thePULSEChickenfoot
By Jennifer Russo
I
f you took a listen to Chickenfoot’s first CD back in 2009, you may have wondered how it could possibly get any better. I mean really ~ you have Sammy Hagar’s gritty vocal tearing up a sweat-covered microphone, the flawless form of guitar lord Joe Satriani and the perfect pairing of bass and percussion in Michael Anthony and Chad Smith. It almost seems wrong to have so much established talent in one band, but yet there they are ~ the stuff of an aspiring musician’s sheet-changing dreams. So again I ask, how can anything improve upon an already gripping album? Easy. Re-release it to the masses as a limited edition double CD which features the old songs AND live tracks from their latest tour.
When I threw this album into my player, the sound that exploded into the space had a multi-dimensional and layered quality that got into every nook and cranny of my car and made me feel as though I were actually at a show. I love a CD that combines recorded and live music. It shows that these guys really are what they say they are, that on stage they are just as good, if not better, than their mastered versions. The album features the songs we loved on disc one, and then disc two gives us “Lighten Up” (Chicago),“ (Seattle),” “Last Temptation” (Seattle) and “Something Gone Wrong” (right here in Boston last May) from their Different Devil Tour. You know when four rock gods grace a stage you are in for an amazing show ~ now you can have a front row seat any time you want.
Get this limited edition dual-CD (bundled with a sweet t-shirt) now at Chickenfoot’s official website, www.chickenfoot.us, plus catch up on news, join their fanclub, and keep up to date on when their next tour hits the road.
Glamour of The Kill’s The Summoning
By Jason Savio
It’s always refreshing to listen to the debut album of a young and hungry band ~ and Glamour of The Kill’s The Summoning is no exception. Mixing classic metal sensibilities with a heavy modern kick, the UK band take a cue from their 80s metal influences and incorporate catchy melodic vocal harmonies with modern hardcore metal screams to create a sound all their own, careful to keep from sounding like a relic on Dee Snider’s “House Of Hair.” The music itself is full of soulful lead guitars threading through detailed song structures before giving way to brute mayhem. The Summoning is a melodic powerhouse.
GOTK try to balance both sides of their sound throughout the whole album ~ more than once in the same song ~ and as a result come off sounding more creative and interesting than most other metal bands today. “Supremacy” will likely be the band’s calling card; angry growls burn through the verses over double bass drums, a big chorus hits hard, and an impossibly catchy vocal breakdown comes out of nowhere. “Here, Behind These Walls” will give you goosebumps with its transcendent finish as Davey Richmond sings, “If heaven takes me back/I’ll be here until the end of time, forever,” making it that rare moment that groups often try to catch on tape but rarely ever do.
When Richmond sings on the album’s title track, “I chose my path and left it all/I live my life for rock and roll,” you get the feeling he made the right choice.
Check them out at www.facebook.com/glamourofthekill
The Treatment’s This Might Hurt
By Ben McNeil
A definite air of excitement surrounds The Treatment, a group of long-haired, black-leather-clad 19 and 20 year old rockers from the Cambridge area of the U.K. The group has opened for Aerosmith, KISS, and Motley Crüe, been interviewed by Classic Rock Magazine, and released This Might Hurt, an LP that f**king rocks.
The Treatment features 5 young men poised to ascend the ladder of rock superstardom: Matt Jones is lead vocalist, Ben Brookland and Tagore Grey are on guitar, Dhani Mansworth is on drums, and Swoggle takes care of the bass.
This Might Hurt, released stateside late this past summer, delivers a twelve-track marathon of G&R-like guitar riffs, masterfully written lyrics, and intensity comparable to AC/DC’s. They want to pay homage to their big-haired 80s guitar heroes, and they do it in spades; This Might Hurt serves as a time machine back to the days of no-frills rock with an attitude, sans the prima donna persona of Axl Rose and others.
“Shake the Mountain,” track 5, is a 3 minute, no-bullshit display of how rock should sound. Jones croons, “Now, don’t think you’ve got the better of me / Well, it’s all been a lie from the start, baby,” after a killer guitar opening that continues to run and gun.
“Winter Sun” continues to show off The Treatment’s lyrical prowess and crisp rock sound, as it details an escape from the excesses of often paper-thin fame to a higher ground: “Don’t want your money / Don’t need your fame / Give me some freedom / So I can ride again.”
The Treatment does not need validation; their no-nonsense approach to true rock n roll makes This Might Hurt a great album ~ and should ensure that the band’s star won’t be fading any time soon.
www.facebook.com/TheTreatmentOfficial
www.reverbnation.com/
Joe Young’s We Will Never Be the Same
By Jennifer Russo
A cute guy with an acoustic guitar comes bearing his soul through his lyrics, alone on the stage in a soliloquy of heartfelt song, is bound to cause some swooning and sighing ~ women who hang on every note, ready to toss their undergarments onto the stage as an offering to the gods of love…or at least lust. Though I will keep my panties right where they are, thank you very much, can I be lumped in with the crowd of girls who gasp for air at the intimacy of these songs? Absolutely…guilty as charged. There is just something about the simplicity of it all, the truth behind the words, that makes you wonder what this man has been through to be able to delve so deeply into himself, pull out his heart, and play it on all six strings.
Joe Young’s album is a touch of folk, a pinch of country, a taste of bluegrass and a dash of rock. I hear influences of Bob Dylan, David Gray, and even Chet Atkins. Though Young follows in the footsteps of those whom I believe are some of the greatest musicians of all time, I refuse to pigeonhole him into any specific genre of the art. My favorite song on the CD, “Closer,” is the type of song that makes me wish that it were written just for me ~ hopelessly romantic with a catchy chorus and masterful use of dynamics that give the track a personality all its own.
We Will Never Be the Same is full of warmth and an organic, down home element that everyone can relate to in some way…even if you decide to keep your panties on.
Check out Joe’s official website at www.joeyoungmusic.com and find out when he is playing a show near you.
