First Spin Impressions

[aMetalhead1966]

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE-As Daylight Dies.

 

At times it sounds kinda like a B grade version of Soilwork,though they don't have the Musical Chops of

the Mighty Soilwork(whom I LOVE) or the songs. Oh well can't win 'em all..

 

B-Grade Soilwork? Ah man, we may agree on a lot of things but not here (maybe your wife should be on here? ) Soilwork are just copycats of bands like Arch Enemy/The Haunted/In Flames etc. KsE may be in a dying genre but they are the ultimate Metal/Hardcore crossover band IMO, & sell a zillion records.

 

I really like Soilwork, but they're new album is very generic & pretty one-dimensional (the Nuclear Blast All-stars album is better IMO)...

Yeah Soilwork's new release is a real let down...and yes they are very influenced By The Haunted, At The Gates,In Flames.. but Arch Enemy(Whom I LOVE) I don't hear that but to each his own.What I meant Is that KsE are using that same formula as the above bands( Heavy/Light,Scream/Melody) but they are leaving out the Incredible Guitar Solos the above bands use to such a great effect. Not to say KsE suck cause they don't, but I 'm missing something..But hey I would have never got it for my wife if I hadn't seen your post..cause she'd hadn't heard of them.. but I did give it several spins...

Hey Eric, if you don't mind me asking; how old is your wife? Sorry to ask, but I just cannot picture this. I thought these screamo bands were just for the emo kids and some metalheads out there. I just keep picturing my lovely wife listening to a band like Killswitch Engage, alongside her Black Eyed Peas and Pussycat Dolls CDs and it just doesn't work. I'm intrigued by your situation.

My wife is 38...Double D's....hahahaha....No really she's 38...She,like me,Loves

80's Metal....we differ on the 90's/00's stuff which she likes and I don't

like the modern stuff as much as she...But I love The Beatles, Stones, Led Zep

Robin Trower etc and she hates them so go figure... when I read the post you guys

put up of new bands, I ask her if she has heard of them, if not I'll grab it for her if it's

gotten a good review here...So I am trying to broaden my listening taste.

 

Topic at Hand.....

 

 

AS I LAY DYING-An Ocean Between Us...Holy Shit where did these guys come from!!! Man!!This is so fucking Heavy and Good I'm at a loss. There are some of the BEST Riffs I have heard in years here. Great songs...great solos...the Vox are Deathish to Clean and back but it fits...Really good stuff.

[TIM (2)]

AS I LAY DYING-An Ocean Between Us...Holy Shit where did these guys come from!!! Man!!This is so fucking Heavy and Good I'm at a loss. There are some of the BEST Riffs I have heard in years here. Great songs...great solos...the Vox are Deathish to Clean and back but it fits...Really good stuff.

 

I saw this band live last month and they SHRED. One of my fave ever gigs. Another band with a killer back-catalogue. I am still mystified as to why you like AILD but not KsE, but each to their own. Dude, you really need to check out HIMSA, they are heavier than AILD...

[aMetalhead1966]

AS I LAY DYING-An Ocean Between Us...Holy Shit where did these guys come from!!! Man!!This is so fucking Heavy and Good I'm at a loss. There are some of the BEST Riffs I have heard in years here. Great songs...great solos...the Vox are Deathish to Clean and back but it fits...Really good stuff.

 

I saw this band live last month and they SHRED. One of my fave ever gigs. Another band with a killer back-catalogue. I am still mystified as to why you like AILD but not KsE, but each to their own. Dude, you really need to check out HIMSA, they are heavier than AILD...

I got HIMSA Summon In Thunder...Really good stuff there as well...though I have only spun it a few times...KsE might be a grower...it's not bad but I just couldn't remember any of it...they had a song years ago(I think it was them) that was really cool..I think it was called Rose of Sharon(??)...

[Geoff]

Wow, I really, really need to listen to AILD again... I seriously completely missed the clean vocals first time round.

 

Anyway, got a few here:

 

Faber Drive - 'Seven second surgery' ; Wow - absolutely awesome. Huge thanks for Dave (Zach...) for the head's up. If you love SR-71 and Hedley, you WILL love this - no doubt. So melodic it's painful, with a few solos too. This is great stuff. Tim (2) you're going to love these guys.

 

Bedlight for Blue Eyes - 'Life on life's terms' ; Hmm, maybe not as good as I expected. It's very good and will be in my top 20 this year, but I don't know... a bit too "polite" and "safe" for me. Half the songs have solos and this is as good as a HH release these days. Very good, looking forward to more listens, but not as good as I think a few of us were expecting. Nowhere near as good as Faber Drive.

