Best of 2011: Albums, Songs and Live Acts.

This is a new start of the decade for Rock Music and it could not have been any better.  Last year was grim seeing how many excellent albums failed to chart and come into the limelight (My list for 2010’s album and songs of the year respectively: http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2010/12/top-10-albums-of-2010.html and http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2010/12/top-25-songs-of-2010.html) but this year saw the release of many commercially and critically successful albums with Foo Fighters, Radiohead and Coldplay emerging as clear winners. Not only this, all the major live acts successfully entertained the audiences all year long.

Top 10 Albums of 2011

It is tough to choose among so many anticipated releases and the fact that most of them lived up to their expectations makes it even more difficult.
Somehow managing to come up with Top albums we have the following:

#1 Foo Fighters - Wasting Light (Review: http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2011/05/wasting-light-by-foo-fighters.html)

#2 Youth Lagoon - The Year of Hibernation

#3 Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto (Review: http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2011/10/mylo-xyloto-by-coldplay.html)

#4 Radiohead - The King of Limbs (Review: http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2011/02/king-of-limbs-by-radiohead.html)

#5 Wilco - The Whole Love

#6 Bon Iver  - Bon Iver, Bon Iver

#7 Explosions In The Sky - Take Care, Take Care, Take Care

#8 Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

#9 Florence and the Machine – Ceremonials

#10 PJ Harvey  - Let England Shake

Top 15 Songs of 2011

This category stems from the fact that even few disappointing albums (read “I’m With You by Red Hot Chili Peppers” Review: http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2011/09/im-with-you-by-red-hot-chili-peppers.html) had songs which were memorable and following is the list for it:

#1 Walk – Foo Fighters

#2 Us Against The World – Coldplay

#3 Think You Can Wait - The National

#4 Codex - Radiohead

#5 Piledriver Waltz - Alex Turner

#6 Under Cover of Darkness – The Strokes

#7 St. Peter's Cathedral - Death Cab For Cutie

#8 Love is a Laserquest – Arctic Monkeys (Album Review: http://www.the-secret-chords.blogspot.com/2011/05/suck-it-and-see-by-arctic-monkeys.html)

#9 Discoverer - R.E.M.

#10 Holecene - Bon Iver

#11 Jump Into The Fog - The Wombats

#12 Stop The Clocks - Noel Gallagher

#13 Vaccines - Blow It Up

#14 This is Why We Fight - The Decemberists

#15 Brendan's Death Song – Red Hot Chili Peppers

Top Live Acts of 2011

Huge festivals with the likes of Glastonbury, T in The Park, Lollapalooza made this an eventful year with headliners creating immense impact along with other Rock acts who made their presence equally felt. Following comprises the best among them:

#1 Coldplay

#2 Arcade Fire

#3 U2

#4 Foo Fighters

#5 My Morning Jacket

#6 The Flaming Lips

#7 Beirut

#8 LCD Soundsystem

#9 The Kills

#10 Portishead

Post in your Top Album, Songs and Live Acts in the “Comments” section. 

Fallen Empires by Snow Patrol

Fallen Empires. (Snow Patrol)

They are not jumping in the elite league with this but do manage to keep their heads above the ordinary level.

Album Rating: *** (3/5)

Often referred to as “Celtic Coldplay”, Snow Patrol try hard to break this mould and eventually end up drawing comparisons to U2 and their Zooropa era in their latest offering “Fallen Empires”. Produced by Jacknife Lee, who holds a reputation of pouring in unnecessary emotions especially in lyrical context, this album won’t do a great deal to change that.   

The intentions were quite clear after the release of “Just Say Yes” in their ‘Best of’ series “Up To Now”. They were trying new things in the studio, particularly in the electronica section.  Bringing synths seems to be the new trend but it equally backfires fast enough if it misses the attractiveness that great pop songs over the time have succeeded in achieving. This is exactly the case with few songs on the record as it stretches to their lengthiest effort yet, spanning for almost an hour.  But there are moments on the album that jump out and become memorable although most of it remains groovy and safe, much to the pleasing of casual listeners. 

 “Fallen Empires” starts off in a rather unimpressive manner with “I’ll Never Let Go” which seems like a rip off from the latest “Tron” soundtrack and is easily forgettable.  The lead single, “Called Out In The Dark” is a danceable track with four-to-the-floor beats and enjoyable rhythm overall with Gary declaring “This is your life, This is your time”. With “Weight of Love”, Snow Patrol enter the familiar territory with bass line that ran throughout their entire previous albums and they try to get epic with gradual build up to a choir laden ending. One of the major complaints lodged against the band has been a lack of soul that U2 have and this song does nothing to change that perception. But the respite comes in the form of second single “This Isn’t Everything You Are”.

Retaining their trademark sound, Lightbody indulges in self-pity and one can easily make out the “Here-comes-the-heavy-chorus” moment by the epic melancholy of piano chords that recur like a symphonic motif. With a major uplifting hook and heavy bass similar to “Crack The Shutters”, this song remains their best work in the record and a deserving single. Bringing in some vintage (and by which I refer to pre Final Straw era) element, Gary creates imagery of innocence and simplicity with nostalgic reference to the river, church and setting “The Garden Rules”.  Backed up by a powerful female backing vocal, this song provides for a lighter side before the guitars come crashing in the album title track “Fallen Empires”. Impressive and urgent bass runs through the entire song which samples the band’s dramatic guitar rock and heavily produced affair, two terms that can describe the entire record.

