Drum, Music, And Game Reviews

3 Songs For Intermediate Drummers

2005-03-09T16:56:00.000-05:00

all taken from www.tabhall.co.uk

http://www.tabhall.co.uk/display.php?dir=tabs%2FDrum+Tab%2Fg%2FGodsmack%2FKeep+away.html

http://www.tabhall.co.uk/display.php?dir=tabs%2FDrum+Tab%2Fc%2FCandlebox%2FFar+Behind.html

http://www.tabhall.co.uk/display.php?dir=tabs%2FDrum+Tab%2Fm%2FMetallica%2FEnter+sandman.html

3 Easy Tabs To Start With If You're A Drummer

2005-03-08T22:06:00.000-05:00

taken from www.tabhall.co.uk/drumtabs.php

http://www.tabhall.co.uk/display.php?dir=tabs%2FDrum+Tab%2Fm%2FMetallica%2FFor+whom+the+bell+tolls+3.html

http://www.tabhall.co.uk/display.php?dir=tabs%2FDrum+Tab%2Fa%2FA+perfect+circle%2FMagdalena.html

http://www.tabhall.co.uk/display.php?dir=tabs%2FDrum+Tab%2FR%2FRage+Against+The+Machine%2FBulls+On+Parade+2.html

Opeth-Still Life

2005-03-08T18:30:00.000-05:00

Taken From MusicianForums.com

"Still Life was Opeth's fourth album, after Orchid, Morningrise, and My Arms, Your Hearse. It was the first since their debut that actually featured a full band, rather than temporary members or studio musicians. After these albums - all regarded in one quarter or another as classics - Opeth were secure enough to delve deeper into their own self-contained world. Hence why this album features their most complex riffs, their most melodic acoustic passages, Michael's most expressive and technically impressive vocals, and - hey! - it's a concept album about a girl named Melinda. Like the follow-up, Blackwater Park, it's named after an obscure 70s progressive rock band.Writing about Opeth is never easy. Tool aside, no metal band has created such an enigma, and commands so much loyalty and respect amongst their fanbase. Of everybody who likes Opeth, I'm willing to bet more than half of them would put Opeth in their top 5 favourite bands. How many bands can geniunely say that - or, at least, how many bands with such a large fanbase? As such, to a fan, you almost feel like your review is always going to be inadequate. As Metal Observer put it, how can you do justice to such a band in mere words? Still Life is an especially difficult case, being my favourite Opeth album, and one of my favourite albums full stop.

The Moor kicks off the album. It's the quintessential Opeth album opener, showcasing everything about the band. It opens with atmospheric, mediaeval acoustics, until 2.30, when the albums first riff kicks in. There's a great, if fairly simple, harmonized lead at 7.30, which leads towards a hummed vocal melody at 9.30, that you're liable to still be singing 2 weeks later. It then crushes back into more heaviness.And thus we find the one frustrating thing about Opeth - you NEED to go into at least that much detail to describe just one song! Obviously, anybody who owns an Opeth album will know this. This album is no different, although, ironically, the two songs that have the most simple interplay between light and dark are, for me, the two highlights. Benighted is almost completely acoustic (there's some clean electric guitar - you certainly won't find any distortion here) and is a lesson in atmospherics. It's on a par with anything Pink Floyd ever did. I'd struggle to think why anyone except the most brutal and unforgiving death-metalhead wouldn't love this.
The other track is Face Of Melinda, which starts with one of my favourite acoustic riffs ever, and has some great lyrics and strange harmony (those trademark tritone Opeth chords appear in full force here). Michael has a way of taking ugly, discordant, non-diatonic chords and making them sound beautiful, like they make perfect sense. Face Of Melinda gets heavy towards the end, with a great, lurching riff that almost feels like it's coming out of the speakers at you. The rest of the album suffers only from not being as instantly memorable as those two tracks. That's no insult, though - Opeth fans will know that quality is assured with this band, and the rest of the album is no disappointment - it's just got longer tracks and more heavy bits. Even saying it isn't memorable is a bit of a fallacy - although Benighted and Face Of Melinda are the ones you'll be humming after hearing the album, when you play again you'll be humming along to the clean parts of the other tracks without even realising it! This, for me, is the clincher with this album over all the other Opeth efforts. The clean sections are absolute revelations; they're the reason I was anticipating Damnation so eagerly.Another reason I hold this in higher esteem than, say, Orchid is the lyrics. There's always been something about concept albums that draws me in, lyrically. The reason I don't listen to more death metal is because the lyrics are often awful (at least, that's been my experience). Opeth are a massive exception to that rule. Despite flirting with pretension, Mikael's songwriting ability is absolutely top-notch. The concept of the album can be descibed as follows -
- Man returns to hometown after being kicked out of his former home for being a heretic. (The Moor)
- Man sees childhood love (Melinda) he came home for. (Godhead's Lament)
- Man gets the idea that he will ask Melinda to elope with him. (Benighted)
- Man follows Melinda to her house under cover of night, lest he be seen by anyone who knows his crime. (Moonlapse Vertigo)
- Man meets Melinda and finds out she is already married. Still, he convinces her to run away with him. She agrees because, even if she is married, she still truly loves him. (Face Of Melinda)
- As they try to elope, Melinda is killed for her crimes against her husband. Man swears he will avenge her, even if it kills him. (Serenity Painted Death)
- Man is hung. (White Cluster)

Obviously, this does NO justice to the story, but at least it's a rough outline!As you can see, the two songs I have picked as highlights are the two most direct love songs, both of which deal with eloping with a childhood love. Both have an element of nostalgia and yearning that is absolutely captivating; it's a feeling that only heightens once you realise the whole story.

Every track on this album is a stunner. The album as a whole, thanks to great sequencing and the concept, is even greater than the sum of its parts. This is the ideal introduction to Opeth; even more so now that the digipack re-issue can be found for a much cheaper price (I picked it up for £7, and Blackwater Park for £15). Haven't you heard enough good reviews, enough hype? It's all justified. This is a modern classic.5/5.

