- Wisdom and Corruption
- An Unforgotten Force
- Caught in the Crossfire
- The Deception
- Disassembly Line
- The Evolution of Aggression
- Your Final Seconds
- Harvesting a Loved One
- Internal Examination
- Spare Parts
Rating: 72%
Music reviews: CD, DVD and live
Rating: 72%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:59 PM 1 comments
Labels: Australian, metal, The Berzerker
Nope, not a review this time! The Sound Cellar is closed at the moment. What with a hospital visit, a whooping cough scare and the family Christmas juggernaut, I haven't had the energy or the inclination to review for the last week or so. I'd like to thank all the regular readers; I'll be back soon with more opinionated bullshit!
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 7:51 PM
Produced by Bob Kulick and Brett Chassen
Released: 2008
So if you'd ever wondered what it would be like if a bunch of metal guys got together and recorded an album of Christmas songs, here's your answer. We Wish You a Metal Xmas and a Headbanging New Year is a compilation of seasonal classics given the once over by a group of rockers and metalheads including Lemmy, Dave Grohl, Alice Cooper and Ronnie James Dio, and members of Shadows Fall, Testament, Ratt and ZZ Top among others, and the results are a lot of fun.
Fun is the key here, so anyone wishing to venture further needs to leave their serious side at the door. These kinds of albums are only to be taken with a grain of salt, but let's face it, it is hard to go past a version of "Run Rudolph Run" done by Lemmy, Billy Gibbons and Dave Grohl. It's just really, really cool. Alice Cooper gets into the spirit of the project with his "Santa Claws is Coming to Town", whereupon the title character is then going to break everything and burn the place to the ground. And what could be more metal than a thrash version of "Silent Night" with Chuck Billy singing? Possibly only Dio and Iommi getting overly dramatic on "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen". Doro Pesch and Michael Schenker team up for the traditional German carol "O Christmas Tree" and Stephen Pearcy, Tracii Guns, Bob Kulick, Billy Sheehan and Greg Bissonette offer a riotous "Grandma Got Ran Over by a Reindeer".
Yep, the cheese is thicker here than on the average Domino's pizza, but this beats the hell out of having to listen to Mariah Carey on Christmas Day. And it's almost worth it just to hear Lemmy shout "Merry Christmas, motherfuckers!"
NOTE: There is a different version of this album that features only the first 11 tracks, with Mark Slaughter and Doug Aldrich on "We Wish You a Merry Xmas" instead of Soto and the Kulicks. Apparently the version I have has been pulled, but I can't find anything that tells me why. Most likely licensing issues are to blame, but I can't say for sure. Oh well. This is the one I have, so this is the one I'll review.
Rating: 76%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 12:30 PM 0 comments
Labels: compilations, metal, rock
Produced by Jimmy Page
Released: 1971
There was plenty of good stuff on the first three Led Zeppelin albums, but the fourth is where all the elements of their sound finally coalesed properly. Unadorned, with a non-descript cover, no title and not even a track listing, this album was intended to be judged purely on its contents alone. After only their second full year as a band, no other group in history would have had the temerity to attempt such an unconventional experiment, but Led Zeppelin were already massive superstars by the time of this release, so anything with their name on it was going to be pre-judged even before it had been heard.
Dominated by the epic masterpiece of "Stairway to Heaven", this album was the culmination of all the band's eclectic aspirations, leanings and inspirations from bombastic heavy rock to psychedelic stomps, folk rock to enormous blues work-outs. No matter what the guise, Led Zeppelin managed to wear it with consummate ease here, as they would for the rest of their career. It was the perfect amalgam of excess and subtlety that set them apart from every other band of their era, and most others to follow.
With its curious "backwards" riff, "Black Dog" got things underway, showing Led Zeppelin at their most primal: Robert Plant's remarkable shriek, Jimmy Page's urgent guitar splats and John Bonham's huge, booming drums. Bonham's immense sound is an integral part of what made this band so special, and here they were recorded with him playing at the bottom of a stairwell and the mikes at the top for maximum echo and reverb. On top of that, on "Four Sticks" he plays with two sticks in each hand! There's more than one reason why Bonzo is still revered as a drum monster, and many of them are on display on this album.
