Album Reviews #1

Okay, here's the first chunk. It might look like a lot but it'll go quickly, I promise. As you will see, I've actually already written about some/ most of them. I might throw the links on there to the respective posts but this is mainly a quick review. 

Here's a Playlist of my favorites from these albums to listen to whilst you scroll.

Remember: Skip it= maybe one song but altogether not really worth the time. Track it= a few songs (2-5 ish) are worth listening to/ buying but not the entire album. Buy it= well, buy it... kinda... self explanatory. Typically, if I like/ want to own over half the tracks, I'll buy it just because it's cheaper as an album than buying the individual tracks on that curs-ed iTunes... 


Sondre Lerche- Duper Sessions-- Buy It; Love Sondre. Love smooth jazz. Sondre+Jazz= Epic.

Sondre Lerche- Two Way Monologue-- Skip it; Sadly not his greatest. Title track's alright.  

Regina Spektor- What We Saw from the Cheapseats--BUY IT BUY IT BUY IT!!! Buy 50 COPIES!!! Not necessarily because it's that good. I still like "Far" better but she's so friggin' incredible. But definitely a Buy It.

Jukebox the Ghost- Live & Let Ghost--Track It; Love them but there's some swearing on this. Better yet, Buy It but then edit it. Then it's perfect.

Jukebox the Ghost- Everything Under the Sun--BUY IT BUY IT BUY IT!!! Buy 50 COPIES!!! (This might become a pattern...)

Jukebox the Ghost- Safe Travels--BUY IT BUY IT BUY IT!!! Buy 50 COPIES!!! (yup, it's a thing now)

Switchfoot- Oh! Gravity--Track it; Title track, American Dream, Awakening, maybe Head over heels?

Switchfoot- Beautiful Letdown-- Track it. Meant to Live, Dare you to Move, Gone?, Adding to the Noise. Ammunition is good but a little screamy toward the end...

Sara Bareilles- Little Voice-- Track It. Vegas, Bottle It Up (edited), Love Song and maybe Morningside?

Gaslight Anthem- Handwritten-- Skip it. For as amazing as "45" is, the rest of the album is pretty boring.

Sondre Lerche- Faces Down-- Skip It. It's got Modern Nature on it but you can get that on the Dan in Real Life soundtrack too.

Regina Spektor- Far-- Buy 50 MILLION copies!!!! (See? This one's different!...) SUCH an amazing album. BUY. IT. Period.

Presidents of the United States of America- Presidents of the United States of America-- If you can, edit Kitty and Kick Out the Jams then it's a definite Buy It. Otherwise, Track It because there's some language...

Presidents of the United States of America- II-- Track It; Ladies & Gentlemen, Volcano, Mach 5 & Toob Amplifier are my favorites. There are others that are fun but don't stick (or that have language).

Switchfoot- Legend of Chin-- Track It; Chem 6a, You, Underwater

Amos Lee- Amos Lee-- Buy It! Not a bad song on the whole album. Smooth. Just plain smooth.



Amos Lee- Supply & Demand-- Buy It; Not as awesome as his first but still awesome.

Sara Bareilles- Kaleidoscope Heart-- Track It; Uncharted, King of Anything, Gonna Get Over You, Let the Rain?

Switchfoot- Learning to Breathe-- Unfortunately, this is a Skip It for me. You Already Take Me There is great but that's pretty much it on this one. 

And that's it! We'll do this again but not right away. Don't know if you got anything out of this but it was a fun recap for me. Enjoy! 

Rival Sons

*Note* I wrote this on Monday but this one required some additional tweaking. Although I like some ROCK every once in a while, I also believe in not getting heavy and some songs were a little too heavy and I had to think twice about what I pass on to y'all. So, hopefully we're good to go now...

So here's the PLAYLIST

So, after my initial encounter with the Rival Sons, I decided I might need to give them a more in-depth listening. I listened to their newest album, Head Down, their EP, Rival Sons and their first album, Before the Fire. Here's my take on them: Awesome-ish.

The general, overall feel of their music is awesome but after the song is over, you can't really remember why. The solos aren't very crafted/composed/memorable, the lyrics aren't terribly meaningful or even cool (sometimes even a little silly). It comes off as impressive but upon further inspection there's not really much there that makes them amazing or better than the others. It's kinda easy to get side-tracked during some of their songs and you forget you're listening... Don't get me wrong, they're good. I'd even say very good (bold statement, I know ;) I'd listen to them over Miley or T-Swizzle but I don't know if I'd actively seek them out and listen to them by myself.

Perhaps better explained through an analogy? They're kinda like that summer blockbuster that's trying to mimic or reboot a more famous series and does an adequate job of capturing the essence of the original but has some flaws upon closer inspection. Sort of like what the Phantom Menace was to the original Star Wars or MIB 3 to MIB. Had homages and nods to the original, even some original stuff of its own. It wasn't the original but you were still excited in the theater and came out saying, WOW, that was fun! (At least I did) but when you really look at it, the acting was less than stellar, too much reliance on CG, not a strong plot and lots of elements that contradict/ go against the original. Okay, maybe that was too nerdy. Led Zeppelin! How 'bout that? It's been said they're like Zeppelin. That sums it up... they're like Zeppelin. Similar grooves and feel but nothing really STICKS is all. I'd classify them as 1/2 Awesome. Maybe even 3/4? I guess that makes them "aweso." Yes, they are Aweso.

That being said, there are elements that are full blown awesome! The BASS is frikkin' inCREDible!!! Mind blowing at times. Some ridiculously fun licks & runs that make me giggle like a little girl... and the vocals are nothing to sneeze at. He's kind of a mix between Jack White & Robert Plant. Not nearly as iconic as Plant but a bit more polished than White/ less weird, with a bit more range (although I don't think Jack is exactly going for polished...). But pretty awesome. Give 'em a listen.

Run from Revelation is pretty nitty-gritty, down & dirty, raw rock-on power. Keep on Swingin', of course is incredible. All the Way is kinda silly but it kind of reminded me of George Thorogood's One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer but not about drinking so it's better? Face of light is a little slower and more melodically focused and the rest are just plain fun. Enjoy!