Song of the Week (04/17-04/23)

     This week's song of the week selection is me going back to the days of my middle and high school life, listening to one of the few genres that I could truly identify with, nu-metal.  Although nu-metal gets its fair share of criticism and is regarded by many to be a 90s musical fad, I used to and still love listening to it.  One of my favorite bands of this movement, Korn, was one of my favorite bands of the time and really helped get me into the music I'm into today.  When one of their guitarists. Brian "Head" Welch left the band in 2005, I was devastated by him leaving after six albums and more than ten years of being in the band.  Korn had since then put out two mediocre records and lost drummer, Dave Silveria (in 2006), and I was beginning to think that Korn should call it quits.  I felt that they had became to experimental and lost what made them so great when two of the five members had left.  But then Korn put out 2010's "Korn III; Remember Who You Are."  This marked a renewed enthusiasm from the band and great new drumming from the newly announced drummer, Ray Luzier.  Listening to this CD a lot more lately made me realize how great of a band that Korn still is and made me decide to feature the song "Oildale (Leave Me Alone) as this weeks song of the week.
     "Oildale "Leave Me Alone" could have easily been a track off a much earlier Korn CD, and I think that is why I like it so much.  It really marked a return to form for Korn, even to the point of recording the album without pro-tool and with producer Ross Robinson, who produced their first two albums.  They used old methods, like recording in a garage and using an old 24 track tape machine for recordings to give it an old school, early 90s Korn vibe, and it really comes through in songs like this.  Luzier does a great job of holding the rhythm in the place of Silveria with very powerful drum sounds.  Bass player, Reginald "fieldy" Arvizu's, always interesting lowly tuned 5 string bass paired with a slap bass technique add low end rattle, while James "Munky" Shaffer's lowly tuned 7 string guitar parts alternate between brutally low riffs and eerie high end riffs make a great environment for singer, Jonathan Davis' always intriguing voice.  His combination of near-whimpers and angry yells create very emotional quality vocals.  The best part of this song, in my opinion, is the final moments when it becomes a breakdown-like segment, speeding up the song, giving it a really aggressive and primal sound.
     A lot of people may have given up on nu-metal and Korn, but after songs and a whole album like this, I simply can not.  Korn has always been one of my favorite bands and if they keep putting out great music like this, I will always be a fan.  More recently Korn has experimented a little more, collaborating with dub step artist, Skrillex, creating a whole new possible direction for the future of the band.  Only time will tell what the band chooses to do, but I will be supportive no matter what, always hoping for the best.  Posted below is the video for "Oildale (Leave Me Alone)" and their collaboration song "Get Up!" Let me know what you think.

"Oildale (Leave Me Alone)"-Korn

"Get Up!"-Korn feat. Skrillex

Song of the Week (04/10-04/16)

     Last week I can to a couple of realizations about music and I.  The first being that if I had to choose any decade of music that I couldn't live without, it would be the '90s, and I will eventually write a piece about why.  But lets get to the revelation that spawned this weeks song of the week.  Although the '90s is my favorite decade, this week I have determined that my favorite album came out in 2004.  This CD is Say Anything's classic, ...Is A Real Boy.  It is one of those CDs that I can just sit down and listen too over and over again (both discs), multiple days in a row, as I did all of last week.  I just find that there isn't a single week song on either CD, even with songs varying in tempo and emotion.  And instead of picking a song everyone knows for my song of the week (cough cough..... "Wow, I Can Get Sexual Too" cough cough....), I choose cult classic "Admit It!!!" as my song of the week. 
     "Admit It!!!" is the longest track on either CD, coming in at just over six minutes (twice the average Say Anything song), but that doesn't make it any less interesting.  The song is held together by a great punk-rock riff throughout most of the song, highlighted by drummer, Coby Linder's precision and power behind the kit and occasional background, keyboard sounds.  But what makes this song truly stand out among Say Anything songs is the anthemic rant that singer/songwriter, Max Bemis, goes on throughout the song.  Using big, sophisticated words, witty banter and blatant sarcasm, he deconstructs the modern media and social system, trying to get people to just admit the faults of these systems and themselves.  Throughout the song, Bemis also exclaims the simpleness of band-life ("My car and my guitar"), proudly being a loner instead of conforming to these ideals he doesn't believe in.
     "Admit It!!!" is one of those songs that truly gets you to think about the state this world and country is in, dependant on trends and pop-culture.  But then again I think that's what I enjoy most about Say Anything's brilliant ...Is A Real Boy.  It is an album that gets you to think and feel various things, and not only do I love that about this album, but much of Say Anything's music in general.  This is one of the many reasons why this album and band will always be one of my favorites.  Posted below is the song "Admit It!!!," let me know what you think about this song and our society. 

Say Anything-"Admit It!!!"

Why Are All The Bands That I Like Falling Apart?

