According to the greatest Facebook page ever, the term ‘alexithymia’ refers to “An inability to describe emotions in a verbal manner”. Although this definition only scratches the surface of alexithymia’s psychological repercussions, it serves perfectly well to describe my state of mind when listening to Love Is…. Read more…
The word ‘epic’ gets tossed around a lot these days, and I’m as guilty as anyone else of overusing it. But what other words could most effectively be used to describe this track? Intense? Sure. Badass? Certainly. But to my mind, all alternatives to ‘epic’ pale in comparison. Perhaps the best course of action is to stick all of the above together, brush aside that writerly aversion to adverbs and state that this track is intensely, epically badass. Read more…
Belgium certainly seems to have its fair share of atmospherically-minded musicians, and Marteleur is no exception. There’s a very clear Tool influence on My Anvil Is My Tuning Fork, which initially marked Marteleur out in my mind as potentially being ahead of the competition. This album is very interesting, but to be perfectly honest it sounds more like a soundtrack than something intended to be consumed in a solely audio-only format. As a chillout album it works very well, but the instrumental pieces on display here often feel directionless, with a lot of repeating vamps that remind me of an old songwriting tutor berating me for overusing my DAW’s copy-and-paste function. Read more…
As regular readers will know, Jamie Lenman is a big deal where I’m from. My Facebook feed literally blew up with the release of the double-A-side Fizzy Blood/Pretty Please, news of his secret set at The Boileroom in Guildford, and the dates for his Heavy / Mellow Band’s recently completed tour. On top of all that, of course, there is this album. Not just a standard-length LP, but a 70-minute double album that takes in so many styles that I felt compelled to delay this review and let it all sink in and mature for a while. Now, however, it’s ready to go. Read more…
One of The Musical Melting Pot’s Six Artists To Watch In 2014, Dials have followed through on their promise to kick the New Year off with a brand new video. And here it is. The EP to which A Pounding Headache belongs was previously reviewed here – and although I was quite critical of the production in that review, it’s definitely grown on me, and also fits the video extremely well. As for the video itself, check it out below and keep Dials on your radar. These guys are going places… Read more…
Welcome to Part Two of The Musical Melting Pot’s Guide To Project RnL! Click here for Part One, where we looked at Project RnL’s YouTube-based output to date. This time around, we’ll be looking at the extracurricular work of Project RnL’s core members: keyboardist Eyal Amir, and vocalist Ray Livnat. Read more…
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Project RnL. Remember that name in 2014. Originally formed in 2010, it didn’t take long for this prog-pop juggernaut to rev its engines loudly enough to be heard by Dream Theater – the band still sitting prettily at the very top of the prog scene’s naturally complex hierarchy – and begin collaborating with DT keyboardist Jordan Rudess. That’s an impressive achievement, by anyone’s standards.
Opinion
Given his day job as live keyboardist and backing vocalist for alt-metal titans Three Days Grace, it’s safe to say that Dani Rosenoer is a busy guy. It’s equally safe to say that he can hold his own as a world-class musical talent; and Whoa Whoa Yeah, despite its (ironically?) clichéd title, simply serves to cement this assumption as a stone cold fact. Read more…
Opinion
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: If you write a song that would fit perfectly into a Tarantino soundtrack, I am going to like your song. Although Rouge’s new single Wilderness would fit a little better behind something by Robert Rodriguez, I’m still going to apply the same rule here and tell you that this track is downright awesome. Read more…
Opinion
One of London’s best-kept secrets, Hazlitt is an artist with a very unorthodox history. Following a decade-long stint as part of experi-punk outfit Tiger Force came Requiem For Little Bird – a complete 180-degree creative turn encompassing classical influences, lyrics in Latin, and a violin in place of her formerly treasured guitar. Since that gutsy debut Hazlitt has attracted a wide variety of followers, including eclectically inclined Strapping Young Lad frontman Devin Townsend, shared a stage with said legend, and thrown herself into a range of collaborative projects.
Battlecat – Hazlitt’s second solo album – has its own unconventional tale to tell. For the past year Battlecat has only been available to the people who paid for it to be made – an arrangement facilitated by crowdfunding platform Pledge Music, and necessitated by the destruction of Hazlitt’s home and studio in the 2011 London riots – but as of now it is up on Bandcamp to be enjoyed by the rest of the music-loving world. I’ve lived with this album for twelve months, and it still sounds as fresh and invigorating as it did on that hotly-anticipated first listen. Read more…