“Berlin” is a short, sweet and simple filler featuring hymns before “Lifening” enters with a start almost identical to the second single but gradually creates its own impression with beautiful lyrics (“Ireland in the world cup, either north or south”). In the song writing department, Snow Patrol have rarely penned anything noteworthy and most of it is straight forward confession of feelings but perhaps that is what distinguishes them from bands like “Arctic Monkeys” and this song is a step forward in the same direction. Gary’s bruised voice commences “New York”, a track full of sparkle, warmth and inspired use of trumpet making it emotionally stirring. 

“In The End” is very generic and doesn’t leave any impression whatsoever on the listener. It is a testament of the fact that they have stretched the record unnecessarily. (“We lost the magic that we once had”). Have they? If the next song is to suggest then “Yes” because “Those Distant Bells” though boosting of some strong vocals mostly lacks luster that binds up a great acoustic song.  

Missing dance tracks? Enter “The Symphony” with sublime pop and charming sing along, a new refreshing take on their usual approach to such songs, it doesn’t build up to something epic, a welcome change. “The President”, relegated to the end of the album seems like a solo effort but Gary’s tragical voice fits surprisingly well with the lyrics (“It’s broke before you know it, before you knew what it was for”) after which an instrumental brings the album to a close. 

With this record, they might not decrease their chance of ending up on credits of Grey’s Anatomy. Clear inspirations from LCD Soundsystem and Elbow combined with many writers block that Gary had, “Fallen Empires” is plagued with absence of songs that can be generally classified as “great” as most of it is nice, sweet and simple. The band itself tries to be bigger without the presence of catchy hooks, doesn’t leap forward heavily but relies on subtle tweaks to their style just for the sake of bringing something “new”. Sticking too rigidly to their formula (anthems) and the large duration of the record might be a downside but they have put in a spirited effort which should be complemented for.  Sadly, the praising stops here.

Key Songs:  This Isn't Everything You Are, Lifening, Fallen Empires. 

Tracklisting: 
1. I'll Never Let Go (4:44)

2. Called Out In The Dark (4:01)

3. The Weight Of Love (4:17)

4. This Isn't Everything You Are (4:58)

5. The Garden Rules (4:29)

6. Fallen Empires (5:20)

7. Berlin (2:05)

8. Life-ning (3:53)

9. New York (4:01)

10. In The End (4:00)

11. Those Distant Bells (3:17)

12. The Symphony (6:07)

13. The President (4:35)

14. Broken Bottles From A Star (Prelude) (1:30)

Do leave in your comments and reviews.

Poll Results.

Here are the results for the poll conducted for the previously reviewed albums:


I'm With You by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Votes: 20


Average Reader Score: 3



Mylo Xyloto by Coldplay

Votes: 27

Average Reader Score: 4.29


Thanks everyone for voting!

Mylo Xyloto by Coldplay

Mylo Xyloto. (Coldplay) 

It’s not their “Achtung Baby”, it’s their “Mylo Xyloto”.  

Album Rating: **** (4/5)

Comparing Coldplay to U2 is one of the easiest things to do.  It’s simple to understand though; both have massive appeal, are charitable and after this album Coldplay will join U2 to become easy targets for Indie snobs to feast upon. 

Follow up to an epic album is much harder than a disappointing one. The expectation are high, the comparison inevitable and fetching for similarities evident.  In this case “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends”, an album which not only established Coldplay as “The Biggest Band of The World” but saw their creative juices flowing to an ever high.  So how do you plan for the next album? By naming it “Mylo Xyloto” of course. 

Original ideas are hard to find.  But christening your record to words which have no place in Dictionary or any meaning is evidence to lengths to which the band can go for marking a whole new impression on listeners. Started off as an acoustic album, “Mylo Xyloto” was previously planned to act as a soundtrack to a movie, pieces of which are evident in the record.  Influences from other popular music styles (RnB, hip-hop, electronic etc.) cropped in and it soon turned into a composite of everything. A dynamic mix to convey a story and hence Coldplay’s first concept album is born.

Few seconds in and the Xylophones rush in providing an interlude to “Hurts Like Heaven”. The protagonist enters all confused (“'Do you ever get the feeling that you're missing the mark?”) and insecure (“'I struggle with the feeling that my life isn't mine”). Themes that Chris has explored all throughout “X&Y” but the execution has never been this perfect. Inspired by German graffiti (“White Rose Movement”) this one clearly has Jonny in total control with gorgeous riffs and many tweaks during production to make it sound more beastly and falsettos right at the end make it an essential listen.

Enter our female lead (presumably) in “Paradise”, second single and major influence of RnB and Hip-hop elements especially with drumming. This song conveys escapism from reality (or rather harsh truth) to make believe Paradise. Piano and guitar (although in minority) land at required places but the string arrangements is a clear winner here.

What follows next is the highlight of the record, “Charlie Brown”, which features meeting of our two leads and how they take refuge together (“Took a car downtown where the lost boys meet”) and wishful plans (“We'll run riot, We'll be glowing in the dark”) in such oppressive environment. The song manages to keep you hooked with addictive guitar rhythm, energetic flow and an outro which surprisingly doesn’t seem out of place rather completes this next bound to “smash hit” single.

An unearthly, sublime guitar riff paves way to one of the most beautiful song that Coldplay have every written or composed.  “Us Against The World” (as the title suggests) is about how both the characters find solace, hope and strength from the difficult times and how they still dream of not only escape but also starting all over again. Will Champion lends his voice to this magnificent, hypnotising, organ filled emotional ride. Simply stunning.  

