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  1. You guys have some freaking great taste.
  2. Which of these artists/albums do you like?
  3. This is what we had so far:

    2014
    Welcome to the Monkey House - The Dandy Warhols
    Pocket Revolution - dEUS
    Double Nickels on the Dime - Minutemen
    Let Love In - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
    A Funk Odyssey - Jamiroquai
    Black Love - The Afghan Whigs
    The Soul Sessions, Vol. 2 - Joss Stone
    Medusa EP - GEMS
    We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank - Modest Mouse
    Puddinghead - Ball Park Music
    Transformer - Lou Reed

    2015
    Alice Cooper - DaDa
    Frank Turner - England Keep My Bones
    Sinkane - Mean Love
    The Heavy - The House That Dirt Built
    Archive - You All Look The Same To Me


    2016
    Hammock - Departure songs
    Euzen - Sequel
    Tonic - Lemon Parade
  4. Sergio just got another job so he's working 14 hours a day

    I will listen and review this tonight, or tomorrow night. Seems like an interesting choice, Dane!
  5. Originally posted by LikeASong:[..]
    Sergio just got another job so he's working 14 hours a day

    I will listen and review this tonight, or tomorrow night. Seems like an interesting choice, Dane!
    Oops sorry I took you turn

    Well I hope you like my album of the week!
  6. Yeah, no problem, turns are interchangeable, no worries dude
  8. Tonic - Lemon Parade

    If "Open up Your Eyes" is a harbinger of things to come, this is going to be a really enjoyable album. Great rocker with an anthemic chorus (no idea if this band performs live, but if they do this is surely a singalong highlight in their gigs!).
    "Casual Affair" is definitely a heavier piece. Metal riff and progressive verses, and some grunge scent all around. The way the singer recites the second verse (from 1:30 on) reminds me strongly to Eddie Vedder's singing style. In fact there's a strong Pearl Jam feeling all around - which is something I obviously enjoy (I hope none of the PJ hardcores come over and bash me for this ). I felt the urge to pick up my acoustic guitar and play along this song. The chord progression on the chorus is strange: D major, A major, B major (instead of the minor that would "fit"), F# major (while the main riff and the whole song key is in F# minor). Wow!
    I'm sure I have heard "If You Could Only See" before, not sure where or when, but this one rings a bell somewhere in my head. Maybe some TV serie's theme or something. Catchy, but not exactly my cup of tea after the previous rockers. The guitar slides during the hooks and after the choruses are brilliant, though.
    "Soldier's Daughter" ... What a tough topic, treated in such a beautiful way. Musically there's nothing we haven't heard in the previous tracks, but this song has that "something" that strikes a chord with you sometimes. This is obviously not clear enough to me! Straight to top tracks. The ending sent shivers down my spine........
    I was hoping a little more from the eponymous song. "Lemon Parade" isn't anything special, sounds a bit like a filler. Reading wikipedia's article about this article made me appreciate the song's meaning, but it doesn't stand out in the album itself.
    "Mountain" starts out like a beautiful acoustic ballad, then explodes and turns into a Counting Crowes cover The acoustic middle eight and the guitar solo are one of the most brilliant moments of the album so far. Like a fire I'm drawn to her lust, I can't run from her but god, I must!! Great song.
    "Thick" shows some grunge influence again, mostly at the start and the choruses. Lyrically it's somewhat a Mountain Part II, like it's two sides of the same story (it might be a coincidence, but having them back to back on the album helped to see it this way). Sadly, nothing else did really stand out.
    "Wicked Soldier" comes back to a slightly heavier sound. I liked the old rock'n'roll resource of repeating verses in ABAB pattern, in a more modern fashion.
    "Mr. Golden Deal" is a totally different story though... Very relaxed beggining, some abstract lyrics that I couldn't really make out but enjoyed anyway.
    I'm pretty sure "Bigot Sunshine" will be one of Alvin's favourites (why do we keep referencing each other in our album reviews? haha ). The distorted wahwah guitar after the choruses and in the solo sounds great! The whole song felt too short though (I'd swear this is the shortest song on the album), it could have had a longer bridge or some other instrumental sections. It was a nice rocker anyway!
    "Celtic Aggression" caught my eye since I read the song titles before listening to the album. And the song speaks exactly about what I hoped: EIRE! A tribute to those who crossed the sea from Ireland to the United States and ended up building that country (our favourite Irish band knows a bit about that) and a critic to those who repudiate that rich Irish legacy. Obviously a top track.
    "My Old Man" is the typical album closer: the longest song, a nicely built crescendo, some reflexive lyrics and an epic final solo (although it could have been a bit longer and the song would have been close to perfect). Seeing the world through his father's eyes, the singer realizes what life is really about. It's all part of the plan, after all. A nice finale for a very nice album.

    Top tracks (no particular order)
    Cassual Affair
    Soldier's Daughter
    Mountain
    Celtic Agression

    Summary
    The expectations I had after reading the album's description and listening to the opening song were fullfilled. This album is a great debut of what seems to be a very inconsistent band (only 3 albums since their start in the mid 90s and two long hiatuses in the meanwhile). Portraying a wide range of styles -mostly inside the limits of alternative rock, post-grunge and roots rock- , the album has enough to keep you interested all throughout. Only a small couple of songs are "meh", while most of them have something that makes them shine on their own. Overall, a really enjoyable album that I will be coming back to, as well as checking out the other albums by this band. Thanks Dane!
  9. By the way, my notepad crashed while I was finishing the review, so some of the thoughts I had written while listening were lost. I tried to remember most of it but I'm sure I forget something - another reason to come back and re-listen soon!
  10. I'm glad you enjoyed it Sergio! Your top tracks are consistent with mine, I might also put Open Up Your Eyes in mine. Great break-down review , thanks!
  11. I'm not going to write about every song on the album, just my favourites.

    Open Your Eyes - This is a great album opener, really like the guitar in this one, especially the solo.

    Casual Affair - The guitar right at the start reminds me of Edge's guitar in No Line On The Horizon. As Sergio said, it is reminiscent of Pearl Jam. In fact the whole album does remind me a little bit of PJ and Lifehouse.

    Soldier's Daughter - I really like this one. Just listen to it. You'll understand how good this song is.

    Celtic Aggression - Fantastic song. I really love the guitar in this. Especially around the 2 minute mark. My favourite off the album by far. Great stuff.



    I didn't know about Tonic before this so thanks for introducing me to them, Dane! I see this album sold pretty well in the States. I'll probably revisit the songs listed above at some point.

    I'd rate this album about 7.5/10. Pretty good then!

  12. Originally posted by thefly108:I'm glad you enjoyed it Sergio! Your top tracks are consistent with mine, I might also put Open Up Your Eyes in mine. Great break-down review , thanks!
    Open Up Your Eyes was definitely the runner-up for the top tracks ranking! Great album start.

    I have night shift again tonight so I might revisit the album and/or give a listen to their other albums. Do you know if the band are on another hiatus now? Or are they playing shows or something? They seem to be the band one would definitely enjoy live.
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