Thursday, August 31, 2006

James and Lars Reflect on Master of Puppets

Metallica really kills me sometimes. Case in point:

"If we had known 20 years ago that we would be playing the songs 20 years from then, maybe we wouldn't have made the stuff so complicated."

They claim they're joking, but I'm not so sure. And on the Kerrang! tribute disc:

"But also, hearing those bands do our songs, it put a little fire in our ass to get back into it and really not be so lazy about playing. Not that we're lazy, but you kind of take for granted that, you know, we've been doing this for 26 years. We're good at this."

It's taken them this long to realize that they've been lazy (they know it's true) in their writing compared to their older days?

A Matter of Life and Death - Reviewed

A Matter of Life and DeathIron Maiden's A Matter of Life and Death finally hits stores in a few days, and the H-Man is here to give you a preview. Prepare for a wildly different review from (undoubtedly) all others you will encounter.

First, let me speak about the disc's mastering and production. As previously reported, A Matter of Life and Death was not mastered. Considering the lousy mastering job that was done on Dance of Death, this was undoubtedly the best decision the band could make. This is a much better sounding record than Dance of Death. The drums actually have snap to them and I can finally hear McBrain's ride cymbal again. No instruments are ever buried in the mix when all of them get going. The overall volume of the record is much lower than any record being produced these days, thus, I doubt there's any clipping going on. I can safely keep raising the volume and my ears don't get tired because of any harsh noises that shouldn't be in the mix.

The production, however, is pretty bland. It's great that we have dynamics back because they didn't go crazy on compression. But there's no dynamics to the music. What we get on 8 of 10 songs is 1 minute of slow, get loud for 6-8 minutes, end with 1 minute of quiet slow. When it's loud and fast (and it's almost never fast. Mid-tempo maybe), it just stays that way - pegged. Boring, and producer Kevin Shirley should've taken control and pushed them to think more about this.

I'm also rather disappointed with the guitar tone. I'm personally a fan of the chorused guitars that are found on Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, but I suppose it was too much to ask for their return (especially since I figure some fans find them way too "space-y"). I would like some crunch, however, and that seems to be lacking in the more nasal tone we have here.

The rhythm riff at about 3:10 in "These Colours Don't Run," for example, should really be jumping out at me, but it comes off as bland with no "oomph" (they're a bit overshadowed by the drums). The same is true when you compare the similar sounding riffs present in "Lord of Light" (at 6:15) with The Number of the Beast's "Hallowed Be Thy Name" (at 4:30). Never mind the fact that not only is "Hallowed" more sophisticated (due to all the single note runs which accent the ending of every power chord riff), but sound-wise it also has more power behind it. Quite simply, it rocks, whereas the one in "Light" does not (would it be so wrong for Maiden to tell Shirley, "Do you know how The Number of the Beast and Powerslave sound? Great: make this disc sound like those albums.").

But what about the songs themselves? Well, as time goes on, they bore me. Only "These Colours Don't Run," "Brighter Than a Thousand Suns," and "The Legacy" (which is truly unique) are cool enough that I desire to listen to them again. A lot of my disappointment is due to the the (already mentioned) 1 minute of slow, 6-8 minutes of mid-tempo, 1 minute of slow, done.

And where's the classic Iron Maiden triumph? All of these songs are so melancholy. What happened to the majesty of "Alexander the Great"? The fierce gallop of "Wasted Years?" The glory of the ending "Whoah-oh, oh-oh!" chorus of "The Wicker Man"? Bruce's singing just six years ago (on Brave New World) was better, their guitar tone has sounded smoother, and their riffs have been much cooler. They say this record only took a few months to make and it shows. There's no polish to make these songs explode off the page. There is nothing here that even comes close to the fire of the beginning of "Rime of the Ancient Mariner", which begins with such a fury that it wakes you up no matter what you're doing.

I don't expect them to be able to pull off another The Number of the Beast or Powerslave, but give me something close to Brave New World (which really slays this new one). Granted there are a few blah songs after the halfway mark on that disc, but the other songs just grab me in a way that the songs on Life and Death do not. And it's not because it's "progressive". Hell, I love progressive: give me Rush's Hemispheres any day (and just wait for the power of Mastodon's Blood Mountain). The other reviews you'll read of this disc will talk about how it's a return to Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, but they're insane if they think these new songs are anywhere on the same level as Seventh's. These tunes are long-winded and sport an unusual juxtapositioning of riffs that do not fit well together.