This also marked the full flowering of Plant's lyrical mysticism, marrying mythological elements with Tolkienesque themes and characters in the mandolin-driven folk tune "The Battle of Evermore". Also featuring his vocals intertwining with those of Fairport Convention's Sandy Denny, this is a rare moment of rock magic that is another gem in the crown of an album already spilling over with them.
The centrepiece of course is "Stairway to Heaven", a classic so insurmountable that it lingers to this day as one of the greatest rock songs of all. There's no need for an elaborate description; this song is a microcosm of everything Led Zeppelin was about, and this album is sheer genius from beginning to end.
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 10:22 PM 0 comments
Labels: albums rated 100%, Led Zeppelin, rock
Rating: 85%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:44 AM 0 comments
Labels: In This Moment, rock
Rating: 65%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 10:58 AM 0 comments
Labels: metal, Secret Sphere
Rating: 86%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 10:38 AM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, metal, The Amenta
Extras:
Rating: 95%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:03 PM 1 comments
Labels: Arch Enemy, DVD, live albums, metal
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:47 PM 0 comments
Labels: DVD, Lacuna Coil, metal
Rating: 78%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 8:11 PM 0 comments
Labels: Children of Bodom, metal, Warmen
Rating: 40%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 6:56 AM 3 comments
Labels: Nickelback, rock
Produced by Wrest
Released: 2004
I never really know what to expect from US label Moribund Records because they don’t exactly deal in the sort of metal that I typically enjoy and yet the stuff they do release can be either so compellingly awful or inherently different and bizarre that it can’t really be ignored. Out of this Pandora's box of musical strangeness is Leviathan, a one-man USBM unit inspired by early Burzum, but one who uses that inspiration to create music of an incredibly twisted and perverse nature that stands alone.
Rather like its cover art, Tentacles of Whorror is a truly demented release, as if it came from the bowels of Hell itself. At times the clean guitars are deliberately off-key and often don’t appear to even be in tune, then all of a sudden an enormous blastbeat section comes up and swallows everything only to give way to a painfully slow, dirge-like funereal passage. Depressing ambient sections are juxtaposed with crushing riffs and hair-raising vocal shrieks. It certainly isn’t something to be listened to for the purposes of enjoyment, rather an album that mesmerises with its truly disturbing nature. At a whopping 72 minutes in length and with some songs like the title track and the deeply troubling "A History of Rape" running over eight minutes, Tentacles of Whorror is also an overwhelmingly epic release.
Absolutely not for everybody, Tentacles of Whorror really is for the most extreme tastes only!
Rating: 73%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 8:34 PM 0 comments
Well it's all over now and unless you've been locked away in an iron safe under the sea, you'd know by now that Wes Carr was proclaimed Australian Idol for 2008. That means for possibly the first time ever, the right person actually won the competition. While that may be arguable, what isn't is that next year's series has a lot to live up to. Apart from Johnny Darko, Sparkle Eyes and Tom the Kid, almost any of the other contestants could have won any of the previous series; certainly they were all better than Kate DeAraugo. So next year's auditions should be tougher than ever. It either that or can the whole thing.
But I can't see that happening.
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 6:25 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian Idol
Rating: 89%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 10:36 AM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, Elysium, metal
Rating: 98%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 8:23 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, metal, Nazxul
Well the journey is almost over for the finalists now. I officially stopped caring after the Invisible Bulletproof Man got the chop last week, because a win by any of the three blokes who were left would please me. Those three blokes comprise two guys who were already serious musicians with small-time careers behind them and a complete newcomer with uncanny natural ability and charisma. As I said on the very first of this series of entries, I've always been a fan of this show but this year has been the most enjoyable and appears to have really unearthed some people who truly deserved to be unearthed. Plus, as much as I have a love/hate relationship with Kyle Sandilands, he's infinitely more tolerable than Mark Holden. Indeed, if Sandilands was more like he is on this show more often, and less like the objectionable, opinionated idiot he is everywhere else he sticks his boof head, I would possibly appreciate him more. That won't make me begin listening to 2DAY FM, though.