Another interlude (M.M.I.X.) builds up to first single of the record “Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall”. This song is their attempt at making something which is uplifting, inspirational and dancy at the same time.  The “wa-wa-waterfall” part might not be the best idea ever though. Feeling wicked? Jonny assumes a bad a** role in “Major Minus” with high pumping guitar solo and backing scratch among other things. With the context of the album and story flow many changes have been done such as voice muffling, alien sounds, simultaneous singing to portray Paranoia. (“Got one eye on the road and one on you”) fear of being watched and constant betrayal.

A short, simple acoustic track (“U.F.O.”) finds our protagonist with courage and distant hope (“Let's fly, split the sky”) until it all comes crashing down in “Princess of China”. Essentially a break up song among the leads (“Once upon a time on the same side”) it features Rihanna and it works surprisingly well. Synths, uneasy computerized sounds and total absence of other band members, this one is different than anything they have done before and it's bound to polarize views.

A last minute addition “Up In Flames” (James Blake-isque) is an immensely tragic and highly depressive track conveying hopelessness (“Up in flames , We have slowly burned”) until Chris slowly whispers at the end "Can we pour some water on?". Mesmerizing. Another interlude gives into “Don’t Let It Break Your Heart”, an explosive penultimate track very similar to “The Killers”. The drums are heavy but Jonny's persistent play (minimal but at important points) features ending with flashy sound patches and heart-beat bass makes it more graphical.

Mylo Xyloto final draws to a close with “Up With Birds”, a meditative first half where our lead seems to be content with the loss and just watches the silver lining (“It's a spark in a sea of grey”), Chris almost gives in and escapes (“My arms turn wings”) but the flight turns slowly with the bird call (yes, there are bird noises) as Jonny lends his final riff of optimism.  Sheer courage without despair (“Even though all my armour might rust in the rain”) as love finally triumphs over fear.  Cheesy yet enchanting.

Never have Coldplay paid such high attention to detail. They have worked their heart out to get it right, to convey a message, to paint a picture, to make it more graphic. Some may call it “over-produced” but it’s important to know that everything (from addition of noises to effects) was carried out to say a story (as stated above).  This album hits out emotionally in much more direct ways than “Viva La Vida” ever did and Jonny assumes a lead role for most of the parts.

With Mylo Xyloto, Coldplay have managed to enter the new decade with an album that showcases not only their versatility but also the intent of staying relevant by re-inventing themselves time and again.

It’s not their “Achtung Baby”, it’s their “Mylo Xyloto”.  

Key Songs: Us Against The World, Charlie Brown, Hurts Like Heaven.

Tracklisting:
1. Mylo Xyloto (0:42)
2. Hurts Like Heaven (4:02)
3. Paradise (4:37)
4. Charlie Brown (4:45)
5. Us Against The World (3:59)
6. M.M.I.X. (0:48)
7. Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall (4:00)
8. Major Minus (3:30)
9. U.F.O. (2:17)
10. Princess of China (3:59)
11. Up In Flames (3:13)
12. A Hopeful Transmission (0:33)
13. Don't Let It Break Your Heart (3:54)
14. Up With The Birds (3:45)

Why I am not giving up on Coldplay, yet.

Two singles on and Coldplay are on the verge of marking themselves as “sell outs”, not by the general people but by their own fans. The general public had termed them that after they became famous ages ago. It’s very easy to join the hate wagon and start criticising the change in direction that the band may be adopting. I use the word “may” because sometimes things aren’t exactly what it seems.  What people have presumed from the songs that they have heard till now is that “Coldplay have gone Pop” and it’s hard to break that mould if you listen to “Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall”, the lead single. 

Coldplay have always been an “album band”, which means that one needs to listen to the entire record at a complete stretch to decipher anything. “Mylo Xyloto” was made keeping the same purpose in mind and the entire album runs around a centralised theme involving two major leads overcoming difficult times and situations.  With such a concept album in reckoning, the job of choosing a single is hard and you have two choices – Choose songs which you think are good but won’t go well with the casual listening audience or select songs which are (if not better) very radio-friendly and would expand your audiences many fold. Coldplay, unfortunately went for the latter. It seems that they want to cater to uncharted territory while risking the old/loyal fans.

Risking or playing safe has been an immense duality in Chris’s mind. Many people would think that they are in their comfort zone while churning out two popish tunes as lead singles, that couldn’t be farther from truth. They have attempted something out of their domain and succeeded at it. “Paradise” is an nice tune and a good song for casual listeners to feast upon. But the part where it all seems to go wrong is for those who are expecting Chris and the boys to make something that they could attach themselves to. Song like “Fix You”, “Yellow”, “The Scientist” etc. which is vintage Coldplay and fans instantly associate with it and absence of such classics only increases frustration and loss in certain credibility of the band.

The signs right now, for a die-hard fan is looking grim. The vibe around the built up to the album is that of doubt, fear and uncertainty. Not something new but with the news of a Rihanna collaboration the same increases many folds. Coldplay have always been mainstream and this partnership, although surprising, is not totally out of context. If the album required a female lead vocalist to act as fillers, note I say “fillers”, and if Rihanna has done that very job then there’s nothing to panic about. On the other hand, if it’s another churned pop tune for single sake it could turn lead to loss in respect and loyalty of several fans.

