Category Archives: Album & EP Reviews

ARMADA – Paper Ghosts

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For a debut release from an independent band, ‘Paper Ghosts’ by LA trio Armada has a very sharp sound.  They’ve been smart enough to wait until they could record it on a reasonable budget…and it shows.  Producer Mike Boden (a man who’s previously helped engineer works by Joe Satriani, Journey, Mudvayne and many others), gives the band a big sound; one befitting of their mix of rock and blues based riffs.

Although not a perfect release, ‘Paper Ghosts’ features some enjoyable songs.  ‘Callanwolde’ is a tune that is hugely bass led and has an almost cocky tone.  With verses made up of a simple beat, dominant bass and reverb sounds, at first it leaves the listener wondering where it’s headed.  When the (understated) chorus kicks in, the guitars chime while the bassline drops in a couple of very complex fills which hint at funk.  The rest of the song is constructed from very fuzzy grooves which recall UK 90s bluesy indie-rockers Reef, albeit rather more aggressive.  In all, good stuff indeed, but on this debut record Armada deliver a few superior tunes.   Via slightly overdriven guitars and a pounding bassline, on ‘Up, Out’ shows the band playing with something bluesy.  The unfussy groove comes with a hefty swagger, but the real star on this tune is Cody Page whom, in addition to providing the main guitar riff, lays down a very emotive lead vocal with plenty of crying edge in his delivery.  By the time Armada get to the chorus, things toughen up a little more and the band’s brand of fuzzy blues-rock really makes its presence felt.

To begin with, ‘Young Man’ has a spacious feel.  The drums mark time and the guitars add hard, clanging chords over which Page’s lead voice is soulful and strong.  Holding everything together, Jeremy Gruber’s fluid basslines are the key to the track’s overall greatness.   Although only four and a half minutes in length, it’s two part structure makes it feel much longer…and not necessarily in a bad way.   The second half of the track drops the funkiness and settles into a mournful, slow arrangement – over which Page sounds equally confident.  To finish, all of this tunes best features pull together as a brief lead guitar break acts as a climax.  While there are a few unnecessary whoahs drawing attention away from the brilliant bass work, this is one of Armada’s best tunes.  ‘Ghosts of Illinois’ provides high energy enjoyment through some hard rhythmic chords, marching bass and drums, combined with a heavily filtered vocal.  Its relative simplicity makes it more disposable than most of Armada’s other tunes, but its spiky edge makes it sound as if it could be a corker within the band’s live set.

Lead single ‘Badge & Gun’ hits harder and faster than most, allowing drummer Eddie Core a chance to approach his kit in a slightly more aggressive fashion.  The guitar chords ring out with vibe more akin to 21st century indie rock, giving the number another slant not always present on most of this band’s other work.  It is well played, and even though the harder edges ought to make it appear more instant than Armada’s other songs, it doesn’t necessary grab the listener straight out, despite a slightly more obvious hook.  On the flipside, ‘Love You’ is wilfully minimalist: on one of the album’s misfires, Page spends over six minutes slowly strumming at his electric guitar (with a light drone providing a very slight accompaniment), his voice gently crying out all the while.  While a decent enough musical idea – one which adds an extra dimension to the Armada sound – it’s easy to understand why it should be included on this debut; it’s less easy to fathom why the band insisted on it going on for so long…so very long.

Armada are often great musicians and in Cody Page – once you tune into the slight wobble in his voice – they have an equally great vocalist.  What they don’t always have are instant hooks, but it’s possible they’re hoping the mix of mid-paced riffing and bluesy sensibilities will somehow slowly work its way under the skin.  It is, indeed, an album which takes time on the listener’s part to uncover the good moments, but they’re in there just waiting to be discovered.

September 2012

MARILLION – Sounds That Can’t Be Made

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In 2001, Marillion released ‘Anoraknophobia’, a contemporary sounding album which contained some of their finest work up to that point.  It was enough for some of the band’s more enthusiastic fans to make enormous statements like “if they’d changed their name when Fish left, they’d be as big as U2 by now!”  While such enthusiasm is admirable, this just would never be the case: U2 have had a multi-million pound promotional machine greasing their gears for years – one that has ultimately allowed Bono to straddle the globe like a giant self-righteous colossus.  Despite best efforts and a hugely, hugely devoted team behind them, these five gifted musicians from Aylesbury just can’t afford that kind of huge promotion.