Recommended Downloads -Benighted
Like many pre-Damnation Opeth ballads, it carries a Medieval feel. Benighted is arguably Opeth's most beautiful song, showcasing a perfectly judged guitar solo, a wonderfully melodic opening, and breathless, intimate vocals from Mikael.
Face Of Melinda
The album's best track by a whisker. It operates like a spring, winding tighter and tighter, building in tension, before unleashing the payoff. The payoff, here, is a lurching riff that manipulates volume swells to make it seem as if rising out of the floor to get you. Before all that, though, there's some wonderful guitar playing, including an intro that lands somewhere between a fanfare and serialism, and a distant, haunted melody.
The Moor
Described in more detail above. Of the more typical Opethian songs on here, this is the pick, featuring the best blend of clean, beautiful atmospherics, acoutsic passages, and nuts-out riffing. You should start here if you're new to heavy Opeth, and if you're new to this album; it does kick off the story, after all, and like any good openers, it makes you want to hear the rest of the album."

Pink Floyd-Wish You Were Here

2005-03-05T14:01:00.000-05:00

"SubtleDagger"

#209 on Rolling Stone's Top 500 Albums Of All Time List

Pink Floyd (during this album):

Roger Waters - Vocals, Bass

David Gilmour - Lead Guitar, Vocals

Richard Wright - Keyboards

Nick Mason - Drums

After The Dark Side Of The Moon, Pink Floyd had reached mainstream success, attaining fame, money, and a large fan base. While this would make most anyone happy, it was extremely troubling for the band. When they went back into the studio to record a follow-up album, their songs were rigid and difficult to put together due to the pressure of following up a huge breakthrough album. Some songs lashed out at the music industry, while others were melancholic tributes to Syd Barret, the band's mentally deteriorating former frontman. Ironically, as they were laying the vocal dubs for one of these tracks, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", Barret had came in the studio; the dissolving of his state of mind in front of the band may have made the album itself even more emotional.

1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Part 1) - It's long and worth every minute. And this is just the first part! Beginning with atmospheric noise and some light guitar, it paves its way into a undeniably melancholy mood; the four guitar notes that bring in the faster part feel amazingly emotional for such a simple melody. The guitar continues into huge crescendoes and climaxes until it falls away and we hear Water's haunting vocals: "Remember when you were young/ You shined like the sun/ Shine on, you crazy diamond". Possibly the most beautiful part of the song... a slight laughing noise precedes "You shined like the sun", and the entire band comes together for the climax. The great vocal and instrumental melodies continue, making for a fantastic song. 5/5

2. Welcome To The Machine - This track makes exceptional use of stereo and keyboard effects to instill the feeling of a machine, and the vocals are still excellent throughout. Probably the creepiest song here, "Welcome To The Machine" is the first attack on the music business, with a more derisive feel to it then the others. Technically amazing and still rather emotionally disturbing, it stands out most of all for Roger's vocals and lyrics. It can be a bit offputting from time to time, though. 4/5

3. Have A Cigar - Another attack on the music industry, but a little less harsh... this is faced more torwards the press. One of the lines, "By the way/ Which one's Pink?", is a joke about the time an uninformed interviewer thought Pink Floyd was the name of an actual member. The music is more upbeat, the chorus is amazingly uplifting, and the guitar is great throughout. A decent solo as well. The end section is a little boring, and the end leads directly into the next track by turning into radio noise. Nothing really wrong with this track, either. 4.5/5

4. Wish You Were Here - Phenomonal. This homage to Barret is earnest, heartfelt, and downright heart-wrenching. The most simplistic song here, and still the most beautiful. Roger writes fantastic lyrics,a nd this song is no exception. The section of, "How I wish/ How I wish you were here/ We're just two lost souls simming in a fish bowl/ Year after year," is so evocative and beautiful, it makes an awesome climax to the song. Perfect. 5/5

5. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Part 2) - Though this is slightly more upbeat than the first, the same formula remains, but the melodies and lyrics are different. Still, combining this and the first part as a collective makes for a beautiful listening experience. 5/5

Wish You Were Here is often overlooked for many reasons: the five track playlist, comparisons to Dark Side Of The Moon and The Wall, and other factors. Wish You Were Here is far too often left behind when put up against Pink Floyd's classic albums, in my opinion, and I think that when taken as an independent project, it can be seen as near flawless. I'd say this is one of the best Floyd albums, and quintessential to their catalog, though it really depends on whether you can fathom thirteen minutes for each part of "Crazy Diamond". Since I absolutely love it, I'd give Wish You Were Here a 5/5.

Mushroomhead-XIII

2005-03-04T13:20:00.000-05:00

"AntiHero3314"

Hailing from Cleveland, Mushroomhead's follow-up to "XX" (not counting their many EPs), "XIII," is a more intense assault coupled with some masterful ballads. People give this band a bad rap because of the costume-donning, but the music is so much more important than image, and it's a shame that people do not give them a legitimate shot. Yes, the Slipknot/Mushroomhead argument is well-documented, but the two bands are unrelated. I cannot stress this enough! Anyway, onward:

Mushroomhead "were" (J-Mann left the band sometime after recording):
Nothing- vocals (usually sung)
J-Mann - vocals (usually rawer and screamed)
Gravy- guitar
Bronson- guitar
Pig Benis- bass
DJ Stitch- samples
Skinny- drums
Shmotz- keyboards

The tracklist:
1. Kill Tomorrow
2. Sun Doesn't Rise
3. Mother Machine Gun
4. Nowhere to Go
5. Becoming Cold (216)
6. One More Day
7. The Dream is Over
8. The War Inside
9. Almost Gone
10. Eternal
11. Our Own Way
12. Destroy the World Around Me
13. Thirteen (includes hidden track "Crazy" at the end)

A brief synopsis of the album (abridged and taken from site):
To their credit, Mushroomhead never resort to cheap shock tactics for effect. Exhibit A: there's not one expletive on the entire album. "That speaks volumes about our singers' abilities," says Skinny. "They can convey these really dark images and powerful ideas without making things seem overly literal or too abrasive. We don't want to spell everything out for people. You have to let listeners apply the music to their lives as they need to apply it." Mushroomhead have always been outsiders pursuing their own unique vision. Listeners who've previously judged the band based on its theatrical stage show and over-the-top appearance are advised to leave preconceptions at the door.

