In Pieces - Lions Write History

In Pieces were a post-hardcore band with members from With Honor and Have A Nice Life (Dan Barrett actually created HANL after In Pieces). I got their sophomore album Lions Write History whilst I was utterly obsessed with all projects Barrett has been involved in. As far as post-hardcore goes, it dominates everything from the genre as of late mainly due to it's originality. In fact, it's so far from most post-hardcore bands that I don't even want to call it post-hardcore (but I will, because it is). All the songs are written incredibly well, mixing heavy sections with clean interludes tastefully. Most of the songs are around 5 minutes with awesome build ups and some great epic climaxes. One of the main attractions for me personally are Barretts's vocals, where he sings very uniquely and well. Also, the parts where he screams are fucking awesome.

Anyway, just check it out.

Lions Write History (2005)

Amon Tobin - Foley Room

If you're looking for creative and awesome electronica music, look no further.

The album's beats are made from field recordings, but they are mixed so well it could almost be a shitty drum kit. I mean this in the best possible way, as the beats are the standout on this cd for me. 

Some strange piano and violin work keep this album interesting, best showcased in the opening track Bloodstone. However along with the strange comes the epic, particularly the final track which has a violin sample that made me lose my shit.

So if you're into IDM or just down for something new and experimental, this is a great album to check out. I've also heard he has quite a solid discography so checking out some of his other stuff would not be a waste of time.

Foley Room (2007)

dälek

I wouldn't call myself a professional when it comes to hip-hop, but I can safely say this duo shits on most hip-hop you're currently listening to.

In terms MC Dälek's voice, he has the perfect mix of calm and passionate. There are few moments where you can hear how much he gets into it, namely the end of Classical Homicide where he practically screams:

"Amplify brainwaves to condense my thought

Bends the dark

Why question my art?"

Production-wise, some of the best samples and beats I've heard in hip-hop. Some really noisy and dirty sounds, which is a good thing to hear compared to the squeaky clean production most mainstream rappers go for nowadays. On From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots there is some really weird electronic music, particularly on the 10 minute song Black Smoke Rises. As they have progressed though, they have incorporated some dreamy atmospheres in their music, the title track off Abandoned Language is a great example.

Basically if you're into underground hip-hop or just aching for some rap with actual though and musicality, definitely check out dälek. I'm posting the link for the 3 albums I have but they have one more from 2009 called Gutter Tactics, which I'm yet to hear.

From Filthy Tongue of Gods and Griots (2002)

Absence (2004)

Abandoned Language (2007)

My first hip-hop blog...hopefully next time I will know what I'm talking about a bit more.

Cheer up, Charlie

These are some of the albums I tend to listen to when I'm feeling down, or even just to go with my good mood.

Deerhunter - Microcastle (2008)

The beautiful shoegaze moments and the huge atmospheres created on this album always make me feel heaps better. Every song is solid and enjoyable, making one listen all the way through enough to cheer up anyone.

The Audition - Controversy Loves Company (2005)

Pop punk/Pop rock at it's finest. It's basic, repetitive and really not that well written. But the songs are so catchy and ridiculously fun that it's hard not to smile when listening to it. It will always be a guilty pleasure of mine.

The Shins - Oh, Inverted World (2001)

Some of the best Indie tunes are on this album. As soon as Caring is Creepy starts, I always am instantly put in a good mood. Really cruise-y, chilled out songs that will get inside your head and force you to feel good.

mewithoutYou - Brother, Sister (2005)

Their next album It's All Crazy... is clearly a happier record, but this album cheers me up more just because of the sheer amazingness of it. It's passionate and beautiful, and reminds me just how capable and creative the human mind can be.

My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (1991)

If you've heard this album then you love it, if you haven't then you will download it right now and then love it. This album pretty much created the Shoegaze genre and is possibly the closest music form to the word Love, which is ironic considering the album title.

Portal - Swarth (2009)

I know it's cheesy and a bit over the top in the happiness department, but this feel good album really could cheer up anyone. The overuse of the major scale and the serenity of the vocals make this one of the happiest albums I've ever heard.

