Rapid Fire: Black Stone Cherry, The Offspring, Foo Fighters

Recently, I went to visit family and had to spend five hours driving from my house to theirs. Before setting off, I grabbed three CDs from my collection that I hadn't listened to for the car journey and once I arrived, decided to write a blog post discussing each album. So yeah, that's the theme for this month's Rapid Fire post. Not genres, not decades, just three albums I listened to whilst travelling alone on the motorway.


1. Magic Mountain - Black Stone Cherry

The first album I listened to was easily the best although don't mistake that for me saying it was a great album overall. Magic Mountain has some decent Hard Rock tracks but more often than not, the songs were built on uninspired riffs and generic Black Stone Cherry material. Album opener "Holding On...To Letting Go" starts off with a great rhythm and some decent riffing but regrettably the band make their classic mistake of letting things slow down for no good reason in the middle. It's a shame too as the guitar solo's pretty good, although changing the rhythm in the middle of a song by slowing it down rarely ever works unless you're a Prog Metal band and even then, it's never worth it.
The slower sections of the album come in the form of drug themed tracks such as "Peace Pipe", "Me And Mary Jane" and "Blow My Mind". Similar to some of the material off the latest albums by The Sword, I get the impression that the chilled, Southern Groove behind each of these songs sounds better when 'blazing up' as all the hip kids say. Since I was behind the wheel at the time of listening to these tracks, I can't confirm or deny that theory but what I can confirm is that unlike other Black Stone Cherry albums I've listened to, this album has songs I would love to listen to again such as 70s throwback and title track "Magic Mountain" and emotionally charged album closer "Remember Me", even if it does go on way too long.
The stronger aspects of the record, as always, are the dynamic riffs and heavy grooves whereas I felt myself tuning out during the slower, whinier numbers ("Sometimes") and gimmicky filler tracks straight outta shit-kicker, cousin-fucker county ("Hollywood In Kentucky"). All in all though, it's a complete album that didn't feel like it was playing it too safe or recycling material (unlike another album I'll be discussing lower down). I recommend Magic Mountain to fans of Hard/Southern Rock although don't set your standards too high.

1. Holding On...To Letting Go

2. Peace Pipe

3. Bad Luck & Hard Love

4. Me And Mary Jane

5. Runaway

6. Magic Mountain

7. Never Surrender

8. Blow My Mind

9. Sometimes

10. Fiesta Del Fuego

11. Dance Girl

12. Hollywood In Kentucky

13. Remember Me

ALBUM RATING - 6/10

Next up is an album by Pop Punk champions The Offspring!

2. Americana - The Offspring

Don't let the album artwork fool you; this album isn't even the remotest bit interesting. Released in 1998 and after the band's much better albums Smash and Ixnay On The Hombre (not to mention before Conspiracy Of One, also a better album), Americana is supposed to be the band's statement on life in America from the band's youthful perspective but ends up sounding like weaker versions of material we've already heard before. Album opener "Welcome/Have You Ever" has the same rhythm, the same guitarwork and the same basic vocal structure as your typical Offspring track only it lacks that special spark. Possibly because the band try to add more progressive elements to their aggressive Pop Punk and it simply doesn't work.

Whilst there are some instances of tracks working perfectly as they are ("The Kids Aren't Alright", "Staring At The Sun"), the majority of songs on the album trip and fall over themselves. For example, lead single "Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)" has an amazing chorus and some fine guitar/vocal work, not to mention decent Latin influences. Unfortunately, it's ruined by the obnoxious "GIVVIT TO ME BAY-BEEEE, UH-HUH UH-HUH" throughout. If that vocal melody was played on guitar instead, this would've been an album highlight. There's also album closer "Pay The Man", a song originally intended to be on the previous album but was left off because they felt like it didn't belong. That was a smart decision, unlike the decision to make it eight-minutes long and easily forgettable. That was a dumb decision.

