Category: Classic Album Review

Reviews of older and classic albums

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Classic Album Review

Classic Review: Black Messiah by D’Angelo and the Vanguard

The music of singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer D’angelo is like fine wine – it only gets better with time. With two Grammy wins and two classic albums – Brown Sugar and Voodoo – under his belt by the year 2001, he set the bar pretty high for himself. This, combined with the unease of his growing popularity as a sex symbol, led him to take an extended break from recording.

He would not return from this hiatus until 2014, this time backed by a dedicated band called the Vanguard. Black Messiah represents a slight departure from Brown Sugar and Voodoo’s R&B and Neo-soul sensibilities: while those elements are still present, D’angelo also incorporated elements of funk, rock, and psychedelia to create a genre-defying experience.

Black Messiah has the listener’s head bobbing from the start with “Ain’t That Easy”, one of my personal favorites. It builds a Questlove-inspired groove with slightly swung drums and a distorted guitar, leaving room for the transcendent harmonies that D’Angelo is so well known for. The chorus marks the entrance of another guitar track as well as a bass, and it is here that the song’s groove is fully realized.

I cannot talk about Black Messiah without praising “Really Love”, the track that won him a Grammy for Best R&B Song in 2016. It opens with a string section, slowly growing in volume and urgency, joined by a lone spanish guitar. The point at which the rest of the band comes in to create a laid-back, intimate groove is the point at which, as a listener, my soul leaves my body.

D’Angelo’s uncompromising approach to his craft resulted in a modern classic that is refreshingly unconcerned with the conventions of genre and style. It is both comfortably loose and surgically precise, playfully jovial and deadly serious, disarmingly intimate and profoundly universal. In short, Black Messiah is a masterpiece. I recommend this album to fans of Prince, Erykah Badu, and Lauryn Hill.

Favorite tracks: Ain’t That Easy, Sugah Daddy, Really Love, Till It’s Done (Tutu), Betray My Heart, The Door

– DJ Mango 

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Classic Album Review

Retro(ish) Review: Palo Alto Movie Score – Devonte Hynes

English singer-songwriter Devonte Hynes, also known as the artist behind Blood Orange, has risen in fame over the past decade. His earlier albums, “Coastal Grooves” and “Cupid Deluxe” are marked by their mixture of R&B and hazy electronica. From 2016 to 2019, he released three more albums (“Freetown Sound”, “Negro Swan” and “Angel’s Pulse”), all of which explore the Hynes’ thoughts on sexuality, race, and spiritual callings.

His score for “Palo Alto” (2014), written by Gia Coppola and James Franco, is a beautiful compilation that reflects the tone of the film perfectly. Based on Franco’s book, “Palo Alto” tells the story of a group of California teens navigating relationships and what it feels like to grow up too fast. Although the movie is no longer to my taste for a variety of reasons, I appreciate Hynes’ musical contributions. The soundtrack is almost entirely instrumental, made up of soft synths and light tones. Overall, it is a melancholy and sentimental score that is meant to echo the lives of the main characters and how they cope with raging hormones, peer pressure, and their own inner selves.

Here are some of my favorite highlights from it:

1. April’s Daydream
2. Palo Alto
3. Teddy & April
4. Soccer Field
5. Teddy Rides Home

Stay tuned in!

– DJ butter

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Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: Suicide Silence – The Cleansing (2008)

You already know I gotta highlight one of the best deathcore albums, in my opinion. This is one of the albums that got me into heavier music and it is still one of my favorite albums to this day. I already have a band of the week out on Suicide Silence, you know The Saw got y’all!!

The Cleansing is the debut studio album by Suicide Silence and it debut at No. 94 on the Billboard Top 200, selling 7,250 copies within the first week. This album became one of the best-selling debut albums in Century Media’s history. This album is noted for its unique engineering style, because it was tracked live in-studio as opposed to track-by-track. After the intro, the first song on the record is Unanswered, one of my favorite songs. This song has some solid riffs and Mitch Lucker’s trademark vocals make this song a very well-constructed opening track.

Each of the songs have a set of lyrics that stand on their own; some of the songs are about religion, others about money and greed, and some about the human race. This record is nothing but a beating, it’s like sensory overload. This album will beat you into the ground with no remorse and will leave nothing behind. Some critics have stated that this album is nothing new, but the early 2000 era was a prime era for the deathcore realm. So many bands from this sub-genre were upcoming bands, so of course they are going to be influenced by one another. Despite the criticism, this album opened the door for Suicide Silence, and helped them develop their skull crushing sound. This style of music is for an acquired taste, but if you love getting beat to death (by music, of course) then this album is definitely for you!


