I have decided that Sept. 13 shall be known as “International Album Release Day” because of the plethora of new releases this year. In this particular article, I shall go over six of the newest releases from bands of many genres, starting with a band inside their own genre: Primus!
Green Naugahyde is a thirteen-track trip into the mind of LesClaypool and friends and it sure is a scary, yet musically wonderful place. The first track that stuck out to me was “Last Salmon Man”.
This track features some delicious bass chords that sound a bit like “Joker and the Thief” by WolfMother; that is, it sounds like that song, with a charming Primus twist. Speaking of twists, everybody loves twisted circus music!
And the next track entitled “Eternal Combustion Engine” is just that! The track after that, “Tragedy’s A’Comin'” goes to prove Les Claypoolon bass is the best thing since someone told Neil Peart about the drum set. The album goes on into my person favorite track, “Lee VanCleef”.
Another good song is “HOINFODAMAN” which lets the listener know that Primus sucks in the most delightful way. A bit farther into the album, a delightfully delicious track called “Extinction Burst” is driven by, what’s this? Percussion? On a Primus album?
Yes, the best part of this track is its riveting drum beat. Of course, this beat is not to be outdone by Les’ wah pedal. The album then ends with a musical oddity in itself entitled “Salmon Men”. The beginning reminds me of the “Robot Chicken” theme song, which Primus also wrote.
And of course, the lyrics of this song are the usual amusing nonsense. The next album takes us down a darker path: the path of The Devil Wears Prada. Their new fourth album is entitled Dead Throne and it is no stray from their dark path. The premiere and title track has some alluring parts, and some distasteful ones.
The drum rhythms make me admire Daniel Williams and his double bass. The clean choruses are immensely pleasing to the ear. In fact, the clean vocals are the crown jewel of the album.
Overall, this work is not the Zombie EP, which saddens me, but if you have been a fan since Plagues, or even before that, you should probably enjoy some tracks off this cd. Up next is a metalcore band which I enjoy quite a bit.
“AM I NOT UNDERSTANDING THIS NOW?” What a way to “Mis// Understanding”, the first track of the album. In fact, this song just might be my favorite song of theirs yet. As the album progresses, the music decreases its heaviness and intensity. “A War Inside” is an aesthetic masterpiece of beauty.
Other tracks are also great. In fact, overall, the album is a big success. Featuring meaningful lyrics and a huge improvement from an already solid foundation, I would like to nominate Understanding What We’ve Grown To Be by We Came As Romans for the sophomore album of the year.
The next two albums are Staind by… Staind and The Sea Of Memories by Bush. First with Staind, their newest release takes the listener back to their old days with the sound of the first three albums. The main single, “Not Again” has a pretty heavy sound for Staind.
Moving on to Bush, the new single of the album “Afterlife” is so lovely and catchy, I feel compelled to go listen to more Bush. The other single, “The Sound Of Winter” sounds like their old 90’s stuff with a touch of an aged, slower feel. Finally, the star of “International Album Release Day,” A Dramatic Turn Of Events by Dream Theater. The opening track, “On The Backs Of Angels” deserves its own full-page review.
Starting off on a slow, melodious guitar riff with waves of a keyboard floating in and out, the track leads into a fantastic lead up led by John Petrucci’s delectable guitar work. Followed by an angelic chorus line, the song begins to show off its true power. The next six minutes are Progressive Metal history.
Go watch the music video and you shall understand. The rest of the album follows suit in the word of power. There are also some solos that make me wonder if Dream Theater is really human, or just robots sent on a musical mission… from God.
The tracks are the usual lengths around ten minutes, but if you ignore the numbers and just get into it, you finish the album begging them for more. “This Is The Life” can make you cry, or at least look back on your life emotionally.
Overall, I think Dream Theater continues to progress their unique sound, each album at a time. Go buy this album or YouTube it daily.