Ultimately, you'll probably enjoy this album if you haven't heard their previous work, similar to how you probably think Die Hard 4.0 is awesome if you haven't seen the first or second one. Americana is surplus goods and the Pop Punk filler tracks are old news at this point. Even the singles are dull or flawed to the point that they're not enjoyable (apart from "The Kids Aren't Alright"). You don't really stand to gain anything from listening to this entire album that you couldn't get elsewhere and the fact that the band's next album moved towards more conventional Rock than their brand of Skater Punk tells you that at least one member of the band felt like Americana showed warning signs of the band going stale.

1. Welcome

2. How Are You

3. Staring At The Sun

4. Pretty Fly (For A White Guy)

5. The Kids Aren't Alright

6. Feelings

7. She's Got Issues

8. Walla Walla

9. The End Of The Line

10. No Brakes

11. Why Don't You Get A Job

12. Americana

13. Pay The Man

14. Pretty Fly (Reprise)

ALBUM RATING - 3/10

And last but certainly least, we have Dave Grohl "experimenting"!

3. There Is Nothing Left To Lose - Foo Fighters

I fucking hate this album. It's generic, depressing, repetitive and possibly worst of all, it feels like Dave Grohl knew exactly what he was doing. The first three songs are completely different to the rest of the album and unsurprisingly, those three songs are the ones that are (semi) popular Foos tracks. Album opener "Stacked Actors" sports a great riff, an explosive chorus, a decent guitar solo and some classic Grohl vocals. Following close behind is "Breakout", another proper Rock song with Dave letting loose throughout. However, once we reach "Learn To Fly", a mediocre but passable radio friendly song designed to sound as commercial as possible, everything goes downhill.

The rest of the album contains guitar riffs that sound like they were written in about 10 seconds ("Live-In Skin", "Headwires"), percussion that would nudge coma patients onto the next mortal plain of existence ("Ain't It The Life", "Aurora") and vocals with all the energy and passion of an insurance salesman humming TV ad jingles whilst waiting for a bus ("M.I.A.", "Next Year"). It's almost as if Grohl didn't have much confidence in what he was doing so decided to start the album off with his three favourite songs so that people would hear the first few tracks and mistake There's Nothing Left To Lose for a Rock album.

This is the kind of album I'd imagine pretentious, hipster douches listening to because of how sensitive and non-threatening this "Rock" music is; your Zach Braffs, your Simon Neils, etc. If you're one of them, go knock yourselves out. Literally, knock yourselves out because your taste is awful and unwanted. Do not listen to this album, there are literally hundreds of better modern Rock records that don't sound phoned in or misleading. I've criticised Queens Of The Stone Age material due to how the mix of soft vocals and aggressively fuzzy guitar/bass tones does not work but I'll take Josh Homme's audio jizzrag over Dave Grohl's, if this album's anything to go by.

1. Stacked Actors

2. Breakout

3. Learn To Fly

4. Gimme Stitches

5. Generator

6. Aurora

7. Live-In Skin

8. Next Year

9. Headwires

10. Ain't It The Life

11. M.I.A.

ALBUM RATING - 2/10

COMING SOON: Tenology posts and more NEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWS.

Family Tree - Black Stone Cherry

I know I said I probably wouldn't listen to this album but I keep hearing radio adverts for it so I'm taking that as the universe's way of telling me to not only listen to Family Tree but also to review it!