So anyhow, after last night's reveal, Mark Spano was eliminated, leaving only the favourite and the dark horse in the race. It also means we didn't get to hear Spano's potential single, which is a shame because it had to be better than the one they've given to Luke. I like Luke and his version of "Stuck in the Middle With You" was cool; even if he comes second next week I can see him becoming a nuggety, blues-rock version of Shannon Noll. ie. Someone that blokes won't be embarrassed about admitting they like. But the song they've given him as his first single should he pull off the win doesn't actually suit him that well, because even though he sang it all right, to me it seems like something for someone with a sweeter range. Perhaps it was originally written for Teale, because it sounds more like a song he would have done.
That's assuming, of course, that these songs really were knocked together specifically for these guys; professional songwriters pump out hits over their morning coffee though, so it's quite possible. At least they're not offering up third-hand Diane Warren rubbish like they did with Casey Donovan.
By contrast, Wes Carr's song was perfect for him, though to be honest he could make almost anything his own. I kept thinking it had a very Stevie Wright vibe about it that perhaps was brought about by the vocal style, the 70s rock riff and the harmonica. The way he tore through "Get Back" the night before also marked him, if nothing else has, as the clear champion. Even if Luke pips him next week, which is highly likely given the shearer's immense popularity, we're going to be hearing a lot more from Wes Carr than we did when he was in Tambarlane (a band name that rings bells with me even though it came and went long after my four-nights-a-week gig-pig days were over).
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:23 AM 0 comments
Labels: Australian Idol
Produced by Carl-Johan Grimmark
Released: September 2007
It's hard to believe I almost let this one slip under my radar, because Garden of Chaos is one of the most arse-kicking albums of pure metal to have been blessed my ears so far this year.
Not to be confused with the similarly-named producer behind the mess that was St Anger, Rob Rock is a singer with molten metal pumping through his veins. There is probably few guys as consistent in music than this guy; virtually everything this man lends his voice to is pure quality. From his string of albums with Chris Impelliteri and contributions with Driver, M.A.R.S., Warrior and others to his batch of solo albums, Rock nary puts a foot wrong. So it continues with his latest effort.
Garden of Chaos is just one pure metal track after the next, with no thought of pandering to any trends, taking divergent pathways through orchestral excesses or weird excursions into bland melodic rock in hopeless bids for airplay. With nothing but heavy metal power, Rock just blazes through 11 tracks of absolute ownage, helped out by the ridiculous talents of Roy Z, Bobby Jarzombek and Gus G among others. That the production credits are in the hands of Carl-Johan Grimmark is an amusing irony, because this is the sort of album that his band Narnia could only aspire to in their dreams: heavy, catchy, fast and rocking without the flouncy pretentious bits and lame power metal bullshit.
Picking a highlight on here is virtually a moot point because every song is a ripper, and even the ballad dedicated to his infant son actually sounds heartfelt. Rock's a practising Christian so as usual you can expect to find a lot of Biblical references and in some respects Garden of Chaos is a semi-conceptual exploration of the nature of sin, but unlike many of his contemporaries Rock uses his songs to explore Christian theme rather than just hitting people over the head with preachy dogma so that even people without a shred of religiosity within can just lose themselves in the music and headbang into a frenzy.
Another killer album from one of the best metal artists in circulation.