Well there you go, these albums always put a smile on my face. Mostly Indie stuff for some reason, but I think just lush sounds and chilled out atmospheres are what turn my moods.

I don't want someone who's depressed to take the Portal album as serious advice and listen to it, because it will probably just cause you to kill yourself and everyone within a 50 mile radius.

Karnivool

My favourite Aussie band, and they performed one of the greatest shows I've ever been to last night.

I've never seen a band so tight on stage. Everything they played was clear and flawless. The ambient parts were beautifully lush and the heavy parts were hea-vy. Such a huge sound.

In terms of stage presence, they were awesome as well. They didn't go over the top crazy, but for the music they play they were appropriately active. As you can see from the photos I had a wicked view of the whole band and took heaps of photos. Each member delivered perfectly and I really can't say enough for how well they played. Honestly, just so fucking good.

Anyway if you haven't heard any of their stuff, download their 2 albums and be amazed (and then also upset you didn't see them last night).

Themata (2005)

Sound Awake (2009)

I wore 3 condoms in advance for the show... I should have worn more.

Deathconsciousness

Since my last few blogs have been about bands that I think are pretty good but not amazing, I thought I'd do a blog about one of my favourite albums of all time.

Have A Nice Life - Deathconsciousness

One thing people need to know about me is my love for 2 things in music: Epic finishes to songs/albums and Major Third progressions. I'm not sure what it is about the Major Third progression but the interval is just so fucking good that every time I hear a song with it in it, I go nuts. Anyway, this brings me to how I first heard this album. My mate showed me the last song Earthmover which ticks both boxes for me: Massive Major Third progression to finish the album in the most epic way imaginable. As soon as I heard it I was compelled to hear the entire thing. On first listen, I thought it was really solid and good to chill out to. Sure there were moments that got pretty heavy but for the most part, it was a relaxing album. Over time, I started hearing new things with each listen, small things that seemed insignificant at first. Before I knew it, I was in love. Deep, Deep love (no pun intended, although by saying this it's pretty clear that it was intended). Every song was so appropriate in the mix of the album, leaving no moments of boredom. At times I could just sit there relaxing and soaking up the dreamy atmospheres created, and at other times I couldn't help but bop my head or stamp my feet to the beat. I've never had so much chills in my body from one single album. Basically, I had found an album that had songs for every mood I could possibly be in, and in turn had found one of the most amazing albums I had ever heard.

Basically this description I've given you doesn't really tell you anything about the album, other than the fact that I kiss it's arse every day. But in all seriousness, I really struggle to describe this album technically. The only thing I could thing to do is tell you how it makes me feel, so hopefully that is enough to make you want to hear it. Genre-wise, Have A Nice Life have stated that they make "Depressive Post-Industrial Doomgaze" music, which sums it up pretty accurately. Pretty much you just need to hear it for yourself, I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

Deathconsciousness Disc 1 - The Plow That Broke The Plains (2008)

Deathconsciousness Disc 2 - The Future (2008)

To give you some reference as to how much I am obsessed with this album, track 3 is called The Big Gloom. Go figure.

Hopeless

Local Melbourne hardcore band Hopeless have just released their latest 7" EP called Human. For those who don't know, Hopeless are a fairly new band with members from Carpathian and Bear Trap. 

Their previous album Dear World... was a pretty good effort, but seemed to lack something. It also seemed a bit slow and generic at times but all in all was a fairly enjoyable hardcore album.
Living in Melbourne myself has been good in the sense that I have seen these guys at least 6 times in the last year, which has also given me the chance to see their growth. As musicians, they don't really do anything too special and technical, but they provide a strong hardcore sound with plenty of opportunities to chant the lyrics, which are one of the best parts about the band. Needless to say, I've been pretty excited about their latest release since all their new songs sounded awesome live. The production is certainly better than on Dear World..., and the songs just seem to flow much better. Dear World... had a lot of filler tracks that didn't really add anything to the album, but with Human only being 5 tracks, all 5 tracks hold their own making it their strongest effort yet.