Many bands, in this age, have lost their relevance by dishing out the same material over and over again (read ‘Nickelback’). Coldplay could have easily gone with “Parachutes 2.0” and pleased the hard-core fans and even to expect such a thing now would be nothing short of foolishness. Bands evolve; “Viva La Vida” from “X&Y” was a part of that process. Is “Mylo Xyloto” a step towards the same? The answer to that shouldn’t be given by anyone until they have heard the record completely. Even to judge it by singles that has been out is nothing short of throwing a dart in the dark. Because if the released songs are to taken into consideration Coldplay can be headed two ways – U2’s “Achtung Baby” era where they increased their versatility (while still maintaining relevance) several notches up or they descend into “Pop” era where they hit an all-time low in creativity.

Several decisions like releasing “Charlie Brown” as the second single or avoiding over production in the studio versions of the songs is something that they should have pondered upon. This record will have a mix of everything, from Popish to tune to classic Coldplay (“Us Against The World”) and if they manage to keep the story of the album going with such diversity, it will garner respect from every critic.

Skeptic, admirer or hater, everyone is having a say on the proceedings right now with the latter dominating heavily. I, for once, have yet not given hope of a Coldplay album that would amaze me just the way “A Rush Of Blood To The Head” or “Viva La Vida” did. I am still ready to defend this band and any change in such a stand will not happen before 24^th October.  I am not giving up on Coldplay, yet.  

I'm With You by Red Hot Chili Peppers

I’m With You. (Red Hot Chili Peppers)

Is it the right time for them to call it a day? 

Album Rating: **1/2 (2.5/5)

Red Hot Chili Peppers never had it easy. From drug addiction, death of a guitarist to numerous band line-up changes, they always managed to prove the masses wrong by staging comebacks time after time. On the outside, it might seem that after a torrid time things have finally returned to normalcy in the Peppers camp but it’s far from that, musically. They have hit an all-time low in their career and this time around (thankfully) it’s not something that is bringing them closer to their physical death, just could spell doom to their band relevance.

“Stadium Arcadium”, the last official release by the Chilis (6 years back) was a worldwide hit with the album and the singles topping the charts all around the world. It had propelled them into a higher strata of commercial and critical success, and rightfully so. The major driving force for such a global expansion was their star guitarist, John Frusciante. Many songs were built around his guitar patches or melody and when you have a person of that stature leave the band, expect the record to be filled with gaping differences and incompetency a.k.a. “I’m With You” 

Frusciante’s departure was rather amicable and not based on anger and personal differences which were the reasons he left last time around.  Enter, Josh Klinghoffer.  A session musician who has toured with several artists ranging from PJ Harvey to Gnarls Barkley. It wasn’t tough for him to fit in the scheme of things as he performed additional guitars and keyboards for the band on their last tour. It was an easy and rather the only choice for them if they wanted to record another album. A decision that they should have pondered more upon.

Unlike the record, the album opens with an impressive track called “Monarchy of Roses”, a chaotic yet vibrant song with random drum fills and great guitar feedback in patches. It also features sleek disco-rock bass riffs by none other than Flea, who has recently worked with Thom Yorke in Atoms for Peace and is a constant architecture of rhythm section for majority of the songs, more so for the next one, “Factory of Faith”. This one is completely dominated by him with some muscular input from Chad although except the catchy bass, the entire song seems forgetful with minimal efforts from Kiedis or Josh.

What follows next is the most beautiful moment of this album, perhaps one of the most brilliant songs they have ever recorded, “Brendan’s Death Song”. Penned for a late friend, Brendan Muller, this song also features Anthony Kiedis excellent song writing, not something he is known for, (“Like I said, you know I'm almost dead/ you know I'm almost gone/ when drummer drums, he's gonna play my song/ you I'm almost gone”). Starting off with an acoustic and a general built up, it reaches a crescendo with an uplifting bass over a heart-aching voice of Anthony and gently fades away. Moments like these are few and in rarity on this album.

Next song, “Ethopia” showcases the major drawback of the Peppers right from their starting days, the lyrics and song writing. Rhyming “Eei-eei-oh-eei-eei-ee-aay” with “away”, it goes downhill from there with double-stop guitar solo from Klinghoffer. He and Kiedis are the major culprits for making this song completely blunt, if not unbearable. Equally unimpressive is “Annie Wants A Baby” with abysmal rhythm and sloppy work from all, the less said about the composition, the better.

The misery ceases to stop with “Look Around” whose last minute is a shameless rip-off of their own song “By The Way”. If you come to think of it, that portion of the song is relatively better than the rest so it is easy to imagine how it would sound. Relief comes in the form of “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie”, the lead single from the album and a wise decision none the less. This track has a funky, groovy and infectious bass line which forms the basis with fills from Josh which is highly infectious. They play off each other quite well with rather remarkable vocals and drums, a chapter taken from one of their successful jams it seems. With “Did I Let You Know”, it starts with a catchy riff from Josh (that’s a first) on a repeated loop and a saxophone breakout, which was a completely unnecessary addition as the song consequentially fails to leave any mark on the listener.  

The record reaches an appalling state with “Goodbye Hooray” and “Happiness Loves Company”, the former being nothing of a song with sudden outburst of instruments before diving into a relaxing interval and the rubbish starts all over again. This term can also be used for the latter as Anthony becomes highly irritating to the point that listening to the rest of the album seems like a brave decision. 