Unless it's prefixed by "Dr", I generally can't stand the term "feel good". I usually find that things carrying that term don't make me feel good in the slightest BUT I'm going to make an exception on this occasion. Family Tree by Black Stone Cherry is a feel good Rock album, not because it contains families owning brand new puppies or old people being the recipient of charitable acts but because it contains a tight collection of energetic, footstomping Blues infused Southern Rock from start to finish.
Unfortunately, much like many modern Rock albums at the moment, the highlights are in the first third of the album. "Bad Habit" is a great album opener that could very well open live Black Stone Cherry gigs for many years to come, although it's a shame they had to go and ruin it with a terrible guitar solo needlessly slowing the entire song down. Luckily, "Burnin'" is able to recover some of the momentum with its catchy chorus and *shudders* feel good vibe. It helps that it sounds like one of your typical Black Stone Cherry songs, albeit a bit more upbeat.
As I said 86 words ago, these songs that come early on in the album are easily the best. They're the kind of songs designed up ramp up crowds at live venues or create a positive atmosphere in pubs/comfort dining restaurants; non-threatening but still punchy, kinda like Nickelback without the negative stigma. This is fine if you're picking and choosing individual songs but when experienced as an entire album, things start to get a little samey. The same drumbeats, the same guitar tones and the same basic structure for 13 songs...well, OK, not all 13. There are some anomalies.

For starters, "My Last Breath" stands out as having slightly higher production values than the previous tracks. There are backing vocals and non-Hard Rock instruments like electric piano in the introduction that separate it from your typical Black Stone Cherry footstomper. There's also "James Brown", a track that contains a pinch of Soul to carry the weight of the song's name and lyrics, once again using the brass musical accompaniments and gospel-like backing vocals to enhance it, and "Southern Fried Friday Night", another slow song but with more of a heavier, gritty feel to it.
However, you could argue that the small differences in these songs are mainly there to mask the fact that they're still generic Black Stone Cherry numbers...or that they were included to spice up what the band believed were pretty decent tracks, it depends on how cynical you're feeling. But even if the band were being genuine, that doesn't redeem the fact that a lot of songs are similar and therefore forgettable if you're not absolutely in love with their brand of Southern Rock. The album sounds like it's aimed at fans and general audiences but the minute differences between each track are arguably too subtle for the casual listener, not to mention borderline pointless in some cases.
"Dancin' In The Rain" makes a somewhat big deal of the fact that Warren Haynes (Southern Rock guitarist) is featured on - you guessed it - guitar...except Black Stone Cherry aren't faltering in the guitar department and what Warren brings isn't any more impressive or significant than anything else the band have already thrown at you. Then there's "You Got The Blues", a song with a bizarre introduction like something out of 80s New Romantic before returning back to your regularly scheduled sludgy Southern Rock. If you've read my reviews before, you're probably waiting for the part where I say "these songs needed faster drumbeats" and whilst I would've preferred many of them with slightly higher tempos ("Carry Me On Down The Road" is a perfect example), I'm hesitant to say that the album "needed" them.

The drummer (John Fred Young) has a couple of moments towards the end of the album where he's allowed to let loose but there aren't any fast paced tracks with furious riffing and driving rhythms...but that's OK! That's not what Black Stone Cherry are about; they're not a Hard Rock outfit, they're modern Blues based Southern Rock. It's about the quality of the music and, to a lesser extent, lyrics; the percussion is merely the skeleton from which the fleshy guitar riffs and solos songs hang. Besides, the band do an incredible job of maintaining the energy and.......
Sorry, let me try that again.
The band do an incredible job of maintaining the energy and...........feel good atmosphere of the album all the way to the finish line so increasing the speed of a couple of tracks to add more energy would be a hat on a hat, generally speaking. However, that being said, there are a couple of filler tracks that bring nothing of value to the table and possibly should've been rewritten to sound a little bit faster to the majority of what we'd already heard up to that point, just to give listeners more to enjoy ("I Need A Woman", "Get Me Over You").
Overall, Family Tree is decent. It might not be my favourite album by any means but it's not a bad collection of tunes, so long as you don't mind the occasional bit of Rock monotony around the middle. I'm welcome to be proven wrong but the biggest problem with this album is that it lacks that one great track, increasing the likelihood that it'll fade away into the band's back catalogue over the years to come. Sure, "Burnin'" is decent but it's no "Blind Man" or "In My Blood"...or even "Remember Me". Consequently, I rate it a 7/10. Strong effort and good delivery but a little too bland at times and not enough risks taken, seeing as this is the band's 6th album which is usually where bands start to innovate and..............
Fuck, I can do this, hold on.
Where bands start to innovate and.....*gags in mouth*.....experiment.