If you're a fan of hardcore, definitely get Human. If you like what you hear, feel free to get Dear World..., but as mentioned I personally don't think it's as good.

Dear World... (2009)
Human 7" (2010)

I promise my next blog won't be about hardcore.

Bury Your Dead

You can't deny how good these guys are at doing breakdowns, even if you don't like breakdowns. There is just something about them that makes everything they do instantly cool.

Though in saying that, I should probably point out that the above statement only applies when Mat Bruso was the vocalist. For some reason after he left they decided to do two things:

1. Write Nu-Metal songs with breakdowns.

2. Add clean singing.

Big, big, BIG mistakes. However, we can still remember how good they were through their 2 main albums: Cover Your Tracks and Beauty and the Breakdown. Both top hardcore albums, with the latter adding some slight synth work but tastefully, something they have since failed to do. 

Cover Your Tracks (2004)

Beauty and the Breakdown (2006)

Seriously if you can listen to the song Legend off Cover Your Tracks and NOT mosh, I hate you.

Thoughts Part #1

So today I had to go into my university to talk with the head of campus about my plagiarising of someone's work. It's my first year at my 'dream' course and I almost completely fucked it up. Since I got the call 3 days ago I have been absolutely SHITTING my pants about the thought of being kicked out. On top of my own paranoia, I had people telling me stories of people getting expelled for less, and people saying "What the fuck are you going to do if you do get kicked out?" Well, to be honest I would have no clue, and that got me thinking: apart from music, what else do I have? I have friends, with a common interest of MUSIC. So if we eliminate MUSIC, I don't have any FRIENDS. And if I don't have any FRIENDS, well that's FUCKED.

Basically you're sitting there going "What a faggot", but seriously, on a serious note seriously, but seriously... But yeah. Anyway, you have to understand how I've been building this course up since I was 15 and telling everyone how I've been enjoying, and I was/am. But if I got kicked out after 1 semester, I'm pretty much nothing. So yeah I have stuff, and I have friends, and I have music, and thankfully after today I still have a reason to wake up. Yeah they didn't kick me out.

Anyway, since I've been stressing and sleeping all day lately I haven't been doing any blogs so hopefully I can smash a few out these holidays. I bet you 3 people reading this are siked.

Yes I said 3 people, I see you following me Nick.

mewithoutYou

They make me want to believe in God.

Over a period of time these guys have become one of my favourite bands of all time. Musically, they began as a Post Hardcore band a cut above the rest. Strong, powerful and angry, as clear through singer Aaron Weiss's lyrics and vocals on their first album [A→B] Life. 
Their next album Catch For Us the Foxes showed them progress to a more experimental stage, combining elements of Alternative Rock and Indie with overall better and more creative instrumentation. Although it was less 'Hardcore' it still retained much fury behind the lyrics and vocal style, however there were spots of a more mellow (and also a more Christian) Aaron. 
Then came the peak of their career in my opinion. Brother, Sister is and always will be one of my favourite albums. More experimental than Catch For Us the Foxes, but also more passionate and intelligent. Mostly an Indie album, it created a beautiful atmosphere with peaks of brilliance in songs such as Wolf Am I! (And Shadow) and O, Porcupine. They also used more instruments such as Trumpets, Accordion and Harps. 
Their latest album It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All A Dream! It's Alright in my opinion is their worst, but it's still miles ahead of most other Indie bands of today. This time they practically threw out any anger and instead made a happy-go-lucky Folk/Indie album. Still enjoyable, but for me it's lost a bit of their spark.

All in all, a top band for any fans of Indie or more experimental types of Post Hardcore. I'd recommend listening to their discography in order, as seeing their progression will give you a whole lot of respect for them as musicians.

[A→B] Life (2002)
Catch For Us the Foxes (2004)
Brother, Sister (2006)
It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All A Dream! It's Alright (2009)

I should have said more about the other musicians since they're all amazing, but I can't help it if I'm an Aaron Weiss fanboy.