The only saving grace comes in the form of “Police Station”, another highlight of the record with the reminiscence of some of their previous works with sublime and echo guitars, an atmospheric work highly similar to Pink Floyd.  The ballad features crackling drums from Smith and majestic keyboard breaks from Josh (surprise, surprise!). "What happened to the funny papers/ smiling was your money maker", declares Kiedis as this song seems to be ideal cut-out as the next single.

As the album starts drawing closer after the long, wearing and tearing listen there is a little respite but with “Even You Brutus?” the rap kicks in which seems uncalled for with the rhythm section potentially making the song listenable and to some extent likeable.  Somewhat notable and intense is “Meet Me At The Corner” with Jazzy influences and inventive drumming from Chad.  Josh is at his very best on this song with some vital country references as well.  It all ends with “Dance, Dance, Dance” a song that shouldn’t have made it due to the sheer inadequacy barring a playful drum pattern and effective chorus.

Red Hot Chili Peppers have survived for a massive time and entered fourth decade with their fans, “I’m With You” will be a hard pill to swallow for the loyals who have been accustomed to hooky guitar riffs, if not the most meaningful lyrics.  Failing to thrive at this point of their carrier may prove fatal and being in a similar situation before, they will fight it out to come out of this.

Will they succeed?  Only time will tell.  But as the dawn approaches, you cannot help but wonder, Has the time come for them to hang up their boots?

 
Key Songs: Brendan's Death Song, Police Station, The Adventures Of Rain Dance Maggie. 

Track Listing:

1. Monarchy Of Roses (4:11)
2. Factory Of Faith (4:20)
3. Brendan's Death Song (5:38)
4. Ethopia (3:50)
5. Annie Wants A Baby (3:40)
6. Look Around (3:20)
7. The Adventure Of Rain Dance Maggie (4:42)
8. Did I Let You Know (4:21)
9. Goodbye Hooray (3:52)
10. Happiness Loves Company (3:33)
11. Police Station (5:35)
12. Even You Brutus (4:01)
13. Meet Me At The Corner (4:21)
14. Dance, Dance, Dance (3:45)

Do leave in your comments and review.

Ten Albums That You May Have Missed This Year.

As 2011 turns out to be the year for Rock Music to finally dominate its hold with the return of major artists and commercially and critically successful records, we look back upon those albums which remain refrained from becoming a popular hit but are equally good (if not better). 

Presenting, the Top 10 (yet released albums) that you may have skipped this year which demands a listen.  

#1. "Let England Shake" by PJ Harvey.
 

Must Have Tracks: The Last Living Rose, The Glorious Land, The Color of The Earth.

#2. "Bon Iver, Bon Iver" by Bon Iver.

Must Have Tracks: Holocene, Calgary, Beth/Rest.

 #3. "Nine Types of Light" by TV On The Radio.

  

Must Have Tracks: New Cannonball Blues, Keep Your Heart, Forgotten.

# 4. "Kiss Each Other Clean" by Iron & Wine.

Must Have Tracks: Walking Far From Home, Half Moon, Glad Man Singing.

#5. "Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will" by Mogwai.

Must Have Tracks: Death Rays, San Pedro, You're Lionel Richie.

#6. "The Big Roar" by The Joy Formidable.

 
Must Have Tracks: Austere, Cradle, Chapter 2.

#7. "Thank You, Happy Birthday" by Cage The Elephant.

Must Have Tracks: Around My Head, Shake Me Down, Always Something.

#8. "Last Night on Earth" by Noah And The Whale.

 Must Have Tracks: Old Joy, L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N., Give It All Back.

 

#9. "Take Care, Take Care, Take Care" by Explosions In The Sky.

Must Have Tracks: Human Qualities, Last Known Surroundings, Let Me Back In.

 

#10. "What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?" by The Vaccines.

Must Have Tracks: Blow It Up, If You Wanna, Family Friend.

Post in your top records that you think we may have missed this year and comment about the above specified list below.

Glastonbury 2011

The highly awaited weekend is finally here.

Barely a day remains for the “Biggest Music Festival on Earth” to commence when I pen down this blog. And this time around it’s more massive than it has been in recent years. With headliners like U2, Coldplay and Beyonce, Glastonbury is bound to generate more news, views and spite than any other festival.

Last time around Gorillaz were the surprising headliners after U2 had cancelled due to Bono’s injury. Damon Albarn and the company lacked one important aspect in their arsenal, rock anthems. Despite their efforts, it’s safe to say that 2010 was a disappointment. Except Muse, of course.

Festivals are places where the relatively unknown bands and artists get a chance to show their worth and the big headliners casually play their greatest hits. Not Glastonbury. Not this year.

The Pyramid Stage has seen general perception of a band in public eye change for better or for worse. Ask Matt, frontman of the band Muse, who were previously just known for releasing few good records. Come 2004 and now they are cited as one of the best live acts with over the top arrangement of everything. The lights, the sounds, the stage, every single aspect was made larger than life and soon they were hailed for such spectacular attention to details.

Fortune worked in opposite direction for Kings of Leon as they were tagged as a “sell out band” in contrary to their last outing here as the most acclaimed group to adore the other stage. Fame is a funny thing, and no one knows it better than Bono himself. Branded as a hypocrite and facing the criticism of being bigger and money minded than any other vocalist, this could be one chance of erasing all that from the audiences mind with a clever set list and a spectacular performance. And as the news is emerging they seem to be planning exactly the same with their own stage and major tweaks in the final song listing to please the audience. The magnitude of this can be realized with them announcing a new song titled “Glastonbury” which is all set to be performed there.