Alright, onward to the song-by-song review:

1. Kill Tomorrow: the album starts off with crunching power chords and intricate cymbal work. Nothing begins a pre-verse line, then J-Mann tears into a rap-like verse with pounding double bass supporting him. Chorus features both singers, and the guitar lines. Nothing sings "While we pay the price we take, kill tomorrow yesterday" for the chorus. All guitar and bass work is great, the double bass is intense, and the dual singers pull the song off well. A great opening track. Score: 4.5/5

2. Sun Doesn't Rise: the single from the album. Percussion, guitar line, and keyboards begin the intro, Nothing begins with the verse, then J-Mann carries into the rest of the verses and pre-chorus. Nothing sings chorus ("Sun doesn't rise at all, who knows how far I'll fall... welcome my downfall"). Second verse is Nothing starting a line with J-Mann answering him. Keyboards and drums are excellent. Guitar and bass also done well, the outro ends the song nicely ("I can feel my faith, can't recall my crime, damaged in our own way, alone in our own way, desolate highway"). Score: 4.75/5

3. Mother Machine Gun: nice keyboard intro gives way to crunching guitar riffs and J-Mann's vocals. Nothing offers a few lines, then J-Mann proclaims to "Interrogate the truth until you hear what you like." Nothing and J-Mann alternate lines over palm-muted guitar lines. Sampling is heard clearly for the first time on the album in the chorus. Bridge slows down, then J-Mann offers more raspy lines. Drums are average, bass is good. Outro ends with keyboard and sampling. Score: 4.25/5

5. Becoming Cold (216): some notes from the previous track carry over to this track, triplet blasts on the bass drum and sampling start the song off intensely. Nothing offers a few lines, then J-Mann offers his standard raspy lines. Song is driven by both vocalists, double bass, and the guitar lines. The song drags on a little long, but it's still a good track. Score: 3.75/5

6. One More Day: this song is beautiful. Starts off with a single palm-muted eighth note riff with a piano melody that carries throughout the song. J-Mann is nowhere to be heard on the song, and a woman named Devon Gorman takes his place. She gives the song an atmospheric dimension to go along with the piano melody and an orchestra-esque sound (it briefly reminds me of the Forest Temple from Ocarina of Time for the first few notes). The keyboard really stands out in this song, as do the two vocalists. Bass and guitars take a somewhat-back seat, but they play still play an integral part as the supporting instruments. Score: 5/5

7. The Dream is Over: the most intense song on here, a complete change of tempo from the previous track. This time, J-Mann is the only vocalist on the track, with a heavy guitar riff and pounding double bass. Mini guitar fills that separate the verses are a good touch, the other palm-muted guitar riffs drive the song along with the double bass. The bridge is the best aspect of the song ("Rise up from the ashes, rethink my beliefs, the world rusts on its axis as my heart pleads for relief..."). It's a little out of place, but the song is constantly intense with J-Mann's vocals and double bass. Score: 4.25/5

8. The War Inside: J-Mann starts with some whispered vocals (reminiscent of songs like "Bwomp") with some supporting instruments, then the verses get an intense double bass and snare pounding with Nothing singing them. J-Mann again offers his raspy vocals. It's a short song, clocking in at less than 3:00, but it is a furious song with undying energy. Double bass work is relentless, and the dual vocalists feed off each other. Bass and guitar lines are standard. Score: 4/5

10. Eternal: Double bass and J-Mann shouts start the song with pounding snare and tom work. Lyrically, the song is simple. The drumming is fierce, but J-Mann is overly raspy in this song. Nothing exhibits a high range (I can't believe anything you say..."). Guitar work is palm-muted mostly save for the chorus. Bridge is pretty steady double bass. Average song, not a standout. Score: 3/5

11. Our Own Way: excellent clean guitar and keyboard intro, with some bass supporting the melody. Vocals enter at about the 0:30 mark with Nothing's vocals, which touch on life being confusing and having conflicting thoughts. J-Mann appears at the bridge in typical raspy shouts of "Arise!" and lines such as "The traitors all await your final fall, the curtain call." Song drags out with some extended instrumentation and more shouts of "Arise!" The intro is done well, but the song could have ended sooner. Mini piano solo at the end was a nice closing, though. Score: 4/5

13. Thirteen: instrumental, with a baby. Then silence... until about 5:25, where Mushroomhead cover Seal's "Crazy." It's an excellent cover. J-Mann covers the "Lost and crazy" vocals, bridge, and outro, with Nothing taking care of the verses and choruses. The bass, percussion (again, the double bass, especially in the chorus), and guitars sound awesome, as does the keyboard and sampling. Again, an excellent cover that doesn't get obliterated by a nu metal band, unlike some other examples. First 5:25 score: N/A Cover: 5/5

Pros: Mushroomhead pull off the dual vocalist stuff well, their instrumentation is excellent, especially the drummer. The song delivers heaviness coupled with softer songs. It's the best album to see if you'd like to add them to your collection, and they're easily accessible because, like mentioned in the bio, there isn't a single expletive. The mini-epic "Destroy the World Around Me" is outstanding, as is the cover of Seal's "Crazy."

Cons: Pig Benis isn't heard as often as he was in the other albums. J-Mann's vocals sound too coarse in some songs, but he is since out of the band to pursue other goals.

