SOUNDTRACK: DEFTONES-Koi No Yokan (2012).
This is the disc that got me back into the Deftones. My friend Cindy told me about an upcoming show (which just passed and which I could not attend, boo), and since I didn’t know that had a new album out, I ordered it and was really really impressed by it. Diamond Eyes was an amazing culmination of all of their previous successes and Koi No Yokan (which means “Premonition Of Love”) takes it one step further. They’re moving away somewhat from the really heavy sounds, and yet there is heaviness aplenty, both in Chino’s screams and in Stephen’s guitars. Indeed, the album opens with big loud guitars–letting you know that they can still rock.
Then “Swerve City” shifts to cool swirling verses. It’s not as extreme as earlier songs but it’s one of my favorites that they’ve done. The piercing guitar solo is great. “Romantic Drams” has some of their more complex guitar lines mixed with a vocal line. The bridge is bright and leads to a really catchy chorus. There’s some really tight stop-on-a-dime moments as well. “Leathers” pounds open with some bludgeoning chords and Chino’s screams (see, they haven’t gone soft), and then a great soaring bridge–a great hard/soft song, especially when the chorus kicks in at it’s almost inquisitive. “Poltergeist” opens with hand claps and then some heavy loud guitars and bass.
“Entomed” presents another beautiful shimmery guitar introduction. It’s one of their most delicate songs with the soaring chorus “shapes and colors are all I see.” I can’t believe this song wasn’t a hit. Why didn’t they release that as a single? “Graphic Nature” has some great angular guitars but it smooths out into a cool song with some great basslines in it (Sergio Vega shines on this disc and even helped write some of the songs). “Tempest” is one of those great songs where Chino sings at a different pace than the music–which I always like. There’s a big heavy section about 4 minutes in that gives the song an extra boost. “Gauze” has a heavy off-kilter guitar riff (with some really interesting keyboard blasts–Frank Delgado proving indispensable). There’s a dark bridge and splashes of really heavy guitar throughout.
“Rosemary” is nearly seven minutes long and is has multiple parts. It opens with some great echoey guitars. And then the heavier guitars kick in chugging along while Chino’s voice soars over it. By about five minutes the song gets really heavy and chromatic, rocking along until it suddenly stops and is replaced by a gentle guitar and keyboard passage. “Goon Squad” opens similarly to how “Rosemary” ends (in fact the end of “Rosemary” feels more like the beginning of “Goon Squad”) with quietly strummed guitar and swooshing keyboards. There’s some cool weird screams that are layered in the mix of sounds. Late in the song there’s a simple guitar solo that reminds me of Alex Lifeson. Complex drumming (Abe Cunningham is still amazing) opens a very jazzy flavored final song “What Happened to You?” Chino’s falsetto is in full effect and the song feels like a springboard to new styles of exploration on future records.
This album is really amazing. It may not be as diverse as White pony but it’s more cohesive and it really highlights what a staggering good band Deftones have become. I’m rather bummed that I missed that show.
[READ: March 13, 2013] Friends with Boys
Sarah had this book lying around for a while. I had meant to read it because it sounded cool (and she said it was very good), but I never did. Then she grabbed it again because it’s on a list of books she wants to read. It was sitting on the table and I realized that the author (whose name is very very hard to read on the cover) was Faith Erin Hicks who wrote Zombies Calling, a book I enjoyed very much. Now she’s on First Second Books (a favorite publisher of graphic novels) with this really great story.
I have one gripe I need to get out of the way. The title is terrible for the story. According to the drawings in the back of the book, it appears the original title was The Education of Maggie McKay which was an overdone idea at this point, but which actually makes more sense than Friends with Boys. The title made me think that the story was about a tomboy who gets older and realizes that she can’t hang out with boys the same way. That is certainly a part of the story, but the full story is far more complex–a girl who has been homeschooled all her life finally goes to high school, where she learns to make friends. Oh, and there’s a ghost following her around too. So you see, Friends with Boys, while an engaging title I think does it a disservice.
But that’s neither here nor there. Because the story is really excellent. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: RUSH-Hemispheres (1978).
Or maybe this is my favorite Rush album.
SOUNDTRACK: RUSH-A Farewell to Kings (1977).
Although I recently said that Caress of Steel is one of my favorite Rush albums, I’m really torn between a number of their albums from the 1970s. I’ve loved A Farewell to Kings since the time I got it: it’s over the top, and it showcases all of the band’s strengths.
SOUNDTRACK: RUSH-Caress of Steel (1975).
Despite the fact that this album is largely considered a failure, it’s one of my favorite Rush albums. There’s so much weirdness about it that I can see why it isn’t terribly popular but there’s so much goodness that it makes me a bit bummed that some glorious tracks are overlooked.
SOUNDTRACK: RUSH, obviously (1974-present).
I’ve loved Rush since seventh grade. They introduced me to prog rock, Canadian accents, Lakeside Park and Ayn Rand. They taught me how to play killer bass lines, wild guitar solos and to ponder the existence of washing machines on stage.
And finally, a new film coming out has Alex Lifeson (as well as about 100 other musicians) in a cameo (he plays a border guard). It’s called 
I Just Read About That... 