TESTAMENT / The New Order (1988)

Testament took sizeable creative steps on their second album but lost none of the power that had made their début so damn good. It's a prime example of the kind of heavy, melodic Thrash that was doing the rounds back then. But there was more mediocre Thrash bands in the late 80s than Disney had stereotypes, and while the output from many of them sounded like little more than surplus variations on a theme, Testament had Chuck Billy and that made all the difference. So what if it had an Aerosmith cover? They somehow made it work in their favour.

Songs of Note: Into the Pit; Disciples of the Watch

4 trials by fire out of 5

ROGER WATERS / Amused to Death (1992)

A concept album with a hugely ambitious scope that enables Waters to comment on the entirety of mankind's accomplishments and follies, as viewed from more than one unique perspective. Musically, it performs a similar function in relation to his illustrious career that fans of his input into Pink Floyd should appreciate on a deeper level. But it's not just Floyd 2.0, it's the poet and musician being intellectually engaging and musically diverse, reaching further afield than ever before into what it is that makes us human. I'm not ashamed to say that a part of it makes me tearful, and that's the highest praise I can conceivably give.

Songs of Note: What God Wants, Part I; Three Wishes

5 technical manuals out of 5

GODFLESH / Decline and Fall EP (2014)

If you imagine the Godflesh discography as a curved line, sound-wise the first E.P. from the reformed duo is a branch that splits off after Streetcleaner (1989) and intersects the curve again somewhere between Selfless (1994) and Songs of Love and Hate (1996). But you don't just have to deal in abstractions, check out the link below to get an understanding of what I mean. It's not a reinvention, thankfully, it's a re-invigoration and a tight return to the days of crunching, lo-fi heaviness.

Songs of Note: Decline and Fall (Full EP)

4 symbols of servitude out of 5

VARIOUS ARTISTS / Silent Hill Downpour: Radio Songs (2012)

An unmistakeable trademark of the Silent Hill series is its ability to wrap every tiny nuance of a game around its protagonist. With Murphy Pendleton, this expands farther into the musical realm than for any of the others by way of the radios scattered along his path. Outlaw country and more contemporary indie-country allude to his geographic past and cast the light of meaning on the locations he must visit before reaching the town proper. Less mainstream endeavors evoke his tumultuous relationships, especially those by Anna Ternheim. Save one example, this collection organically conveys specific information that enriches Murphy as a character and Downpour as a game.

It magnificently excels where Jonathan Davis utterly fails on the main soundtrack.

Songs of Note: Words of Love; If I Had A Boat

The complete playlist can be viewed here.

4½ Truths to Set You Free out of 5

DANIEL LICHT / Silent Hill Downpour (Original Soundtrack) [2012]

This is not Akira Yamaoka and while some of these songs do smack of him, the best contain personal flourishes from Licht, like the staccato percussive elements akin to Juno Reactor’s work on the Matrix films. Some exquisitely transition between claustrophobic, subdued movements and moments where everything will expand into freeform aural bouquets or, at the very least, fall into unexpectedly welcome melodies. Mary Elizabeth McGlynn and the other voices are only used ethereally but this is effective in the face of Jonathan Davis’s singular lyrics, which accomplish nothing beyond painting a generic picture of what the series probably appears like to dismissive outsiders.

Trash that track, and check out the Radio Songs for accurate, subtle lyrical character development.

Songs of Note: Railcar Ride; Monastery Otherworld

3½ Rhythms in the Raindrops out of 5

ANTI-NOWHERE LEAGUE / The Road to Rampton (2007)

It's not enough reason to want own it but it's worth pointing out that ANL's ability to place lyrical satire and disaffection alongside comedy and not have one overwhelm the other surfaces in places, albeit sporadically. If only the music wasn't so bloody weak, safe and predicable.
I'm listening to Rampton as I type and it's depressing me. I'll need to go back to the classic début album afterwards to ease my pain.

Songs of Note: Turn To Shit; My God's Bigger than Yours

1½ short, sharp, shocks out of 5

THE ORB FEAT. DAVID GILMOUR / Metallic Spheres [2010]

It seems odd at first but if you really think about a collaboration between spacey techno act The Orb and Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour makes perfect sense.
2010's Metallic Spheres showcases the two acts in a tripped-out soothing haze that recalls the days of Floyd's Meddle and The Orb's more significant era.  Gilmour doesn't really show off here, he simply compliments The Orb's roomy atmosphere with delicate precision that needn't be overanalyzed but rather begs the listener to relax and join them on their journey.   As it smoothly shifts from house music, dub and trip-hop, Spheres never really amazes but tranquilizes you as adequate background ambience.

3 3D60 albums out of 5

Songs Of Note:  There's only 2 lengthy tracks so it's best you seek it out if this collaboration interests you

GREEN DAY / Demolicious [2014]

After the commercial failure of their ¡Uno!, ¡Dos!, ¡Tré! trilogy, rockers Green Day curiously release an album of demos from those sessions to suck it dry of everything it was worth with 2014's Demolicious.
Bassist Mike Dirnt stated that the album is what Green Day would sound like if they were still with Lookout! Records today.  It's not entirely true, seeing as the demos sound sonically better than most indie-act records.  Apart from that, the fun that the band is having is made very apparent giving the songs a life that seemed all too absent from the finished products.  The songs are rough around the edges, occasionally sloppy and unrefined but that's what makes them come alive.  Instead of striving for commercial studio perfection, you can hear the boys are just in it for the pure rock & roll.