Heavier Than Heaven Lonelier Than God

Blacklisted as a band are one of the better hardcore bands around nowadays, however this blog is focusing on their greatest album (in my opinion...which is the correct one).

Heavier Than Heaven Lonelier Than God; you don't come across a more depressing title than this very often, and lyrically the album follows this to the core. Revolving around depression and self-loathing, vocalist George Hirsch sheds light onto the darker side of life and doesn't hold back one bit. 

"Peace is just a warm gun away, it's deeper than 'when there's a will there's a way'"

His vocal style takes a lot of influence from old-school hardcore-punk and even resembles a bit of metal at times in the way he screams. Basically his voice couldn't fit this album any more perfectly. In terms of music, I really respect the way the band didn't go by the usual hardcore formula with this album. There's no real stand-out 'mosh' parts and instead the band has really just written the music to fit the mood and push their musical abilities. The drums are chaotic and tasteful whilst the guitars are thrash-like and play very dissonantly with the odd solo here and there. There are a lot of spacious moments where there is nothing but feedback and idle noise playing, which gives the depressing feel of the cd a more creepy and suspenseful edge. 

Overall this is one of my favourite hardcore albums, and probably one of the most emotional albums I've ever heard. If you're a fan of hardcore, definitely get this (although you should already have this, or at least some Blacklisted in your collection). 

"...wish the darkness didn't cloud me, wish I wasn't an emotional wreck"

Heavier Than Heaven Lonelier Than God (2008)

If you're into more 'moshier' hardcore music, check out their earlier albums. 

The Antlers

One of my favourite Indie bands, although apart from Hospice it's just one dude, this dude:

Peter Silberman

Their first 2 releases are pretty much just a guy with an acoustic guitar pouring his heart out. Really good albums but compared to Hospice, absolutely nothing. Hospice is an amazing album that if you let it in, will touch you like no other album. The lyrics tell the story of a man who works at a Hospice, and falls in love with a woman who is dying. The two wed and he stays by her side until she passes. The music compliment the story perfectly and by the end of the album, you will feel something extraordinary.

If you are into Alternative or Indie music, you should definitely check this band out. For fans of Folk/Acoustic music, get into Uprooted and In the Attic of the Universe first as they are more Folk-oriented.

Uprooted (2006)

In the Attic of the Universe (2007)

Hospice (2009)

Two posts in one day is exhausting. I will probably never do this ever again.

God of War III

I love games, I really do. Been destroying my education for years. I'm also one of those infamous PlayStation 3 owners, so I obviously hate XBox 360s. Anyway I've been waiting for this game since I finished the second instalment about 2 years ago and I haven't been let down one iota.

God of War III is the final game in the trilogy, and the creators were very specific with that wording indicating they will probably continue the series. So basically this is the most epic thing ever and if you have a PlayStation 2 or 3 and have never played it, then may God have mercy on your soul.

It tells the story of Kratos, a spartan warrior who is crowned (and shortly thereafter dethroned) the God of War. If you haven't played the first game I just ruined it for you but hey, why should I give a fuck. This third game takes place just as the final battle begins, with Kratos riding the titan Gaia's back up Mount Olympus to once and for all destroy the Gods but in particular Zeus. Gameplay wise, it's the best hack n' slash out there, with ridiculously cool combos and loads of upgrades with different weapons and magic. The graphics are some of the best I've seen on the console and the music score matches the intensity and epic-ness fantastically. Plot-wise, I can't praise this series enough and this final chapter concludes the trilogy perfectly. Overall, possibly the greatest game I have ever played. So if you are into games, or have played some of the other God of War games, I highly recommend you check this out. You will not be disappointed. 

DO NOT DENY ME MY REVENGE!

Mezzanine

Up until a couple of weeks ago, I didn't have a clue what Trip-Hop was and wasn't planning on listening to it anytime soon since I'm not a fan of most Hip-Hop. But luckily my mate played the song 'Angel' by Massive Attack to me, which showed me just how good the genre could be. So I downloaded the album it was off, called 'Mezzanine'.