Favorite songs:

No Pity for a Coward

Unanswered

Girl of Glass

Bludgeoned to Death


Rating: 9/10!!

What are some of your favorite songs off of The Cleansing?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: As I Lay Dying – An Ocean Between Us (2007)

As I Lay Dying is one of those bands that are a staple piece within the metal community. Their sound when they first hit the scene was raw, fresh, heavy, and groovy. The type of era of metalcore that As I Lay Dying was in was my favorite type of metalcore. I loved the harmony mixed with intricate riffs, technical drumming, and to top it all off, with some very powerful screams and cleans. Their fourth studio album, An Ocean Between Us is a staple album for anyone who is a fan of the metalcore genre. The sound on this record is timeless, it sounds as if it was released today! This is an album that I never get tired of, when I listen to it I get a nostalgic feeling because it takes me back to when I first started listening to heavier metal and listening to this album with my brothers.

An Ocean Between Us is arguably the best release As I Lay Dying has ever come out with and it is argued that this is the record that defines that band. The album was released on August 21, 2007 through Metal Blade Records and it debut at No. 8 on the Billboard 200.

Nick Hipa commented on the album stating that everyone in the band pushed themselves and they were just experimenting and trying new things on this album. Overall, they were just jamming together and it ended up creating an amazing album. Tim Lambesis stated that they listened to their last album (Shadows Are Security) and they were getting tired of how the genre, as a whole, copies one another and As I Lay Dying wanted to create an album that was different and more diverse. I think they successfully made an album that sounds like no one else, and since it’s so different, it helps their sound stand out and become a recognizing force within metalcore. They didn’t just use the traditional metalcore sound, they had mixtures of deathcore, thrash, and death metal on this record, and I think the combinations of genres is what makes this record so timeless.

Almost all the songs have an epic feel to them, and it carries a message and a meaning within their songs. The cleans are not used to carry entire songs, but to compliment the songs and give it harmony along with the guitar riffs.

I love this album so much and I still know every word to every song, even after almost 13 years.

10/10!!!!!


Favorite songs:

Nothing Left, I Never Wanted, The Sound of Truth, An Ocean Between Us, and Within Destruction.

What are your favorite songs off of An Ocean Between Us?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: Upon A Burning Body – The World Is My Enemy Now (2014)

Upon A Burning Body (UABB) is one of my favorite bands of all time. They were one of the first heavier bands I first started listening to and I have been a fan ever since. Their album, The World Is My Enemy Now, is one of my favorite albums by them. The majority of my favorite UABB songs come from this album!

The World Is My Enemy Now is the third studio album from UABB, released in 2014. This album has received backlash and negative attention for a publicity stunt to promote the album. The stunt involved UABB’s lead vocalist, Danny Leal, and reports that he was missing. The band later posted the album cover which showed Leal tied up, revealing the reports of Leal being missing was a joke. Since the stunt, the band has not apologized. Regardless of the negative attention, this is a great album. There are so many smashing hits that come off of this record.

This album is aggressive, with lower-tuned guitars, a combination of the speed and the technicality of metalcore, and death metal style vocals while keeping a musical structure that derived from hardcore. There are some tracks on the album that have deeper and lower vocals that could be classified as more of a death metal style, even though it isn’t the traditional style of death metal vocals. The hooks and anthems that are on this album make it enjoyable to play over and over again; you won’t get tired of. The album is not that repetitive, so it never gets boring!

The opening track, Red Razor Wrists, kicks off the album on a high note, starting off with the screaming of violence and brutality that is yet to come from the album. Pledge Your Allegiance is very anathematic and will be sure to make you move around. The title track,The World Is My Enemy Now, has a more hardcore sound to it due to its riffs. There is a lot of variety on this album and there is a song for everyone to enjoy!


Favorite Songs:

Judgement

Bring The Rain

Scars

The World Is My Enemy Now

Fountain of Wishes

What are some of your favorite songs off of The World Is My Enemy Now?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: Six Feet Under – Haunted (1995)

Chris Barnes (my favorite Death Metal vocalist) was still in Cannibal Corpse when his side project, Six Feet Under, debuted their first album, Haunted (Metal Blade Records; 1995). While with Cannibal Corpse (the first four albums – Eaten Back to Life, ’90; Butchered at Birth, ’91; Tomb of the Mutilated, ’92; and The Bleeding, ’94), Barnes wrote some of the most brutal subject matter in all of Metal. With hardly an understandable syllable on the first three records, Barnes changed his style on The Bleeding, his last with Cannibal Corpse. This slower, gravelly, rumbling, gutteral style is what he carried over to the first few Six Feet Under records.

