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A Beating Heart 3:07
![]() 7.4 Cold World 4:07
![]() 7.4 Stupid Mistake 2:42
![]() 8.4 Everybody Wants 6:55
![]() 8.9 Kick In The Teeth 2:55
![]() 7.4 So Much Love 1:45
![]() 8.4 |
Mike's Other Reviews
Comment by Mike 4 months ago
Monolith 2010 by In Mourning This actually isn't too progressive - the tracks have somewhat conventional structure, but they also feature the occasional extreme outburst (think Meshuggah or Opeth). All in all: A nicely done album! Comment by Mike 5 months ago
Option Paralysis 2010 by The Dillinger Escape Plan I like the album - I guess you could say that it's "more of the same", but nicely done anyway. Listened to it the other day after the latest Elvis Costello album and thought: This is like the sonic version of contrast showering ... Comment by Mike 11 months ago
Mothership 2007, Best by Led Zeppelin Every Led Zeppelin fan should get this release ... the sound quality is amazing. Comment by Mike 11 months ago
Force Of Gravity 2009 by Sylvan I really don't like this album ... at all. I loved Posthumous Silence and as far as overall style, musicianship and production are concerned this is just as good, but the sub-par songwriting combined with the overly theatralic/emotional singing ruin it for me. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Abacadae 2009 by Outre Mesure I really enjoyed listening to this album ... it's Avant-Garde music walking the fine line between Jazz and Rock, with much improvisation in it, very dynamic and not too easy to listen to if you're not used to it ... but it's also quite playful and not as gloomy as many other Avant-Prog albums that I've listened to lately. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Dolores 2008 by Bohren & der Club of Gore Slow. Really Slow. Really, *Really* Slow. Very sparse ... the band set out a decade earlier to make Doom Metal music without guitars, and they've certainly come a long way. This isn't metal at all ... there aren't any guitars, and apart from the occasional crunchy jazz organ sound there isn't any distortion either. This is essentially very tasty, melodic Jazz music played very slowly over regular, but very minimalistic rock patterns. Confused? Give it a spin, listen for yourself! Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Music for Strippers, Hookers, and the Odd On-Looker 2009 by Kristeen Young What a voice! No, that wouldn't do this album justice ... the voice is magnificent, but the piano is even more prominent - and she's really taking it to the extreme. At first you might think "Tori Amos", but the music is actually quite different - definitely more aggressive (at least on this album) and more focused. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
The Ballad of John Henry 2009 by Joe Bonamassa A really, really good blues album. Some covers, some original compositions ... great musicianship throughout, not just in the guitar department. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Over Mountain, Under Hill 2009 by Heart of Cygnus Wow ... just wow *big grin*. Listen to this magnificent album, you just *have* to. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Section X 2005 by Beyond Twilight I just listened to this again after quite some time (several years) and again it blew me away. If I had to say something negative about the album is that it occasionally gets a little bit cheesy story-wise ... but I don't mind at all. The songwriting is awesome, the musicianship flawless ... as is the production. If you're a fan of complex metal ... wrap your ears around this! Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Era Vulgaris 2007 by Queens of the Stone Age I really love the QotSA style ... some people prefer Kyuss (the de facto predecessor) because of the more epic/psychedelic/improvisational style, but QotSA make up for that with magnificent songwriting and a really cool and fresh approach in terms of harmonic structure and weird instrumentation. Add to that a good dose of humor ... not so much in the sense of comedy, but as far as witty/"naughty" lyrics are concerned. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Lunatic Soul 2008 by Lunatic Soul This is the solo album of Mariusz Duda, known to most as the singer of progressive metal band Riverside. The music could be described as the atmospheric, thoughtful and non-metal part of Riverside, with a heavy dose of world music thrown in. Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Unholy Majesty 2008 by Rose Kemp A very interesting blend of styles ranging from minimalistic singer/songwriter to heavy stoner rock/metal. Very strong songs, quite diverse, magnificent vocals ... wonderful! Comment by Mike 2 years ago
Traced In Air 2008 by Cynic A wonderful album ... a bit short, but also very concise and right to the point. The music is more melodic than their debut, it often reminded me of Aeon Spoke, which is a non-metal side project which is also quite recommended. This album is also a mix of rock and metal, there are some quite heavy outbursts of metal and the rest is rock. I think what amazes me the most is how they combine beautiful melodies and - occasional - highly technical playing with hints towards Fusion. Comment by Mike 3 years ago
Heavy Water Experiments 2008 by Heavy Water Experiments I really enjoyed listening to this album. The music reminds me a bit of Anekdoten, but the songwriting is more eclectic ... I guess it's the somewhat gloomy mood and dense texturing. It's also quite heavy, but not in a metal sense at all, but the often distorted bass and "crunchy" rhythm guitar and keyboards. I also really like the often layered vocals, which - in concert with the other instruments - often create very dense arrangements, which can be difficult to digest for the listener ... but on this album it works quite well. If you're into interesting, thoughtful music with the desire to be different both in songwriting and instrumentation ... please check this out, it's really good stuff. The album is available at cdbaby.com and emusic.com, too ... check out the links next to the album name! Comment by Mike 3 years ago
In a Silent Way 1969 by Miles Davis Still very jazzy, and only very few rock elements. Keyboards are very present, and it might very well be the birth of fusion, but I don't consider the music to be very progressive. Of course it's very good though, both for casual listening (especially for Jazz newbies) and for experts/musicians. Comment by Mike 3 years ago
Comment by Mike 3 years ago
Abnormal 2008 by Bumblefoot If you're a guitarist and you don't know Ron Thal (aka Bumblefoot): You have to check this out. He's *very* skilled, but always puts songs above solos ... add to that a heavy dose of humor and - at least on this album - a good deal of raw punk attitude. |
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