After ‘Anoraknophobia’, Marillion released some equally fine music on 2003’s ‘Marbles’, though parts of that album were less easy to digest.  From then on, however, the band’s output – although more prolific than it had been in the past – was less impressive. 2007’s ‘Somewhere Else’ was pretty grim and 2008’s bloated double set ‘Happiness Is The Road’ contained some great moments but may have fared better if slimmed down to a single volume.  An album of acoustic-based re-workings – ‘Less Is More’, issued in 2009 – was only of any real interest to hardcore fans.  A few years earlier, such a release may have actually been a fan-club freebie.

Considering the hit and miss approach of the last few discs, there was a lot riding on 2012’s ‘Sounds That Can’t Be Made’, especially for the more critical fan.  …And with eight songs, clocking in at almost 75 minutes, they’ve certainly given their fans (critical or otherwise) something to get their teeth into.

Not doing things by halves, this time out Marillion open their seventeenth studio record with a seventeen minute epic – and ‘Gaza’ is epic in every sense.  Spanning what would have been the whole of side one in the olden days, Marillion take the listener on a journey of many moods, as Steve Hogarth (aka h) delivers a hugely emotional and thoughtful lyric regarding the plight of children in war-torn  Gaza.  [Within hours of the track appearing on the internet, people in a YouTube shoutbox argued whether the piece was pro-Israel or pro-Palestine.  It’s not either.  The child’s viewpoint does not take sides; the child simply wants an end to the grown-ups fighting.]

Following a slow fade in, a keyboard riff with an eastern quality appears, quicky joined by the sounds of bells and a choppy guitar, over which the vocal is strong.  h shifts between his reguar tones and a gentle falsetto; the latter is less enjoyable but suits the pop/rock, keyboard-led part of the tune well.  Just after the two minute mark, Marillion challenge their listeners with a surprisingly heavy riff.  It’s not of the hard rock kind which fuelled the ‘Most Toys’ embarrassment, but something genuinely heavy. The kind of riff which sounds like it belongs on a Tool record or a post ‘In Absentia’ Porcupine Tree release, it’s fleeting at first, but on its second appearance it really shakes things up. The resulting lead guitar parts add extra elements of discordance further highlighting the sense of turmoil and despair within the song’s narrative driven lyric, where “hell can erupt in a moment” and the child protagonist’s father “died feeding the birds”.

Ambient instrumental sections allow keyboardist Mark Kelly and guitarist Steve Rothery ample opportunity to noodle, but these quietest moments never detract from the sheer power of the track as a whole.  If you’ve not been absolutely absorbed thus far, Marillion save the best section for the number’s inevitable climax.  “Grieving mothers on both sides of sides of the wire” paints a vivid image, before the two Steves join together on a short piece of music which has all the fire of Marillion’s past, something further highlighted by a wondrous, soaring guitar solo.

“We will kick the ball.  We will skip the rope. We will play outside.  Be careful.”
“We all want peace, that’s for sure…but peace won’t come from standing on our necks.”

While ‘Gaza’ is very long, like a mini movie for the ears, it doesn’t necessarily feel long. It pushes the boundaries of their musical capabilities to new level.  After such a huge opening statement, the rest of ‘Sounds…’ potentially runs the risk of falling short.  It is fair to say, though, ‘Gaza’ is not really like anything else on ‘Sounds That Can’t Be Made’, so it’s perhaps best approached as a standalone track, as opposed to being part of a broader collection of songs.  Aside from the section near the end featuring a particularly trademark sounding Rothery solo, it is, In fact, quite unlike anything else in Marillion’s recorded history to date.