 

The Hot Lies - 'Ringing in the sane' ; I'm digging these guys. I heard 'Emergency Emergency' on the radio and had to have it. And a lot of the songs are pretty close in goodness to this one. Recommended for fans of the above 2 - great melodic commerical rock.

[Geoff]

The Hot Lies - 'Heart attacks and callus cuts' ; if you ask me, this EP is actually better than the full album, as noted above. More intensity and slightly better songs. I love both but this kicks ass a bit more than the full album.

 

Jimmy Eat World - 'Chase the light' ; This album makes 3 gems in a row. Very consistent and a fine example of well-written modern rock. It's hard to fault these guys.

[TIM (2)]

I got HIMSA Summon In Thunder...Really good stuff there as well...though I have only spun it a few times...KsE might be a grower...it's not bad but I just couldn't remember any of it...they had a song years ago(I think it was them) that was really cool..I think it was called Rose of Sharon(??)...

 

Yeah "Rose of Sharyn" was the tune that really broke them big. That "End of Heartache" album actually had more memorable tunes on it than "As Daylight Does", but I prefer the heavier approach of the newer disc. I would definitely recommend checking out AILD's last album "Shadows Are Security". It is heavier, but is flawless.

[aMetalhead1966]

I got HIMSA Summon In Thunder...Really good stuff there as well...though I have only spun it a few times...KsE might be a grower...it's not bad but I just couldn't remember any of it...they had a song years ago(I think it was them) that was really cool..I think it was called Rose of Sharon(??)...

 

Yeah "Rose of Sharyn" was the tune that really broke them big. That "End of Heartache" album actually had more memorable tunes on it than "As Daylight Does", but I prefer the heavier approach of the newer disc. I would definitely recommend checking out AILD's last album "Shadows Are Security". It is heavier, but is flawless.

Thanks I do that...

[heaven&hell]

Overkill- I Hear Black

Not a big fan. If I'd realized that I was buying the worst Overkill album I would of saved my money.

I was expecting Thrash Metal not Doom Metal and it's not even good Doom Metal. Very dissapointing for my first Overkill cd that I've ever bought.

 

Shy England- Mispent Youth

Very solid Melodic Hard Rock. I've always read good things about this cd and I'm not dissapointed at all. I'm not a huge fan of Mill's voice but there's so many good songs on this one. "Afte the Love is Gone", "Never Trust a Stranger", "When you need Someone", and "Love on the Line" all get two thumbs up from me so far.

 

I, Napoleon- s/t

I'm not going to repeat here what I said about this horrible cd in a thread I started about this very pile of crap in the General Music Discussion forum.

[Fat Freddy]

Overkill- I Hear Black

Not a big fan. If I'd realized that I was buying the worst Overkill album I would of saved my money.

I was expecting Thrash Metal not Doom Metal and it's not even good Doom Metal. Very dissapointing for my first Overkill cd that I've ever bought.

 

 

Please don't let this CD sour you on buying more Overkill. I recommend HORRORSCOPE, FEEL THE FIRE, and FROM THE UNDERGROUND AND BELOW for starters.

[heaven&hell]

Overkill- I Hear Black

Not a big fan. If I'd realized that I was buying the worst Overkill album I would of saved my money.

I was expecting Thrash Metal not Doom Metal and it's not even good Doom Metal. Very dissapointing for my first Overkill cd that I've ever bought.

 

 

Please don't let this CD sour you on buying more Overkill. I recommend HORRORSCOPE, FEEL THE FIRE, and FROM THE UNDERGROUND AND BELOW for starters.

 

 

Those are the ones I'm always looking for when I go looking but that I Hear Black was sitting there and said I might as well give it a shot. I think I've heard WFO too and didn't like that one either. I do really like the new one and I've heard the one with 'Elimination'(I think it's Horroscope) and I liked it but it's been 10 years since I've heard that cd.

[TIM (2)]

Overkill- I Hear Black

Not a big fan. If I'd realized that I was buying the worst Overkill album I would of saved my money.

I was expecting Thrash Metal not Doom Metal and it's not even good Doom Metal. Very dissapointing for my first Overkill cd that I've ever bought.

 

 

Please don't let this CD sour you on buying more Overkill. I recommend HORRORSCOPE, FEEL THE FIRE, and FROM THE UNDERGROUND AND BELOW for starters.

 

 

Those are the ones I'm always looking for when I go looking but that I Hear Black was sitting there and said I might as well give it a shot. I think I've heard WFO too and didn't like that one either. I do really like the new one and I've heard the one with 'Elimination'(I think it's Horroscope) and I liked it but it's been 10 years since I've heard that cd.