3½ Tom Neely album covers out of 5

Songs Of Note: Stay The Night; Stray Heart

LINDI ORTEGA / Tin Star [2013]

Vampy Canadian country crooner Lindi Ortega finally breaks into the big time with her 2013 album Tin Star.
Ortega's sultry, honey-glazed voice is at her absolute best with a sorrowful yearning that is delicate, seductive and boiling over with confident sass.  Lyrically, she's not covering any new territory in the genre but it's spun with such devotion and love it can't be anything but authentic.  The songs bounce between slow-driving heartache & spitting floor-stompers and they all showcase her vocals and songwriting abilities with rough-roaded grace and perfection.
Easily one of the best albums of 2013.

5 dead folk in your bed out of 5

Songs Of Note:  I Want You; This Is Not Surreal

SUUNS / Images Du Futur [2013]

Montreal's electro-hipster-rock act Suuns returns with their second album 2013's Images Du Futur.
They make no attempt to hide the fact that they think they're Clinic and mid-era Radiohead, only without the same sonic impact or thoughtful intensity of their English idols.   A blend of post-punk, art-rock and krautrock, Images Du Futur seems to run in one place never really melding together to create what should seem like a solid product.  Instead, even though it all sounds sleepily similar to each other, each song doesn't seem to have a place with the next one.   Like Ben Shemie's vocals, everything just sounds bored, uninspired and perfect for the snotty 20-somethings that drink Pabst Blue Ribbon in their Urban Outfitter's get-up.

2 songs that Save the album out of 5

Songs Of Note:  Minor Work: Bambi

CRADLE OF FILTH / Vempire (or Dark Faerytales in Phallustein) (1996)

Is it V Empire or Vempire?  Fuck knows, but it sits nicely between the raw aggression of The Principle of Evil Made Flesh (1994) and the technical polish of Dusk... and Her Embrace (1996), and thus will likely appeal to fans of both eras.
Dani's 'cat with balls trapped in cat flap' screech is perfectly contrasted by the deeper, ghoulish narration that elevates the level of cheesy but effectively dramatic theatrics at opportune moments.
It's the first appearance of Sarah Jezebel Diva, who provides some spoken word and additional backing atmosphere.

Songs of Note: Queen of Winter, Throned; Nocturnal Supremacy

4 whispering forests out of 5

TRENT REZNOR AND ATTICUS ROSS / The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

If ever proof was needed that film/music awards are nothing but public masturbation for the artists and industry, then this is it. It's a 173 min 34 sec soundtrack to a 158 min film and I felt every second of that running time go by.
The film was unnecessary. The score is almost unlistenable. Not because it's ambient or drone, I generally like that kind of thing, but because it's uninspired and monotonous. Upping the volume helps to hide the inherent emptiness, but the tedium is inescapable. Some of the track titles sum up the listening experience perfectly: I Can't Take it Anymore; The Same as the Others; The Sound of Forgetting; and the best one of all, The Seconds Drag.

Songs of Note: You're Here; Great Bird of Prey

1 urge to toss it out the window out of 5

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE / The Black Parade (2006)

"Death is a crutch for me and mine..."

The immense power of this album stems from the paradoxically simple conceit that the process whereby life is mulled over, mourned, and punished on the deathbed of those afforded such a contemplative time is directly parallel to being brave enough to engage in a life of self-examination and change. You don’t need to be imminently dying to gaze across your own personal abyss and finally take on the weight of your mistakes—address your regrets head on. The crutch can be thrown away and seen as motivation instead of an easy escape.

"I've no right to be called by that name."

"THEN LIVE. AND, RECLAIM IT."

Songs of Note: Disenchanted; Famous Last Words

5 Confident Marches Into The Unknown out of 5

SMASH MOUTH / Fush Yu Mang (1997)

My fashion sense derives almost entirely from 90s Steve Harwell. No, no, don’t walk away. It’s relevant. As hard driving and 4th-wave ska as this debut album can get in places, there’s ultimately a well-practiced, laid-back swagger running throughout. It’s a touch of the Rat Pack, a dash of self-admitted influence Louis Prima, and a lot of their own unique ability to make you think without dragging you too far down. The flavor of reckless abandon they preach is strangely responsible and there’s always something bigger on their minds that they aren’t afraid to share. A balancing act this classy never goes out of style. Neither will khakis and black shirts.

Songs of Note: Nervous in the Alley; Disconnect the Dots

3½ Hawaiian Shirts Also Welcome out of 5

COUNTING CROWS / Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings (2008)

This is the Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back of the Crows’ proper discography. It rests on musical cues, hooks, and lyrical refrains from a multitude of songs that came before, but it still has something unique to say much like Blood and Chocolate compared to its spiritual predecessor, This Years’ Model, as stated by Costello himself. That message is often a fair bit more brusque than what the Duritz et al. mustered on their two previous efforts, making for an almost—but not quite—return to the depths of Satellites. If you’re a long time Crows fan, this is required listening, unlike the ever growing glut of live albums. If you're a newbie...you've got four albums worth of homework. Enjoy~

Songs of Note: Cowboys; You Can't Count on Me

4 Long Dead Loves out of 5