Odds and Ends

Each week I use this space to post some mini-reviews, cool tracks, random thoughts, neat news, or whatever else I damn well please.

MiniReview



Raining Jane “The Good Match” – Eclectic LA-based folk-rock band Raining Jane is back with their latest full-length CD, “The Good Match”. Long time touring partners of Sara Bareilles, and musical collaborators with acoustic rock luminaries like Willy Porter and Jason Mraz, the girls in Raining Jane have a lot to brag about. The songs on this new album span a range of emotions and feature outstanding songwriting, silky smooth harmonies, and unorthodox instrumentation including an occasional sitar, cajon, and glockenspiel. The result: a light folk rock soundtrack best suited for a lazy afternoon. Highlights for me include the polished radio-friendly title track, the buoyant “A World That's Made For Me And You”, and the closing acoustic track “New Year” (which strangely reminds me of Johnny Cash’s rendition of the Nine Inch Nails hit “Hurt”). And be sure to give a listen to their haunting reworking of Pat Benatar’s “Love Is A Battlefield”. Find out more about Raining Jane here.



Jason Dean “Coffee” [EP] - More acoustic rock goodness this week from singer/songwriter Jason Dean. With the backdrop of Virginia, Dean was inspired at a very early age by Hank Williams Jr, “not just a musician, but an entertainer as well”. Dean’s debut is this five song EP called “Coffee”, produced by himself and Pete Evick (Shinedown, Paramore, Bret Michaels). The songs are southern, bluesy and soulful, like too unlike what Kid Rock did on his last record, with hints of Stevie Ray Vaughn, The Allman Brothers, and Big Head Todd. Highlights include the groovy blues rock of “Only Wanna Be Me”, the Everlast vibe of “These Times”, and the breezy “Narrow Passage Creek”.
Jason Dean – official website.

Surprise of the week
And Dave Mustaine’s (Megadeth) favorite Metallica song is…
Click here to find out

News
35 years in the business and still going strong – Heart is planning a new album to follow up 2010’s “Red Velvet Car”. Can’t say I was a fan of that album, but I hold out hope…details here.

Motorhead is planning an album of cover tunes – should be interesting! Read all about it here.

Despite the death of Brad Delp, and the recent departure of Michael Sweet, Boston insists they are still together and will release the long awaiting album (the first since 2002’s "Corporate America"). Delp will be heard on this record. It is 85% finished according to the band, so that means we can expect it sometime in 2025. Details here.

Don’t know about you, but I am a sucker for these types of lists. Here are the top songs of the 80s, picked by Gibson.com

I admire Lita Ford’s take on aging! Ford says she still feels like the “20-year-old sexy rocker chick” at 51 and rejects plastic surgery, makeovers and working out…she looks fantastic. More here.

Details on Jani Lane’s final recording, “Sin”, done with Liberty n’Justice, a band featuring former Alice Cooper guitarist Keri Kelli, King Kobra’s JK Northrup and Bill Leverty of Firehouse. Lane’s last media activity was an appearance on VH1′s That Metal Show, which was due for broadcast on October 1 but has been brought forward to August 27. Story is here with an update here.

More Jani Lani news: 80s rockers (including Great White, Quiet Riot, LA Guns, Enuff Z'nuff) will be playing a free tribute to the late singer and songwriter. Details on that story here.

Random iPOD song of the week
“Impossible” by Anberlin…one of the finest modern rock songs I’ve heard in a long time.

Kneejerk: Weezer - Anberlin

Welcome to the latest edition of KNEEJERK, where we preview some new releases and give our short, "kneejerk" reaction...