As Paul glances through the pyramid, he would know that this might be one of the most important performances U2 would put in recent times.  For aeons, these guys have played in front of a devoted crowd with fans supporting their each and every move but this time it’s different. People are ready to become hostile and are planning to afloat an inflatable banner saying “Bono Pay Up” in protest at their moving the business affair to Netherland to avoid taxes.
 

U2’s Friday headline can prove a turning point for them and for us viewers it will be interesting to see what they have in store for us.

Coldplay have their own set of concerns (overshadowing U2’s performance can be one). Although they have been to the farm several times, the nerves must be running high. The last time they headlined it, their album “X&Y” was a month old. Now, they enter the stage without even the name of their new record announced. Uncertainty looms large both for the audience as well as the band themselves.  In 2002, before which the “bedwetters” joke had reached its peak, they were able to silence everyone with an explosive start of “Politik”. They had introduced several songs which received overwhelming popular reviews both from the audience and critics alike.

Repeating the same this time around seems difficult, the focus and attention towards them have increased many folds and the new song “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall” has received mixed reviews from fans. However, the other new tracks that they have tried in follow up to Glastonbury seems to be receiving better audience reactions and “Charlie Brown” in particular cries for massive participation from the crowd. Coldplay have a massive job ahead of themselves to strike a right chord before the highly anticipated LP5 drops. Cometh this Saturday and all our queries will be answered. 

Happy Glastonbury viewing everyone. Oh! And just one thing, the rain can spoil all the fun.  

Poll Results.

The results of the poll conducted for the previously reviewed albums:


The King of Limbs by Radiohead




Votes: 19

Average Reader Score: 3.8




Wasting by Foo Fighters

Votes: 30

Average Reader Score: 4.3



Suck It and See by Arctic Monkeys:





















Votes: 28

Average Reader Score: 4.2



Thanks everyone for voting.

Suck It and See by Arctic Monkeys

Suck It and See. (Arctic Monkeys)

Well, suck it and see.

Album Rating: ***1/2 (3.5/5)

Arctic Monkeys, of all bands, know how difficult it is to create a follow up to a record of epic proportions. After their fastest selling debut album in UK, they refused to get carried away and their next releases were even more impressive. Their last record, “Humbug”, was perceived by many fans as a step in the wrong direction calling them americanized but they couldn’t be farther away from the truth. In reality, Josh Homme had succeeded in bringing out the best from these boys and helped them in attaining a zenith in their career which is very difficult to repeat, making that record a “Classic”. Once an album impresses you to that extent, the hopes from the next one are quite insanely high. This is exactly the case with their new release “Suck It and See”.

Produced by James Ford (who is quite a family figure in the Monkeys camp with his presence in all the previous records), “Suck It an See” has Alex Turner going for more spontaneous recording in the studio with rehearsal takes deliberately added to the beginning of few songs.  As promised, it’s definitely more “Poppy” than anything they have done before. Gone are the urgency of “Brianstorm” and “The View from the Afternoon”, this record sees them going further mature with their sound and finding a remarkable mid-career groove that most bands their age fail to see. Barring few songs, it’s safe to say that this album is not a punk record, rather it’s Indie Rock. Talk about a change in direction, huh?

The album begins with a riff which continues to the majority stretch of the song “She’s Thunderstorms”, probably one of the weakest songs on this record. Matt enters a few seconds later with groovy mid-tempo drums, something he has done quite brilliantly previously and routine bass from Nick before the compulsory explosions at the end. No sweat, nothing new. “Black Treacle” features Alex Turner binding a story of sorts with his majestic lyrics and Jamie providing hooks and delays to make the guitar talk midway through the song. 

Next track, “Brick by Brick” was the first piece of audio made available to us through a surprise release accompanied by a video. Upon the time of its release, it seemed fairly out of place. But on the record, it fits perfectly with Alex Turner declaring “I want to steal your soul, Brick by Brick” and mentioning the word “Rock and Roll” thrice in the song! Cliché? Yes. But is excusable since it’s a fun laugh anyway. Keeping with the tradition of creative song names, “The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala”, planned as the next single is extensively played live by them and begins on groovy bass (again) before an unsettling distortion arrives. This half is particularly upsetting for the listener but the last minute holds a Klaxons (also Ford produced) type chorus providing some respite.

“Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair”, the first single and rightly so, shows the inclination of the band from Punk into more Hard Rock with heavy distortions and a haunting riff. The chorus is particularly catchy and this is the closest they have gone to Humbug. Vintage Arctic Monkeys anyone? Enter “Library Pictures” with some sense of urgency in Alex’s vocal before an outburst and sudden fall in tempo. Clocking in at almost 2 minutes, this is most ‘punk’ they have gone. “Dog s**t, Rock and Roll”.
The classic case of tease and less show is “All My Own Stunts” which starts with an insanely catchy riff but becomes monotonous through the course of the song. Skip.

What follows next is the perhaps the best portion of the record with Monkeys getting Indie and finding better melodies, something that we got a glimpse in the previous records but confined in just one song or the other. Starting with “Reckless Serenade” which although seems like a filler, has a significant role in transforming the tone of the record to a more mellow side. “Piledriver Waltz”, sounds familiar? This song was released on Alex Turners solo efforts in “Submarine” soundtrack. The band re-recorded the entire song with sharper leads and the vocal seems hurried. Nonetheless, the outstanding song-writing are pretty evident. (“Been for breakfast at the heart break hotel/if you are gonna try walk on water, make sure you wear comfortable shoes”).Beautiful then, Beautiful now.