Overall-4.3/5

Machine Head-Through The Ashes of Empires

2005-03-03T11:30:00.000-05:00

"Clown_Pants"

Track list:

1. Imperium
2. Bite The Bullet
3. Left Unfinished
4. Elegy
5. In The Presence Of My Enemies
6. Days Turn Blue To Gray
7. Vim8. All Fall Down
9. Wipe The Tears
10. Descend The Shades Of Night

Review:This is the latest album from Machine head, and in my opinion one of there best. My favorite song on the album is 'Bite the bullet' its got kind of a violent sort of sound to it but not tacky like some of the new stuff that comes out normally has. Bite the bullet is my personal favorite from the album but there is not a single song on there that i dont like. Some of the songs have a mellow sound to them that makes you feel kind of 'chilled and then a heavy guitar riff begins to creep in then it just totally blows you away, cant be faulted.Recomend to- I recomend this album to ANY metal head out there even if u havnt liked the bands older stuff this album is a must. Even if you have to origanly download it to listen to it because you might think that you could be wasting your money, i guarantee that you will want to buy it after listening to it, it isnt a waste.

Rating:- 5/5

ATTENTION

2005-03-02T15:59:00.000-05:00

I have Just recieved my first comment!!!!!!! (Positive) Keep 'em coming!

2005-03-02T15:25:00.000-05:00

"Ripper22"

Opeth-Blackwater Park
Released 2000. Music for Nations

Band Members
Mikael Ãkerfeldt-guitars, clean+growl vocals, lyrics
Peter Lindgren-guitars
Martin Mendez-bassMartin Lopez-drums, percussion
Steven Wilson-harmony vocals, keyboard/piano*
*not a regular band member
Produced by Steven Wilson and Opeth

Tracklist 1.) The Leper Affinity
2.) Bleak
3.) Harvest
4.) The Drapery Falls
5.) Dirge for November
6.) The Funeral Portrait
7.) Patterns in the Ivy
8.) Blackwater Park
BONUS TRACKS:
9.) Still Day Beneath the Sun
10.) Patterns in the Ivy II

After the release of "Still Life" in 1998, Opeth went into the studio to record the latest step in their musical evolution. Their career had taken them through many of the shapes of modern black metal up to this point. Their albums "Orchid" and "Morningrise" proved that they had mastered the art of melodic death metal, and from that point the band decided to go in a different direction with "My Arms, Your Hearse." Some fans, however, regarding the direction taken on "Morningrise" to be excellent, balked at the decidedly more dissonant, heavier tone of the new album. Thus, on "Still Life," Opeth married the progressive influences and the heavy influences in the way that "Blackwater Park" displays, with equal parts light and heavy, in addition to a whole lot more reverb and thickness, courtesy of new producer and Akerfeldt confidant Steven Wilson, of the British prog band Porcupine Tree."Blackwater Park" is, as said above, mostly a refinement on the sound of "Still Life," with little new innovation or changes in direction. There are full-blast metal moments, moments of breathtaking beauty, and lighter, acoustic sections layered with Akerfeldt's ever-improving clean vocals: in short, everything one can currently expect from Opeth. In this case, this "refinement" proved so successful that it is thus far Opeth's highest-selling album, selling hundreds of thousands of copies in the States. Here's the album track by track.

The Leper Affinity
"Blackwater Park" was my first Opeth album. I didn't know precisely what to expect. I had heard excellent things about them and I was, believe it or not, apprehensive. Would I like a marriage of a genre I despise(death metal) with a genre that I love(progressive rock)? With that attitude in mind, the opening to this song was terrifying. Just terrifying. A discordant piano chord fades slowly in, louder and louder, until it's really loud and you know the explosion is coming any moment, but it doesn't come it doesn't come and then it does, and the explosion is greater than you imagined. The riffs are fast, dissonant, and evil, and the aura this music gives off is of a castle where nothing except the most perverted rituals are performed. This barrage continues with Akerfeldt's reverbed, awesome death growls and never lets up. The assault gives way to the most perfect guitar solo I've heard Opeth perform(and I have nearly their entire discography), and then breaks through to one of their famed harmony breaks, with lead guitars singing over rubble-pounding chords. Sound melodramatic? This is simply the way my emotions were being manipulated on my first listen. It's not melodramatic: this was how Opeth's sound and fury being unleashed on a completely new listener felt. The acoustic sections and clean singing that follow are just gorgeous, and the song ends with a great prog-rock riff and an eerie, self-contained piano section. This was my first taste of Opeth, and I already knew I loved them.

Bleak
Surpassed only by "Black Rose Immortal" and closely followed by "The Moor," this song is my favorite Opeth song. It's groove is considerably slower and, if possible, even more eerie than the previous tune, and a highlight is the echoing E-bow lead floating above the dry-sounding acoustics and the distorted guitars. The rest of the song begins to follow a fairly standard structure until Akerfeldt's clean vocals make a return with some of the best singing of his career. It slowly quiets down until we reach an almost bluesy acoustic section, and I personally was amazed at how WELL the death metal section flowed into this part. It left me feeling like, "How did I get from there to HERE?" What follows is a great riff with a heavily distorted lead that itself goes back to the most gorgeous, instrumentally dense section Opeth ever put to tape. Listen to this with headphones and hear everything that's going on. It's breathtaking. The song ends with repeats from earlier and then the sound of a tape breaking. Awesome.

Harvest
In the tradition of "Benighted," we have a nearly all-acoustic song here, with no metal sections. My opinion is mixed. It's certainly very pretty, but since I wasn't used to Opeth's habitual use of dissonant chords in their acoustic sections, the middle section threw me for a while. I eventually got used to it, though, and realized that for Opeth, writing something standardly melodic would have been a cop-out. This isn't the best, but it's still very high-quality.

The Drapery Falls
Okay, now, this song is interesting. It seems to be more "mood music" than anything else Opeth has made. The important thing, though, is that this song is impossible to categorize. It's so original and unique-sounding that I can't believe that four guys just came up with this stuff in a couple of weeks. The intro is really the prime example of that. Where, in any band anywhere, have you heard an intro so...impossible to pin down? The sections that follow are totally cool, with melancholy acoustic while(It's that E-Bow Again!) the slide guitars swim around the sea of reverb above them. The metal sections are fairly standard and to be honest, go on for way too long, but the short acoustic bits resolve back to the intro in a nice way.

