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  1. I'll post my review tomorrow

    Edit: It will have to be Wednesday now Enjoyed listening to this album all week though.
  2. Originally posted by iTim:I'll post my review tomorrow

    Edit: It will have to be Wednesday now Enjoyed listening to this album all week though.

    Talk about unreliable

    I'm writing my piece up now, so it will definitely be posted today!
  3. Modest Mouse – We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank

    Ok, here are my thoughts on my choice:

    “March Into The Sea” starts with a little accordion piece before launching into those familiar Brock vocals. At this point you may realise that you need an astute ear to pick out some of the lyrics. It took me a while and still, even with the lyrics in the booklet (which are still incorrect), I struggle with some lines on the album. Not exactly sure what the meaning of the lyrics are in this song (human nature?), but I enjoy it nonetheless. A good energetic start to the album and it offers no rest as it segues straight into the next.

    “Dashboard” is a superb little song. Unlike the previous song, it’s quite clear what this one is about. Regardless of all of the bad things in life, there’s a silver lining. The dashboard has melted? At least the radio works. The windshield is broken? Hey, at least it’s letting some fresh air in. The car is on blocks? Doesn't matter, I wanted to be here anyway. Essentially, as the lyric suggests, things “could’ve been worse than you would ever know”. I also like the line “Oh if the world don’t like us it’ll shake us just like we were a cold” - we all know of someone (or done this ourselves) who has complained that the world is against them, if it truly was against them, then it’d just get rid of us. Credit to the music in this one too. Love that guitar and the simple percussive beat throughout. My only issue is that when I hear it, I always picture sailors speaking this to each other…as is depicted in the video

    “Fire It Up” is in my opinion the weakest of the album. That’s something you wouldn’t have caught me saying a few years ago though. It just doesn’t seem to offer as much as the other songs. I do like the two verses that begin “It honestly was beautifully done/bold” though. Two fruitless tasks right there in trying to hide the daylight from the sun and saving an ice cube from the cold.

    “Florida” is the first track to feature James Mercer as a vocalist. It’s the shortest track on the album and it flies by. A particular line that I enjoy from this song is “It took so much effort not to make an effort, oh what a flawless design”. I also really enjoy Isaac's vocals in the last verse.

    “Parting of the Sensory” is a song I didn’t appreciate at first, but now I really do. It's song about life and death - "A lifelong walk to the same exact spot. Carbon’s anniversary. The parting of the sensory." I like how it changes for the last two minutes and how much variation Brock throws into the repetition at the end. Without paying attention, it sounds like the same line over and over, but it’s actually numerous different lines with essentially the same words mixed up whilst retaining sense.

    “Missed the Boat” is the second song after “Florida” to feature Mr. Mercer. As Matt says, it’s a fun song. There’s a few standout lines in this one for me.

    “We’ve Got Everything” should appeal to Sergio, after telling us how much he enjoys cyclical ideas in music. It begins by proclaiming that we’ve got everything, then goes full circle telling us how we got everything. James Mercer’s vocals are slightly annoying in this one though, that’s my only complaint.

    “Fly Trapped in a Jar” is much like “Parting of the Sensory” in that I didn’t really appreciate it at first, but it really grew on me. There’s some excellent rhythm in the vocals on this track and again, like “Parting of the Sensory” it has a distinct musical switch in the song, before this one briefly returns to the intro. I particularly like the "Well I hadn’t noticed but the people really noticed that they really didn’t want us around" line, it sounds so good.

    “Little Motel” is a beautiful little song, it really is. Perhaps it would be the most surprising to hear based on the album so far. My favourite part of this song is when Isaac sings “I’m very sorry”. To me, it just sounds so sincere. I always believed it to be about the breakdown of a relationship and I still prefer to, but the video kind of persuades you that it's about the passing of a loved one.

    “Steam Engenius” has a lot of interesting little parts. That guitar that comes through on the left channel throughout being one of them. A pretty cool song about human’s relationship with technology and artificial intelligence, with an almost incomprehensible chorus as Brock almost wears himself out singing it.

    “Spitting Venom” is perhaps my favourite off the album right now. A simple introduction that features these extra little embellishments just to keep it interesting. My favourite is that little guitar during the third “Let it all drop”. When it finally drops though, man...if you're not paying attention it can sometimes catch you out at a high volume! I love how after the first verse here it starts to build towards a peak and you’d expect it to either end or return to the simple instrumentation, but no, we get another verse and yet another rise to that peak where it... returns to the start. And, just when you think it couldn’t possibly get any better, horns. Also love the lines in this last part relating to venom and antidote. A lot to like in this song for me, but the highlight is that middle section.