A lovely ballad in the form of “Love is a Laserquest” is a song which could have easily made it to Turner’s solo project and his soothing, relaxing voice shines through.  As the end draws nearer, the record starts to get more harmonic and the title track “Suck It and See” has the croons with multiple backing vocals at the chorus. This track is right synthesis of everything that they have tried before. Closing this album, we have “That’s Where You’re Wrong” which is a reminiscent of “505” with two chord progression throughout the song and an addictive tune to it. It’s bound to become one of the crowd favorites and a permanent place in live setlists.

“Suck It and See” has the mix of few songs from their back catalogue and their advent into more mainstream groovy-rock with a lack of ever sustaining riffs and hooks from Jamie. Another drawback is the absence of variations, as a guitar tone is followed thorough in many songs and the fact that the tracks seems to be arranged in a hay wire manner doesn’t help. Except the ending, the entire record seems to lack continuity which distorts the harmony and flow. The constant remains frontman Alex Turner’s smart mouth and his way with word, angst teenage mold lyrics and his continued form of excellent songwriting.  In the review for Humbug (Click Here) , being particularly excited about what Arctic Monkeys are going to do next, “Suck It and See” is a satisfactory answer. 

Key Songs: Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair, That's Where You're Wrong, Suck It and See, Love Is A Laserquest.

Track Listing:

1. She's Thunderstorm (3:55)
2. Black Treacle (3:35)
3. Brick By Brick (2:59)

4. The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala (3:00)

5. Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair (3:04)

6. Library Pictures (2:22)

7. All My Own Stunts (3:52)

8. Reckless Serenade (2:43)

9. Piledriver Waltz (3:24)

10. Love is a Laserquest (3:12)

11. Suck It and See (3:46)

12. That's Where You're Wrong (4:17)

Leave in your comments and reviews.

Wasting Light by Foo Fighters

Wasting Light. (Foo Fighters)

He is not the “drummer from Nirvana”. He is Dave Grohl, lead vocalist and guitarist of Foo Fighters.

Album Rating: **** (4/5)

By now it’s quite safe to say, anyone who compares Foo Fighters to Nirvana has either never heard them or is too busy immortalizing Nirvana to hear them.  Foo Fighter’s latest venture called “Wasting Light” (taken from the song “Miss The Misery”) is their best album yet, and yes it’s better than “The Colour and The Shape”.

Produced by Butch Vig (responsible for Nirvana’s “Nevermind”), this record is a rare combination of great songwriting, melodic, anthemic guitar riffs, loud and explosive vocals. Recorded entirely in his garage, Dave called it their “heaviest album till date” and Boy! Was he right!

Foo Fighters had uploaded a 30 second snippet of “Burning Bridges” weeks before the release with Dave shouting “These are my famous last words” and that was enough to get everyone excited about the new record. This is exactly how “Wasting Light” commences. A catchy riff, exploding drums, Dave ‘growl’ and you know right from the start, You are in for one hell of a ride!

Following next is the first single “Rope” which starts with jangled guitars before crashing into mahogany-rich cymbals. Although it is lower than the usual Fighter’s anthem, it retains some characteristic feel of "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace".  There’s a duet as well with Bob Mould from Husker Du/Sugar in “Dear Rosemary”, (very similar to “Steady as She Goes” by Raconteurs) a song about restrain and restriction in a relationship. Welcome Guilty-Pleasure. Although Bob tries his best to match up with Dave, he just plays a catalyst in belting the choruses and its best kept that way.

Enter, The heaviest Foo Fighters song, ever. In “White Limo”, Dave Grohl’s screaming vocals have finally been allowed to shine through the whole of it. There are verses that are immensely distorted, the guitar is extremely heavy and it’s particularly evident that the band intentionally had it this way to add the “Garage-recording-thrash-metal” feel to it (They had released a “I am so wasted” type video for it too). It does go into overkill after a certain period and the screaming become tiresome, there is no change to it at any point; it is just a constant growl that becomes irritable by the end of the song.

But no need to fret, We have “Arlandria” and “These Days” which is a tough, moody power ballad in the melancholic spirit of 1997's ''Everlong''. One of the best songs on this record, it has rightly timed pauses and raises insecurity amongst hope (“The clocks will stop and time won't mean a thing”). I bet the same.  On “Back And Forth”, a pop frenzy of sorts, it becomes quite reminiscent of the alternative songs in the 90’s and “A Matter of Time” seems likely go into records as ‘another-good-Foos-song’ with no varied perception in songwriting still maintaining enough melody to make it to the record.

As the end of the album draws closer, excellent lyrics and artistically churned riffs becomes more apparent. “Miss The Misery”, which can act as a filler for some is generic and unique in its own way at the same time. But what follows next are the two very sublime songs of the record. “I Should Have Known” (ft. Nirvana’s bassist Krist Novoselic) almost seems a song dedicated to Kurt Cobain and how his absence seems to be looming still (“Didn't hear your warning/Damn my heart gone deaf”) and a pursuing unforgivable guilty rage that sets in for his mind to be consoled of the loss. (“No, I cannot forgive you yet/To leave my heart in debt”).

