A Music Snob Reviews *sniff* Some Mainstream Stuff

Yes, I've become a music snob.

You'll find me more likely listening to musical groups such as The Decemberists, Stars and Sigur Ros or incredible solo artists such as Sufjan Stevens, Hawksley Workman and Regina Spektor.

Yeah, you probably haven't heard of any of them. They are all worth listening to.

I have left most of mainstream radio-friendly music in the distance, except for some of my favorite bands of course, have to keep getting their CD's.

I'm trying to think of a single Christian CD that I picked up this past year that I really, really enjoy. I can only think of one - The Fires of Life by Cool Hand Luke. Now that is an incredible CD. I guess you can count in Room Noises by Eisley as well, since they are a band made up of Christians.

But I still am gravitating more and more towards unknown musicians who are pushing the envelope musically and lyrically.

But this post is to review perhaps, at least in my opinion, the three biggest releases (at least in my favorite genres of music) of the summer. I am counting May as summer, so if you don't like it, too bad.

First off, in May Weezer released their newest CD, titled Make Believe. Now, a lot of people probably didn't buy this CD because they didn't like the first single that came out, called "Beverly Hills". I was having a conversation with Mike about this song at church, and we both agreed that it's because most people just didn't get the tongue-in-cheek-ness of the song. I thought the main riff was rather redundant and clunky, but it was also very catchy. I put Make Believe as the fourth best Weezer CD - I rank them this way:

1. The Blue Album
2. Pinkerton
3. Maladroit
4. Make Believe
5. The Green Album

The Blue Album is, to me, the quintessential Weezer CD because the perfect Weezer formula was there: perfect power pop tunes fused with quirkiness - Rivers Cuomo style. Pinkerton has grown on me and has ascended to the number two spot, but it will never be number one because it was too quirky and not catchy enough (although El Scorcho is possibly my favorite Weezer song of all time). Maladroit was a fine catchy rock CD that almost beats out Pinkerton because it subscribes heavily to the Blue Album formula. The problem with Maladroit is that the songs towards the end seem to be just thrown on there. Which is my beef with Make Believe as well. You would think that when Cuomo locks himself in a closet in a one-bedroom apartment with nothing but a sleeping bag, a guitar and a lantern, and comes out with 200 songs he wrote, that they could find 10 or 11 definite keepers. The Green Album is my least favorite because it succumbs too much to the power pop formula and, besides perhaps Hash Pipe and Island In The Sun, has no quirkiness whatsoever.

Anyway, back to Make Believe. Standout cuts on this CD include: Perfect Situation (my personal favorite on the CD), This Is Such A Pity, We Are All On Drugs, and Hold Me. I would say that if you are a Weezer fan, to definitely get it. But those of you who aren't, I would go with one of the first three CD's on my rank list first.


The second CD I'm reviewing here is actually two CD's - In Your Honor by Foo Fighters. This is my newest CD, so I'm still listening to it for the first times, but I have to say I really like both CDs. The first CD is an all-out rockafire explosion. The second CD is a stripped down acoustic CD that reminds me somewhat of Nirvana's Unplugged CD. I have to say that I like the first CD better, because I feel that Dave Grohl's voice is more condusive to growling, screaming and yelling than it is to softly weaving stories with his voice. But I like both discs in their different ways. Standout cuts on the first CD are: the first three songs (In Your Honor, No Way Back, Best Of You), and the last couple of songs. On the second CD, I like these the best: Friend of a Friend, Cold Day In The Sun, and Razor. I highly recommend this dual CD set, especially if you like fighting foo. It's better than the last CD (One by One, although I liked it better than most FF fans). There aren't any songs that surpass favorites like Aurora, Monkey Wrench, My Hero, Big Me, Times Like These or Learn To Fly, but there are some good ones.


Finally, the last (and best) CD that I'm reviewing this post is by this little known band called Coldplay. X&Y is the name of the CD, and I have to say that at first I was disappointed. You see, I absolutely love their last CD A Rush Of Blood To The Head - with its infusion of sad piano chords (including Dm on Politik, the saddest of chords according to Spinal Tap), guitar parts that stuck in your head, and smart lyrics. It's not that X&Y didn't sound good, it's just that Chris Martin decided to replace most of the piano bits with organ bits, and it took awhile for me to get used to that. But after listening to this CD a few times, I think it's a masterpiece. Even if the CD was mediocre, yet still had the songs Fix You and Til Kingdom Come (which supposedly was written for Johnny Cash to come and guest sing on it, but Cash passed away before being able to do so), I would consider it a good CD. However, all of the other songs are strong as well. Standout cuts are the two mentioned above, Square One, What If? and Talk. Coldplay has produced a rock masterpiece to rival U2's latest CD. I would strongly suggest getting this CD.


Now, as for stuff you've never heard of, trust me and get these CD's - Seven Swans and Illinois by Sufjan Stevens, Vehicles and Animals by Tourist, from a basement on a hill and Either/Or by Elliott Smith, Agaetis Byrjun and ( ) by Sigur Ros, Set Yourself On Fire by Stars, Blinking Lights and Other Revelations by Eels, and Picaresque by The Decemberists. Just don't ask me what these bands sound like, because to be honest, I couldn't tell you. They have their own style. And if you're looking for a good Christian CD, pick up The Fires Of Life by Cool Hand Luke (the CD kind of sounds like a mixture of Radiohead and Coldplay, with a little bit of emo thrown in).