With Six Feet Under, and particularly on Haunted, Barnes dials back the more offensive subject matter, while retaining the beatings, blood and guts, and torture of classic Death Metal material. What a record this is, still! Barnes sets the standard for Death Metal vocalists, and his form and style are recognizable anywhere. As “Hammer Smashed Face” (from his days with Cannibal Corpse) is forever a classic, so “Remains of You” stands beside it as premier Chris Barnes performances. To be honest, Chris Barnes IS Six Feet Under!

With that said, Barnes has quite a lineup on Haunted. On guitar he has Allen West (Obituary), the bass is played by Terry Butler (Obituary; Death), and on the drums is Greg Gall. While this record is void of typical Death Metal blast beats, there is a more classical style time-keeping and smooth double bass under West’s patented groovy riffs, with Butler’s powerful bass tracks. Obviously, with West and Butler present, this record reminds me of Obituary (another of my favorites).

Rating: 10/10! …Just a perfect Death Metal record!! Classic!!!

Favorite Song: Remains of You

But every song, here – The Enemy Inside, Silent Violence, Lycanthropy; Still Alive; Beneath a Black Sky, Human Target, Suffering in Ecstasy, Tomorrow’s Victim, Torn to the Bone, and Haunted – is Awesome!

Stay Metal, 

THE SAW 

Categories
Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: Whitechapel – A New Era of Corruption (2010)

Okay, can we first just appreciate how badass this album cover is? I am getting Pinhead vibes!!! On June 8, 2010, Whitechapel released this beating and 10 years later, I’m still jamming out to it! There is something about Whitechapel; they have a sound that is timeless. The connection that the band members have with one another is insane and you can feel it when they play together. The grooves and breakdowns on this album cannot be beat, and Bozeman’s vocals??? Untouchable.

A New Era of Corruption is the third studio album by Whitechapel and it was released through Metal Blade Records. In the United States, it sold just under 10,700 copies in the first week AND placed at No. 43 on the Billboard 200 chart. Guitarist Alex Wade stated, “I think this record truly represents where we are as musicians at this point in our career.” When looking at Whitechapel’s discography, the albums do represent where the band is at in their lives and it is cool to see how much they have grown both as men but also as musicians.

The name of the album is derived from a passage of the lyrics in their song “Possession,” which appeared on their second album, This Is Exile. A New Era of Corruption is the first Whitechapel album that does not have a title track. The concepts and lyrical themes of A New Era of Corruption travel into new boundaries where previous album did not. With The Somatic Defilement being a narrative of Jack the Ripper and This Is Exile containing political and anti-religious themes, A New Era of Corruption is not a concept album. It focuses on negative themes: the devolution of society, the corruption of society, and the death of Phil Bozeman’s mother.

This album is awesome. I would definitely recommend it to anyone in search of heavier music. I am a Whitechapel fan so I may be a little bias, BUT this album is really, really good.

Favorite songs:

Single File Dehumanization

End of Flesh

Reprogrammed to hate

The Darkest Days of Man

Rating:

9/10

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Classic Album Review

Album of the Week: Deathless (2015) – Miss May I

Ahhh yes, one of my all-time favorite records by Miss May I. This band is the band that got me into heavier music when I first started listening to metal. My brothers and cousin used to play Miss May I all the time, and I thought that this band would be the perfect opening to get into heavier music, and I was right.

I remember when this album was released. I was leaving the beach with my dad and on our way back home, we played this album over and over again. To this day, I still go back and listen to this album. In my opinion, it is one of Miss May I’s most dynamic records. It is very technical in its overall sound. While listening to each song on this album, you can hear the different riffs being layered onto one another along with the drums. Deathless showcases that Miss May I is a force in the metal world to be reckoned with.

With this record, Miss May I went back to their traditional, old school sound that’s reminiscent of their 2010 single, “Relentless Chaos.” It appeared that on this album, the band returned to the roots and evolved their songwriting skills. Deathless is the most dynamic record the band has ever released, and the title track reflects the nature of the complexity put into the album. From thrash riffs to symptomatic “woahs,” Levi Benton (vocalist) and Ryan Neff (bassist and clean vocalist) play off one another to bring the best of both worlds.

There is no argument that Miss May I are talented musicians, however, the musicianship displayed on Deathless breaks new ground for Miss May I’s skill set. I would argue that Deathless is the best record Miss May I has released to date and will reach listeners far beyond the metalcore genre.

Favorite Songs:

Deathless

I.H.E.

