Driven Far Off

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Archives for 2007

Weatherbox – American Art

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Artist: Weatherbox
Album: American Art
Label: Doghouse Records
Purchase: SmartPunk
Release Date: May 9th, 2007

Overall: 9.5
Music: 9.5
Lyrics: 9.0
Production: 9.0

Look, if you missed out on Weatherbox’s recently released EP The Clearing then you need to get your music priorities straight. It was, simply put, awesome! However, if you’ve been living under a rock and missed out on it, don’t lose too much sleep as three of the five tracks, from the EP, have made their way onto their debut full length due out this spring.

Ok, now that I’ve snapped a batch on those who slept on The Clearing, I can address those individuals, like myself, that have listened to the EP fifty times and are getting a little tired of the five tracks. Unfortunately I wish that the three tracks hadn’t made their way onto the full length, but that’s marketting; and to be completely honest, they are probably the three tracks I would have picked to carry over to American Art. Let’s just be thankful that the entire EP didn’t find it’s way to the full length.

So where do I begin; Ԛ the CD itself is a work of art. Lyrics are on point, guitars, drumming and vocals are excellent, if there was anything to be let down by, it would have to be the production level. Now, maybe it’s because my copy was an “advance” release and things could easily change from now to release date; but the production doesn’t take anything away from the stellar listening experience. Let it be known, my favorite track Snakes, Our Ground, which by the way can be streamed from their Myspace and Purevolume website, mixes great hooks and melodies that don’t disappoint… it has great lyrics about grass, wind, roots,
earth, fire, water, death, and going insane; without giving it outright away, it fills me with visuals of my
favorite Wednesday night show.

**Hint: Island Life for the TiVo generation.

American Art should be on everyone’s wish list, keep your eyes peeled in early May for it; You won’t be disappointed.

Myspace | Purevolume

Tracklisting

  1. Atoms Smash
  2. Armed to the Teeth
  3. The Clearing
  4. Wolftank, Doff Thy Name
  5. ________
  6. Moments Before The Smashing Of Future Ryan
  7. Snakes, Our Ground
  8. A Flock Of Weatherboxes
  9. I Worship Raw Beats
  10. The Dreams
  11. The Drugs
  12. Drop The Mike
  13. Trippin’ The Life Fantastic

Kaddidfly – Set Sail the Prarie

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kaddisfly

Artist: Kaddisfly
Album: Set Sail the Prarie
Label: Hopeless Records
Purchase: Hopeless
Release Date: March 6th, 2007

Overall: 6.5
Music: 6.5
Lyrics: 6.5
Production: 7.0

Rarely does being extremely diverse, mixed with plenty of tallent, make a CD unenjoyable. However, in the case of the newest release from Kaddisfly, I found they’ve missed the mark on making, what some would call, refreshing and vibrant listening experience. After countless listens, I find myself unable to clearly state where this album even sits in my current collection. Now, don’t let me scare you away from Set Sail the Prarie, because there are many good things about it, but personally, I was scratching my head listening to this album rather then sitting back and enjoying it.

I shouldn’t be too judgemental, as this CD does have it’s good points, but it just so happens that they are few and far between. Such as an incredible reference to some ‘OhmahaStyley” that doesn’t disapoint. I don’t know what else to say about this one, I see the potencial but I find that they just don’t fully achieve it.

If your looking for something unique to perk up your music library this just might fill the void. Check out thier purevolume site to stream some tracks and make up your own mind.