‘Power’ has a warm, almost trip-hop vibe from the rhythm section, as Ian Mosley’s drums offer a laidback groove and Trewavas’s bassline takes most of the lead.  With a similar atmosphere to parts of ‘Anoraknophobia’, it will come as no surprise that the bones of the song date back to those days, but this is more than mere padding.  As the chorus kicks in, Rothery’s guitar rings out with a sense of real presence and h’s lead vocal shifts from its previous understated tones to a full cry.  Although already enjoyable, it’s with the last couple of minutes ‘Power’ really comes into its own:  h continues to use his voice in a powerful way (so distinct, but you either love it or hate it),  stretching emotion from the last few lines, while underneath, Rothery adds sweeping guitar lines.  Keeping with the more accessible, some gorgeous eighties keyboards form the heart of ‘Pour My Love’, a hugely commercial ballad. With Pete Trewavas’s bass very high in the mix throughout, his solid playing makes the perfect foil for keyboard lines.  There’s something about this tune’s pop edge which recalls parts of 1991’s ‘Holidays In Eden’ – ‘Dry Land’ in particular – especially so, once the guitar solo hits.  Much like most of ‘Holidays In Eden’, this is a tune likely to divide fan opinion with it’s very lightweight feel, but for those who still love that album (and it remains a Real Gone favourite), ‘Pour My Love’ is destined top become a favourite. [Interestingly, its lyrics are co-written with John Helmer who last worked with the band in 1999, so perhaps, like ‘Power’, the roots of this tune are a little older?]

The second of the album’s extended pieces, ‘Montreal’ begins with a restrained and thoughtful tone, as h’s voice cries out over some simple electric piano. Just as you’re expecting it to kick in, it becomes even more restrained as instrumental synths wash over the listener.  Across fifteen minutes, ‘Montreal’ ambles along quietly, occasionally rising up for some mid-paced rock moments, under which Ian Mosley’s drum style is unmistakable and Rothery turns out a couple of rather lovely solos.  Lyrically, it appears to be autobiographical for the band: a tale of airports, hotel rooms and “a trip with the minimum of fuss” and “being greeted as guests of honour” in the Canadian city. While it does not present the real surprises – nor the musical challenges – of ‘Gaza’, there’s some good material within.  Although, perhaps, the weakest of this album’s three extended numbers, it’s a song which uncovers something new with each listen.

‘Lucky Man’ turns up the guitars and turns down the atmospheres.  Pete’s bass is nice and warming and SR get the chance to deliver something a little tougher – though nowhere near as threatening as the loudest parts of ‘Gaza’ – but beyond that, there’s not so much going on.  It is a solid enough number – and has something resembling a chorus – but Marillion are not necessarily playing to their strengths here.  Had it appeared earlier on ‘Somewhere Else’, for example, it could have been that album’s standout; here, though, it’s totally outshone by Marillion’s grander ideas…and let’s face it, a couple of those ideas are grander than ever.  Driven by heavy keyboards, the intro to the mid-paced title track fares much better in the rockier field (rockier here, of course, being relative).  Across seven minutes, Mr Hogarth turns out a rather unshakable vocal performance, one of his best on this album, he’s not tempted to use to much falsetto. Meanwhile, the rest of the band tackle a tune which slowly moves from mid paced punch to cinematic pomp, complete with an 80s prog keyboard solo.  Initially, it’s not as good as some of the material on ‘Sounds That Can’t Be Made’, but the closing section featuring a forceful vocal and huge guitar solo falls not to far short of being classic Marillion… ‘Invisible Ink’ is minimalist at first, with h singing quietly over an equally quiet piano arrangement.  Just as you think the band are about to settle for something which sounds like a distant cousin to ‘Now She’ll Never Know’ (from 1998’s ‘Radiation’) the song breaks into something more fully formed.  There’s something in h’s voice that’s a little jarring on occasion, but it doesn’t spoil the other good qualities on show throughout the number’s rockiest moments: namely a rock solid bassline and drum part, plus a rather punchy lead guitar.  Despite these enjoyable elements, if ‘Sounds That Can’t Be Made’ has a track destined to be skipped, ‘Invisible Ink’ is the one.