Bastards Left Behind

Turn Back The Time

The Artificial

What is your favorite Miss May I record? What is your favorite song off of Deathless?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Classic Album Review

Classic Album Review: Snoop Dogg – Doggystyle

On the heels of the breakthrough release of The Chronic (Death Row Records) by Dr. Dre (1992), Doggystyle (Death Row Records) by Snoop Doggy Dogg was released on November 23, 1993. Having contributed, to a large extent, on The Chronic, you know that Snoop had his own debut to drop! That “lazy drawl" – G-funk style of rap – reigns supreme, again, here; but, on a whole new level. If you’ve never heard Snoop Dogg, and his swaggering vocals, you are missing out!

Snoop explains that the hook to this record is its realism, which is based on his own personal experience. Dre would come up with kick ass beats, and Snoop would sit right there and write lyrics on the spot. The album is littered with skits, because the distributors were demanding a finished product (before it was finished). Dre finished the songs they had, inserted the skits (within 48 hours), and sent it off. Desiring not to stretch G-funk any further yet, Snoop and Dre decided to produce layers in the style beyond that of The Chronic. Doggystyle is less about heavy, slow beats and more about high-tempo, lean tracks.

The album artwork (obviously) refers to the sex position, and is also a play on Snoop’s name. Technically, the cover illustrates some lyrical quotes from George Clinton’s 1982 single, Atomic Dog. But the artwork also expresses the culture of the Gangsta ethos – self-indulgence; drugs, cars, sex, and money.

Doggystyle debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, selling 800,000 copies in the U.S. in its first week, making it the fastest selling hip-hop album of all time. “Who Am I (What’s My Name)?” was the first single released from the album, and it peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, and reached #1 on the Hot Rap Singles. It was certified Platinum in mid 1994. “Gin and Juice" was released as a single on January 15, 1994, reaching #8 and #1 like the previous single.

This record is pivotal for the hip-hop community, a classic “must have" album that Mark’s the evolution of the genre to a more melodious, synthesized, funk beat. Its controversial subject matter and lyrical content only help increase its appeal. Like The Chronic, Doggystyle is dangerous. And how wonderful that danger is!

Favorite Songs: Gin and Juice ; Lodi Dodi ; Murder Was the Case

Rating: 10/10!! Just a “must have" record!

What are some of your favorite songs off of Doggystyle?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

Categories
Classic Album Review

Classic Album Review: Dr. Dre – The Chronic

The breakout solo debut for Dr. Dre, The Chronic, was (and still is) a timeless banger in its own right! This record revolutionized west coast hip-hop, setting the standard for everything in the genre that followed. Not only does this album showcase the groundbreaking production talent of Dre, not to mention his powerful lyrical style and delivery, but it also introduces us to some upcoming talent – namely, Warren G, Nate Dog, and (a certain) Snoop Doggy Dogg.

Fresh off his split with N.W.A., Dr. Dre released The Chronic on his own Death Row Records on December 15, 1992. The album cover pays tribute to Zig Zag rolling papers and the title is slang for high grade cannabis. On this record, Dre patented a new style of hip-hop, a sub-genre of sorts, called G-Funk. This style incorporates “fat, blunted beats" with old school soul/funkadelic grooves and rolling bass lines with single line synthesizers. But the key to this new style was the lyrical delivery. The form would later be called a “lazy drawl;” a laid-back delivery – controlled and measured – but containing ferocious, offensive, aggressive content. The new combination launched Dre and Death Row (and every single guest performer on the record) to the top of the hip-hop field.

My dad (the O.G. Metalhead) remembers this record’s release. He says, “We’d go to [metal] head parties where it’s usually the newest Metal album being played, and hear this new thing called ‘Gangsta’. I’m not exaggerating when I say, almost every single Metal Head was into this new stuff! It related well to the Metal community, with its swaggering style and crushing lyrics. The delivery was strange at first, but the words were all-too familiar.” There are many Metal shows I go to today where, when music is played between bands, Dr. Dre or Snoop Dogg or Coolio, etc. is played over the speakers.

The Chronic peaked at number three on the Billboard Top 200. It was certified triple platinum by RIAA, selling over three million copies. The records three singles reached the Top Ten on the Top Ten Billboard singles. “Nuthin’ But a G Thang" reached #2 on Billboard Hot 100, and #1 on both Hot Rap Si goes and Hot R&B Singles charts. The album ranks 138th on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of all Time. In 2020, The Chronic was selected by The Library of Congress to be placed into the National Recording Registry because of its “cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance.”

Favorite songs: F*ck Wit Dre Day (And Everybody’s Celebratin’), Nuthin’ But a ‘G’ Thang, Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat

Rating: 10/10!! One of the best records ever!

What are some of your favorite songs off of The Chronic?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW