THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: music review (Page 413 of 493)

TYLER BRYANT & THE SHAKEDOWN – Pressure

July 9, 2021 /

This the fourth album from the Nashville groove rockers and sees them adopt a more harder edged sound. They also drop down to a natural three piece, well, on record anyways. The blues is still deep within the bands soul, but played with a modern youthful twist.

Opening track is the title track and kicks serious ass with a deep crunchy riff and groove to match. I really like TB’s vocals as they suit the music perfectly. Hitchhiker starts with some serious blues slide goodness and is a great dirty sleaze of a tune. Crazy Days is a big Nashville country rock beast with Tyler’s partner (Rebecca Lovell) from Larkin Poe as a guest. Backbone is a change in type and groove, but is one my favourite on the record. The guitar playing on the album is top drawer, it’s not overdone, it’s just the right amount of flash to add that special sauce to the songs. They are a great band that deserves your support, and hopefully I will get a chance to see them soon.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

DREAM THEATER – Falling Into Infinity

July 9, 2021 /

This is the fourth album from the progressive metal titans, and it just so happens to be my favourite. It has the right balance between crunch, melody, and instrumental interplay with great production from Kevin Shirley. Think of this as their Dark Side Of The Moon, or Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, as it’s when the band became of age and anything was possible for them after this album. I know there were a lot of tensions within the band, and certain members were reliant on certain liquids and substances to get them through the day. There were also rumours that La Brie maybe not be around for long. This was also the only album to feature Derek Sherinian, which was a crime as I think he was a lot more inventive and off the wall compared to Jordan Rudess, who is an amazing classically trained keyboard whizz, but he’s not very spur of the moment which I love.

There are some absolute epic tracks on this record and New Millennium is one of them and it opens up the record. There is a great middle section with a heavy riff and groove that will melt your face. There were three singles that were released from the record: Burning My Soul, You Not Me (which has Desmond Child as a co-writer), and Hollow Years which was the one that had most success, but was not what the band was all about and give a somewhat false impression to those that had not heard them before. Lines In The Sand is one of the most iconic songs the band have ever recorded and is still a live staple today. Petrucci’s solo is incredible with so much feel and passion it sends shivers down my spine every time I hear it. The intro to the song Hells Kitchen is what Sherinian is all about with the creative and inventive side of his playing. Now we get to see him and Portnoy in Sons Of Apollo doing the harder edged stuff which DT seem to have forgotten how to play.

Burning My Soul is another classic DT monster track with a super heavy main riff, killer instrumentation, and keys from DS. Just Let Me Breathe again is a killer track with the right balance between melody and heavy. The album closes with Trail Of Tears, a huge track that is in 3 parts and gives the listener the full on Dream Theater experience. I know the record company wanted hits from the band, and in my opinion they delivered a near perfect album. It’s just that Atlantic did not know how to market them as Pull Me Under would become a heavy weight round their necks. As I said, I love this album and would definitely recommend it to anyone.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

AC/DC – Let There Be Rock

July 8, 2021 /

It’s a close call for me when I think of what the best AC/DC album is. This is just behind Powerage as I think it has the slightly better production value and feels a bit heavier. Depending on where you are in the world, and what versions were put out where, this is the 4th album from the land of Aus’ favorite bar room band. This was also where DC found out what heavy metal was all about, as they beefed up their sound to conquer the world. Bare in mind this was still 1977 and the metal movement was in it’s infancy, but the fans absolutely loved AC/DC. Head down, no nonsense, mindless, rock n roll was exactly what we wanted back then, and they delivered big time.

Go Down is a simple boogie but turned up to ten – it grooves hard. Dog Eat Dog is a killer follow up track and it has a wicked riff and groove. I don’t think anyone was ready for the title track when you first heard it, but hell did it blow your face off! Sure, it’s just a simple boogie, but with knobs on and a cherry on the top. Angus was the new guitar hero for my generation, well at least for another year until EVH landed from a planet far far away. Just when you thought it was safe to stop banging your head. Bad Boy Boogie grooved on into town. This band had riffs coming out of their ears at this point, and they were on fire.

No let up with Side 2 as Problem Child gets things grooving right from the off, and Malcolm proves again what a rhythm king he is. Overdose is next and is the unsung hero of the album and is my favourite. The riff is monster and the guitar tone is epic. This song grooves hard, and it’s my go-to song when I need a lift – plus it has one of Angus’s best solos. I’m not sure the 1-2 punch of the last two tracks could be any better, Hell Ain’t A Bad Place To Be (again, with monster riff #137), and the beast that is Whole Lotta Rosie. Everyone knows Rosie and it’s a bonafide DC classic. This track alone should be played as you walk into the Rock An Roll Hall Of Fame – it’s that iconic.

As I said, it’s a close thing for me to pick which is the best album as they are both killer – anyway, its getting a 10/10 from The Grooveman.

PORCUPINE TREE – Sygnify

July 8, 2021 /

This was my point of entry into the world of Porcupine Tree and Steven Wilson. I was aware of his existence before this point as I heard a quirky little single called Jupiter Island on Mark Radcliff’s radio show, but Sygnify was the point where I thought “wow, there’s something really cool happening here”. Up until this point Porcupine Tree had just been a side project of his day job with No-Man (a little art pop combo with Tim Bowness). In fact, everything about Porcupine Tree was almost a joke, as Steven had invented a fake history for the band as well as fake bios for the fake members. So what changed I hear you ask? Wel,l I guess Steven began to see that there was more life and freedom in this project than in No-Man.

The psychedelic weirdness is still present on this album, but it’s mixed with a lot more Prog influences and bursts of heaviness. There are some really beautiful pieces on this record such as Sleep Of No Dreaming , which is one of my favourite PT tracks ever – such a moving piece. Then there are really groovy moments like Waiting (Phase 1 and 2) which starts in an almost Floyd-esque moment of Prog joy, then the bass and bongos take over which guides the song to almost trance territory with its hypnotic groove. A superbly written song that I never tire of hearing.

What a great opening side, and then we flip to Side 2 with Sever – another one of my fav PT tunes. It’s just so epic, and I hope Steven will dig this out and play it with his solo band one day. Idiot Prayer has to be the most danceable Prog track ever, with that wicked bass line and hippy weirdness – the Ozrics do spring to mind when listening to this. Every Home Is Wired is the one song that has the hangover of psychedelia from the first album, but it’s still a cool track. Intermediate Jesus sees the band delve deep into experimental Prog and jam band territory with this very trippy track. Light Mass Prayers is a very ambient piece, and Tangerine Dream could be a reference point as I just find this a very relaxing track. Dark Matter closes out the album, and is the one track from the album that still gets an airing from Steven when playing live – it’s a fantastic track.

Seeing as the album only takes up three sides, Side 4 has three bonus tracks which were recorded at the same time, Sound Of No One Listening (an instrumental), Colourflow In Mind which seems to be a track awaiting lyrics, and an alternate version of Sygnify. So that’s the first great Porcupine Tree album, and I would recommend this to anyone with a wide varied taste.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

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