Weezer “Hurley”

Weezer is back with “Hurley”, which finds the prolific band revisiting the classic hooks of their more successful records. Fuzzy and crunchy guitars intermix around the band’s characteristic pop rock sound, making most of “Hurley” a worthy addition to the Weezer discography. Wonderfully upbeat and catchy tracks like “Memories”, “Ruling Me”, and “Trainwrecks” perk you up right away. Famed songwriter Desmond Child contributes to “Trainwrecks”, elevating this track to being one of the most commercial sounding on the record. The band lay their limitations bare on sparse acoustic tracks like “Unspoken”, but quickly cover them up with heavy riffs and sugary choruses like those on “Where’s My Sex?”. “Smart Girls” is a crazy dance-inspired track that provides a generous dose of the quirky lyrics and indie rock that we’ve come to expect. “Hang On” and “Brave New World” are also welcome invites to this high energy 30 minute party hosted by Weezer. As you can see, I found a lot of redeeming qualities about “Hurley”, and it is one of their most consistently fun releases in years.



Anberlin “Dark Is The Way, Light Is A Place”

Anberlin seems to be getting better and better with each release, realizing that in order to put a sustained mark on the musical landscape that you need more than heavy riffage and powerhouse vocals. Anberlin is poised for a major breakthrough with their latest record, which puts their talent to good use by writing memorable melodies and harmonies. The records rushes out of the gate with indisputable winners like the radio-friendly lead single “Impossible”, energetic cuts like “We Owe This To Ourselves”, “Closer”, and “To The Wolves”, and a crowd pleasing midtempo ballad, “Take Me (As You Found Me)”. What darkens my cheer about this record is the abundance of slower, less compelling tracks in the middle and at the very end. But, there are more winners than losers on this one, and the winners are truly some of the band’s best to date.

Review: Anberlin "Cities"

I was rather eager to check out my first Anberlin CD, 2007's "Cities," which I recently acquired on a trade. While this CD is widely acclaimed by the expert customer reviewers on Amazon.com (seriously, what CD on that site is not highly praised by the majority?), I just don't see the fascination. I only see why someone was eager to trade such a recent release (and a special edition to boot!)

Anberlin is characterized as emo, or pop punk by many folks. I'm not so sure I'd refer to them in that manner (at least for this release). To me, Anberlin is in same modern rock ballpark as Hawthorne Heights or 30 Seconds To Mars.

As far as creating a solid wall of sound, Anberlin has mastered that technique. Unfortunately, nothing much jumps out from that monotonous wall of sound. There is a nice break by track 5, "The Unwinding Cable Car," which begins with a fresh change: bright, acoustic guitar. There are also some really good backing vocals throughout this track, but 4 minutes of this and I was growing tired of it. We get a similar change of pace at track 10 with "Inevitable," a pleasant enough love song in which the lead singer announces his desire to be "your last first kiss". I like the plucking orchestra in the chorus. "Hello Alone" is one of the few tracks that managed to not only grab my attention, but also make me want to hit "replay". Track 1 is an instrumental throwaway. If you are into epic tracks that feature a children's choir and feel like they are never going to end, you will love track 12 ("Fin").

On my third listen, "Adelaide" started to stick in my mind. The track is really quite good - a great vocal performance, some incredible drumming, and the typical soaring Anberlin guitars. Best of all, the chorus has a hook that finally stuck in me by spin #3.

The special edition is not all that special. It has an extra 3 tracks..."Uncanny" is actually a very good mid-tempo melodic rocker, but then we have very lame and uninspired covers of The Smith's "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" and When In Rome's "The Promise". The latter even made me laugh. Why Anberlin chose not to punk up these songs, I have no idea...an opportunity missed.

The guys exhibit solid musicianship, and I can't fault the production. They are adventurous at times and incorporate unorthodox sounds and effects into many of their tracks. And I will give credit for interesting and reflective lyrics. But when it comes to the "industrial-strength hooks," damned if I can hear them. True, they repeat a lot of the words and phrases, but you need more than that to make a good quality hook!

iPOD-worthy: 3, 7, 10, 13*
*on the special edition

Anberlin on MySpace. Official site.

Check out the video for "Godspeed":