Rating: 95%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:21 PM 1 comments
Produced by Brendan O'Brien
Released: 2008
In the eight years since the last AC/DC album, the music industry has moved on. Typically, AC/DC has not. Black Ice is as identifiably AC/DC as anything they've done before. Not as high energy perhaps, but with a 61-year old lead singer that probably isn't surprising. The first noticable aspect is that this is an AC/DC album with packaging: there's versions that come in tins and with special full colour-booklets. Even the standard version is a digipak. The last time Akkadakka made any concessions as to how their album was packaged was probably back when For Those About to Rock... came with a gatefold sleeve, but as this group is one of the few remaining major acts that still doesn't allow digital downloads it's obvious they needed to make this CD as alluring as possible. I doubt it would have mattered, as this album sold 1.7 million copies in a week and topped the charts in 29 countries, including Australia where, amazingly, they have only achieved the milestone thrice before. And as with almost everything they've released since 1981, it's unlikely that anyone will still be listening to Black Ice all that much in a year from now.
Clocking in at almost an hour and featuring no less than fifteen songs, Black Ice is a true epic by AC/DC standards and while it is arguably the best album they've made since The Razors Edge it would have been better had they pared it by at least fifteen minutes. "Spoilin' for a Fight", "Wheels", "Smash N Grab" and "Money Made" are simply nothing songs: go nowhere, add nothing, say nothing. Conversely, "Rock N' Roll Train" is one of the best things they've done in a very long time, "Big Jack" has some long-lost swagger to it and "She Likes Rock N Roll" features an unusually funky bass line from Cliff Williams, normally one of the invisible men of rock. "War Machine" also has him laying down a throbbing intro that recalls "Live Wire", although the rest of the song hardly compares.
Far more successfully than Rick Rubin was able, it appears Brendan O'Brien has convinced AC/DC to actually add a trace of colour to their predictable style. For the first time ever, Brian Johnson uses his natural singing voice on "Decibel" instead of his usual tortured shriek and "Stormy May Day" features some truly sloppy slide guitar, two noteworthy moments that add a bit of character to this otherwise by-the-numbers album. The production is otherwise pretty bland. The guitars are suitably loud but not especially gutsy and for a good two-thirds of the album the band just slots into a comfortable bluesy groove. They close out in a rocking fashion with "Rocking All the Way" and the title track, but apart from those couple of interesting touches already mentioned, the middle of Black Ice is little more than a void. There just isn't any of the energy that you'd expect from a band called AC/DC, really and everything between "Anything Goes" and "Rock N Roll Dream" (except "She Likes Rock N Roll", which is really quite good) could have been chopped without anyone noticing.
In just three weeks this has shifted 5 million units around the world so it probably really doesn't matter what I or any other reviewer says about Black Ice. It's AC/DC. You know what to expect.
Rating: 65%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 8:13 PM 1 comments
Produced by Jim Morris and Jon Schaffer
Released: 2004
A friend of mine told me they were disappointed with this album, and being the die-hard Iced Earth fan they are, I can understand why. The Glorious Burden was built up to be a complete triumph, introducing a new singer and a new beginning, utilising orchestral arrangements and featuring an epic track the reflects band leader Jon Schaffer's passion for American history. Of couse, Schaffer builds up all Iced Earth albums as being the greatest recordings ever, so that's nothing unusual. Unfortunately this album doesn't even come close to being Iced Earth's best, never mind the world-changing masterpiece it was claimed to be. Most of the tracks aren’t up to the standard that Schaffer has set for himself over the years and most of the lyrics are worse than some of the worst stuff Steve Harris comes up with from time to time.
The enormous three-part US Civil War epic “Gettysburg (1863)” is the real reason to get hold of The Glorious Burden, where the band is joined by an orchestra that really helps to set the mood for a musical saga that stands so far above the rest of the album it could well have been released on its own without all the filler like the horrible “When the Eagle Cries”, perhaps one of the worst songs in the history of American metal. “Hollow Man” is merely a reworking of previous Iced Earth ballads like “Melancholy”, with different lyrics, but the likes of “Attila” and “Red Baron/Blue Max” do stand out nicely despite that typical repetitive three-part riff that Schaffer has used on every song he’s ever written.
