More Recent Art

I seem to only do sketchbooks when people make me...

I really wish I had the drive to keep a sketchbook on my own time, but I really only keep one when people make me. At least, I only make good sketches when people make me. What's funny is its not like I think I'm doing it for a grade because I turn my sketches in late 80% of the time. Meh, whatever, I guess its an anomaly. Here's some of my more recent sketches that I've done. Enjoy!

XXXX

No, I'm not reviewing an adult film... I wonder how that would go over though...

The album I will be reviewing today is You Say Party! We Say Die!'s new album "XXXX". We're going up Nort' for this band; they're canucks! They released this album in Canada last fall and just released it here in the US on February 9th, 2010. So far, its received some pretty good reviews: an 80 in both All Music Guide and NOW Magazine, and with an overall Metacritic score of 73.

This band falls all over themselves with concerns to music genres; they can be tossed into rock, indie, alternative, and pop. For me, personally, the pop and rock stand out for me most. When it comes to female vocalists backed by a rock ensemble, its hard not to fall into the idea that all female vocalist rock bands sound the same. Fortunately enough for You Say Party! We Say Die! they bring to mind other successful female bands, reaching as far back as the 1980s with The GO-GOs and more recently to The Donnas. "Glory" is very reminiscent of The GO-GOs hit "We Got the Beat". Almost immediately I thought of The GO-GOs while listening to that song. It has a very poppy, upbeat rhythm to it, that definitely brings out the pop side in YSP!WSD!. Their song "Cosmic Wanship Avengers" draws more from The Donnas with a bit of a more "we're strong, rebellious women" attitude. This song definitely draws up from their rock attitude with a consistently fast guitar line and drum beat, accompanied by the anthem like lyrics that definitely gives the idea that a mob of women are singing the song.

Throughout the album, the rock side of YSP!WSD! is definitely brought out more than the pop side. The song "Make XXXX" is a bit more poppy than some of the other songs, but still has a very strong rock quality. After that, they do start to bring out their alternative side a bit more, in fact, for the whole last half of their album entirely. Whereas the first half was more rock and pop, the last half is definitely more alternative and indie. "XXXX/ Loyalty" seems to be the lone standing "rock" song within the last half of the song. Now, do they do a good job of balancing this? Yes, for the most part, they do. They definitely lean more towards rock and alternative, shying away from the pop and indie side a bit, which is unfortunate because "Glory" is definitely one of my more liked songs on the album. Their last song "Heart of Gold" definitely shows why they can some times fall into the indie category. Its a very soft song and if you didn't know better, you'd would think its an entirely different band, falling somewhere along the lines of A Fine Frenzy or even Enya.

As far as the album as a whole goes, I like it. However, there are some parts I like more than others. Like I said before, this band is literally tripping all over itself in the genre department: they fall into rock, indie, pop, and alternative. This, however, isn't an advantage for them. They do the rock and the alternative really well, however, I think they're rock/pop is almost their strongest factor. If they're still trying to figure out what their sound is, its evident from the album that they're leaning towards rock/alternative. Personally, I think that's unfortunate because I do like their song "Glory" so much and it is so reminiscent of The GO-GOs. "Heart of Gold" although its a pretty song, really doesn't fit into the album; YSP! WSD! really should not venture into the indie realm, especially when the whole rest of the album is rock/alternative. Their pop aspect fits in because they manage to merge it into the rock/alternative, but "Heart of Gold" sticks out like a sore thumb and is a very disappointing end to the album.

Although they draw on many female vocalists, The Donnas and the GO-GOs among them, I think that You say Part! We Say Die! is still really trying to figure out where they fit into the picture. If this were their first album, I would understand more, but its their third. They may catch a break because it is, however, their first album to be released into the US. Also, if anyone decides to give them a listen, in the songs "There is XXXX (Within My Heart)" and "Make XXXX", try to see if you notice a sort of howling noise they make. Its supposed to be a bird, I think, but regardless, if anyone has listened to Shakira's "She Wolf", it definitely sounds like it was inspired by her "howl"; I just thought it was funny. In the end, You Say Party! We Say Die!, although they draw from several female vocally led bands, whether inadvertently or not, they struggle to find their own sound. If they don't find their own sound soon, they'll soon fall into that idea that all female vocal rock bands sound the same and will be quickly forgotten. Overall, I give the album a 74. Give it a listen here.

Coming up tomorrow: "Crazy Heart OST"

I had some free time, so...

I thought I'd put up a bit of my artwork. I figure I'll still want to review music, but I have about 20-30 minutes of spare time, so why not put up a bit of my art work? These few pictures I'm putting up are from my painting class as of last semester. Hopefully I'll be able to put up some new stuff relatively soon. Let me know what you think!

This one was a non-object in Acrylic. Its probably my favorite I did that semester.

This one was just a still life in Acrylic. It didn't turn out entirely the way I wanted it to, but I like it. This one is based off of the Ezra Pound poem"In a Station of the Metro."
In a Station of the Metro

THE apparition of these faces in the crowd;
Petals on a wet, black bough. This one is my final project. Its a 4'x6' piece of plywood with spray paint. I took a few details so people can see it better. I stenciled everything out with masking tape and a utility knife and then spray painted over it.

