DG's Album Reviews

DG's MUSICAL PREFERENCES: I'm an eclectic, so every type of music is reviewed here, except country and oldies (the only two musical types I do not like). The sources are pretty simple: they're albums I've purchased with my own money (not yet the big-time guy that gets them for free) and, to get reviewed here, they have to be relatively new. Most of the albums I do acquire are relatively new ones (e.g. still spawning singles), so most of my collection will be reviewed. I will, however, make references to albums of previous years that I've collected but, since I only started my World Issues Page in February, are not reviewed. I've been listening to music intentively for about five years now, and, having heard millions of songs over the years, I think I have a pretty good handle on what is good and what is not.

WHAT DG LOOKS FOR: First and foremost, the tracks have to be a pretty good listen. There's nothing worse than listening to an album that lulls you to sleep. Second, I look for creativity and originality, something to set the work apart from others in its class, and also to see if the artist, within the album itself, can also be creative and original. Third, it has to work. A discombobulated album won't score a lot of points with me, as it almost proves the artist didn't try too hard or "tried too hard". Fourth, I look for artistic merit- one should never forget that artists, in the end, create "art", so artists that can succeed in creating deep, sensual and overall stunning music get rewarded here. No "cookie-cutters" allowed.

Anyway, here are the reviews.

This Edition:
Spider-Man: Music From and Inspired By
Our Lady Peace- Gravity
Amanda Marshall- Everybody's Got A Story
My Picks

Spider-Man: Music From and Inspired By

Rating: WWW

Song of the Album: Corey Taylor- Bother

My Alternate Title: "Spidey Rocks!"

Genre: Hard Rock

If the motion picture was any indication, the soundtrack should be a killer dose of music, every bit as deep as the motion picture itself. Alas, despite some really great performances, the "Spider-Man" soundtrack never really gets into the upper echelon of music, stranding itself somewhere in between "classic" and "run-of-the-mill".

Don't get me wrong: the soundtrack is itself an enjoyable listen, featuring a who's who of the rock world just letting it all out. There are names like Jerry Cantrell, Chad Kroeger (the Nickleback frontman), Sum 41 and Default on the album, along with up and coming acts like Corey Taylor and The Hives. The Sum 41 song, "What We're All About" is among the band's best music to date, although it doesn't have the same magic their break out hit, "Fat Lip", had, while Default's killer track, "Blind", is reminiscent of the band's best work on their debut album, "The Fallout". Though Kroeger's song "Hero", featuring Saliva's Josey Scott, has promise as a deep and artistic rock tune, it is marred by overtly simplistic lyrics and overall falls flat. Lower on the scale is The Hives' "Hate To Say I Told You So", an overall lame attempt to emulate Korn, while Macy Gray only proves she cannot sing in belting out the horribly hackneyed and raspy "My Nutmeg Phantasy". Still, the stupidest song on the entire album is Aerosmith's version of the Spider-Man theme, misguided and overall sillier than a circus (which wouldn't be understating Aerosmith too much), and, worst of all, it closes out the album. On a brighter note, Corey Taylor's "Bother" is the smartest and deepest song the album, an excellent rock tune that leaves Kroeger's misguided attempt in the dust. It is, however, marred with a little simplicity but I won't let that take away from the song, far and away the best track on the album.

Overall, "Spider-Man: Music From and Inspired By" isn't exactly as artistic or deep as the movie was, lacking largely on depth and coherence. On a brighter note, the album is great for a casual listen, something to listen to while at work or lounging around at home on the computer- perhaps reading this review- or doing the housework. However, if you're looking for an album that you can sit in your room, immerse yourself into and enjoy while sitting by your stereo, you're better off finding something else.

Back

Our Lady Peace- Gravity

Rating: WW

Song of the Album: "A Story About A Girl"

My Alternate Title: "Our Lady Peace- Welcome Back To Earth"

Genre: Hard Rock

"Gravity", Canadian rockers Our Lady Peace's highly anticipated fifth studio release, came out in June amid much hype and publicity, not unusual for an Our Lady Peace project, and expectations were high following the previous release, the critically-acclaimed "Spiritual Machines". Frontman Raine Maida proved himself on that album as an artistic writer, able to pen great rock tunes with a spiritual side, deep and marvelous. The whole band seemed to mature with the album, perhaps leaving in its wake an impressive U.S. debut (something OLP has failed to do) and setting the stage for another impressive release to compliment the band's sound. There was the hope that, while "Spiritual Machines" didn't break the band into the U.S., "Gravity" would, and all signs pointed to it after MTV added the first single, "Somewhere Out There" to its playlist.

