rock musika

Genre:
Rock
Styles:
Alternative Pop/Rock
Alternative Metal
Industial
Industrial Metal

Album Review:

Hard to believe that at one point Trent Reznor was seen as the quintessential perfectionist, squirreled away in a decaying Victorian house, sweating over each individual track he created, spending upwards of six years between albums. He's shattered that image in the new millennium, especially after his 2007 divorce from Interscope, a parting of the ways that left him free to release albums when and how he chose. Reznor immediately embraced that opportunity, releasing the instrumental double-album Ghosts I-IV without announcement in March 2008, then quickly following it two months later with The Slip, a full-fledged vocal album. Such rapid succession served notice that Reznor intended to take full advantage of his freedom, and its availability as a free lossless download prior to its physical release couldn't help but be seen as a veiled stab at Radiohead's variable pricing for In Rainbows, a move Trent called a "marketing gimmick," a charge that can't quite be leveled against Nine Inch Nails as Reznor encouraged fans to post The Slip elsewhere, to give it away to friends, to remix their tracks if they wished. Unlike Ghosts, which seemed designed with remixing and sampling in mind, The Slip doesn't cry out for recontextualization in order to make sense: it's riveting on its own terms.

Mercilessly tight and efficient where Year Zero was majestic and sprawling, The Slip is the most user-friendly Nine Inch Nails album ever. At only ten tracks, there is no fat on its bones. It does not offer a slow build, it leaps into action with the lacerating "1,000,000," maintaining a blistering intensity for half the record before eventually winding its way to softer moments for the album's conclusion. There is no learning curve to The Slip, it does not require effort to decode a narrative, it does not slowly unfold its own internal logic, it comes on with a tightly controlled force that's present even in the quietest moments, as they pulsate with coiled tension. The Slip is so easy to digest because Trent Reznor is in consolidation mode, relying on his strengths instead of punishingly pushing himself forward. Such obsession with progress weighed down The Fragile and With Teeth, turning them into intricate puzzle boxes for devotees, but Reznor began to break free with the quite magnificent Year Zero, whose dense narrative likely alienated many fans. Here on The Slip, he retains the sense of urgency that flowed through Year Zero, but as it's a lean album, it's easier to appreciate his mastery of darkness and light or his ability to construct throbbing melodic hooks out of noise. Here, he's no longer a stylized, self-conscious innovator, he's a working musician enraptured by making music, and he's so invigorated by creation it's hard not to get sucked in as well.

Tracklist:
01. 999,999
02. 1,000,000
03. Letting You
04. Discipline
05. Echoplex
06. Head Down
07. Lights in the Sky
08. Corona Radiata
09. The Four of Us Are Dying
10. Demon Seed

DOWNLOAD : nin - the_slip

Genre:
Rock
Styles:
Alternative Pop/Rock
Rap-Rock
Rap-Metal
Funk-Metal

Album Review:

311 are the grizzled graybeards of alternative music. For nearly ten years their funkified, left-field take on the rap-metal zeitgeist has been soundtracking dormitory keg parties -- that's a thousand lifetimes for some of these fly-by-night alt combos. In that stretch they've had their ups (1994's Grassroots) and their relative downs (the clunky Transistor), but they've always stayed creative, quietly building a reputation for consistency. In keeping with the band's creational verve and veteran status, Evolver at first seems to be their Statement Album, complete with a hilariously overwrought cover painting, and that snarky referential title. But it's a bit misleading because musically, the album turns out to be built from the usual 311 components. It's not their best work, but fans will enjoy it and there's little of the filler that's plagued the past few offerings. "Creatures [For a While]" is Evolver's "Come Original," its inescapable riff wrapped around stinging snare hits and S.A.'s endearing/annoying drop-ins. "Crack the Code" and "Sometimes Jacks Rule the Realm" account for the stylistic departure portion of the album, the former drifting lightly between dubby electronica and an S.A.-sung rasta rock lilt, the latter weaving acoustic guitar and echo around co-vocalist Nick Hexum's earnest lyricisms. Feel free to get a refill during these songs. However, with "Same Mistake Twice," an explosive standout, Evolver hits its best stretch, followed by "Still Dreaming" and "Give Me a Call." The tracks embody each tenet of 311's sound, from synth-based atmospherics through thick guitar chording, unique vocal phrasing, and bleary eyed reggae interpretation. Though it looks like a statement album, the prog masterpiece that the fizzling Transistor never was, Evolver is actually a rephrasing of what 311's always been saying. In a word, it's reliable. And isn't that what veterans are for?

Tracklist:
01. Creatures (For a While)
02. Reconsider Everything
03. Crack the Code
04. Same Mistake Twice
05. Beyond the Gray Sky
06. Seems Uncertain
07. Still Dreaming
08. Give Me a Call
09. Don't Dwell
10. Other Side of Things
11. Sometimes Jacks Rule the Realm

DOWNLOAD : 311 - evolver. rar
PASSWORD : makemebad

Genre:
Rock
Styles:
Alternative Pop/Rock
Indie Pop
Brit Pop
Punk-Pop

Tracklist:
01. I Started a Fire
02. You Can't Have It All
03. Blacklisted
04. Polaris
05. Palace of Excess
06. End of the World
07. Ritual
08. Shadows
09. Princess Six
10. Dark and Stormy
11. Shattered Glass
12. Twilight of the Innocents

DOWNLOAD : ash - twilight_of_the_innocents. rar
PASSWORD : makemebad

Genre:
Rock
Styles:
Alternative Pop/Rock
Adult Alternative Pop/Rock
Alternative Singer/Songwriter

Album Review:

Fiona Apple demonstrates considerable talent on her debut album, Tidal, but it is unformed, unfocused talent. Her voice is surprisingly rich and supple for a teenager, and her jazzy, sophisticated piano playing also belies her age. Given the right material, such talents could have flourished, but she has concentrated on her own compositions, which are nowhere near as impressive as her musicianship. Most of Tidal is comprised of confessional singer/songwriter material, and while they strive to say something deep and important, much of the lyrics settle for clichés. Apple does have a handful of impressive songs on Tidal, like the haunting "Shadowboxer" and "Sullen Girl," but the gap between her performing talents and songwriting skills is too large to make the album anything more than a promising, and very intriguing, debut.

Tracklist:
01. Sleep to Dream
02. Sullen Girl
03. Shadowboxer
04. Criminal
05. Slow Like Honey
06 The First Taste
07. Never Is a Promise
08. The Child Is Gone
09. Pale September
10. Carrion

DOWNLOAD : fiona_apple - tidal. rar
PASSWORD : makemebad