Ep. 33 – Alchemy and Judaism – Aug 23rd, 2008

A couple days ago i was in meijer picking up a few things and i stopped over in the music section (i need to stop doing that!) I wasn’t surprised that their selection wasn’t very big but i did find something worthwhile!

“The Alchemy Index Vol. 3+4: Air + Earth” – Thrice

Ever since i got the first part of this concept album project a month or two ago i have been keeping my eyes open for this set (the second half). This 2 disc “album” is very good, a total of 12 songs split between two discs – each is dedicated to it’s respective element and each has a different sound. Air is pretty cool. Floaty, ethereal Post-Hardcore is what this disc, but they don’t depart to far from the classic Thrice sound. I haven’t listened to this disc that much thought really because i have been all about the other disc: earth. I do have to mention two songs though. “A Song for Milly Michaelson,” the third track on this disc is one of my favorites on the album. Simple acoustic guitar and vocals. In the background one can hear a haunting wind sound and faint wind-chimes. Minimal percussion adds to the depth and feel of the song. It’s a beautifully crafted crystalline song full of deep emotion. “Daedalus,” the very next track shows that Dustin Kensrue likes the story of Icarus. This song is once again uses the story of Icarus from Greek mythology as an allegory. Daedalus is Icarus’ father and the song is written as a warning from father to son. It is very moving and i think it can also be related to the relationship between us and Father God, and I believe that is what Dustin intended to convey. By far my favorite disc of the two was Earth though. Earth is more of a departure from the Thrice we know. It is sort of a Thrice “unplugged,” where most if not all of the instruments used are acoustic. The theme seems to revolve around death, dying or returning to the dust… Every song on this disc is beautiful and i was surprised that Thrice could be so versatile as to write songs so different from the style they are known for, yet so good… Earth also features a cover of the Frodus song “The Earth isn’t Humming.” I was surprised when i heard this because Frodus is a very underground punk band that disbanded a few years ago. They were a band with christian members much like Thrice and i can’t help but think this cover was fitting. It’s nice to hear their take on a Frodus song i have been enjoying for years. The first track on the disc, “Moving Mountains” is great, very bluesy… I don’t really know how to describe just how different this whole Alchemy Index series is from Thrice’s earlier work but i encourage you to check them out because Thrice hit it out of the park with each style they tried!!

Track-listing:

Vol. III – Air:

1. “Broken Lungs” – 4:14
2. “The Sky Is Falling” – 4:21
3. “A Song for Milly Michaelson” – 5:07
4. “Daedalus” – 6:00
5. “As the Crow Flies” – 2:22
6. “Silver Wings” – 2:10

Vol. IV – Earth

1. “Moving Mountains” – 2:55
2. “Digging My Own Grave” – 3:04
3. “The Earth Isn’t Humming” (Frodus cover) – 4:58
4. “The Lion and the Wolf” – 2:42
5. “Come All You Weary” – 4:08
6. “Child of Dust” – 3:09

Price Paid: $14.99 (well, considering i paid $0.94 for the other half of this 4-disc set, i did ok…)

Today I went to Meijer again and got another album, which will hopefully be the last one from there for a little while (they didn’t have much anyway.)

“Youth” – Matisyahu

I got into Matisyahu during Christmas break of my freshman year of college. I downloaded all his stuff on Christmas day and his albums are among some of the last i downloaded. Matisyahu is a Jewish Reggae artist. I really like his music and the lyrics are really good too! He is singing about the same God anyway! This album is very catchy and is worth checking out if you like Reggae or if you are curious.

Track-listing:

1. “Fire of Heaven/Altar of Earth” – 3:59
2. “Youth” – 4:18
3. “Time of Your Song” – 4:27
4. “Dispatch the Troops” – 4:05
5. “Indestructible” – 4:09
6. “What I’m Fighting For” – 2:11
7. “Jerusalem” – 4:00
8. “WP” – 3:58
9. “Shalom/Saalam” – 1:06
10. “Late Night in Zion” – 3:13
11. “Unique is My Dove” – 3:24
12. “Ancient Lullaby” – 4:18
13. “King without a Crown” – 3:42

Price Paid: $13.99

Got a few more albums coming in the mail, but i got a good deal on those so i won’t be going broke, lol. Hope you are enjoying the little more in-depth reviews and such, since I’m getting fewer albums right now I’m trying to write a bit more and trying to keep this blog interesting… Remember feedback is always appreciated! Check back soon!

Ep. 25 & 26 – Christian Hardcore Punk, and some other stuff. – Aug 7th & 8th, 2008

Ep. 25

I went to Blast in the past today because Joe was holding a CD for me.  It’s funny that something is always going on every time i go in there.  This big black guy was “preaching” to a junkie in the store.  He was talking really fast and “quoting” the Bible without quoting scripture.  It was unnerving.  He made some good points but he also made claims like the reason people do bad things is because they have demons in them.  He kept saying, “the Demons get you to do them bad things man, but they ain’t going to jail whitcha!”  First off, Demons don’t make you do bad things.  We do bad things because we have a sinful nature.  If you were to say that we don’t do bad things because we want to that absolves us of responsibility and demeans the sacrifice of what Jesus did when he laid his life down for a rebelious sinful people.  If we have no control over the times we sin then we have no hope of following God anymore closely and we are technically innocent since it is the demon sinning and not us.  That just isn’t the case.  But anyway before i get off on too much of a theological rant…. I found a couple more awesome albums while i was there, check ‘em out:

“Where Moth and Rust Destroy” – Tourniquet

Tourniquet is a really cool band.  They are truly a metal band in the purest sense.  Think of a christian Metallica.  Very solid album where the average song length is 5:00+.  Been looking for this one for awhile and was very surprised when i noticed it at Joe’s.  Price Paid: $12.50

