Showing posts with label Acoustic Rock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Acoustic Rock. Show all posts

Sunday 26 May 2019

Alice In Chains "Jar Of Flies" (1994)


It seems that between albums Alice In Chains liked to release acoustic EPs, the former being Sap. I had actually gone into this thinking it was a direction change full length, with a mind for curation. Much like the current trend of short, high curated projects, Jar Of Flies has seven songs, a couple with distortion at just thirty minutes. Its all killer no filler and the emotionally wrenching magic it possess leaves one feeling like this should be seen as no side offering but some of the bands best music.

Once again the band let their Americana and Blues Rock influences flourish, mustering humid flows of steady paced and gorgeous, glistening acoustic toned instrumentals for Staley to take stage. He does as he does, pulling on your heart strings with a lonely despair and sorrow, bleeding his quiet suffering from a camouflaged voice. His delivery roars with a vulnerable power that lures you in with its catchy flow yet all that awaits is pain and darkness. The "My privacy is raped" line on Nutshell is particularly haunting. Its a line stuck in my mind for weeks.

Its the beautiful dichotomy of stunning, serine music and searing raw pain weaving this dazzling darkness again. The musicianship is sublime, tones of lucid arrangements oozing with inspiration as ripe guitar leads flow and complimentary instrumentation like the timely use of strings seem to arrive on time effortlessly in these songs. Its not without weak points however, from one to the other their is diversity in flavor and its last two tracks drop off from the path set beforehand.

Swing On This feels like a leftover idea from Dirt hashed together with some swashbuckling acoustics. Before it the soft and delicate Don't Follow with its Country tang guitars and harmonica doesn't quite resonate in the beginning with Cantrell's voice. The first five however are emphatic, Rotten Apple making a mark as their longest track to date. The whole project feels so deserving of a full length, the group nail this style almost as well as their grooving distortion songs.

Favorite Tracks: Rotten Apple, Nutshell, Whale & Wasp
Rating: 7/10

Thursday 7 February 2019

Cane Hill "Kill The Sun" (2019)


The year is off to a fantastic start as we follow up on Puppy's The Goat with an alarmingly different and brilliant EP from the Deathcore and Nu Metal inspired Cane Hill. A change in direction? Or a one off? Either way there is no doubting the exuberant experience that awaits as the band bring out Americana tones and influences to fuse traditional song writing with modern electronic aesthetics for emotionally charged sound that stands mightily tall. Only a single song musters distortion guitar for a brief period, bar the enigmatic use of lead guitars. This total shift in style lands the rockers in an strange place, echoing the glory of the 90s Alternative music scene, while pacing forward with an engulfing dreamy overtone.

Serine acoustic guitars with a country tang find themselves plucking smooth licks accompanied by slow, electronic, reverb soaked percussive lines. Its indulgent, degrees of synthesized details wage in the distant spaces. Save Me gets a beautiful inclusion of pianos alongside the acoustic foray. It is singer Elijah Witt who illuminates the already gleaming instrumentals with a performance to roll back the years and give reminiscence to many great singers of that era. Acid Rain in particular has strong Layne Staley vibe, the lyrics too as they dive into drug reliance. It is no disservice, his singing is charming, inviting and resonating with emotions, a peak on the summit.

Another fond aspect of the music its its swaying into briefly esoteric and Ethereal vibes that its steady and measured drum loops build structure for. The use of compounding reverbs and subtle synths organically weave in between traditional components with a fulfilling chemistry. The last track gets particularly into these experiments with a lively drum performance leading the music into darkly, ambiguous electronic madness. It closes the record as the sound rolls and rumbles into a cacophony of crazy. Its intense and that intensity Metal heads have is found elsewhere in climatic moments that take the gentle tunes and raise the tension with drums and guitar leads chiming in to expand the depth.

I can't flaw a thing with this project other than wondering why this is just six tracks? As a full album I believe it could contend for accolades and a place in the hearts of music fans for years to come. It really is striking just how natural and matured this sound is for them. It might be a side project but could easily be a main focus for them. I'm aware of many bands making heavy music but not so many with an edge like this! I hope I get to see this live at some time, I imagine it will be magic!

Rating: 8/10

Monday 11 December 2017

William Patrick Corgan "Ogilala" (2017)


In absence of a new Smashing Pumpkins record we have a solo project by Billy Corgan that is essentially the same musical source stripped of percussion and distortion guitars. Ogilala is a folksy acoustic rock record with a lush touch of dazzle and spark. The bustle of acoustic chord strumming and Corgan's passionate voice is enriched by piano keys, strings, organs and even light synths akin to the ones heard on old Pumpkins records. Gorgeous production acoustics give it a earnest, inviting tone but after four good songs at the opening the album lulls into a spell of mediocrity once its best ideas are exhausted.

My biggest qualm with this record is most noticeably absent in my favorite track, "Aeronaut", a toned down vibe alike to The Verve's classic Bitter Sweet Symphony. The track drops the acoustic guitars for a string, voice and piano triplet that feels more comfortable with out the busying strumming of distant chords. The acoustic guitar is film and limp, its chords underwhelming and quiet, the sound of the pick flexing on the strings cast a shadow on the musical make up and empowers a rhythm that's one dimensional and not required.

With that In mind the failings of the record become sorely obvious, the strings or organs lay soft backings to these chord arrangements and the inclusion of pianos often just accent particular notes in the chord. The music revolves around an instrument that's just not working and despite Corgan's sincere singing the songs fall into the flat and narrow of simple compositions. With a lack of depth in that department, repeated listens yield little reward. Its unfortunate but you could possibly chalk this down to a distortion guitarists approach to acoustic not coming off well as many of these songs feel a step away from being Pumpkins songs with blaring guitars! An honest effort but it didn't work for my ears.

Favorite Track: Aeronaut
Rating: 4/10