en http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/ Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 Thu, 1 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 60 http://www.audioscrobbler.net/data/webservices http://www.last.fm/user/tangledupinriot/journal The Last.fm journal for tangledupinriot. Last.fm journals are a place to talk about all things music. http://www.last.fm/user/tangledupinriot/journal/2009/08/22/2yfeix_humbug Sat, 22 Aug 2009 05:39:26 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/tangledupinriot/journal/2009/08/22/2yfeix_humbug What Came First? The Chicken or the Dickhead?


As the Arctic Monkeys return to the studio with 2 albums which have already gone platinum, multiple times, I had high expectations. The album was recorded in America, co-produced by Josh Homme, there was immediate speculation that this album would be out of the bands comfort zone, and for better or for worse, the album was without a doubt going to have a much different sound compared to their previous albums.

Firstly. The collaborations with the band in this album are just genius. Josh Homme and Alex Turner would fit together like bread and butter and the albums final product are excatly what you'd expect from these two. Compared to previous Arctic Monkeys albums, this one really does have a much darker sound and to a point, this is the albums strong point.

Secondly. Alex's lyrics are as creative as ever. "and how you like to aggrevate the ice-cream man on rainy afternoons" is a personal favorite of mine. Though Alex seems to over-use the word "dangrous" a bit too much (D is For Dangerous is the name of a track on Favorite Worst Nightmare). Though Josh Homme has steered Alex's creative lyrics to a new side; making them darker, rather than optimistic, in a way Turner did ever-so-well in "The Age of The Understatment" by The Last Shadow Puppets.

Thirdly. The album seems to be Turner's and Homme's, rather than the rest of the band. They all seem like they're not being bought out too much, with the emphasis lying exclusively on his lyrics, with everything else just a pretty frame around a portrait. Unlike this attempt by many other bands, *cough My Chemical Romance* Alex's lyrics suit the album absolutly perfectly, definatly making this album one of the better ones of the year.

As an Arctic Monkeys fan myself, I quite admire the change in sound, as most fans probably would. But this album closes their sterotypical "Indie" sound and has morphed the band into something different. Something a bit more proper, darker and sophisticated, something which will be appreciated by new and old fans alike.



8/10]]> http://www.last.fm/user/tangledupinriot/journal/2009/06/26/2trlup_old_crowsyoung_cardinals Fri, 26 Jun 2009 06:31:42 +0000 http://www.last.fm/user/tangledupinriot/journal/2009/06/26/2trlup_old_crowsyoung_cardinals Noise, anyone?

Alexisonfire, bring a significant amount of life to their genre. "Watch Out!" provided imaginative lyrics, and a much greater maturity to their sound, compared to their first self-titled album. Crisis, seems to be their peak of sound, providing the perfect balance of dirty, and clean vocals. Old Crows/Young Cardinals on the other hand, seems as if they've nearly taken a step back to their first album, with my main problem being too much dirty vocals.


The album follows a great structure, with interwining lyrics and sounds, but overall, it seems so, so less creative. They've definatly tried to make it an album, and you can hear the amount of production and effort that has gone into it. The lyrics explore people, and their impact on other peoples lives. Old people, Young People, Famous people, and their obvious demise and the destruction they bring is shown in every song, which is a fairly unique thing to do, as it can really separate a good album from a bad album.

This album, isn't a bad album, as it contains everything that a good album should coutain: Enjoyable structure, barable sound, and creative lyrics. This album however can't live up to being a good album as it just isn't... Enjoyable. Sure, the songs are great, "Old Crows" for example, is a perfect opener as it summarises the album up completly. "Burial" is a perfect closing track, as it explains the demise held by people, not by the earth.

The two things which really let the album down are the middle section and the outweigh of dirty vocals from clean vocals. Maybe its just me after spending hours listening to City And Colour, which really exposes Dallas Greens ability as a clean singer. Overall, the album has a standout structure, and a decent tone, but just isn't quite... Brilliant. Alexis fans will enjoy it, but people who are trying to get into them, buy "Crisis" or "Watch Out". They do a much better job.

7/10]]>