The final song of this record delivers the best Foo Fighters song yet (yes, better than “The Pretender”). As “Walk” commences, you can almost feel yourself ‘million miles away’ with Chris Shiflett’s ‘Edge-Chiming’ type guitar sounding more ambient than it ever has.  As it builds up, it acts as a source of faith and new beginnings amongst the dark, striving for freedom from the fear caught up in the mind.  Reaching its zenith, the climax ranges from extreme despair (“I'm on my knees, I'm waiting for a sign" ) to a near wish for immortality, Dave passionately screaming “I never wanna die”. This is clearly the best 4 minutes of music to come out this year. And yes, Welcome back Pat Smear to the Foo’s line up. He deserves a huge credit for shaping the mid-section of this song with insanely beautiful guitar playing. 

"Wasting Light" is a serious contender for 'Album of the Year' title and Foo Fighters have just raised the bar quite high for acts like Coldplay, U2 and Arctic Monkeys to beat. Until and unless, all the other artist put forth their absolute best, this one's an instant winner.

Key Songs: Walk, These Days, I Should Have Known.

Listen To The Album:

Wasting Light by Foo Fighters


Leave in your comments and reviews.

The King Of Limbs by Radiohead

The King of Limbs (Radiohead)

Let it slowly unfurl as lotus flowers.

Album Rating: **** (4/5)
 

Announcing your album a week before its release. And then releasing it a day before it is supposed to be out. Radiohead never play it simple. They try to make situations and their music as complex as possible, and their new release is no exception. Labeled as “The King of Limbs”, (possibly referring to an oak tree in Wiltshire's Savernake Forest, thought to be 1,000 years old) the physical release of this album is due March end and special “Newspaper” edition early May.
 

Radiohead are always considered to have a cult following of sorts generated by heavy experimentation with the advent of Kid A. They revolutionized the entire music scene and also the corporate world by exiting from a major record label and distributing their albums as “Pay-as-you-like” copies (read ‘In Rainbows’). Such “Out-of-the-box” thinking landed them at the top spot for the Best Artist in the last decade. So, How do they start the new decade? With a brilliant album, of course.

 

Few minutes into the album and it becomes quite clear that this record not only requires but demands your full attention.  Another thing quite apparent is that Radiohead are not reverting back to crowd pleasing era of OK Computer rather further dwelling into experimentation and modernization of tracks with complete use of resource at their disposal.  To judge this album on a few listens is nothing short of a crime, and patience in this regard is highly rewarded.  Clocking in at 37 minutes, this is the shortest Radiohead album and it has all the rhythmic upsets which Radiohead are best at.

‘Bloom’, the album opener, starts with a short but gorgeous piano part before a series off-beat rickety drum kicks. “Open your Mouth wide, The Universal Sigh” declares Thom. The resulting tension is reminiscent of ‘Reckoner’ and is simultaneously intriguing and off-putting. Following are a series of fast paced tracks with ‘Morning Mr Magpie’, a song with perfect bass and drum coordination. Colin (bassist) and Phil (drummer) are playing off each other with challenge from Mr. Yorke (“You got some nerve coming here”), this one has everything to please the fans.

Arabic melody anyone? Enter ‘Little By Little’.  A very unsettling song which is the closest the album gets to a pop moment. Mischievous, fun and very catchy, this song has the lightest set of lyrics (“I am such a tease, You are such a flirt!”). That we are. Next, We have ‘Feral’ in which heavily treated vocals appear in and out, while the different instruments (a bit of chainsaw bass here, a chime of keyboard there) sound like they exist in different universes entirely. Trippy stuff.

The latter half of the record gets gloomier, soothing and dark. By Now, You must already know how to dance to the next song ‘Lotus Flower’ (if you don’t, I highly recommend Thom Yorke’s dancing video for the same). Watch it, now.  Start losing your senses as several melodic layers of this song is uncovered. 

What follows next is perhaps the best track of the record, ’Codex’. Meditative, Sublime and Beautiful. A haunting vacuum grips you as this song constantly cleanses your mind like a hypnotic charm. It begets new life (“jump off the end”) and tries to restore humanity in its purest form (“You’ve done nothing wrong, the water’s clear and innocent”). This song (like One by U2) has a universal appeal in its own dark pessimistic way and Thom has provided one of his best heart felt vocals on this track.

As the album end draws near, bird chirping becomes more apparent in ‘Give Up The Ghost’,  a purposeful song that paints its relaxed desolation with a simple, frontier-esque acoustic guitar almost reminding us of Sigur Ros. As Radiohead start to bid adieu on the last track ‘Separator’, they continue to provide distinct reverb, echo and vague dreamlike setting with the departing lines “If you think this is over, then you are wrong”. We would love nothing more.

This record draws some influence from Thom Yorke’s solo album “The Eraser” and previous releases like “Amnesiac” and remains rather inaccessible to easy listening audience. It certainly establishes Phil Selway as One of the best Drummers in Rock history. The only thing missing from the entire equation is front role of Jonny and Ed but I am pretty sure they are playing heavy “behind the role” on several tracks. Does it bother that the entire record is stripped of distorted guitars? For Conventional fans, it might be, but for people who were happy with the outcome of Kid A, it shouldn’t be worrying at all.

On a Personal note, Jonny’s brilliance behind the guitars is missed at times and a few tracks featuring it might have just made it another ‘perfect’ record.  But then again, it might just disturb the continuity of the album. I guess, we will never know.

Key Songs: Codex, Giving Up The Ghost, Little by Little, Lotus Flowers.

Listen to the Album:



 Leave in your comments and reviews.