Dirge for November
This song is easily the most forgettable one on here. That said, the beginning and ending to this one are just great. The reverb-laden "wall of sound" breaks down to great effect with Mikael just sings and plays his guitar for a few seconds, and his voice isn't even tuned properly, which adds an interesting contrast. There's more beautiful music, but it's followed by music that I just can't get into. The metal music doesn't make me bang my head, it just makes me scratch it. This is followed by a way-too-long, but nice, clean section with eerie E-bow harmonies lurking in the mix. The weakest link in the album, but not THAT bad.

The Funeral Portrait
The 12-string that opens this sounds very good, but the riffs that follow almost sound like ones lifted from the middle of Dream Theater's "Another Day!" ("Duuh-duh-duh-duh-da-dat-daa-da-da-dum..) Still, it's very cool. The acoustic sections are real evil on this, helped out by Lopez's nice fills. The long, multiple guitar solos that close the song are also pretty nice, as are the harmony vocals. A solid Opeth song.

Patterns in the Ivy
An instrumental acoustic/piano duet. This is a short, nice interlude piece. I don't really have much to say, 'cause it's only a minute long.

Blackwater Park
The song is chock full of the heaviest, most evil riffs Opeth ever recorded. The song also reverses the structure of "The Leper Affinity" by placing it's mellow interlude right near the beginning, which, unlike other such interludes, is not hampered by its length. Then, the metal assault which follows does not let up for a single moment for the rest of the song. Particularly awesome is Akerfeldt's "death-metal harmony" in which two screams of different levels of bowel-churning-ness are combined to make the most evil metal blast on the entire album. You must listen to this. It's amazing.

FINAL THOUGHTS:I know this review was long and a lot to digest, but so is the album. It requires patience, and a keen musical ear: there's really no point in listening to Opeth if you're not going to really listen to them. The production is awesome, being really, really dense and bone-dry at the same time. It truly adds to the relentlessly bleak mood of the CD. The deluxe import has two bonus tracks, "Still Day Beneath the Sun," an acoustic number that is nice and forgettable, and "Patterns in the Ivy II" a rare "sequel song" that is not cruddy. The harmony solo at the end is particularly beautiful: I go out for walks at night listening to this and just close my eyes, thinking about stuff. All true lovers of rock music will like this CD. Only the most hardcore, single-minded Britney Spears fan would not. RATING: 5/5

Dark Side Of The Moon-Pink Floyd

2005-03-01T15:08:00.000-05:00

"flyguy"

David Gilmour - Guitars, vocals
Roger Waters - Bass, vocals, all lyrics
Richard Wright - Keyboards
Nick Mason - Percussion, tape effects

This album has probably influenced just about every single rock musician to date in some shape or form. Composed of just 10 tracks and being little over 43 minutes in length, it would eventually go on selling more than 35 million sopies since its release in 1973. Many "remastered and anniversery" albums have been made. Now onto the review. Its truly an epic!!!

Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon

1. A. Speak to Me - Nick Mason uses a unique blend of effects to ahceive a very memorable and different intro to this album. These tape effects are heard through out the album and greatly complement the greatness of the album.

1.B. Breathe - David Gilmours amazing guitar layering does this song justice and opens the album of beautifully. He uses a steel guitar on this one to acheive that sound as well as other guitars. Nick and Rogers simplistic playing helps establish a nice groove to the whole song.

2. On the Run - This instrumental tunes starts off where Breathe leaves you. This song was actually made by Wright who sped up some sythesizer notes which creates the 'spiraling" sound (hopefully you know what im talking about) Nick provides extradinary tape effects for the time. Sound effects from explosions to a man running to a laughing man are heard. The balance is important setting for this song. A great song from a great band.

3. Time - Being such an epic album Time starts where On the Run leaves you as well. The tune starts out with more tape effects that include bells, chimes, and telephones and everything in between. Then Nick Mason perfroms a nice roto-tom solo that introduces the song, perhaps the only one in rock history? This leads up to a nice song progression played by the band. David Gilmour delivers a powerful guitar solo that is unique, musical and just plain awesome. As usual the backing music just kicks and could not be more fitting. This may be one of Floyd's most reconizable songs.

4. The Great Gig in the Sky - This song was written by Richard Wright and starts with a piano intro. It starts slow but the changes as the drums come in. One of the few song where the band members dont sing. The amazing singing is done by Clare Torry whom utilazies an unbelievable series of screams. The results are just great.

5. Money - Perhaps Pink Floyd's biggest and most well known hit. It features possibly the most well known bass riff known in rock history. Starting in 7/4 you notice another great batch of tape effects from the band that contain cash registers and change dropping. It delivers a powerful message and another rockin guitar solo by David Gilmour. Also Dick Parrys saxophone playing doubles the songs appeal and just overall kicks ass. Definately a true classic.

6. Us and Them - The longest track on this cd. It starts where money ends. This song is beautiful. The paino and guitar playin complement eachother so well, not to mention the harminizing in the chorus. The echoed vocals also give this song a signature feel. Dick Parry explodes with another majestic sax solo. There is also some nice "voices" that can be heard.

7. Any Colour You Like - Another Floyd instrumental. Written by the whole band. David Gilmours guitar effects in this song go beyond anything. This song can be simply desribed and a batch of colors shining magnificently. Most definately a wonderful song.

8. Brain Damage - Wow. What can i say, Any Colour You Likes drops us off here at the 8th song of the album. This song contains probably the best lyrics on the CD, listen to them and discover for yourself. Amazing song, i cant even describe in words how great it is. Great guitar verse, nice slow drum fills.