Ex-Judas Priest vocalist Tim Owens does a fantastic job with the material he’s been given, but as gifted a singer as he is, even he has trouble making something like “There were 45,000 wounded or dead when the fight was finally through/On a three-mile square battlefield near a town named Waterloo” sound like lyrics instead of a paragraph from a modern history textbook. Far too often also, The Glorious Burden wavers perilously close to German power metal territory, with Blind Guardian-style multiple vocal harmonies in the choruses as well as being less heavier overall than previous efforts. Ultimately, The Glorious Burden is rather a flawed album that didn’t stand up to the hype that preceded it in the wake of Matt Barlow’s departure and Schaffer’s long-held dissatisfaction with his previous label.
This isn’t a terrible album by any means, but with the exception of the “Gettysburg” trilogy, it is a significant step down from most of their previous releases.
Rating: 68%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:26 PM 1 comments
Labels: Iced Earth, metal
With just three weeks to go I am becoming increasingly fearful that the Bulletproof Invisible Man is going to be one of those in the Grand Final. Going by Luke's performance tonight, there's only Wes and Mark left to stand in Teale's way. More's the pity in that Teale was actually rather good tonight, as if he'd been waiting to get this far before really turning it on. His first effort was as bland and non-descript as always, but when he came back out later and did a Timberlake song everything just seemed to click. It's as if he's always been destined to do this style of music but until now didn't even realise it. He can't move like JT and is a long way from being JT but he finally made me sit up and notice him tonight.
That's bad news for Luke though, who looks to have come about as far as he can on the show. He sang "With Arms Wide Open" first, dedicating it to his newborn son, and with a newborn son myself the sentiment brought a tear to my eye even though I know this is actually a song about Jesus. He did this one OK, but fell a bit flat with "One of These Nights". Still, Chris Isaak rates him, and that's a pretty solid endorsement.
With Isaak on the judging panel, Spano took the audacious risk of doing "Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing"! Lucky he's good enough to pull it off. "Everybody Hurts" was great too. Can there be any doubt this guy will be one of the last two left?
Wes kicked off with "When You Were Young" and even though I didn't think he was quite as good as he usually is, Isaak has already got him booked into an LA studio with the Killers' producer, making records. This is why Chris Isaak is a very cool dude.
Luke to go tonight. He had a good run though.
UPDATE 9.00pm: Teale got the bullet! Yay.
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 4:40 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian Idol
Rating: 78%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 7:44 AM 0 comments
Rating: 98%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 8:55 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, metal, The Eternal
Rating: 83%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 10:37 AM 0 comments
Labels: metal, rock, Wednesday 13
Do I really need to keep doing this? With five people left, Wes is so far ahead of everyone that they might as well go straight to the Opera House next week. Still, there's always a possibility that he'll fall at the last hurdle and the Invisible Bulletproof Man will take the honours. Anyway, to honour the 25th anniversary of the release of the biggest-selling album of all time, tonight's theme was Michael Jackson songs. Mentor and guest host was his brother Jermaine, one of the more likable members of the clan, although his presence must have put the contestants under a formidable amount of pressure.
The Bulletproof Man headed up tonight's show with a MOR version of "Billie Jean" and just did what he's always done. If this guy was to win, I can't imagine how frustrating it would be to try and mould him into a genuine talent. He approaches every thing he's given with exactly the same formula; indeed, Teale is perhaps the most formulaic, colour-by-numbers performer they've ever had on this show. And that's saying something.
That said, Mark is the Rock Guy and does everything the way a rock guy would, so I guess he's being a bit predictable also. Unfortunately for him, "Bad" was obviously harder than he thought it was. The verses were flat and mumbly; he recovered in the choruses, but this could be the end of him.
Chrislyn stretched herself to the limit by attempting the most histrionic Jackson song of all, "Thriller" and wasn't up to the task (few people would be, after all). She's a great singer, but there's more to that song than just singing it.
Luke consolidated his dark horse status by turning "The Way You Make Me Feel" into a blues song, pulling off probably the performance of his life in the process. Without argument, he was the best up to this point and the one who's coming the furthest of anyone with no sign of stopping yet. He's a very, very clever guy who has every chance of going the distance.
