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November 13, 2008
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2008-11-13 
Reviews - CD
Dragonforce
Ultra Beatdown
(Roadrunner)

B

Dragonforce

It's hard to listen to Dragonforce without picturing some pockmarked kid snorting a line of baby powder and then filming himself as he knocks out a truly elite game of Guitar Hero. No doubt this British sextet will sell a lot of discs to sausage partiers who can play Through the Fire and Flames on a plastic guitar, but long-time fans of bitchingly fast power metal will also dig the band's newest shredfest. Ultra Beatdown is cheesy and dorky, but it's also totally precise and completely technical. The best part? You don't even have to pass all the other levels to listen to it.
— Mike Warkentin
Jay Semko
International Superstar
(Busted Flat Records)

F

Jay Semko

Does anyone remember The Northern Pikes? Would you call them legendary, iconic or even memorable? I would be generous labeling them as a third-tier '80s rock band. Heck, they didn't even have big hair. Jay Semko was the lead singer and bassist. More recently, he is 'credited' with creating the music for the TV series Due South. Semko has just released a moronic country recording laced with worn clichés, trite ideas and pedestrian lyrics, supported by a limp country sound that is too pop to be alternative and too cheesy to be retro. If this is some global plan to wreck every musical genre in one's lifetime, Semko is well on his way.
— Chris Brown
John Mellencamp
Life Death Love and Freedom
(Hear Music)

B

John Mellencamp

It takes a couple of listens to truly hear this new album from America's last true rock troubadour, John Mellencamp, but it's worth the effort. Mellencamp has long since stopped trying to hit the charts as he used to regularly do with some ease all those years ago. Now he's satisfied singing about growing older, love between two people that really lasts and his views on being a conscious person in his time left on Earth. Without a hint of irony, he relays these tales with a journeyperson's deft touch and his band is right there with him, along with respected album producer T. Bone Burnett. Well worth a listen.
— Jeff Monk
Little Feat
Join the Band
(429 records)

B+

Little Feat

Little Feat has always produced funky, greasy rock that had swagger. But since the death of Lowell George things have not been the same for the Feat. Paul Barrere and Fred Tackett's guitars are immediately recognizable, and Richie Heyward's drumming is inspiring, but it never seems to be enough on albums of new material. Join the Band was a Jimmy Buffett idea to put the Feat together with other artists, and the result is some outstanding versions of classic Little Feat tunes featuring Dave Matthews, Vince Gill, Chris Robinson, Jimmy Buffett and Emmylou Harris. If you miss Dixie Chicken and Feats Don't Fail Me Now, pick up Join the Band .
— Chris Brown
Mobile
Tales From The City
(Universal Music)

B

Mobile

Can-rock band Mobile doesn't really stretch out too much on its sophomore album, Tales From The City, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. It doesn't reinvent the wheel with this one, but the album is a worthy follow-up to Tomorrow Starts Today. Tales... is swimming with indie rock mainstays (hooky synths, chugging bass lines and soaring choruses), but Mobile brings an honesty and energy to the music that keeps it from sounding stale and clichéd. Lead single The Killer is probably the catchiest mainstream song released by a Canadian band this year.
— Mike Sherby
Trapt
Only Through the Pain.
(Eleven Seven Music)

D

Trapt

Hmm. Let's take both Ts out of the band's name and add a C to the beginning. Now then, that's a far more descriptive name for this post-grunge outfit. And really - who the hell is still making post-grunge music? Bored, moderately talented men with absolutely no creativity or vision? Record labels desperate to squeeze every dollar out of the Nickelback machine? Producers who can nod off and pull a paint-by-numbers for big bucks? If you love-love-love Nickelback, by all means pick up this well-produced, melodic, slightly rocking disc. If you have taste, pick up anything else.
— Mike Warkentin
Soulfly
Conquer
(Roadrunner)

B-

Soulfly

Reserve judgment on this mofo until you get to Fall of the Sycophants. It's Track 7, and by that point you'll have endured a few duds as well as some truly ripping death metal. As such, Conquer isn't the most complete disc, but it is solid and does contain a few staggering songs. Warmageddon is another home run hit with a bat made of human bone, as is For Those About to Rot. Conquer is also a protest album, but Max Cavalera's simple, profanity-laced lyrics don't really do much for the anti-war movement. In fact, they're more likely to start a war - which is totally metal.
— Mike Warkentin
Mugison
Mugiboogie
(Ipecac)

A

Mugison

Listening to Mugison, you'd never guess that he's from Iceland. The singer/songwriter sounds like he'd be more at home on the Bayou. On Mugiboogie, he cranks it to 11 and pumps out songs about love, lust and sex. The music is raw, soaring into the red, with Mugison's voice distorting through the speakers and coming out like the illegitimate offspring of Iggy and The Stooges. Songs such as Jesus is a Good Name to Moan and the title track are pure shots of blues and sex, but with the pretty Sweetest Melody, he shows he knows how to tone it down, too. This album is everything that's right with rock 'n' roll.
— Mike Sherby
Mother Mother
O My Heart
(Last Gang Records)

A+

Mother Mother

Disc of the Week

If New Order had a one-night stand with Talking Heads, what crawled out nine months later would be Mother Mother. This Vancouver-based band has created an album full of smart rock music that makes you want to dance. O My Heart, Mother Mother's sophomore album, sees the band dropping the folk elements of its music and focusing on the rock. The lyrics are clever without ever getting cute, and the music is augmented with touches of violin, piano, and banjo. Topping everything off are the dueling lead vocals and melodies of Ryan and Molly Guldemond. O My Heart is an album that is rooted in the worlds of pop and rock, but manages to move beyond them and become something unique and special.
— Mike Sherby
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