It's too bad, because I really liked this album the first time or two I listened to it, but then I just got tired and saw it for what it was: a three to four month experiment in self-indulgence where Shirley was too meek to tell them it needed tightening up.

But it's still Maiden, and the sound is a big step up from Dance of Death, so I give it three out of five stars.

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Life and Death Album Cover

If you're a fan of Iron Maiden, you know that the majority of their album covers (featuring their undead mascot, "Eddie") were painted by artist Derek Riggs. His covers have long been considered by fans an important ingredient and essential component of the band's legacy. Everyone has their favorites (mine are Somewhere In Time and Live After Death) , but ever since the band and Riggs had a falling out over the proposed cover art for "The Wicker Man," he hasn't done any work for the band since.

So what have they done lately? Generally, pretty weak covers. The painting for Brave New World is decent because the "cloudy" Eddie was lifted from the rejected "Wicker Man" art. The cover for Dance of Death, however, is absolutely terrible. The image of Eddie himself is fine, but all the costumed dancers look like they were created by a teenager using Microsoft Paint. An aside: I personally believe the dancers, and the album title itself, were inspired by an episode of the TV show The Prisoner entitled "Dance of the Dead," wherein protagonist Number 6 is at one point taunted by costumed partygoers that bear remarkable resemblance to the characters on the Dance of Death cover (and considering Maiden's love for The Prisoner, this is not a farfetched idea).

Which leads us to their newest cover, A Matter of Life and Death. This art is superior to Dance of Death, but I can't help but be disappointed with two things. First, Eddie is not dominant in the piece, and second, the style is very comic book flavored.

A trip to the artist's blog was revealing. The man in question, Timothy Bradstreet, has in fact done a lot of bona fide comic book art. Plus, it seems that he actually had to sumbit the Life and Death work to Maiden multiple times before they approved, and Eddie himself changed three times. It's clear to me that if Bradstreet had his way, this wouldn't have happened, but the client gets what the client wants.

And what are the chances of Riggs coming back to the fold? Next to zero, if we believe this email from Riggs himself:

"Hi it's Derek Riggs no I didn't die or something. I am alive and well I got a bit sick of all the bullshit maiden were putting out so I moved on. I did the occasional cover for them a few years ago, then I stopped completely. they came to me recently about some more covers but the negotiations came to nothing. Maiden decided that they wanted to do a comic book style cover. I heard from a sorce inside maiden that they think the new digital covers (including the "dance of death" cover) are "really great" (this is an actual quote) it seems that they can't tell good artwork from bad. and people wonder why I don't feel very appreciated working at maiden you could give that person my website address, it seems he needs to see some good artwork. have fun all the best D"

So there you have it. Maiden is maddening when it comes to approving art, and this time around they were specifically looking to display a comic book style piece on the shelves. I guess I can understand their desire to do something different, but nevertheless, I can't help but think that it's a gargantuan error in judgement.

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

The Wolf Is Loose

Mastodon's video for their new album's opener, "The Wolf Is Loose," can be found here. A mover and a groover.

Monday, August 28, 2006

Guitar Hero Musings

Guitar HeroAh, Guitar Hero. The game that allows anyone to pick up an axe and play (sort of). Ever since its release last year I've been somewhat intrigued as to what this Dance Dance Revolution-esque game is about. But being a guitar player, I've always felt superior enough to not bother. Why mimic guitar playing when I can just play the real thing?

Comes with all you see here!For those not in the know, Guitar Hero is a videogame for the Playstation 2 in which you play along with various rock songs using a guitar shaped controller. It has five "frets" on the neck which you press down in sync with guitar notes, while you "strum strings" with the other hand by pressing on a lever. Songs range from "Godzilla" by Blue Oyster Cult, to "Thunder Kiss '65" by White Zombie, to "Cowboys From Hell" by Pantera.

My interest peaked last week when I learned that songs like "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath and "John the Fisherman" by Primus were going to be featured on Guitar Hero II (never mind Anthrax, Rush, and Butthole Surfers). So I read the instruction book, watched Google videos, and even saw some kids play it at Best Buy.

Screenie!Conclusion? None quite yet. At first the kids playing it at Best Buy left me baffled. They were playing at easy level, and it almost seemed as if the notes the game was telling them to play didn't sync with the real guitar riffs. But as I watched videos on-line which showcased the game at harder skill levels, that seemed to happen less often. The developers also seemed to work hard at making sure that higher notes were played "higher" on the neck, and that power chords were played by spacing two frets apart.