Taster Session #10

Several months have passed since the last Taster Session post and, sure enough, many more Rock/Metal singles have been released! Funny, that. Anyway, let's look at five new songs for upcoming albums and decide whether or not we want to enjoy the full records based on their singles:

"Devil" - Shinedown         (listen here)

From the album Attention Attention (04/05/18)

I'm slowly getting into Shinedown after listening to a bunch of their albums in one sitting. I definitely prefer their earlier stuff, though. It had more of an edge and pound for pound it felt more like Rock music compared to the stuff on Threat To Survival. "Devil" has the passion and energy but also sounds like something you'd hear at the end of a Transformers film or covered in a singing talent show; safe Rock. I'll probably listen to the album but considering it doesn't sound like Shinedown are reverting back to their earlier sound, I'm not going to get excited about it.

"Waiting For A Sign" - Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow         (listen here)

From the album ???? (??/??/??)

Wow, the first new Rainbow song in about 22 years!!!

Holy shit, remember Rainbow? "Stargazer", "Kill The King", "Lost In Hollywood". They were an awesome Hard Rock band, I wonder what their new single will sound like?

WAHP WAHP. It sucks!

Yeah, Blackmore's lost it. He had something special and he fucking lost it, the twat. Seriously, listen to this song and get your head around the fact that the guy who laid down all the riffs and solos for the best Deep Purple songs shat out this Bluesy wank that sounds too dull even for Whitesnake. Maybe there'll be a full album and maybe Blackmore will unleash the beast, forcing me to eat my words (I'm not counting the upcoming live collection, by the way), but if this song is any indication, his time is done. But hey, I guess he doesn't think so as he's determined to milk whatever acclaim he can get; remember folks, this isn't just Rainbow. It's Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow again, a name the band haven't carried since 1975 and have presumably only reclaimed due to the man's unwarranted ego.

"Trouble" - Five Finger Death Punch         (listen here)

From the album And Justice For None (18/05/18)

OK, a bit of explaining needed here. "Trouble" was first released as a track on the band's A Decade Of Destruction compilation album as a new song that will be included on the deluxe edition of their upcoming album, And Justice For None (YO, WE'RE RIFFIN ON METALLICA UP IN THIS BITCH! MAXIMUM FUCKING EDGE, BOOOIIIS). The compilation may have come out already but it's still technically a sample of what's to come in the new album, so it counts! The track's not bad, got some good riffs and guitar melodies throughout. I doubt I'll listen to the album as I couldn't give a fuck about Five Finger Death Punch and their fanbase of angry white teenagers (that was a joke, don't get pissy) but this track's not bad. At least they didn't do the typical American Metal thing of forcing a soft middle section in to show listeners how sensitive they are.

"Burnin'" - Black Stone Cherry         (listen here)

From the album Family Tree (20/04/18)

I don't really have much to say about Black Stone Cherry. Yeah, they're pretty good? Some great songs, some meh ones. Nothing on either extreme, they're just very competent. As for this song...yeah, it's good. Solo sounds a little off; there's a sort of pre-solo bit that's played too high and it sounds terrible but then it sorts itself out. All in all, this is what I've come to expect from Black Stone Cherry and even though it's unlikely that I'll listen to the album, I'm not ruling it out if someone recommends it with unequivocal passion.

"Thought Contagion" - Muse         (listen here)

From the album ???? (??/??/??)

Hey, Muse are back with another single from an unnamed album! This time, they're going for a Coldplay thing along with their brand of synthy Prog shite blended with some 80s guff because nostalgia sells. Between this and their last single, "Dig Down", I am completely drained of excitement for any Muse album release in the near future. I can't remember anything about the last song except I think it sucked and this one definitely doesn't sound like the band are heading in the right direction, considering how awful their last Pop/Electronic based albums were. At least Drones had Rock songs that made it great to listen to.