Then Wes came on. A self-confessed MJ nut, he had obviously been perfecting this impression of the guy his entire life. To actually get the chance to do so, in front of Jermaine Jackson of all people, has perhaps been the pinnacle of his existence. Everything about his version of "Black And White" was spot on: the look, the voice, the dancing, the whole package. Wes is the best Idol contestant ever. There should be no argument about this.
Even though Mark was worse than him tonight, Teale needs to go, even if it's just because he's the only one I don't care about. And never have.
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 7:20 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian Idol
Perhaps keen to appease their horde of fans salvating for the follow-up to last year's awesome Ascendence album, LORD has released this EP that no doubt serves as a teaser to that follow-up, a recording that is set to feature a jaw-dropping guest list (believe me when I say this). While consisting of only five songs, "Hear No Evil" clocks in at over 23 minutes, and fans of pure heavy metal should go nuts for at least 19 ½ of those minutes without any reservations.
The two new tracks here, "Set in Stone" and the title track, are further refinements of LORD's style but with even more lead guitar histrionics, if such a thing is indeed possible. Should these two songs be any indication of what the forthcoming album will be like (and I would be amazed if they did not), then it will be a totally barnstorming one. Both original songs are catchy, rifftastic monsters with vocals that are spot-on and some simply epic soloing, with the Eastern-flavoured section of "Set in Stone" a real stand out that pips it slightly over "Hear No Evil" for best track. Live versions of "Through the Fire" and "Going Down" are also included, a blitzkreig of shredding that virtually segue into each other without a break and obviously recorded on a night when the band was absolutely on fire; they almost sound like they're about to burst into Maiden's "Heaven Can Wait" at one point.
The other track is a cover that the band was at pains to keep secret until the EP was released (and were surprisingly successful). LORD has a knack for unexpected cover songs, inserting bits and pieces of Europe, Bon Jovi and other such artists into their live shows, but by including Kylie Minogue's "On a Night Like This" on here they have utterly surpassed themselves. Even Machinae Supremacy doing Britney Spears is barely eyebrow-raising compared to this. Synth-heavy and featuring some breathy vocals from the gloriously talented Tania Moran, this reminds me of nothing more than Gamma Ray's version of "It's A Sin" and should perhaps be taken as seriously. Considering the mileage Frankenbok once got from their gimmicky cover of "Don't Call Me Baby", this could lead to a considerable level of airplay but it could also leave them open to ridicule to outsiders who just don't get the joke. It's either the smartest or the dumbest thing LORD has done.
"Hear No Evil" will no doubt please both long-time fans hankering for the next full-length album and newer ones who've caught the band live somewhere, but while "On a Night Like This" is undoubtedly a bit of fun, it's guaranteed to leave some people totally mystified.
Rating: 80%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 12:55 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, LORD, metal
Rating: 85%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:47 PM 0 comments
Labels: King Diamond, metal
Produced by CJ Martin
Released: November 4, 2008
Leeno Dee has always had an ear for a good tune and a watchful eye on the current musical fashion, but his bands manage to somehow just miss out on taking that next step to true stardom. The Candy Harlots teetered on the brink of success for years but in the end were just too drug-fucked and by the time they got clean the halcyon days for their style of rock had ended. Jerk landed a contract with the world's biggest recording company and then imploded before being able to capitalise on a Top 30 album. So you could probably excuse Ink's well-travelled bass player if he's hoping that this could be third time lucky. With three-quarters of Jerk in the line-up, Ink is essentially the same but stripped of the industrial pretensions that Lamar Lowder brought to that band and geared to appeal to the same audience now that Jerk was after five years ago.
With its combination of emo and what passes for mainstream metal these days, "Black Water Reign" perfectly embodies the style of heavy rock that is proving enormously popular at the moment thanks to the likes of Avenged Sevenfold, and indeed if one was looking for a direct comparison then the Huntington Beach combo would be it. The production is full with ridiculously loud and heavy guitars acting as counterpoint to the melodic vocals of Jonathon Devoy. The musicianship is solid and the songs are driving and catchy with a typical metal-meets-emo sound that is thoroughly generic. Anyone who has heard A7X, Atreyu or anything remotely like this will know even without hearing it exactly what "Black Water Reign" is going to sound like. Ink knows this, but they also know that music like this is amazingly popular and still appears to be swelling in popularity. This is band that isn't about making sweeping, grandiose musical statements in an effort to be seen as artistic or daringly inventive. These guys just care about making music that the kids will go nuts over, and in that endeavour they should well succeed because "Black Water Reign" is as good as or better than anything else of its ilk.