9. Eclipse - The final song of this masterpiece. It again follows right behind Brain Damage and changes to 6/8 time. The powerful lyrics help reinforce the music. I feel that this song is the album theme. IT closes with pretty much the same way that it starts. The heartbeat intesifies the ending and the album gradually comes to a halt. (unfortunately)

This album as I said before is one of the best ever. Pink Floyd literally acheives perfection with this one. It contains meaningful lyrics, wicked guitar solos, nice piano chord progressions, and groovin bass licks. This album is most definately a 10/10 and should be bought by everyone. I highly recommend that everyone purchases this CD if you dont already have it. No one would be disappointed. Lastly, I would like to thank you for reading this review, and tell me what you think. Share your opinions on this masterpiece.

Rage Against The Machine-Rage Against The Machine

2005-02-28T14:58:00.000-05:00

"br3ad_man"

Rage Against The Machine's (RATM) debut burst onto the scene in 1992, a time when grunge was in full swing. Guitarist Tom Morello was a big hip hop fan, while not denying his classic rock roots. This combined some really funky sounds (eg DJ Scratching on his strings) with great classic heavy riffing. His unique use of a Digitech Whammy pedal added to the band's sound.Lead vocalist Zack De La Rocha didn't have any melodies in his vocals, instead he rapped, using dynamics and anger to fuel his unique sound. Bassist Timmy C and drummer Brad Wilk were a great, tight rhythm section and Timmy's basslines were often very funky and included slapping.The band's debut album was a total masterpiece, with not one bad song, just totally awesome. There is also a tag line in the booklet: NO SAMPLERS, COMPUTERS OR KEYBOARDS WERE USED IN THE MAKING OF THIS RECORDING. Insane.

Bombtrack- A typical RATM song, a nice quiet little riff at the start, which is awesome. The drums come in with the slapped bass and Zack's typical "uhh!" sound. Really great riffing in the verse which follows Zack's vocals. The chorus is cool too, with one really catchy line "Burn, burn, yes you're gonna burn". 4.5/5

Killing In The Name- The band's breakthrough single, this is the definitive RATM song. The riff is great, along with Zack's rapping. There is some non typical percussion in this song as well. The guitar solo is one of Tom Morello's finest moments, with a Whammy pedal, he makes it sound like a dentist drill. An intersting fact about this song, I found it ironic anyway...At the end of the song, Zack starts yelling "F*ck you, I won't do what you tell me". The band had to remove this line for the radio edit, because their record label told them to. 5/5

Take The Power Back- Starts out with some bass riffing from Timmy C and some typical political lyrics. The song then goes into some nice heavy riffing from Tom Morello. Zack then starts his usual politcal rants before it goes into a shred solo from Tom Morello. Pretty nice track 4/5

Settle For Nothing- This song sounds different to the last 3 tracks. Starts with some light drums and guitar feedback. This track is a lot more angry in feel to the last few. The riffs are good and the dynamics really add to the song. 3.5/5

Bullet In The Head- This is a really cool one, some strange guitar noises from Tom Morello, they make a sort of grinding noise. There is also a sound that is simliar to a keyboard, but then you realise it's the bass. Nice riffing towards the end too. 5/5

Know Your Enemy- Crazy guitar to start with and a realy flashy bass line. Then the typical RATM riffing comes in later, and it sounds great. Similar to the first 3 tracks. There is also supposedly some additional vocals from Maynard James Keenan (of Tool and A Perfect Circle fame) although I can't really hear them. 5/5

Wake Up- The opening riff was ripped straight out of Kashmir by Led Zeppelin, but you can still hear Tom Morello's style coming through. Then the main riff comes in, which is very sweet. The wah effects in the verses are so funky and then the guitar solo is awesome, I'm guessing Tom is using a pitchshifter as well as his Whammy pedal. This song was used for the main theme on the film "The Matrix". 5/5

Fistful Of Steel- Really good song, with a massively driving bass line. The guitar is nice and heavy and has a raw sound to it. Zack's rapping is just as good in this song as any other and there's some cool high stuff from the guitars. Some of that AWESOME DJ scratching I mentioned earlier is in this track. Very, very nice. 5/5

Township Rebellion- This is another typical RATM song, some really cool tempo changes though. Other than that, it's just the usual Zack raving, Tom doing heavy riffs, Timmy C with cool basslines and Brad doing some straight beats. Zack goes crazy as usual in it. Some cool wah stuff towards the end too. 4/5

Freedom- Slow tempo, and just like the previous track, it's another typical RATM song. It's got all the characteristics, and in my opinion, a strong album closer. Nothing much more to say about this one. 5/5

This album is awesome, and gets a 5/5, which I am fairly hesitant about giving, but I think it's deserving enough.

Final Rating: 5/5

WarCraft

2005-02-28T14:44:00.000-05:00

I forgot to mention.....if you get your guy on WOW to level 35 + you can sell him on ebay.

that is all

2005-02-27T21:31:00.000-05:00

"ParaRiddleDiddle"

Tool-ÆNIMA

Track Listing:
1. Stinkfist-5:11
2. Eulogy-8:28
3. H.-6:07
4. Useful Idiot-:38
5. Forty Six & 2-6:04
6. Message to Harry Manback-1:53
7. Hooker With a P*nis-4:33
8. Intermission-:56
9. Jimmy-5:24
10. Die Eier Von Satan-2:17
11. Push It- 9:55
12. Cesaro Summability-1:26
13. Aenima-6:39
14. (-) Ions-4:00
15. Third Eye-13:47

This has some of the best cover art I've ever seen on a CD. The cover has great packaging. The holographic eyes are amazing, and really impresses the listener when they first pick up this CD. The liner notes are beautiful as well. The art is carefully chosen and is amazing and inspirational. And I usually like it when it comes with lyrics, but I'm glad this didnt. It gives it such a dark monolithic quality. It has such an impact with the art and theories of Tool.

