love Ire & Song by Frank Turner (or any album), he is relatively unknown and does mainly acoustic songs and although isn't pushing musical boundaries, his lyrics (imo) are genius.

 

[Gildan Bladeborn]

Ah, The Planets - a wonderful suite of music. I would have to agree that Jupiter rather overshadows the other planets, though the martial refrains from Mars are probably more well known thanks to countless other forms of media using it.

Classical music is my first and greatest love, so it's nice to see somebody your age expressing any interest in it at all. I would personally recommend giving Ralph Vaughn Williams a listen if you like The Planets, particularly Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis, To a Lark Ascending, and the absolutely stellar Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus.

Spoiler: Which you can do by clicking this box.

Also, pretty much anything Dvorak composed ever, it's all wonderful.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

I'm liking these reviews, haven't read all of them yet but i plan on in the next few days or so,

How about reviewing what is (possibly) one of my favourite albums, Demon Days by Gorillaz.

Or how about Love Ire & Song by Frank Turner (or any album), he is relatively unknown and does mainly acoustic songs and although isn't pushing musical boundaries, his lyrics (imo) are genius.

Demon Days is already on the list of albums that I can review at any time thanks to the fact that I got very into it when it first came out. I'll push it up the list a bit but there are one or two albums I'm desperate to review first.

 

[BlueInkAlchemist]

[HEADING=2]18. (Suprise bitches!)[/HEADING]​

- snip -

Wonderful to find another fan of Holst.

If I could impose upon you for another great music review, I'd ask you to reach back into the days of hallowed antiquity (read: 1999) and look at the seminal & breakout work of the European electronic music group VNV Nation, Empires.

 

[alerriixx]

Review a Frank turner album. You really should, he is a 'Motherfu**ing lyrical wordsmith, yo!' in the words of Kanye west. Brilliant live too.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

[HEADING=2]18. (Suprise bitches!)[/HEADING]​

- snip -

Wonderful to find another fan of Holst.

If I could impose upon you for another great music review, I'd ask you to reach back into the days of hallowed antiquity (read: 1999) and look at the seminal & breakout work of the European electronic music group VNV Nation, Empires.

Certainly sounds interesting, I'll definitely check it out.

Review a Frank turner album. You really should, he is a 'Motherfu**ing lyrical wordsmith, yo!' in the words of Kanye west. Brilliant live too.

Well since this is the second request for him that pretty much seals it, look out for it in the near future. It will probably be the one after next. Actually I think I'm doing Bloc Party for #20 so it'll be #21.

 

[The Buck Stops Here]

I'm not sure if I already passed by this thread and posted, but I have to say I approve of this. Although I'm not a big fan of the genres, your writing style is insightful and well-informed.

Which leads me to the question - would you be willing to review a far different genre than you normally would review? Like a rap album? If you could, maybe take a listen to Gang Starr's Moment of Truth. The production values on the album are pretty diverse and professional, and the lyrical content is great.

 

[Stranger of Sorts]

[HEADING=2]19. A mother fucking lyrical wordsmith (yo)[/HEADING]​

I'm liking these reviews, haven't read all of them yet but i plan on in the next few days or so,

How about reviewing what is (possibly) one of my favourite albums, Demon Days by Gorillaz.

Or how about Love Ire & Song by Frank Turner (or any album), he is relatively unknown and does mainly acoustic songs and although isn't pushing musical boundaries, his lyrics (imo) are genius.

Review a Frank turner album. You really should, he is a 'Motherfu**ing lyrical wordsmith, yo!' in the words of Kanye west. Brilliant live too.

[HEADING=1]Love, Ire and Song[/HEADING]
[HEADING=2]_by Frank Turner[/HEADING]

[h4]Genre = Acoustic

Number of Songs = 12

Highlights = Substitute, Reasons Not to be an Idiot + Better Half[/h4]

"Wuh? I thought this review was going to be later on?"

Yeh, it was.

So why is it two reviews early?

Well to be honest with you this album took my world by storm, as an acoustic guitar player and schizophrenic song writer it is easy for me to appreciate the amount of work and genius that has been engraved into this CD. So screw Mumford and Sons (that was the one planned for this time), I'm going to share with you the "Mother fucking lyrical wordsmith" that is Frank Turner. It may appear that I have already overused this quote from Kayne West but since it was handily thrown to me I shall continue to abuse it, whatever you
people may think of me. ( And frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.)

Now I think it's best to mention that the music to be found on this album is by no means the best, from a guitar standpoint it consists of not very complicated chords and simple sounding fingerstyle parts. Neither is Frank Turner a very good singer, and while he is not quite as bad as say... Bob Dylan, his voice is noticeably weak at parts. That being said, his voice does work well in a story telling/ camp fire song kind of way and that certainly is fitting due to the fact that all of his songs are dragged along by his wonderfully insightful lyrics.

Reasons Not to be an Idiot is the most "poppy" song on Love, Ire and Song, it's fast paced, up beat and contains some catchy hooks. The reoccurring line "deep down you're just like everybody else" before the chorus works pleasingly well. This song may not be pushing musical boundries in any sense, it contains the classic verse-chorus-verse-chorus-different verse-louder chorus that is becoming overused as of late but the song still works as a whole.

Substitute is a song that is very easily quoted, it is, in essence, a tale of Frank Turners desperation for love and how he hopes that he will no longer have to write music to compensate for this, the ending lines to the verses "I wrote her 15 songs but still we had to part" highlights this, although not as obviously as "Music is my substitute for love". The main reason I like this song is for the ending, the change of tone, pace and volume go along with the rather chilling call of "I've had many different girls inside my bed, but only one or two inside my head".

The lyrics for Substitute have a cohesiveness about them, it feels like Frank Turner has sat down with his guitar and thought "Okay, I'm going to write a song about this..." rather than desperately trying to rhyme words to an established soundtrack. The same is true for the rest of the album, each and every song is about something, I would even go as far as to agree with Kanye West, the man who's only ever made one good song, to say that Frank Turner is indeed a lyrical wordsmith. The only band that I can think of that come close to this are the Arctic Monkeys, but then only their earlier songs.


Frank Turner may not be a man for all, in fact my friends think he is terrible and refuse to even listen to half of one of his songs. But personally, I think this album is well worth a listen if not just for the fantastic lyrics.

Next Week- Bloc Party since it's #20 and I though I might show you the standard of what I compare all of the albums I review to

 

[Gildan Bladeborn]

Hmm. I find myself agreeing with your friends - the guitar playing is nice enough, and the lyrical content is interesting, but his voice is the deal breaker. I've certainly heard worse, but the moment he started singing my brain instantly filed him away into the "earnest but terrible vocalists" category, and I make a point of not actually listening to anything that has that quality to it.

It'd be interesting hearing somebody with a better voice singing his songs I imagine.