thePULSEKopek’s White Collar Lies
By Jennifer Russo
I am incredibly picky about music. If I think it sucks, I’m not shy about ripping the CD apart with my opinion. I scrutinize every little detail. I’m not looking for flaws per se, but determining whether I think it’s really worth my time and if the artist really has talent or is just made to sound that way. My taste is pretty eclectic, so usually a CD gets put into the “Yeah I like it enough to listen to it” category. Every once in a great while though, I pop a new CD into my car’s player and it takes my breath away. The musicianship is there, the songs are catchy, and it has something unique about it that draws me in from the first track. And thusly is how my melodious love affair with Kopek began.
To put it frankly, this CD is fu**ing brilliant. Solid instrumentals are paired with well thought out lyrics and vocals that reach right out you like some 3D Sci-Fi film. Everything I love about the rawness of classic rock is made modern. These guys aren’t shy about expressing their opinions, either. They take a stand with their music against political bullsh*t, as their CD title implies. Their title track really calls the corrupted decision makers to the stand, asking, “With their lies disguised and dollars in their eyes, what the hell have you done to our world?” Each song has a mood that’s clearly defined. The tempos and sounds vary, but you KNOW what band is playing. If Kopek doesn’t stray from this signature sound that places them worlds apart from everyone else on the scene today, they will be more successful than they could ever imagine.
The Irish trio has won numerous battle of the bands contests, and they’ve been touring around the world since 2002. Recently signed to Dublin’s Religion Records, they’ve worked extremely hard on this 11 track CD. And the hard work will pay off. It’s rock, but it’s new. It’s different, but it grabs you and throws you back to music’s roots at the same time. Of Kopek, two things are certain. First, you will hear more and more about this band as they sing and play their way right into the hall of fame. Second, if you think you’re getting this CD from me, you’re gonna have to pry it from my cold, dead fingers.
Go on-line and listen to Kopek and then get your copy of White Collar Lies (because seriously, you’re not borrowing mine) when it debuts in the US on March 1. While you’re at it, find out more about this band that’s about to take over the airwaves and concert venues all over the globe at www.kopekofficial.com and www.facebook.com/kopek . And even better, go see them in person when they take over Club Royale in Boston on February 2 with Hinder, My Darkest Days, and Saving Abel.
Cassidy Haley’s The Fool
By Katey Khaos
When you hear the name Cassidy Haley, what comes to mind? A female vocalist set to acoustic guitars, maybe? You’d be way off ~ and to be fair, so was I. The Fool, Haley’s first full-length album, is self-described as “[Haley’s] story; the struggles, and the triumph and the magic and the pain.” And the album does indeed take the listener through a full range of emotions, both good and bad.
The musical journey begins with “The Fool, Part 1,” which opens with a classic piano mixed with the harsh sounds of rain pouring down and thunder roaring in the background. This is just the beginning of the spectrum of musical talent Haley is about to unleash in this album.
Haley has (thankfully) strayed away from creating an album that is monotonous by track three. Instead, each track has a unique feel and sound ~ something that’s rare to find in a lot of mainstream artists’ music.
As the album progresses, Haley drifts away from his “home” in the alternative genre to both electronica ~ in his hit song “Spindle” ~ and to country in “Whiskey in Churches.”
Haley is definitely not afraid to be adventurous when it comes to his music ~ which is great for anyone looking for something a little less conventional.
www.cassidyhaley.com
www.myspace.com/cassidyhaley
Neil Young’s Le Noise
By Bruce Sullivan
After more than 40 years making music, Neil Young, Rock-n-Roll Hall of Famer and musical survivor, delivers Le Noise, his most personal and intimate record yet.
The solo masterpiece takes Neil down some familiar roads, but arrives at some new destinations, thanks to the vision of producer Daniel Lanois. There are no backing musicians and no overdubs. It is Neil and his guitar, period. But if you’re thinking sparse or quiet, think again. Lanois is able to create a rich sound-field with what he calls “black dubs,” a process where he removes a piece of the original performance, alters it, and “puts it back surgically.”
Highlights include the Spanish flavored acoustic song “Love and War.” “They tried to tell them, and they tried to explain why Daddy won’t ever come home again.” “The Hitchhiker,” an autobiographical testimony about the path of drugs and dysfunction, and “Peaceful Valley Boulevard,” a lament of man’s destruction of mother earth.
Lanois declares, “It’s a hard thing to do to come up with a new sound at the back end of 50 years of rock and roll, but I think we did it.” Pick up Le Noise and you’ll agree.
Rufus Wainwright’s All Days Are Night, Songs for Lulu
By Shelly Aucoin
Who knew there was such a thing as operatic pop music? Not this writer. A sub-genre of pop music that is performed in operatic style, it is sometimes referred to as popera.
Rufus Wainwright’s structural complexity and rich melodies take a back seat to melancholy lyrics in his latest album, All Days Are Night, Songs for Lulu. As the title states, the songs are for Lulu, whom Wainwright describes as the dark, brooding, dangerous woman that lives within all of us.
As such, there is a great deal of soul searching in songs such as “Who are you New York?” and “Sad With What I Have Done,” in which he croons, “Sad with what I have done, Never met a more unimpressed, depressed lad.”
Wainwright, the son of folk singers Kate McGarrigle and Loudon Wainwright III, became interested in opera during his adolescent years, and the genre strongly influences his music. He began playing piano at age six and was nominated for his first award at the age of 14. (His achingly dejected lyrics are a reflection of his inner turmoil which has been explored in the unofficial biography There Will Be Rainbows: A Biography of Rufus Wainwright.) Other early inspirations include Al Jolson, Edith Piaf, and Nina Simone. Wainwright’s music has been compared with that of great composers including Cole Porter and George Gershwin. Pick up a copy of All Days Are Night, Songs for Lulu and judge for yourself.
Sister Sin’s True Sound of the Underground
By Jillian Locke
Attention everyone! It’s wrecking ball time! Ready yourself for an instant clock to the dome and pop in Sister Sin’s latest slice, True Sounds of the Underground. The Swedish power-rock squad plows forth with grit and gusto, representing the true sounds of the underground by resonating with their musical idols ~ most notably Motley Crue ~ who paved the way for the raucous, relentless, and downright riotous sounds of this sophomore offering.
The entire album delivers one heavy hitter after another, blasting with brute force and a growling, ragged female scowl that rounds out the testosterone-driven ride with songs including as “Outrage,” “Built To Last,” “Better Than Them,” and the album’s title track, “Sound Of The Underground.” The anthems speak of unity, of standing up in the face of opposition and licking the fiery flames of hell full throttle, with crushing, robust rhythms, armor-plated percussive assaults and gang vocals that deliver the voice of rebellion.
Vocalist Liv, bassist Benton, guitarist Jimmy and drummer Dave have taken lessons from some of the great decades in rock, built on their revelations, and created a powerhouse sound all their own . True Sounds of the Underground represents a nod to the trail blazers of the past and an unrelenting drive towards the future.