Alas, "Gravity" fails to deliver, with the sound lacking in the depth and creativity that defined "Spiritual Machines". The band itself sounds tired and worn out, playing their instruments at half speed and with half the gusto we're normally accustomed to from OLP. Even Maida, whose sub-par voice usually compliments the band's sound, is exposed as a bad singer at times, missing cues with the music and overall sounding flat, while his penmanship seems drained and overall misguided. Perhaps this is all expected- this is, after all, OLP's fifth album in seven years, so fatigue may be setting in, plus the band had to replace its bassist after the original one left the band back in March, so OLP has some adjusting to do. Still, if this was OLP's first effort they wouldn't have the throngs of fans they now have, because the album lacks on overall quality and in depth, a major run-of-the-mill album if there ever was one.

Don't get me wrong: there are some great tracks on this album, like the first single, "Somewhere Out There", a wonderfully crafted song about lost love, and the last track, "A Story About A Girl", probably the most thoughtful song on the album. Still, "Gravity" remains a huge disappointment, lacking in depth and guidance, a supposedly artistic collection that fails to be one. This is not good news for OLP: with the rise of Nickleback, one of the world's most thoughtful and creative rock acts right now (frontman Chad Kroeger's solo effort "Hero" notwithstanding), OLP is quickly losing their clout and doesn't help themselves with an offering like this. One can only hope this is a mere blip in Maida's career and OLP will be back better than ever the next time around- hopefully after some rest- but, in the meantime, OLP has a sub-par effort that disappoints more than it entertains. The shadow of "Clumsy", OLP's best album to date, still rests over the band that was once Canada's favourite rock group.

Back

Amanada Marshall- Everybody's Got A Story

Rating: WWWW

Song of the Album: "Inside The Tornado"

My Alternate Title: "Amanda Marshall Goes Pop"

Genre: Pop Rock

After a three-year absence, Canadian songstress Amanda Marshall storms back onto the music scene with her fourth effort, "Everybody's Got A Story", a collection of 12 stories woven into songs. Once again, Marshall shines with her voice, among the best in the music industry, and has a pretty good handle on the songwriting chores. For this project, Marshall is trying something new- an all-out foray into the pop music world, trying a more "poppy" sound in the attempt to gain younger fans, a place where Marshall has lukewarm support at best. After listening to the album, it's safe to say that at least Marshall has the potential and could be a pop culture sleeper by year's end.

The sound, overall, is a mixture is clever and catchy, with the songs kept simple. Why this is done is not too clear: perhaps Marshall is trying to ensure her listeners can get her stories, or maybe she's just afraid that an album that is too deep- probably the failing of the previous three efforts- won't catch on in pop culture. Whatever it is, it still sounds great and her stories come out crystal clear, sometimes a little too crystal clear if you ask me. In her first track, the title track, she boldly declares that "everybody's got a story that could break your heart" and then proceeds with the next 11 tracks to prove that point. There's a mixture of stories that many can relate to, with the almost prerequisite love stories but also stories about other life experiences like "Sunday Morning After", where Marshall explains what could happen if one drinks too much. Other tracks, like "Black Magic Marker" and "Double Agent" also shine, clever and catchy pop tunes that are easy to listen to. Despite all that, the song of the album is the last one, "Inside The Tornado", where Marshall ditches the instruments and sings all by herself, using her voice not only to sing the lyrics but to also compliment them as if it were an instrument. This type of song is rarely done on albums, and she manages to do this masterfully as a worthy closer to the album.

Overall, "Everybody's Got A Story" is a clever and catchy 12-song set worthy of standing with the rest of Marshall's work. If there is a small complaint, it is the fact that the songs are simple: Marshall needs to learn that you don't need to be simple to succeed in the pop industry, and, if she needs an example, just look at Michelle Branch. The Arizona songstress single-handedly proved this year that deep and artistic songs can work in pop culture and not even at the expense of the art, a common fault of many previous pop works. While I still prefer Branch to Marshall, I won't let Marshall's simplicity detract from an excellent work.

Back

My Picks

Even with her simplicity, Marshall takes this month's edition over the rockers OLP and on the Spider-Man soundtrack. Marshall's work is a clever collection of 12 stories, great sonically and wonderful to listen to, even if it is a little simple. As for Spidey, the album is an enjoyable collection of rock tunes, some of them great like Corey Taylor's "Bother" and some of them not so great like The Hives' "Hate To Say I Told You So", but the album isn't worth more than a casual listen. As for OLP, "Gravity" is something they'd rather forget, as it is a misguided and dull collection of rock tunes that lack the old power of the previous OLP works, not good for OLP with the rise of Nickleback as a world-class band in terms of popularity and quality. In terms of the whole, only Marshall's work has the potential to have lasting appeal, but, even then, it doesn't set any new standards and isn't too overtly compelling.

-DG

Back

Discuss this page here

Back Home

DG's World Issues Page- The Forum

DG's World Issues Page- The Headlines

View Page Stats See who's visiting this page.