 

Yep "WFO", "I Hear Black" & "Bloodletting" were the only real duffers in their catalogue IMO. "Horrorscope" & "The Years of Decay" are the ones you need.

[Fat Freddy]

Those are the ones I'm always looking for when I go looking but that I Hear Black was sitting there and said I might as well give it a shot. I think I've heard WFO too and didn't like that one either. I do really like the new one and I've heard the one with 'Elimination'(I think it's Horroscope) and I liked it but it's been 10 years since I've heard that cd.

 

"Elimination" is on THE YEARS OF DECAY, which is the album before HORRORSCOPE. It too is a worthy acquisition.

[JustJason]

As you were

[Geoff]

Hedley - 'Famous last words' ; I won't say too much as I'll look for the Hedley thread and drop comments there too... but this is excellent - right when there debut left off, this picks up from.

[TIM (2)]

BEDLIGHT FOR BLUE EYES - "Life on Life's Terms"

JUST SURRENDER - "We're In Like Sin"

A CHANGE OF PACE - "Prepare The Masses"

 

3 high quality doses of ultra-melodic Modern pop/rock here. None of them quite touch the sheer class of Yellowcard or Funeral For A Friend's latest albums but all are well worth picking up. My fave of the 3 is easily the BEDLIGHT FOR BLUE EYES as they have the best vocalist & catchiest tunes IMHO. There's barely a filler to be found on any of these discs & these will all get regular spins...

 

AVENGED SEVENFOLD - "S/T"

 

Finally managed to find time to play this all the way through & it is totally blowing me away. Better melodies, bigger choruses, some staggering lead-guitar work, & some additional touches like strings/choirs make this (incredibly) even better than "City of Evil". This is my favourite new band & there are just so many killers on this ("Critical Acclaim", "Almost Easy", "Afterlife", "Brompton Cocktail", "Dear God"....) that it will be Top 5 this year even after first listen. Awesome.

[Geoff]

BEDLIGHT FOR BLUE EYES - "Life on Life's Terms"

JUST SURRENDER - "We're In Like Sin"

A CHANGE OF PACE - "Prepare The Masses"

 

3 high quality doses of ultra-melodic Modern pop/rock here. None of them quite touch the sheer class of Yellowcard or Funeral For A Friend's latest albums but all are well worth picking up. My fave of the 3 is easily the BEDLIGHT FOR BLUE EYES as they have the best vocalist & catchiest tunes IMHO. There's barely a filler to be found on any of these discs & these will all get regular spins...

To be honest, I'm a little surprised you prefer Bedlight For Blue Eyes over A Change of Pace... but all is cool. To be honest, I only gave the advance of the Bedlight for Blue Eyes album one spin and then I bought the album online the next day. So I've put it aside and will wait until I get the original before I spin it again. Maybe it will need a few spins to truly kick my ass.

 

Oh, and I agree with you on the Yellowcard thing too. I prefer A Change of Pace to FFAF, I think, but it's a close one to call and FFAF is definitely better than the other two.

[aMetalhead1966]

LOUDNESS-Shadows of War. Okay I'll start by saying I have "Lightning Strikes" which

is the American Release of this record and have always liked it. Got it when it was first released and have played it ever since. I got ahold of the Japanese Version and It's SO

MUCH better!!! All of the songs are Re-mixed with More Guitars and in some cases

the Vocals are sung In a much heavier/raspier voice..I'm Really digging the hell outta this!!!!Killer!!!

[Dan Friml]

IT BITES - EAT ME IN ST. LOUIS

WOW! I just bought this one today and my first_spin_impression? It Bites = It Rocks!!!! One of the best albums I have heard in years. Hard Rock/AOR mixed with progressive influences. Excellent guitar work, awesome vocals, top class songwriting. I can't believe I ignored this baby soooo long!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

 

NP tr. no. 9: Till The End Of Time.... Man, this is awesome stuff!!!!!!

[Blue Charvel]

DC4 - Explode

 

Balls out rock'n'roll, in your face, take no prisoners, insert your own damn cliches here.

 

Good stuff, bare bones but a clean and decent production from ex-Armored Saint bassist Joey Vera. Not sure if it's intentional but Jeff Duncan's vox sound a lot like John Bush IMO, not a bad thing, just an observation. The tunes are straightforward and riff driven with a hint of modern but moreso classic metal. Rowan Robertson's guitar playing is fucking awesome. Not sure at this point if the songs will stick with me or not, but it's definitely going to get a few more listens so I can find that out.

