Archive for the ‘Album Reviews’ Category

Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold

April 25th, 2011

az 14837 Unida Cantina Roger Clyne Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold

Unida Cantina...this is not the Refreshments your mamma served you

Newly released from Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers, Unida Cantina.  This is the latest collection of thirteen songs from the former front man of the Refreshments. When suggested that I review this new CD, how could I resist to review a work from a guy and band that had the most obvious lyric “the world is full of stupid people” from Bandidos.  I had to give them a boost.  OK.  I was under pressure from a relative who knows these guys and is helping pedal their tequila brand, Roger Clyne’s Mexican Moonshine. (Click Link For Website) Ed Note:  We originally called this Rocky Point….my apologies, going too fast here and I did not have the Moonshine to slow me down. Nope. I have not had any, but maybe Jason can hook me up in exchange for this stunning review.  Thing is, I listened to the tracks carefull to get a solid dose of the band

clyne 300x151 Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold

Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers

Thing is, I really liked this CD. The sound is solid, crisp and not overly complicated. It delivers a most listen-able record on nearly every track. In some cases, you would swear the main influence of this band is Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.  I have no idea if this is the case, but you hear glimpses of this throughout the music.  In one particular cut, Empty Highway, the opening riff sounds like your are diving straight into Petty’s “Last Dance with Mary Jane”.  The rest of the song varies enough to keep them out of court, and is decent, but you get the point.

Clyne’s voice is prominent and strong.  I do not capture him as one of the greatest voices, but it is strong and featured throughout.  Vocal complexity is largely missing from this CD.  There are few harmonies, and when done, the harmonies, though mixed well, are fairly soft compared to the lead vocal.  Guitar work in this effort is functional. Again, nothing overly fancy.  Leads tend to be resolved to the music at hand, not laced with ugly egos, they fit well into the structure of the song.

redd granite 2 Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold

The sound is very consistent throughout.  Their music is considered rock, but I consider them a bit alternative.  You cannot escape the obvious Latin influence as well. The title track is an instrumental we could have done without, Spanish flamico style. Other cuts like the listen-able “Dinero” lend to the theme. Again, this is a crisp clean sound that is driven by a well played bass part on most cuts. The structures of the songs are fairly rigid, verse, chorus with hook, and bridge, but there is nothing wrong with this.  Several songs have great commercial appeal. Now in this market of fragmented music styles and over difficulty getting mass airplay unless you are hip hop or some other equally related genre, I am not certain how one gets good airplay except true work of mouth.  Such will need to be the case for Clyne and his band mates. They tour often.  And considering what I heard and reviewed herein, I am considering seeing them in a small club in Dallas on July 9. The stronger songs on this CD is “All Over the Radio” and “Go with the Flow”.  Add these to your iPod.  But for God’s sake, do not miss adding “Just Got High”. The best cut on the CD.  No I do not care about the title, it is just a great song, well crafted and extremely good. Weaker efforts are “Maria”, the previously mentioned title track instrumental and “Love is the Road”       You Can Click the Bold Title to the right to hear “Just Got High”.  It will download to your computer in MP4 format, then click to play. Everyone needs a toke now and then. 10 Just Got High

On a scale of 10 I give this 8.5. This is a great effort that unfortunately will not get a wide appeal, but really deserves to be heard

iPod Do’s:  If you are too cheap to buy the entire CD

  • Just Got High
  • All Over the Radio
  • Heaven on a Paper Plate
  • Go With the Flow
  • Small World

iPod Don’ts

  • Maria
  • Unida Cantina
  • Love Is The Road

The rest?  You decide

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

Fare Buzz
Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold
Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold
Roger Clyne and The Peacemakers Strike Tequila Gold
GHTime Code(s): nc nc nc nc nc nc nc 

Tags: ,
Posted in Album Reviews | Comments (0)

A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You

January 9th, 2011

A Day To Remember A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You

A Day To Remember from Ocala, FLA

It was suggested to this site that I obtain and review A Day To Remember’s latest album release, “What Separates Me From You”. Previously, I have not been familiar with the group  in detail.  I had of heard of them, but never exposed to their music.  What Separates Me From You was release on November 15 of 2010, obviously to catch the Christmas buying season. This is the fourth release from this quintet from Ocala FLA. These guys are considered punk/pop/metalcore.  Interesting designation. I find this quite descriptive. The band has a full sound laced with heavy guitars that anchor each song. As is consistent with the metal side of this designation, there are few guitar riffs or leads in the music.  With each offering, there seems to be a a formula for the song that includes the metal portion on the song followed by a much more melodic and listen able chorus that drives the song home. The punk designation is not entirely fitting in my opinion.  Outside of the fact that most of the songs are shorter overall and consistent in length, I hear few indications of punk in the music…..I guess I can see it somewhat, but really, this is much more metal and melodic metal than anything.  From my perspective, this is good. Once again, the sound is full, vivid, and the musically, the group is very together in their their sound.

As with most true metal bands, the vocals are not  the charismatic souring voices of rock.  It does contain the usual gravel growl voicing that is normal for Metalcore offerings. I am OK with this, but in the end, I would rather have strong vocal that drive the music rather than the what we see from lead singer  Jeremy McKinnon…But I quickly admit I come from another era of vocals in rock music. Also, harmonies are non-existent as well….consistent with metal and punk designations.

what Separates A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You

What Separates Me From You

redd granite 2 A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You

Stronger offerings on this album are those that do offer a strong pop choruses coupled with the strengths of lyrics in the versers of the songs.  ”All I Want”  is one that stands out on the album.  This appears to be the most downloaded song from iTunes from this album, yet I am not convinced this is the strongest of the songs on the album.  I thought “Better Off This Way” was the clear winner on this album.  Again, it followed the same formula I discussed above. The album turns much heavier in sound with “Sticks and Bricks” and “2nd Sucks” and “You Be Tails I’ll Be Sonic”.  These balance out the more poppy side of the sound in the others, although Sticks and Bricks, although considerably heavier than most on the album, follows the formula of a more pop ridden chorus as well.

The lyrics are strong, and the album loosely contains a theme.  The beginning entry starts with McKinnon growling “I am fueled by all forms of failure”. I like that. Other song titles and themes follow suit to a degree. Of course, you will have to get a hold of the liner notes in order to review the lyrics in more detail, as they are not easily discernible in the metal voicing on the songs, sans the choruses. The strong lyrical content lends credence to the band’s credible musical approach.  It would seems these songs were not necessarily written with the goal of getting airplay….that always makes for better music.

That said, I believe this band should received good airplay.  When researching the sales of this album, one of the designations noted was that this week, it was marked by billboard as one of the albums that have received increased airplay over the last ratings period.  It was listed #64 in the Billboard hot 200.  Up from #117 from the prior reporting period, it is apparent that airplay must be making a difference.  The album peaked at #11 during its release “bullet”, so the momentum seems to be reversing based on this airplay. I apologize, I do not have total sales figures.

Overall I give this album a 7 out of a total of 10.  Good offering.  I am happy I invested.  If you would like to purchase, the link here (immediate following this sentence)  takes you to Amazon for truly the lowest price for this CD. Or if you prefer, go through the the iTunes link below this post.  What Separates Me From You

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

Fare Buzz
A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You
A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You
A Day To Remember Album Review: What Separates Me From You
GHTime Code(s): nc nc nc nc nc nc nc nc 

Tags: , ,
Posted in Album Reviews, Favorite Music | Comments (0)

SEO Powered by Platinum SEO from Techblissonline