I might have to write a video game post if I can't think of a better topic before the end of the month. Be warned.

Tenology: My Ten Favourite Rock/Metal Songs Of 2014

If you're like me when it comes to opinions about music journalism then chances are you find posts on blogs/websites along the lines of "Ten Best Songs Of [A YEAR/DECADE]" to be all the same. A bunch of Indie songs, some generic pop and usually Kanye Fucking West.

NOT THIS ONE!

Rather than pretend to be some sophisticated tosser who is all about how deep and lyrically influential music is, I plan on writing about my 10 favourite songs of the year that fall strictly within the Rock/Metal parameter...though chances are I'll still sound like a snob at times. There's a strong possibility that none of them will be on any official Top Songs Of 2014 lists as the spaces on those lists are reserved for paragraphs overly praising how great David Bowie is for releasing an album over 30 years after he stopped making good music or how innovative and talented the Foo Fighters are for capturing the pure, raw sound of Dave Grohl stroking his dick across eight songs.
Anyway, here are the songs that came out within the last 12 months that I would recommend to people above all other upcoming bands/artists. Once again, I remind you that these are in no order of greatness as I think they're all awesome:


1. "30 Years To Life" - Slash

One of the singles off World On Fire (I'll just leave this little review here for anyone who may have missed it) and probably my favourite song from the album. Granted it starts off a little shaky but luckily it soon finds its feet after the intro. The reason I preferred this song to others on the album probably comes down to the reprise at the end. The song's continual build-up manages to turn the worst part of the track into the best, leaving you with good memories of the tune you just heard...at least it did for me, anyway.


2. "1000hp" - Godsmack

Time for a bit of Metal! I don't know much about the music of Godsmack but I do know this song has about as much power as you can possibly want for modern Metal. My favourite aspect of this song is easily the way each drum beat in the intro and verse sounds like a hefty punch. In fact, the drumming throughout the whole song is as tight as a banker's pocket but when you listen to the track, you'll know what I mean. Some may argue that it sounds stiff but I'd rather that than it sounding sloppy and overly reliant on cymbal crashes.
Oh yeah, and the other band members are great too.


3. "Crash Landing" - Toseland

Whilst all the pictures of the guy make him look like a self-obsessed cunt too big-headed even for TOWIE, his music definitely earns its place here. Unlike other entries in this list where one or two instruments clearly dominate the others, this song is a perfect example of how each member of the band contributes an even share towards making a great tune. Yes, the guitar and vocals tend to stand out more but once you listen to the drums and bass all the way through, you'll realise they're pulling their weight just as much as Mr Essex himself.


4. "Deceived" - Red Dragon Cartel

More Metal! From the opening riff, you know you're gonna be in for a treat and luckily, the rest of the song delivers! If anything, it sounds like some modern Ozzy Osbourne but with about 30% more balls (you can thank the work of ex-Ozzy guitarist Jake E. Lee for those balls!). The only thing I would say is that the song kind of ends on a low note, despite building up so much energy. If it had the outro it deserved, I'd definitely recommend it above most other tracks on this list.


5. "Dragonaut" - Judas Priest

The only notable song on the entire fucking album. However, it's a hell of a song! You've got everything you could want from Judas Priest on it (aside from a bit more Halford falsetto but at least the band knew it wouldn't suit this song before they said "Fuck it, do it anyway" for the title track). I was tempted to leave it off this list until I realised that I've been listening to it regularly since I first purchased it in July. That makes it a top song, in my books.


6. "Heaven Knows" - The Pretty Reckless

The first song on this list that isn't all about speed and action but that doesn't mean it's not powerful. With plenty of explosive and arguably "epic" moments, this memorable track will get your feet stomping and if you don't end up humming along, chances are the chorus will stick around in your head later on that day. I'm surprised this song hasn't been used in more ads for TV shows or films, if I'm honest.