“Raggamuffin Hip Hop 2″ – Various

Volume 2 of the Christian Reggae sampler.  I really enjoyed the first one so i had Joe hold on to this one for me so i would be able to get it later.  Picked it up today, it’s really good.  Price Paid: $6.50

“the Artist in the Ambulance” – Thrice

Great release by Thrice.  Added this to the hunt-list a little bit ago after buying “The Alchemy Index Vol.1&2″.  Was pretty surprised when i found it.  Price Paid: $5

I also went to Record Time to attempt to sell some records.  I sold them my extra copy of moving pictures by Rush.  Then i picked up  a CD while i was there:

“How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” – U2

I really enjoy this album.  Some people think that bands that have been around a long time can’t make good music anymore.  “There old stuff is so much better” they always say.  Well, i agree that that can be the case but i think U2 does a great job even now!  I think this is a very solid release with many memorable tracks!  Price Paid: $6

Good day of hunting.  I went to Joe’s expecting to be in and out and found a couple gems i never would have thought would be there!

Ep. 26

So i went back to Joe’s today because i say some stuff there yesterday and didn’t have enough money to get it all.  Today was payday so i went back.

“Matt Aragon (Promo)” – Dogwood

Found this Promo Album by Dogwood, a christian hardcore punk band.  Really good style.  They have a lot of versatility which keeps the album interesting.  The lead singer has a really cool voice too, kind of gravelly…  Check it out if you get a chance.  Price Paid: $5

“The Bare Truth about Philmore” – Philmore

Very catchy pop-punk album.  Passed it up a few times in favor of other stuff.  Decided iot was worth it today.  Price Paid: $5

“Nailed/ Take up Your Cross” – The Crucified

Hardcore Punk release by one of the best in the genre.  The crucified’s lead singer, Mark Salomon later became the singer of my favorite band, Stavesacre.  Decided it was time i owned some crucified!  Price Paid: $5

I was then about to leave when i noticed another CD and just about flipped out:

“Then is the new Now” – Denison Marrs

I ruckus’d this album earlier this summer when i read that this band did a split cd with Stavesacre.  I listened to it alot and it’s a really good CD.  I’ve been meaning to officially add it to the hunt-list but it has mentally been there for awhile.  It’s a great album and i’m excited that i have it now!!  Price Paid: $5

Found lots of good stuff yesterday and today!!!!  Soon i go back to school but i may check back with Blast in the Past and Record Time before i go, we’ll see…

Revisions to the Hunt-list.

I have decided to add a few things to the hunt-list and to take some things off.

Add

“Some Kind of Zombie” – Audio Adrenaline

“The Joshua Tree” – u2

“Vapor Trails” – Rush

“Fly by Night” – Rush

“Boogi-root” – DJ Maj

“Caress of Steel” – Rush

“War” – u2

“Achtung Baby” – u2

“The Alchemy Index, Vol. 3&4: Air & Earth” – Thrice

“The Artist and the Ambulance” – Thrice

“Pop” – u2

Remove

“Fireflies” – Frodus

“Radioactivity” – Frodus

E.p. 8 – Rare Advance CD’s!!!! – June 25th, 2008

Today i went hunting for what will probably be the last time until i get back from a week-long trip i am going on soon (unless i decide to go hunting on the trip )  I went to one of the few record stores in my area i had yet to check out, Car City Records.  The place was nicely organized and a really great place to find Vinyl, but they really had nothing that was up my alley, i searched through a whole bunch of junk and found one album worth grabbing:

“The Alchemy Index Vols. 1 + 2: Fire & Water” – Thrice

I’ve liked Thrice for awhile.  After their last release “vheissu” i kind of lost interest in the band.  This new album (which is split into two 6 track discs) has redifined their sound and on the guidance of a friend i decided to give them another shot… i like what i’ve heard so far of “fire.”  Price Paid: $0.94 (you can see why i gave them another chance)

After the dissapointing search at Car City i decided to check out Record Time again… I had a few friends in tow and they wanted to browse…  First i went and grabbed an album that i’d been on the fence about for awhile but after doing some research i decided to grab it and the i discover the uber-clearance section… the cds nobody wants – me and my friends started looking through it as a joke but then one of my friends found an album that i was blown away by – they knew about the band through me so they pointed it out to me:

“How to Live With a Curse (Advance Copy/ Limited Pressing)” – Stavesacre

The only album by my favorite band that is not on the huntlist… why?  because i bought it the day it came out.  Today i stumbled upon the Promotional Copy and i just about had a heart attack.  It is tracked really weird with each song being split into like five tracks… it plays normal in the car but if itunes was on shuffle it would probably sound really weird… most likely i will never actually listen to this copy, i will keep it safe and scratch free.  I mean, i already have this album, but the mere fact that i found a rare promo copy of an album by my favorite band in a record store in michigan… oh man, i just had to get it.  Price Paid: $4

“Temptation Come My Way (Advance)” – the Showdown

This one is on the list!  Found the full-length, advance version at record time.  It doesn’t have the booklet with all the pictures and lyrics but just the cover and tracklist written on the back of the cover – good enough for me!  Price Paid: $1

“Easy Come, Easy Go” – Starflyer 59

This is a two disk, career-spanning compilation of sf59 goodness.  Disc one includes a “Best of” with 3 tracks off each of sf59’s first five releases… then disc two contains rareities, b-sides and live tracks!  Definately worth it for any sf59 fan!  Price Paid: $6

Good day of hunting!  Only paid $12 for four cds!  Not bad, not bad at all!