    “People as Places as People” had long been a favourite of mine off this album, one of the first songs that instantly clicked with me. I do still enjoy it, though I perhaps no longer rank it as high. The message I think to be taken from the lyrics is that although you can spend your life searching for the people you want to know or the places you want to go, you’ll often find that what you already have is actually what you want.

    “Invisible” is the final track and there’s no way it’s going out with a whimper. Love the guitar and vocal delivery in this one. Also, the “saline tea”, the tidal references, “the orphaned sea” continue the nautical theme that is present throughout the album. It was initially supposed to be a concept album in which each song would focus on a sailor or member of a boat crew dying. It turned out that it didn’t quite follow that concept, but it did retain that strong link to the sea.

    Overall, it should be clear that I do love this album. If any of you find it to be a touch too long (just over an hour) I can completely understand that. Before I fell for the songs that I initially didn’t like all that much, I found it easy to declare which songs should’ve been cut, but now I would struggle to shorten it if I had to. Some songs were an instant hit with me - Dashboard, Florida, People as Places… - whilst some, like other Modest Mouse tracks, took a while to be noticed - Parting of the Sensory, Fly Trapped in a Jar, even Spitting Venom. Now, it’s without doubt my favourite Modest Mouse album and of course, one of my favourite albums of any artist.

    Top three tracks:
    1. Spitting Venom
    2. Dashboard
    3. Little Motel
  4. I've been away with only my phone's limited data as internet, so I haven't been listening. Time to do that know.
  5. I'm on vacations, so I'll be able to make it after 11th august... but will do
  6. Listening and reviewing tonight
  7. A new selection, this time from Andrew.

    Puddinghead - Ball Park Music



    Tracklisting:

    1. She Only Loves Me When I’m There
    2. Next Life Already
    3. A Good Life is the Best Revenge
    4. Teenager Pie
    5. Trippin’ the Light Fantastic
    6. Cocaine Lion
    7. Everything is Shit Except My Friendship With You
    8. Struggle Street
    9. Error Playin’
    10. Polly Screw My Head Back On
    11. Girls from High School.

    Available to stream here: MusicMP3.ru

    ---------
    And, as always, an introduction here from Andrew:

    "Hi all.

    I’m very excited to share Ball Park Music’s latest album titled Puddinghead, which was released earlier this year.

    They are a five-piece indie rock/pop band from Brisbane made up of front man Sam Cromack (guitar/vocals), Jennifer Boyce (bass/backing vocals), Paul Furness (keys/trombone), and twins Dean Hanson (guitar/backing vocals) and Daniel Hanson (drums/backing vocals).

    I’ve been lucky enough to see them live five times over the last 3 years, they are (imo)one of the best up and coming Indie bands from Aus, their live shows are simply amazing, would definitely recommend seeing them if you ever get the chance.

    Their two earlier albums Happiness and Surrounding Suburbs (2011) and Museum (2012) are also great listens.

    Hope you enjoy Puddinghead as much as I do.

    Enjoy "
  8. Hi Andrew, thank you *so much* for sharing this! This looks, and sounds, really good!
  9. I like this cover
  10. I don't know what to expect. Seriously. Ok, let's go...


    Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank

    1. March into the Sea - I love the sea, that is something many of you probbly know by now... So a sea-themed song may possibly be the perfect choice for entering the Modest Mouse world. And this is some... ehm... interesting lead voice. Curious. Hard to get into it but once you do... It hooks you like a magnet. Wow. Repeating this one to hear it again (and to catch all the lost verses, you were so right Tim). The "I'll be beating my heart's record..." part sounds so much like Arcade Fire that it strikes me.
    2. Dashboard - what a change in style! Funky, groovy, energetic, and again ArcadeFire-y, which I obviously approve and enjoy. Lovely lyrics that I'm reading online since I can't understand a fucking word. The horns and the amazing guitar work make this one truly enjoyable musically.
    3. Fire It Up - some nice lyrics, but I gotta agree with Tim (without even having listened to the rest of the album), this is much weaker than the previous songs.
    4. Florida - this one rings a bell somewhere in my head. Was it featured on a video game ost or something? I like it. Lovely change of time signature on the even as I left Florida chorus from 4/4 to 3/4, I wrote a song a few weeks ago with the exact same change. Modest Mouse are ripping me off!!!
    5. Parting of the Sensory - And another change in style! Haven't quite made my mind up about this one, but I think I like it a lot. Tough lyrical theme. Amazing change at the end of the song, it moves from sounding like an improved version of The Lumineers to a slowed version of the Dropkick Murphies, haha.
    6. Missed the Boat - this is a bit more poppy, and it's something I appreciate after so much strange change in styles. I think I would like to play this one on acoustic guitar... in fact, I might give it a try later on (it's 5:45AM, not the perfect time to belt anything out on guitar haha). Easier to understand lyrics = finally
    7. We've Got Everything - there goes the funky side of the guys again. Love this one, kudos Tim for realizing I would like its cyclic concept. And it rings a bell too. Love the We crashed in like waves into the store part with the whispered doubled vocals.
    8. Fly Trapped in a Jar - I don't like the lyrics in this one, although I like the slightly dissonant music background both at the intro and post-chorus bridges. The song gets a lil better with the change at the middle, I like the shouted rap-like lyrics even though I can't make a word out of it, haha.
    9. Education - some interesting and some nonsense lyrics for a somehow insipid and repetitive song.
    10. Little Motel - this is what I was waiting for, another of their delicate, slower songs. I like it so much I can't help replaying it back. The perfect song for 6:13 AM. Straight to Top songs.
    11. Steam Engenius - hmmm. Not my cup of tea, not understanding the lyrics probably has a lot to do with it.
    12. Spitting Venom - nice build up with the naked vocals and acoustic guitar, and then the song explodes. I can perfectly see why it's one of Tim's favorites. Brilliant lyrics and 8 minutes and a half that feel like 4. Amazing job. Love the horns, love all the little instruments that help building up the final crescendo. And the final mantra... Wow. What a truly amazing song. Wow.
    13. People as Places as People - this one ain't clicking with me yet, but virtually anything that goes after the previous track would fall short in greatness - unfair, unconscious comparison I guess. But nah, seriously, this might be considered as an album filler.
    14. Invisible - wow, what an intro! This would make all Bloc Party, Two Door Cinema Club and The Strokes intros turn pale in shame. Well I can imagine myself jumping up and down to this one at a concert, possibly as the closing song... Nice one to end the album, very nice.

    Summary
    Really enjoyable album, it has struck some chords in me and I would like to listen to and review it again accordingly - unfortunately no more spare time for now... But yeah, I've really enjoyed this one too. Some brilliant lyrics (although too hard to decypher) and amazing music overall. Thanks for the choice Tim! And answering Matt... Yeah, I knew Float On, and I knew some tracks from this album too; I just didn't know the band as a whole. And the worst part of it is that somewhere in my mind I was thinking this should be a side project from U2's producer Danger Mouse...... don't ask

    Top songs:
    1) Spitting Venom
    2) Little Motel
    3) Parting of the Sensory / Invisible
  11. Finally got time to post my review here. I've been listening to the album more often since the day I wrote it, but my general opinion is basically the same.

    The album is really good. In my opinion, the whole instrumental part is awesome, to say the truth. I just don't like the vocals in some songs. They got me tired of some songs since they're too noisy at some points. So, I think this good album could have work better with better vocals, but this doesn't change my opinion about the really great guitar riffs, drums and lyrics. Some songs are really catchy and they make you want to listen to then again and again.

    My favorites are:

    Dashboard - Really nice song. It has a dancing and optimistic vibe, and it reminds some of that 90's songs I was used to listen while playing Tony Hawk 1, wich is super cool!

    Florida - I really like this one. Guitars and vocals are great. Simple, but catchy song, and it makes a great tune to listen to while driving.

    Fly Trapped In A Jar - Nice song. I really anjoy the drums and the rhythm changes through the music.

    Education - Funny song. Guitar and bass work really well here.

    Spitting Venom - Really awesome! The songs builts up and it gets better and better. Once again, I really like the guitar here. The riffs are pretty amazing!

    Invisible - The whole instrumental thing here is awesome! I just think the vocals aren't that good. Even though, it's a good song.

    Rate 6,5/10, but some songs are top rated for sure.
  12. I can totally understand those remarks regarding his voice. I didn't immediately fall in love with it either. It's probably a lot harder as a non-native English speaker as well because it's so difficult at times to figure it out. But I'm glad you both enjoyed it and both picked out Spitting Venom as a key track

    On to Andrew's selection now though! We'll try and get back into the rhythm of weekly submissions after falling a little behind with our ten day weeks Nobody's fault, I've been late myself a few times. I was going to listen to it yesterday but only managed the first track before I was interrupted. But it does sound like an album that I am going to enjoy. I'll hopefully listen in full later today

    After Andrew, we have two more albums to hear. After that, Matt, I think we should perhaps have a two week(?) period to discuss what we've heard so far, perhaps revisit some albums and use that time to post up any missing reviews. Would everyone be ok with that?

    Also, JuJuman, if you're reading this, would you like to be added to the list of participants?