Kaddisfly-PureVolume

Tracklisting:

  1. I. Summer Solstice
  2. Campfire
  3. Waves
  4. Harbor
  5. Birds
  6. Clouds
  7. Empire
  8. VIII. Winter Solstice
  9. Snowflakes
  10. Via Rail
  11. Silk Road
  12. Mercury
  13. Clockwork
  14. Forest

Tonight On DJ Rossstar 4-4-07

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Both Street To Nowhere and The Secret Handshake will be studio guests on DJ Rossstar’s Punk Rock Show tonight, Thursday, April 5th 2007 from 7-8pm PST (10-11pm EST). The show is live and you can hear it at www.idobiradio.com. Once there, click on the top right where it says iTunes/Winamp. You can send questions to us during the show by IMing the screen name: Staridobi

The Receiving End of Sirens Video Interview – April 4th, 2007

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We just put up an exclusive video interview with The Receiving End of Sirens who are currently in the studio recording their sophomore album, The Earth Sings Mi Fa Mi, which is due out this summer. Check out the YouTube video below and if you would like this on your iPod subscribe to our Podcast in iTunes here.

Brighten- King vs. Queen

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Brighten King vs Queen

Artist:Brighten
Album: King vs. Queen
Label: Carbon Copy Media
Purchase: Smart Punk
Release Date: March 20th, 2007

Overall: 8.7
Music: 8.8
Lyrics: 9.0
Production: 8.0

To be quite honest, it is amazing to me that such a wonderful CD has to be held down due to legal issues. Carbon Copy Media, the record label of Brighten, is in a very well documented legal battle with its father label, Victory Records. The strange thing about King vs. Queen getting released is that the band themselves did not even know that it was going to happen.

Legal issues aside, Brighten did a wonderful job with this CD. The first two songs off King vs. Queen really set the tempo well for the rest of the CD. Weird thing about it is those two songs combined are four minutes and thirteen seconds, the average length of a normal song. However, the up tempo starting song “More Vacations”, even though short in length, tells a story of the struggle the band has faced with their label and much trouble getting this CD released. It should be clearly noted that the line “Donâ┚¬Ã¢”ž¢t trust anyone anymore.” appears in the song eleven times. I think they get their point across.

Song three “Ready When You Are” is one of the two songs (along with song ten, “Television”) that come directly off their E.P. Ready When You Are, and both of the re-released versions are cleaned up and come off very nicely making them standout tracks just as they were on the E.P.

If you are a listener searching for something a little less up tempo, be sure to give the Jimmy Eat World Clarity-esque song “Darling Nicotine” a try. My personal favorite off King vs. Queen, its starts with a mellowed out two minute and fourty second hook followed by heavy hitting drums and a wonderful outburst of emotion and pure rock. Right after the trip that “Darling Nicotine” and the pop-rock candy-coated myspace-rocker “The Better Way” will take you on, “Single Millionaires” will take you on a different trip, a trip that will be sure to tug the heart-stings. A song that seemed to just come naturally and unplugged, a first listen will leave the listener wanting more. Take one look at the lyrics and give me a call if you are not moved, even in the smallest way.

With a few possible fillers along the way, King vs. Queen ends with another very relaxed song entitled “Why Oh Why” that any fan of Copeland will enjoy. Some people will argue that ending a CD on a soft song is not the way to go, but I disagree. A record ended on a soft note works for some bands, and for this band, it worked beautifully.

While Brighten’s King vs. Queen might be very hard to find in stores for a while unless you were very lucky to pick it up the day it came out, be sure to shop around on ebay and other sites to get yourself a copy. Trust me, in a few months, a year, however long it takes for this band to blow up, you’ll want to be one of those people to say you knew about them a while ago.

Tracklisting
1. More Vacations
2. Heart Like That
3. Ready When You Are
4. Treasure Island
5. Mr. Mister
6. Darling Nicotine
7. Better Way
8. Single Millionaires
9. We Chose The King
10. Television
11. Cops and Robbers
12. Why Oh Why

Victory Pulls Catalog From eMusic

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Victory Records has pulled their catalog from digital distributor eMusic. The move comes after eMusic announced a new sales program offering customers a deal for buying music in bulk.Ԛ  Label owner Tony Brummel had this to say “I Just don’t believe in what they’re doing. I don’t see much point in doing business with those guys.”

Via: Digital Music News