It's totally not my thing but for what it is and for what Ink is trying to do with it, "Black Water Reign" is pretty high quality, doing exactly what it needs to and doing it incredibly well. How well it will do against the tide of almost identical releases remains to be seen.
Rating: 65%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 12:22 PM 1 comments
Labels: Australian, Ink, rock
It's starting to get tough now with only six people left. The Rolling Stones was the theme artist on tonight's show, and I suppose if you want to choose a band other than the Beatles whose songs can be interpreted into just about any style then the Stones are it. Plus, they're just awesome.
Teale survived another bullet last week and lo and behold did the same old, same old with "You Can't Always Get What You Want" tonight. Everyone loved it for some reason though, as if he'd actually done something different to what he's done every week. There was really nothing special about him again. Why nobody sees this has me mystified, but he's likely to live on again because Roshani totally failed to nail "Wild Horses" in the same way that she has no idea about clothes. I guess her ethos of testing herself had to bring her unstuck eventually, and it could be that tonight is the night.
Everyone else was great, with Wes and Mark so far out in front only Teale's kevlar suit stands in the way of them being the last two standing. Mind you, Chrislyn is still in with a solid chance with only one stumble so far; her "Get Off My Cloud" was another triumph. Luke remains the dark horse and continues to improve with every step. Tonight he even looked comfortable on stage.
So, either Teale or Roshani for the chop this time, but Teale's apparently bulletproof. I'll leave it there because it's late and I'm buggered.
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:58 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian Idol
Rating: 67%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:16 AM 0 comments
Labels: Girlschool, metal, rock
Rating: 70%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:25 PM 0 comments
Labels: Dream Evil, metal
Rating: 90%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:16 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, Dungeon, metal
The Motown phenomonon was responsible for some of the best pop songs ever written. They were simple, catchy and easy for an artist to interpret to their own style. So for any Idol contestant to have come as far as this, Motown night shouldn't be that much of a challenge because only the most untalented cretin could possibly mess up these songs. Inaugural Idol winner Guy Sebastian was a guest judge tonight, but he's such a nice guy that calling him a judge is probably stretching the definition of the word a bit. Perhaps "advisor" would be a better term; he released an album of Motown and soul stuff this year so I suppose he has some area of expertise in the field in any case.
As I said, it would actually be hard for any of these people to make a fist of it tonight unless their voices blew out so it was really a question of who was going to be the worst best or the least good. As usual, Mark and Wes have such an intrinsic grasp on their muse that tonight was going to be a walk in the park for them. Mark's "You Keep Me Hanging On" was perfectly restrained and Wes put plenty of his own personality into "If I Were a Carpenter". Chrislyn recovered from her stumble last week with a sassy "Get Ready" but Motown is so close to her preferred style that a misfire from her tonight would have been utterly unexpected. Forpossibly the easiest song she's done so far, Roshani didn't seem quite as confident as she should have been and sounded like she was mumbling a bit at the start, although she finished well. Luke's been nagged to try out his "sweet notes" for the past six weeks and tonight he actually gave it a bash. It's certainly the aspect of his voice that needs more work but I didn't hear any dud notes or straining so I reckon he did OK once again.
That leaves Teale and Sophie. Teale was the Invisible Man again, as he always is, not really standing out in any way and Sophie didn't impress one way or the other either. That said, she's had some moments where she really has shined and he's had none, so it's off with his head this week.
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 11:14 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian Idol
Rating: 70%
Posted by Brian Fischer-Giffin at 9:09 PM 0 comments
Labels: Australian, metal, The Uncreation