[Jez]

IT BITES - EAT ME IN ST. LOUIS

WOW! I just bought this one today and my first_spin_impression? It Bites = It Rocks!!!! One of the best albums I have heard in years. Hard Rock/AOR mixed with progressive influences. Excellent guitar work, awesome vocals, top class songwriting. I can't believe I ignored this baby soooo long!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

 

NP tr. no. 9: Till The End Of Time.... Man, this is awesome stuff!!!!!!

 

Dan - Great disc mate. Have you heard 'Once Around The World' which IMO is even better than 'Eat Me...'. Fantastic band and a new album on the way sometime soonish as well.

[Dan Friml]

IT BITES - EAT ME IN ST. LOUIS

WOW! I just bought this one today and my first_spin_impression? It Bites = It Rocks!!!! One of the best albums I have heard in years. Hard Rock/AOR mixed with progressive influences. Excellent guitar work, awesome vocals, top class songwriting. I can't believe I ignored this baby soooo long!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

 

NP tr. no. 9: Till The End Of Time.... Man, this is awesome stuff!!!!!!

 

Dan - Great disc mate. Have you heard 'Once Around The World' which IMO is even better than 'Eat Me...'. Fantastic band and a new album on the way sometime soonish as well.

 

Thanks for the tip Jez! I'll try to find 'Once Around The World'... Even better than 'Eat Me..' you say?? Is it possible?? Jesus! I need it! I do love this band!

[heaven&hell]

DC4 - Explode

 

Balls out rock'n'roll, in your face, take no prisoners, insert your own damn cliches here.

 

Good stuff, bare bones but a clean and decent production from ex-Armored Saint bassist Joey Vera. Not sure if it's intentional but Jeff Duncan's vox sound a lot like John Bush IMO, not a bad thing, just an observation. The tunes are straightforward and riff driven with a hint of modern but moreso classic metal. Rowan Robertson's guitar playing is fucking awesome. Not sure at this point if the songs will stick with me or not, but it's definitely going to get a few more listens so I can find that out.

 

 

Wow that sounds awesome. I loved Rowan's playing in Dio.

[Metal T]

Sweet F.A. - The Lost Tapes

 

 

D*mn good stuff! These songs were recorded back in '88/'89.Most sound like unused tracks that would of went on "Stick To Your Guns".Man...this is some hard driving sh*t.A welcome addition.Like ive said before these guys could of and did blow alot of their peers off the freaking stage. ------

[Jez]

IT BITES - EAT ME IN ST. LOUIS

WOW! I just bought this one today and my first_spin_impression? It Bites = It Rocks!!!! One of the best albums I have heard in years. Hard Rock/AOR mixed with progressive influences. Excellent guitar work, awesome vocals, top class songwriting. I can't believe I ignored this baby soooo long!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

 

NP tr. no. 9: Till The End Of Time.... Man, this is awesome stuff!!!!!!

 

Dan - Great disc mate. Have you heard 'Once Around The World' which IMO is even better than 'Eat Me...'. Fantastic band and a new album on the way sometime soonish as well.

 

Thanks for the tip Jez! I'll try to find 'Once Around The World'... Even better than 'Eat Me..' you say?? Is it possible?? Jesus! I need it! I do love this band!

 

 

The debut 'Big Lad In The Windmill' is pretty damned good also and worth getting. Plenty of these and 'Once Around...' cheap on Amazon.

 

If you like the It Bites stuff, Francis Dunnery's Solo stuff is worth a listen as well especially 'Welcome To The Wild Country'.

[Dan Friml]

IT BITES - EAT ME IN ST. LOUIS

WOW! I just bought this one today and my first_spin_impression? It Bites = It Rocks!!!! One of the best albums I have heard in years. Hard Rock/AOR mixed with progressive influences. Excellent guitar work, awesome vocals, top class songwriting. I can't believe I ignored this baby soooo long!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

 

NP tr. no. 9: Till The End Of Time.... Man, this is awesome stuff!!!!!!

 

Dan - Great disc mate. Have you heard 'Once Around The World' which IMO is even better than 'Eat Me...'. Fantastic band and a new album on the way sometime soonish as well.

 

Thanks for the tip Jez! I'll try to find 'Once Around The World'... Even better than 'Eat Me..' you say?? Is it possible?? Jesus! I need it! I do love this band!

 

 

The debut 'Big Lad In The Windmill' is pretty damned good also and worth getting. Plenty of these and 'Once Around...' cheap on Amazon.

 

If you like the It Bites stuff, Francis Dunnery's Solo stuff is worth a listen as well especially 'Welcome To The Wild Country'.

 

They're all on my list now! Thanks again!