The closing number – ‘The Sky Above The Rain’ – another ten minute piece – begins with soft vocal, piano and synth sounds approximating strings.  h’s voice sounds quite fragile during this first part of the song, as befitting for a tune so light, but it’s no match for the musical arrangement, which is particularly striking in its restraint. Of particular note is Rothery’s guitar playing once again, as he offers soft jazzy notes, never tempted to break into anything more aggressive.  From the four minute mark, rocky elements start to creep in and the tune gathers momentum, eventually building to a crescendo.  During the inevitable climax, there’s very little long term fans won’t have heard from Marillion previously – and it’s probably not as masterful as ‘Neverland’ (from 2003’s ‘Marbles’) – but after several plays it feels like an appropriate end to a very well crafted album.

Throughout the late 90s/early 2000s, Marillion (and a fair number of their fans) were always keen to argue against being tagged as a “prog band”.  With bands such as Porcupine Tree, Opeth and The Pineapple Thief attracting very positive press around the time of this album’s release, “prog” should not be a stigma. Since Marillion’s 2012 release is rock based and includes three pieces of music clocking in at over ten minutes – whether they choose to embrace the tag or not – it is very much a “prog rock” album.  Regardless of how you’d like to pigeonhole it though, most of ‘Sounds That Can’t Be Made’ is fantastic – easily Marillion’s best work since ‘Anoraknophobia’.  They should be proud…and you can bet they are.

September 2012

SUPER LUXURY – Mystery Thriller Teen Drama EP

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Super Luxury describes their sound as being “noise rock in the key of a party”.  There’s always time for a bit of discordance, but when it comes to rock music, unless we’re talking Poison, Mötley Crüe, or LA glam bands in general, the word “party” can be somewhat troublesome. One of the last times REAL GONE encountered an act whose work got described with that particular noun, we had the misfortune of running into Fantazzmo.  That album was not so much a party, more of an egotistical, grubby sex-fest – and a mildly disturbing one at that. However, since Super Luxury’s online bio includes a quote from a note of rejection from Leeds City Council, they obviously have a sense of humour.  We should therefore suspect that their use of the word party was purely ironic.

If you dig music with heavy influences from The Jesus Lizard and other angular noise from the 90s (particularly that from labels such as Amphetamine Reptile and Glitterhouse) chances are, you’ll dig Super Luxury, since they’re rather enjoyable in a lo-fi-ish, garagey kind of way.  The three tracks here are short but brimming with intensity, as amp-cranked distorted riffs and scratchy vocals collide together in a rather forceful manner.

Rather forceful, yes, but not always entirely direct: despite clocking in at under three minutes, ‘Mystery Teen Drama’ comes with almost a minute’s worth of instrumental intro where the drums have a tough sound and feedback squalls give the impression that bigger things are afoot.  They are indeed – and the main tune combines a slightly ugly riff with off-key lead work creating decent enough results.  For this first number, the vocals are delivered surprisingly sparingly, with Nodwell yelling almost indecipherably at occasional intervals.

Lyrically, the oddly named ‘Kellogg’s Wasps’ throws out a bunch of oblique remarks about bees, honey and cereal and makes little sense. Musically, it shows a much more direct side to the band as a heavy-ish riff carries the piece. While Chris and Charlie’s playing is not angular enough to be considered arty, nor crunchy enough to even approach anything metal, the sound of their guitars still brings an uncompromising style to the fore, which intercuts the heavy riffing with staccato moments.  This creates an uneven, yet oddly enjoyable listen.

‘Ghostesses’ tackles the subject of (mis)interpreting female signals.  The simple lyrics are as pointed as the tune that backs them, but since – once again – the voice is quite hard to grasp in places, it probably doesn’t matter too much if you don’t follow the narrative, no matter how basic it may be.  In terms of aggression, relative melody and all round indie-rock fuzz, it’s business as usual for Super Luxury here, but drummer Hamish gets to cut loose on some more groove-based playing, and with that, there comes a feeling of the end performance having a more energetic feel to it overall.

With a proper old-school DIY spirit, Super Luxury have chosen to distribute physical copies of ‘Mystery Teen Drama’ on cassette!  For the many of you who no longer have a cassette player – or, indeed, are too young to remember when the pocket-sized medium was popular – the band also offers downloadable mp3s.  You can have those for FREE if you’re that way inclined – though since they’re being offered on a “pay what you want basis”, the band would probably appreciate a quid or two.  The whole EP can be streamed/downloaded below.