STINKFIST-The opener for Aenima is a great one. It starts of with a very appropriate intro, followed by a searing, crushing riff, followed by Maynard singing very softly about boredom is not a burden anyone should bear. It continues, then spirals itself in a rockcrushing chorus riff with Maynard screaming, while still having the lyrics decipherable, then with the riff still bearing down over you, it goes back to soft singing again. Its just amazing. Around the halfway point, Justin comes in with this somber, melancholy bass riff that does wonders for the songs soundscape. Adam also does a very fine job during this part. Then it goes back to the main riff, mutating into a heavier part, and finally ending into a very somber, eastern tinged ending. Highly orgasmic, this song is among one of the best for first track starters.10/10

EULOGY-This is probably the tightest, most monolithic, and best track on the album. It kicks off with a two minute intro of soft clicking and atpping. I used to dislike this intro, but it grew on me. It makes you wait for something magical, like waiting for Christmas morning. It just makes it all the more better. At the 1:57 mark it evolves into this simple repeated riff, with Maynard talking into a megaphone, with it finally exploding into an orgasmic chorus part with Maynard singing and the whole band working together as a mechanical musicbot. It continues the loud, aggressive-in-an-intelligent-way chorus, then quickly regains it's composure, and delves back into the mythic, megaphone induced part. Its really quite awesome to see something so large and lumbering then quickly go back to such a small, simple part. Then when it reaches about 4:35 or so, it shrinks into a small, spongy part with a drumbeat and some ocasional guitar screeches, all very well executed, with it then growing back into an agressive part with some truly great lyrics, before heading into a truly orgasmic part with just Danny and Maynard together, before heading into the climax of this song. It then has a guitar solo, then with the lyrics talking about to ascend you must die, you must be crucified, before leading into one truly great scream in music, with Maynard letting Goodbye continue for a while, without dying out, then some guitar parts, and finally ending this song. This song is wonderful, and probably the best on the album, but what just sends this home with a ribbon is the lyrics. They deal with false martyrdom, and they do it exetremely well. Some of my favorites. You should really check them out.9/10

H.-This is a very mysterious song, no one really seems to know what its about. Many people say its about heroin, but nobody really knows. Another well done song, this song takes a while to get fully started, but when it does, it is a full juggernaut of a song.It starts off with a very dynamic intro, and again quiets it down for Maynard to sing about the lyrics. This song really relys on dynamics, and this song does it well, with all those little pops in sound. This continues for about three minutes, until it burst into a large climax, then quickly switching back into a quieter, more reflective mode, for a while, until about 4:45, it repeats I Dont Mind for about 4 times before lurching into a massive riff, then ending the song. For the casual listener, this song is very well done as all the others are, but the lyrics again hold a hidden treat.They are again thoughtful and well crafted. Another great Tool song. 8.5/10

USEFUL IDIOT-This song/sample/filler runs together with the upcoming Forty Six & 2, and it works. It is only 38 seconds long, and it is really just static and scratches, so I cant really review it, but I'll just do it anyways. But the soundscapes help make this album what it is, so it fulfills it's purpose.5/10

FORTY SIX & 2-Ahhhhh, this is more like it. Many people's favorite song on Aenima, and I can see why. Very, very good bass intro, and it flows exetremely well with the rest of the song. Another song that has very hypnotizing vocals and dynamics, it's like a musical hypno disc. The only real problem I have with it is that it could get repetitive, but you would have to listen A LOT. The guitar parts of Adam Jones are again amazing, and the bass and drums are definately doing their job, and doing it well. The song really, really starts to build in the 4:30 mark, all leading up to an eruption of bone crushing riffs near the end. The final bonecrushers at the 5:50 mark add a new level to the end of the song, helping by adding some nice aggression. And yet again, the lyrics are inspiring. Taking the concepts of human evolution with the human bodies 46 chromosomes and adding 2 to making the final step of evolution was a well chosen theme for this song. The philosophy of Carl Jung was well done in this song, even for Tool. His "shadow" ideas were well represented,thanks to the thick, gooey layers of plodding riffs. Another classic Tool song.10/10

MESSAGE TO HARRY MANBACK-Another track like Useful Idiot, but this one has words. It starts off with a very soft piano part playing and seagulls flocking in the background. Then a very soft voice comes in. A man starts talking about his hatred for Americans and wishing your family dies of cancer. I dont know who this man is, but I heard that he was a man who went to a room mate of Maynards party uninvited and got kicked out, so he left this message. I dont know if this is true, but none the less, this track adds nicely to the atmosphere of this album.8/10

HOOKER WITH A PENIS-This a more straightforward, rocking song. It speeds by a lot quicker, and it's very fun to listen to. Maynard has a much harsher tone in his voice in this song and it fits very well. The lyrics are also less metaphorical and more straightforward than say, H. or Stinkfist, but this song is a nice addition to Aenima. The length is also wholly appropriate, clocking in at 4:33, just fast enough so your not bored and craving more Tool. It also starts to calm down around the 3:00 part, but then explodes fpr the rest of the song. I love this song, its very fun to listen to.9/10

INTERMISSION-This is a quick track of organs reminisscent of a baseball game. It doesnt seem like a Tool song at all, but it ends very, very abruptly, and cuts in directly to Jimmy, so it's a good song. I like to listen to this song once in a while, I like the how strong the organ is, and I love the contrast between it and Jimmy. A very good way to run along with Jimmy, another one of the darker songs.7/10

JIMMY-A very engaging part of this song to me is the intro. It comes in directly after Intermission, and its very dark and brooding, so it works great for this song. A lot of slower parts to this song, very melodic, so it adds alot to the brooding of it. The drums also make this song what it is, by having a deeper sound. But what I really like is how the voracious guitar eats up the background, really allowing the band to lash out later in the song. 9.5/10

DIE EIER VON SATAN-Starts of with a very industrial part to it, and continues the same thing over and over for two minutes. For the the non German speaker, Die Eier Von Satan translates to The Eggs (or balls) of Satan. This song sounds exetremely evil, with the harsh, corrosive industrial rythm going on and on, but also th harsh tones the spekars (two German men) are using. It sounds like some sort of Nazi rally, with crowd chants and all. But for the the person who knows what these lyrics mean, it's quite funny to hear them with such evil sounding words. I actually really like this song, and can listen to it a couple times. And you really should find out the lyrics, they add an extra edge to this song once you know what they mean. ( Im not going to tell you if you dont know)9/10