7. "Looking At You" - Uriah Heep

I was tempted to review Uriah Heep's latest album, Outsider, on this blog but decided against it in the end. If you want a shortened version, all you need to know is that there are three songs that stand out (and two of those were singles). "One Minute", "Can't Take That Away" and this one. All the others generally sound like Whitesnake knock-offs whereas "Looking At You" boasts some fine work from all instruments, particularly bass and keys.


8. "Midnight Meditation" - The Vintage Caravan

Above all else, it's the main guitar riff and drum combo that I enjoy more than the wailing vocals and fuzzy bass. Sadly, the rest of the album this came from isn't worth discussing but at least this shining jewel could be found in the grey slop that was Voyage. What I would say about the song is that it seems to go on a little bit too long. The bridge in the middle with the guitar solo is cool but perhaps the final verse could've been trimmed or adapted into an outro.


9. "Remember Me" - Black Stone Cherry

Gun to head, if I was forced to pick my favourite song of the year then this would probably be it. It's comparable to a lot of modern Hard Rock songs that rely on heavy chords and shouting but unlike those, the chords are accompanied by individual guitarwork and the shouting is fuelled by emotion rather than the need to sing about something. The only major downside to this song is that the album version contains about one minute and twenty seconds of atmospheric and unnecessary feedback at the end. It completely ruins the otherwise fantastic tune, but not enough for it to be omitted from this list.


10. "Too Many Clowns" - Magnum

I can't say I'm too fond of Magnum as their older songs are a little bit too synthy for my tastes. This song, however, has next to none of that. It's just good ol' Rock! If anything, this song sounds like ZZ Top or even Status Quo if they were fucking awesome as opposed to just awesome*. Raspy vocals perfect for Hard Rock and heavy riffing make up for the weak solo and I knew once this album came out, I had to have the song.

So those are my 10 favourite tracks released in 2014 BUT I've picked five others that deserve a mention and a listen from you if you've agreed with at least 7/10 of my choices so far:


"A Shot At Redemption" - H.E.A.T
Quite similar to "Heaven Knows" but not as grand or imposing. Instead, it beefs up the fretwork and increases the tempo to footstomping speed. If I'd ordered this list in terms of greatness, I reckon this would've made #11.


"Calling Out" - Electric River
If I'm ever involved in a dynamic motorbike chase across a near-futuristic motorway then I'd probably want this song to be playing. This song is probably more appropriate than some of the others on my list as it sounds more like Modern Rock compared to, say, Uriah Heep.


"Electric Man" - Rival Sons
I should really thank radio station Planet Rock for playing many of these songs as they're my primary source for discovering new music. The reason I bring them up now is because they've caught onto Rival Sons and have played many of their tunes from previous albums, as well as this great one. Whilst this isn't my favourite song by the band in general, it's definitely my favourite they've released this year that I've heard.


"The Outlaw" - The Treatment
A song presumably written with the sole intent of kicking ass, "The Outlaw" would've fought it out with "Deceived" on my list. I think the line "I'm the Outlaw, don'tcha know" in the chorus stopped this song from making the list. Other than that lyric, it's a great track.


"Two Doves On A Lake" - Archie Bronson Outfit
Quite kooky and definitely Wolfmotherish, this song was just a little bit too off-the-wall for my list. Not that that's a bad thing, of course. I like songs that are a bit different as much as ones that stick to conventions but in this case, I preferred the aforementioned tracks to this one. However, I would say fans of Stoner Metal and Hard Prog check this song out. Who knows, maybe other material by the Archie Bronson Outfit are worth a listen in general!

So that's my brief musical summary of 2014. We had highs and lows but what about 2015?
Well, we've got new albums from Metallica, Def Leppard, Queen featuring some other guy, possibly Iron Maiden, Saxon and other bands too, not to mention all the new acts who'll release their debuts this year and quite possibly a few other surprises along the way too.
Here's to another year of monthly blog posts! Hooraaaaaay!


*on occasion