     Unless you live under a rock or don't follow the "music scene" you won't be surprised by either of these things I'm about to tell you. 
     The first of these two stories comes in the form of Four Year Strong keyboardist and occasional screamer, Josh Lyford, being kicked out of the band last week.  FYS has made a statement in which they gave their reasoning for Lyford not being in the band anymore, citing that they no longer feel that keyboard parts are relevant in the band.
     When I first heard the news I was shocked.  I always felt that the members of FYS were really tight and close-knit and figured they could have made room for some keyboard parts or screaming parts to keep Josh in the band.  But then when I really thought about it, I realized that it was a natural progression for the band.  FYS has been slowly drifting away from the keyboards, turning away from pop-punk and opting out for a more punk-rock sound with every album.  I suppose it was only a matter of time before Lyford was phased out of a job in FYS.  With that being said, I'm still pumped to see FYS at the end of April with Bad Religion and Rise Against and also look forward to their new album and it's keyboard-less sound. 
     In other bad news in the music world, Emarosa announced yesterday that they would be continuing on as a band without front-man, Jonny Craig.  This news comes as a shocker to some, but most knew that it would happen eventually.  Craig has been doing a lot of touring and work with the original line-up of Dance Gavin Dance, and hasn't really had much time to devote to Emarosa as of late. 
   And although Emarosa feels that it is in their best interest to move on without Craig, I feel that this could cause problems for the band in the future.  All the members of Emarosa are very talented but lets face it, Craig is the face of Emarosa.  Regardless of whatever controversy that surrounds him, the guy has a great voice and stage presence.  I really do wish Emarosa the best and hope they can find another great singer to replace Jonny, but I don't think it looks so hot for Emarosa.
     The news of these two bands getting rid of members really saddens me.  They are both great bands that I have seen live and listen to a lot.  I hope the best for the two bands, but this raises a question for me.  Why does it seem like all my favorite bands are beginning to fall apart.  It was only at the end of last year when I wrote that Attack Attack! had lost another member and now there are two more bands I like losing members.  If any of your favorite bands have lost members or broken up, post below.

Song of the Week (4/3-4/9)

     Many people who know me, know that I am quite the CD buff.  I am always buying CDs, adding to my collection that is currently near or maybe even over 100.  I just have always enjoyed having hard copies over digital copies, much like I prefer books and magazines to their digital counterparts (not to crazy about electronic book sources).   I also really enjoy reading and looking at the the liner notes and CD art as well.  And this brings me to my song of the week.  Any day now, I should be getting the new Silverstein CD, Rescue, their fifth CD total and debut for new label, Hopeless Records.  And although I haven't heard every song of the CD yet, I believe that this could be one of Silverstein's strongest set of songs to date.  And that's why my song of the week is my current favorite off the album "The Artist."
     "The Artist" is not only one of my favorite songs that I have heard off Rescue, but could potentially be my favorite Silverstein song ever.  This song mixes all the elements that make Silverstein a great band, i.e. Shane Told's brilliant mix of singing and screaming, aggressive, yet catchy guitars, and always great drum work by Paul Koehler, in one song.  Told has truly come a long way from his beginnings as a horrid screamer (a wailer in my opinion) and a mediocre singer and become one of my favorite singer/screamers of all-time.  And not only has Told progressed greatly, but the band as a whole has.  In songs like "The Artist"you can truly see their ten plus years of growth.  The music has become more formed, structured, catchy and meaningful.
     When I first heard "The Artist" I really became excited for the new Silverstein.  It was sad to see them leave from Victory, but if this is the type of music they will put out through Hopeless Records, then I am very open to the change.  I can not wait until my copy of Rescue to come in the mail, and with it coming out in two weeks, everyone should surely pick themselves up a copy.  Posted below is Silverstein's video for "The Artist," let me know what you think.  I also have a question.  Do you guys think I should do a CD review?  I haven't done one yet, but have wanting to and was thinking this would be a great opportunity to start. Please answer below or on my facebook (Nick Handy) or twitter (@nickhandy69) and let me know what you think. 

Silverstein-"The Artist"

Song of the Week (3/27-4/2)

     One of my all-time favorite things to do in life is to find brand new bands to listen to that I really enjoy.  The most recent of these bands has been the band, We Came as Romans.  I have been hearing about these guys a lot the past couple of months, but I didn't really decide to check them out until I heard how they were going to be on the Game Changers Tour that I recently went to (I will have the review up by the end of the week if you guys want to hear about it) and to make a long story short, I have been enjoying them ever since.  The song that I have choosen as my song of the week is "To Plant a Seed" purely because I haven't been able to stop listening to it (although "Broken Statues" came in a close second).
     "To Plant a Seed" was one of the first We Came as Romans songs I had listened to and will definitely always remain one of my favorites.  The vocal chemistry between screamer, David Stephens, and clean singer/keyboardist, Kyle Pavone, is extraordinary and surely one of my favorite vocal duos out there right now.  And not only do they sound great together, but they right awesome lyrics.  The lyrics in "To Plant a Seed" appear to be about their growth as a band and takes a really postive approach, as most of their songs do.  Many people who don't take the time to listen to bands like this could right them off as a negative band, surely on the grounds of their screamed vocals and crunching riffs, but WCAR is an unbelievably positive band.  The guitar riffs in this song rreally compliment the balance put forth by Stephens and Pavone, alternating between melodic passages and typical hardcore riffs.  Drummer, Eric Choi, offers a nice rythmic background, and some solid drum work, for the band.
     We Came as Romans really impressed me at the Game Changers Tour, offering much energy and stage for and presence in a support band and really got me hooked on them.  Although they currently only have one LP out, I will definitely be on the lookout for their follow-up LP, which from what I hear, will be out sometime this summer.  I also really hope that I can see them live again, only for a longer period of time and can't wait to catch them on the Warped Tour this year.  Posted below is the music video for "To Plant a Seed," let me know what you think. 

We Came as Romans-"To Plant a Seed"