PUSH IT-This is probably the slowest, most melodic song on Aenima. Its also the second longest, at around ten minutes, so it starts to get a little monotonous after a while, but it still doesnt lose focus. It has an oddly brassy feeling feeling to it, and the final minute really has some great parts going for it. I like the eastern tinged parts in it. Tool seems to express their lighter side in this song, and mission accomplished. It certainly is melodic, and you could certainly listen to it more than once (not cheap, unmemberable melody). This song relys less to be structured on bassy beats and rythmic syncopation than other songs. Not to say that it doesnt incorporate some of these ideas, but in the end, Tool doesnt use those tools so much to provide music.This is probably my least favorite song on Aenima, but it is still great. 8/10

CESARO SUMMABILITY-This track kicks off with a baby crying and screeching, and followed by some static and a seemingly disembodied voice with samples that sound like engines revving up, then ending with some sounds trailing down. Not one of my favorite tracks, but gives some nice soundscapes.6/10

AENIMA-This is probably one of the best tracks on the album, and its very clear why. It starts off with some seemingly whispering vocals, followed by a very forceful guitar intro riff, that just seems to barrel everything out of its way. It then keeps rolling on with pulsing bass riffs taking charge now. It continues that way for a while, but then seems to get bored and just go full force in to pummeling chorus like riff. It does that one more time, but it then seems to spiral into a much more quiet, melodic part, with lyrics chanting and guiatrs wailing. It then breaks down and just seems to slow down around the 5:05 mark, before just exploding and lumbering like some sort of giant ape into the ending of the song, with some very strong vocals. The lyrics are also very fun to listen too, but has some profanity. Highly reccomended.10/10

(-) IONS-A very long, seemingly filler track, this track is just a lonely, windtorn desolate soundscape that lasts four minutes. Lasts a bit too long, but it again fits well with the final track, Third Eye.5/10

THIRD EYE-The final and longest track on Aenima is also an epic. It breaks a silence with some comedian Bill Hicks samples, followed by some great drumming and guitar wails. Maynard then takes the vocals, and they seem lighter than others in other songs, but then gets to an abrasive part around 3:55, then breaking down again into a softer, gentler appraoch. Eastern tinged melodies pop up like moles all thorough out this song, with some guitar solos that fit well. Then starts to slow down tremendoulsy around 7:30, and seems to stop all together, but just seems to tingle its way past, before getting back to a louder, more goopy part, then exploding into an exetremely harsh, abrasive sound, with screaming vocals yelling "prying open my third eye!", then switching back to the more traditional riff, like nothing happened before. Continuing down that path for awhile, it again returns to the corrosive sounds of "prying open my third eye" for the remainder, then ending off with some static. The theme for this song is magnificiently portrayed, with the Bill Hicks parts well done. The way of opening is chakra with hallucenogenics is well done, and it does not dissapoint. This is my favorite song on the cd. A great finisher song, kudos for Tool for giving it such a long play time.10/10

To rate this album, I am definately giving a 5/5. A must own it is truly great. It is a shame that some critics compared this to Marilyn Manson. Dark and monolithic, this, in my opinion, was the album of the nineties. 5/5

Thank You, and have a nice day. :)

Drum Set Up

2005-02-27T20:51:00.000-05:00

Cymbals-
14"Pearl CX 300 Hi-Hats 2/5
20"Sabian B8 Ride Cymbal 5/5
18"Sabian B8Pro China Cymbal 5/5
16"Sabian B8 Medium Crash 4.5/5
16"Sabian B8 Thin Crash 4/5
8"Sabian B8 Splash Cymbal 3.5/5

Drums- (Off Ebay)
Unbranded 10" Small Rack Tom 5/5 (sounds like a timbale)
Unbranded 12" Medium Rack Tom 4.5/5
Unbranded 14" Floor Tom 4.25/5
Unbranded 14" Snare Drum 2.5/5
Unbranded 20" Bass Drum 3.5/5

Heads-
14" Coated Ambassador Remo Floor Tom Head 4.5/5
12" Coated Ambassador Remo Medium Tom Head 4.5/5
20" Coated Ambassador Remo Bass Drum Head 4/5
10" Coated Ambassador Remo Small Tom Head 4.5/5
Unbranded 14" Snare Head 2/5

Other Stuff-
LP Cowbell 4.5/5 (MORE COWBELL)

World Of Warcraft

2005-02-27T19:49:00.000-05:00

I got World of Warcraft for Christmas this year, and I was more than happy. I wanted it more than almost anything else that year. After we got through all the gifts, yadda yadda yadda, i put in the game. I went to the start-up menu and installed it. At the main menu, there is a place where you login. This is where I found the problem. You have to pay $14.99 monthly to play. The first month is free, so i took advantage of that. I leveled up my guy, had a lot of fun playing it, but then my time was up. I needed to keep playing! My mom offered to pay for the next month, so I was relieved. I kept playing, but by the middle of the month, i got bored of it. I wasted 15 bucks on 15 days of playing. This game is a rip-off if you, the child, has to pay the fee. Sure I would have kept it if my mom payed for it, but I'm a kid, and I'm not made of money. Only buy this game if you are willing to give most of your monthly allowance toward. If there was no fee, it would get 9.0/10. But since it costs money, I'll give it a

8.0/10

Pros-Amazing landscape design, overall visual aspects of the game are incredible. Gameplay is great, there is no "end" of the game. You can play it forever. Great plot, you can pursue the job as a miner, etc. and you can be a warrior, mage, etc. You can do many things with each character. Customizable character looks, if its and elf, orc, troll, etc.

Cons-Enormous cost for online fee if you are a kid. The character graphics are edgy and sketchy here and there. There are many glitches, such as walking through buildings, etc. I think the resurrection point of the game is pointless, having to become a soul and finding your body. Many parts of the game are very difficult.