a look at Loyalty To Loyalty...

this past week (ok. last week, September 23rd.) Cold War Kids put out their second album, Loyalty To Loyalty, to some pretty decent reviews.

this is my stab at reviewing their album.
keep in mind, i am biased :D

track 1: "Against Privacy"
this song to me sums up the Kids and what they are all about. from what i gather of them, they just seem to go their own ways, not entirely caring (to a certain extent) about...trying to be mainstream.

track 2: "Mexican Dogs"
this one somewhat reckons back to their first album (Robbers & Cowards). it has that jangly feeling to it in the guitar parts. it does also feature a great lick mid-way with both drums and guitar.

track 3: "Every Valley Is Not A Lake"
when first read the tracklisting for the album, i was glad that they put this song on here. a little sad though that they have re-recorded it. their first recording of it is my favourite version (On the "Hang Me Up To Dry" single), but this song is still a great one nonetheless. again, love the piano and guitars. lead singer Nathan Willett has this ability to create such vivid stories in his lyrics, and this one is pretty clear.


track 4: "Something Is Not Right With Me"
at first, i didn't like this song. to be completely honest.
to my ears it, Willett's voice in the first verses, screaming out the lyrics, and the frenzied piano, something just didn't really sit well with me...
but after giving it another few listens, i've grown to like this song. listening closely to the lyrics, the music goes hand-in-hand with what is trying to be said: something is not right with me.

track 5: "Welcome To The Occupation"
hands down, this song has the best drumming on this album.
favourite song on the record. well, in the top 3.

track 6: "Golden Gate Jumpers"
this song is one of their most blues-y, but at the same time the most saddest songs they have written/sang about thus far. you can get from the title what the song is about, but it tells of a man trying to save a woman from jumping ("she's scared to jump, but terrified to stay")

track 7: "Avalanche In B"
not entirely sure what this song is supposed to be about, but it does remind of a Tom Waits song - from the piano to Willett's singing style. i like.

track 8: "I've Seen Enough"
like "Hang Me Up To Dry" was the song for Robbers & Cowards, this one will probably be their 'anthem song' from this album. this one shows off everyone's musicianship the best. again, the lyrics are great. live, it's probably that much better.

track 9: "Every Man I Fall For"
told from a woman's perspective, of course, this song is yet another one of those sad songs.
interesting, that Willett is male (duh.), and singing from a female's perspective. it just works, somehow. without thinking that Willett is gay (WHICH, he ISN'T. just to point out). that was a thought that never crossed my mind. a sure sign of great songwriting.

track 10: "Dreams Old Men Dream"
if "I've Seen Enough" is the anthem song, like "HMUTD" was for R&C; then this one is Loyalty To Loyalty's own "Hospital Beds", but a bit more dynamic. love the beat, lyrics, and everything about this song.

track 11: "On The Night My Love Broke Through"
the Kids have definitely grown musically, and this is sure evidence. one of their darkest songs on the whole album.

track 12: "Relief"
i have to say, this song just screams Radiohead. from the beat to the singing, it sounds very much like a Radiohead song. best line: "I love the shape your faces make"'

track 13: "Cryptomnesia"
another dark song, with the best imagery. slow and sad. heightens into something beautiful in the end.
after some research, cryptomnesia is hidden memory. term describes the experiences that people believe to be original but which are actually based on memories of events they've forgotten. [source.]

all in all, this is surely a step-up from Robbers & Cowards.
a good step in the right direction.

and any other 'step' analogies that you can think of.

Loyalty To Loyalty is a must-listen.

little bit of feel good...

(original from September 12th, 2008.)
listen up all you soul brotha's and sista's !

...

haha, alright i'm done.
anyways, this newcomer of an artist does have a lot of soul in him. a lot.

now, there is a rather small percentage of soul singers/bands out there at the moment, as Motown saw it's last glory days way back when...

strictly soul singers are a rarity in the music industry that is mostly governed by rock or pop, and the different amalgamations of those two...

with Jamie Lidell, soul and the gospel-type singing from the 70s is a huge (and clear) inspiration for his music.
merging the sounds of soul with his own contemporary pop-electronica vibe, Jamie Lidell creates a new kind of soul that is down-right catchy and just...good.

i can foresee Jamie Lidell making it to the air-waves and making it big sometime soon...if not already...(as i don't really listen to the radio anymore.)

listen/watch:
Little Bit of Fell Good - as he serenades to a lady-horse?
Another Day - looking spiffy as he walks the streets and makes everyone feel good...

new blog ! hurrah !

right...so, this is the new home to my music blogs.
hurrah !

i think what i shall do, with this new blog established now, is take the music blogs that i had already posted on my facebook page - so as to save room on my page - is repost those entries here.

sort of backlog...
(right term? backlog?)

but, here now is my newest blog written today, actually.

music blog :: the format wars revisited

so with many different types of formats out there at present moment in the music industry, it becomes much more difficult for people like myself to choose which to go with:

a) downloads (legal *ahem* or...*ahem*...yeah, you know what i'm talking about..)
b) buying it on CD
c) or now on vinyl

option (c) does come with its complications, if you are not in possession of a record player.
although, as i had mentioned way-back...bands are putting out their music in the vinyl format and then inserting each record sleeves with little cards in them, on which are printed codes so one may download the entire album digitally.

lately, option (b) is slowly dying out, i find. CDs will become like tapes, and like 8-tracks before that...

so, conclusively, option (a) seems to be the best bet nowadays for music.
whether it's downloading, or streaming music online, i'm sure every will agree that the internet is the best and (arguably) the most reliable source for finding/listening to music.

one can google such bands/artists, and surely they can find some sort of music website that has at least one link to their song(s) so listeners can listen to their music freely.
if you like the song/artist, you can surely find another website with more music to listen to/download other songs from said band/artist...

case in point: Cold War Kids, one of my top 5 favourite bands of all-time, are releasing their second album (Loyalty To Loyalty) September 23rd. but they are giving fans the choice of listening to the entire album - by streaming it (mtvu.com, apparently.) before the album even hits the stores.
(also on their myspace page, they have uploaded one of their songs and two remixes of this song for the fans to listen to and/or download.)

Coldplay were also ones to do this, as they previewed their whole album Viva La Vida... a few days before its release.

but, being a hard-core fan of both bands, i chose not to listen to the streams.
tempted, yes.
but in the end, didn't. i wished to remain surprised.

Radiohead i think, had the right idea with In Rainbows. Yes, they sold their album online for whatever price fans had wanted to give it - minimum of a mere penny i do believe though(?)
then later, they released it in CD format, and also (of course) as a vinyl.
in the end though, i'm not entirely sure of the sales that the cd had made...i want to say that it did well? maybe? not too sure...but i am sure that someone will correct me on this.

so when will we see the end of the cd? anytime soon? perhaps...
vinyl is seeing somewhat of a comeback. but will it stick around?
downloads and mp3s i figure will be sticking around for a good, long while...

(on a personal note...i much prefer vinyl. nothing sounds better.)