I couldn't help but think as I watched some of it, however, that it was actually MORE difficult to play certain songs on Guitar Hero because you didn't have but one string. So there were times where I could easily see myself fretting in the same place and moving to a different string with a real guitar, whereas the game made you go all over the place with the "fret buttons".

I really need to try this thing out and see how I'd do with some practice. Anyone got a PS2 with some GH and want a new friend?

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Bob Dylan On the Loudness War

He may not be able to articulate exactly what the problem is, but we know the issue. Poor guy: he's ticked off that his own new album sounds like ass.

Monday, August 21, 2006

Paris Hilton Is Sensitive About Her Music

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Smashing Pumpkins Recording New Album

Smashing PumpkinsSmashing Pumpkins are now officially back in the studio recording their follow-up to their last release, MACHINA/The Machines of God. The most exciting bit to come from this is that it looks like they will be collaborating with Eric Avery, the only member of Jane's Addiction who refused to be part of any of the JA "relapse" projects which followed their post-Ritual breakup.

Here's hoping D'Arcy and Iha are still in the band, because it really won't be the same without them (case in point: The Panic Channel).

First Life and Death Review In; Mastodon Speaks of Leaked Blood Mountain

Yeah, I know I need to start talking about something other than Maiden, Slayer, and Mastodon. But in the meantime, enjoy this read.

I also saw a review of Mastodon's new disc, but it was so fan-boyish, that it's not worth posting. You can find a (poorly ripped and encoded) copy of it on-line if you look hard enough, then judge for yourself.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Slayer's Top 10 Billboard Debut

Monday, August 14, 2006

Yet Another New Metallica Song

Another new Metallica song can be found here. Very low quality. The lead breaks and drum fills are very Kill 'Em All-y, which is cool. The rest is hard to judge because of the crummy bootleg nature of it, but it seems better than the first new song they've been playing.

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Shirley Comments On Non-Mastering of New Maiden

"Now what you'll hear on the Maiden album is the way it sounded in the studio, and while it may not be as loud as some other CDs, who gives a fuck! Turn the volume up then."

What a "revolutionary" idea. Well, I suppose I should just be happy that Maiden woke up and decided to do this. It's about time a major band stepped to the forefront and decided to fight back against the horrible mastering that's been done on most CDs as of late. More power to them.

More here.

Friday, August 11, 2006

Yet More Streaming Maiden

This time it's Brighter Than a Thousand Suns, a nine minute opus. You have to give them credit for trying their hardest to convince fans that this album is worth buying. And let me tell you, the riffage at the 4 minute mark is making me believe it. Yay - we can finally hear Harris and his gallop-y stomp again!

Thursday, August 10, 2006

New Maiden Song

Listen to "Different World" here.

Friday, August 04, 2006

Random Metal Mayhem

-Iron Maiden is planning on releasing a deluxe format of their newest CD. This version will contain a DVD with a documentary, videos, and photos.

-Slayer's impending new release, Christ Illusion, is now completely available in streaming format from their Myspace page. Recline on some cool Slayer bus benches as you listen!

-Glenn Danzig plans on releasing a two disc set of unreleased songs in November entitled Lost Tracks of Danzig.

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

New Maiden Art; Preorder new CD

Maiden!The artwork for the cover of Iron Maiden's new single, "The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg," can be found here. And if you're interested in preordering the new album, A Matter of Life and Death, for a mere $9.99 ($11.99 for version w/DVD), you can do so here. Track list (average of 7 minutes per song; eep):
  1. Different World - Smith/Harris - 4.17
  2. These Colours Don't Run - Smith/Harris/Dickinson - 6.52
  3. Brighter Than a Thousand Suns - Smith/Harris/Dickinson - 8.44
  4. The Pilgrim - Gers/Harris - 5.07
  5. The Longest Day - Smith/Harris/Dickinson - 7.48
  6. Out Of the Shadows - Dickinson/Harris 5.36
  7. The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg - Murray/Harris - 7.21
  8. For The Greater Good of God - Harris - 9.24
  9. Lord Of Light - Smith/Harris/Dickinson - 7.23
  10. The Legacy - Gers/Harris - 9.20

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

New Mastodon Song Available

"Capillarian Crest" is now available for listening at Mastodon's Myspace page. The guitar windy-ness at the beginning is very much inspired by King Crimson. It makes me tired just imagining their fingers playing it. And once again we have something that leans towards singing more than shouting and yelling.