With every listen I'm liking it more, and every song is really solid. The main thing that attracts me to it are the down-tempo Hip-Hop beats with dark overtones which creates this chilled out, creepy atmosphere. Some of the tracks are even reminiscent of Post-Rock in the way they build up and have a very 'movement' style structure. I've heard this is one of the best Trip-Hop albums of all time, but I can't really back this up since it's the only one I've heard. But rest assured, I already have a bunch of ones to check out and will probably put up some more cool Trip-Hop albums in the near future.

Mezzanine (1998)

Also, go to YouTube and watch the video for "Angel". It's one of the coolest music videos I've seen.

Deftones

First heard this band way back when I was in primary school. I heard the song 'Change (In the House of Flies)' in a Dragon Ball Z movie (see, everything is connected), bought the CD 'White Pony' and the rest is history. 

Their earlier stuff is pretty Nu-Metal-ish, but it's still ahead of the curb (in other words, it shits on Korn and Limp Bizkit). They later moved on to a more Hard Rock sound, with the release of 'White Pony', but they still retained some Nu-Metal influence with their riffs and overall instrumentation. One of my favourite things about the band is Chino's vocals. They're harsh at times with his raspy screams but his serene singing technique pulls him back down to earth.
Cool fact #1: Chino was drunk during the recording of 'Around the Fur', resulting in slurring of words and a messy feel to it, which actually adds to the CD.
Anyway, here is their discography apart from their latest album 'Diamond Eyes' which is set to be released in May. It has already been leaked on the web but I'm not gonna put it up here out of respect for the band.

Adrenaline (1995)
Around the Fur (1997)
White Pony (2000)
Deftones (2003)
Saturday Night Wrist (2006)

I recommend reading some of Chino's lyrics, they are sexually violent, not even kidding.

Elfen Lied

I'm a pretty huge fan of anime. And I'm not one of those guys who is like "Oh man, I love anime! Dragon Ball Z and Pokemon are so fucking cool!" "What other anime have you seen?" "Other anime?"

But yeah, big anime fans will hopefully pick up on the extremely subtle picture from the film 'Akira' at the top of the page. Anyway, out of all the movies and series I've watched, my all time favourite would have to be Elfen Lied.

It's got everything you could ask for and more. Ridiculous amounts of blood and violence, a compelling and deep storyline, amazing plot twists, great character development and best of all: Hot anime babes and heaps of sexual tension. 

In all seriousness though, no anime (or other series for that matter) has hit me like this one. The 13 episodes don't seem like much but there is so much packed in that after the epic conclusion of the series, you'll spend days if not weeks letting all the stuff sink in. It will make you laugh, make you cringe and might even make you cry. All in all, any fan of anime should treat themselves to this masterpiece. Even if you don't consider yourself an anime buff, I still recommend checking this out because this is something amazing.

I understand that I haven't exactly explained any of the actual plot, but that's intentional as I saw it with no idea what it was about and that made it better. Feel free to google what it's about but just bear in mind, you could enjoy it more if you just watch it. 

If you thought that last part was patronising, don't be stupid.

The Beginning of the End

When everybody starting jumping on the MySpace bandwagon, I quite happily signed up. A little while later, this thing called Facebook starting getting big so I, yet again, quite happily jumped onto this. Then I started to see everybody with an iPhone, so with my technology phone-wise becoming obsolete, I conformed. However, with these 3 ‘fads’ that I have become a part of, I prided myself on 2 things that I hadn’t begun to use: Twitter and Blogs. Though blogs have been around for a lot longer, there has been a recent ‘wave’ of my friends jumping on and streaming their thoughts and/or horrible musical tastes (I mean you Eddie). And so, as some of the more clever readers may have realised, I have taken one more step towards the end, taken one more bullet, taken one more drink (and probably one too many metaphors). And so my pretentious views have pushed me to create this blog where I too can write things knowing that only about 3 or 4 people will actually read them, and even less people will give a fuck.

P.S. If I start using Twitter, I give you full permission to give me a frontal lobotomy with a double-barrelled shotgun.

And so it BEGINS!