September 2012

DOKKEN – Broken Bones

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Dokken are not exactly well known for their classic album covers, but with regard to 2012’s ‘Broken Bones’ their sleeve art hits an all time low.  A retro skull and crossbones? The album may reference the word bones but, surely, they could have chosen something better?  As indie-rock band Ash once put it, pirates are so 2004.

Dokken can often be relied upon for some fantastic hard rock tunes, though [1997’s mostly awful ‘Shadowlife’ being the notable exception to the rule] and, fortunately, most of ‘Broken Bones’ delivers in spades.  In fact, the two potentially weakest cuts are those which bookend each of the record, where the band most obviously revisit the kind of full-on melodic metal riffs which filled their earliest discs.  ‘Empire’ chugs ahead at full throttle, at first sounding as if it favours riffs and general bombast over anything approaching memorable song writing.  After spending a while with the album, the chorus elements become more obvious, but even then, any chorus is more of a pre-chorus variety than killer hook.  With a moment of majestic twin lead guitar and a particularly ferocious solo, the fans who enjoy this side of Dokken’s work will find some enjoyment, while those more into Dokken’s mid-paced tunes are best advised to move along.  ‘Tonight’ fares better thanks to a more memorable chorus and enjoyable eastern sounding riff during the intro, but again, ‘Broken Bones’ offers far better material elsewhere.

With regard to the album’s other nine tracks, it is honestly very hard to find fault – the remainder of the material borders on being first rate Dokken fare.  The title cut takes on a darker tone, as ex-Doro/Warlock guitarist Jon Levin plays a simple but effective riff over which Don Dokken’s lead voice cries out softly at first, before gradually being joined by other equally melodic voices.  By the chorus, the band members can be heard singing in great harmony.  The hook itself is somewhat of a slow burner, but the melody is undeniably strong.  ‘Waterfall’ is short and punchy with a groove-laden riff carrying most of the song’s weight.  The slight eastern motif occasionally appearing is reminiscent of the best parts of ‘Dysfunctional’ (the band’s superb 1994 comeback disc).  With a strong riff, relatively powerful vocal and a general “no padding” approach, this may have already been good enough to stand out as one of the better tunes on ‘Broken Bones’.  There’s a little more up the band’s sleeve, however, since Levin’s featured guitar solo ups the ante.  Here, the rest of Dokken have no choice but to adopt a different tempo (and tune) to accommodate his fretboard antics!

Eastern influenced riffs are revisited and approached in a hugely unsubtle – but most welcome – way throughout ‘Victim Of The Crime’, a tune which has an epic quality.  Levin offers up various sweeping lead guitar parts, again with a little eastern flair.  It would have been easy for Dokken to extend this track to allow for extra flashy guitar solos, but have instead chosen to keep things vocal led.  Whether Don’s slightly filtered voice performs alone or with a small group of harmonies, his performance is impeccable – one of his best here – and while the general vibe is more Deep Purple’s ‘Perfect Strangers’ than Led Zeppelin’s ‘Kashmir’, Dokken proves that such eastern sounding grooves never sound tired…no matter how many times they’re dished out.

On the wholly melodic ‘Today’, Don Dokken’s vocal has a natural tone – the kind which befits a man whom (by this point) has been in the business for three decades – but even so, he still sounds at his absolute best when joined by a few trademark melodic rock harmonies.  While the solid vocal approach and even more solid chorus would have been enough to make this track stand up, Levin is the one whom – once again – brings the most to the table.  With a mix of clean tone and slightly dirtier playing, his riffs are fine enough, but a terrific lead guitar break attacks with a marvellous intensity while always remaining on the good side of melodic.

‘For The Last Time’ has a big drum sound, which sounds even bigger when pitched against semi-acoustic guitar work.   The guitars lay down a fine melody as a blanket of soft keys add to the overall atmosphere.  …And then the song opens properly with its chorus, the electric riffs creating a fine example of chunky melodic rock.  For the verses, things return to the more atmospheric sounds of the intro, over which Don sounds very confident.  This is an interesting tune in the sense that it sounds as if Dokken welded together two half finished ideas.  Both great individually, but they sound good together, too – although those softer moments are certainly preferable.  If you can make it past the initial jarring aspects of this song, it is a tremendous addition to the Dokken catalogue.

There will always be a few naysayers who feel that for best results both Don Dokken and George Lynch should be present, but Jon Levin does a first rate job on most of these tracks.  The combination of meaty (often) mid-paced riffs, great lead work and a few catchy choruses makes ‘Broken Bones’  Dokken’s finest hour since ‘Dysfunctional’.

September 2012

PRIDE OF LIONS – Immortal

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‘Immortal’ is the fourth studio album from Pride of Lions, the melodic rock project pairing one-time Survivor keyboard player Jim Peterik and vocalist Toby Hitchcock.  Right from the release of their debut in 2003, the band have received almost constant praise from the melodic rock community – somewhat unsurprising, since Peterik is considered one of AOR’s finest songwriters.

On this 2012 record, Peterik’s ability to write eighties influenced melodies and hooky choruses is, as always, almost unparalleled.  Sadly, however, ‘Immortal’ suffers the same fatal flaw as all of Pride of Lions’ previous works: the listener has to endure the overbearing presence of Toby Hitchcock.  If you love his voice, you’ll love this, but if not, his purely theatrical approach can be very hard to take over prolonged periods.  Hitchcock’s voice is huge, but in many ways, it is just too huge. More suited to live theatre performances than singing on a melodic rock record, in terms of actual ability, he’s almost wasted here.

Across the album’s first three numbers, Petrik and his session guys (including Night Ranger’s Kelly Keagy) pull out all the stops to create rather fine AOR tunes, only to have their efforts dwarfed by Hitchcock’s booming voice at almost every turn.  By the intro of the fourth track ‘Shine On’, Toby’s voice borders on the unbearable.  Backed only with a piano at first, he booms and wails in equal measure, the stripped back music only highlighting his over-performing tendencies even further.  By the time the rest of the band join the arrangement and ‘Shine On’ actually finds a solid footing, various tried and tested melodic rock elements pull together effectively.  There are some great melodies, a strong chorus and a short but well played lead guitar break along the way – everything you’ve come to know (and love) from the AOR subgenre.

‘Everything That Money Can Buy’ takes Pride of Lions’ love of all things huge that step too far, as Hitchcock gets his vocal chops around a particularly nasty tune that sounds like the rock ballad equivalent of something from a Disney musical.  All strings and over-emoting, it takes melodrama to unchartered heights with its levels of pleading and reaching out to the listener.

One of the album’s better tracks ‘If It Doesn’t Kill Me’ has all hallmarks of Survivor’s eighties greatness: an instantly likeable chorus sits atop a superb mid-paced arrangement, over which the staccato lead guitar parts and occasionally stabbed keys (both played by Peterik) are impeccably played.  With a backing vocal fleshing out the chorus, even Hitchcock’s voice approaches something tolerable.

Of greatest interest to long time Survivor fans (and it’s likely those guys making up 90% of Pride Of Lions’ record buyers) is the song ‘Vital Signs’.  As you may expect, the song has roots in Survivor’s 1984 sessions.  Despite various attempts, Peterik never managed to finish the upbeat rocker to a satisfactory level…until now.  Its chorus section hits harder and faster than most of Survivor’s output, but the eighties origins are unmistakable in places.  The bell-like keyboard work during the opening verse has a very welcome eighties tone in particular.  Overall, although it’s a tad bombastic, it’s the absolute high point of this disc.

Toby Hitchcock has been heralded by many as AOR’s wunderkind, but his ability to over sing nearly every note in a purely theatrical way actually works to the detriment of at least half of these songs.  Rather frustratingly, on the flipside, the tunes are often fantastic, bordering on the best standard the genre has to give.  If only Peterik would take those tunes and work with somebody else, they’d be much easier to swallow.  There are hundreds of great rock vocalists out there – most of them would be more sympathetic than Mr. Showtune Foghorn.

September 2012