Dream Get Together

Here we go...

Just to make sure I was ready to sit down and write this review of sorts, I made sure to listen to that album a couple of times through beforehand; I'm on my third listen through now as we speak. Citay's third-full length album "Dream Get Together" is their first to really be nationally recognized. I haven't listened to their other two, but I'm strongly considering it after having listened to their newest one. Its a relatively new album, released January 26th, 2010. The band is based out of San Francisco and has a sort of rock/ indie feel. Its a relatively short album, only eight songs long, but still keeps you looping through the tracks well after it has finished. It starts off with a lighthearted song called "Careful with that Hat". This song is probably one of my favorites among the album. The transition between it and the next song (only 0:54 seconds long after the 6:59 long tune of "Careful with that Hat) is great and gives the listener a little break, hence the title "Return from Silence". Citay likes to focus mainly on their instrumentals which consists of a front acoustic and electric guitar, backed up by a running bass line and some simple drumming. The vocals come in occasionally, and when they do, they compliment the instrumentals really well, being either a happy or an ambient chant.

In the albums title song, "Dream Get Together", you hear a bouncy beat coupled with simple almost folkish vocals. The bouncy pace keeps up with "Secret Breakfast", but changes a bit with a bit of a more relaxed melody, easing the listener into the first down-paced song, "Mirror Kisses". "Mirror Kisses" is definitely in competition with "Careful with that Hat" for my favorite song on the album. It has a very slow, simple acoustic rhythm with a slow bass line behind. The vocals are in a slightly higher octave and have a very ambient, flowing quality to them. A female vocalist later comes in to compliment the lead vocalist, which only increases its ambiance, giving the song a very dreamy, loving quality. The song slowly leads into "Hunter", which still contains Citay's basics, acoustic, electric guitar, simple drums and simple bass. The instrumentals are coupled with the almost silent cooing of a few female vocalists. This song, coupled with "Mirror Kisses", really helps to slow down the upbeat pace of the first three songs. Outside of the female vocalists, who are almost entirely drowned out once the electric guitar begins its own signing, "Hunter" is almost entirely instrumentals. Citay does a good job of balancing vocals and instrumentals in this album. They have songs with vocals, but not so few that its awkward to hear them sing, wanting them to just shut up and play, but not so many that you wish they would convey their ability to play an instrument. They emphasize their vocalist's skills just as much as they do that of the guitarists, the bassist, and drummer.

"Fortunate Sun" brings the album back to a bit of lightheartedness, bringing back some simple soft vocals. A running bass line compliments the softness of the lyrics and the constant strumming of the acoustic really helps to accentuate it. This song, along with "Hunter" are the longest on the album, separated only by six seconds (7:02 vs. 7:08). Having the two longest songs in the album back to back may seem weird, but "Hunter" rounds out the more down-trodden" part of the album and "Fortunate Sun" really lifts the listener back up. Once again, Citay does a good balancing act, but this time, within one song. In "Fortunate Sun", the vocals, guitars, drums, and bass all get their fair share of the seven minutes. The song ends on a softer note, adding in a little bit of piano and some synthesizing to bring back that ambient quality that was heard in "Mirror Kisses".

The album finishes out with the 3:45 long "Tugboat". As far as I'm concerned, this song is a perfect one to end on. Its a perfect blend between the ambient and upbeat that has been seen throughout the album. The instrumentals and the vocals compliment each other incredibly well and both show their importance throughout the album. Overall, I was impressed with Citay's album and "Dream Get Together" may make me a fan. Overall, I would have to go a little bit above the Metacritic score of 76 and give Citay a solid 80. Although the album isn't very long, the songs, even though having the same elements to all of them, have a great variety and stager the tone throughout the album, without making it seem awkward. Artists who often try to merge upbeat with a bit of a slower pace tend to be unsure as to what order to put the songs in. Citay, however, eases the listener into every song and there are no awkward transitions. I would definitely recommend this album to anyone who likes rock/indie, but is looking for a new experiment.

Check it out and take a listen here.

EDIT: Just a special note, the link I provided up above to take a listen is to Amazon.com. I don't know how long they're doing this for, but as of now, "Careful with that Hat" is a FREE download! Take a listen, its totally FREE and LEGAL!

And so it begins...

Hugh

Huey, if you prefer

I've always wanted to start a blog, but I've never been quite sure what to start one about. Most people know me as a gamer or an artist, and admittedly I'm both. Even though I'm both of those things, I never thought it was really something to start a blog about. However, I'm also a HUGE music junkie. I never really considered myself one, I really just thought of myself as someone who just really enjoyed some good music. However, as of late, I've found myself listening anywhere from 2-5 brand new albums a week. I figured I could start writing about the music I listen to and then branch off from there. We'll see how it goes. Its 1:26 AM where I right now though, and unless my "Snow Day Dance" works, I'll have class tomorrow morning. Although, I can't just leave it at this, I have to commit to something, so, here goes: Tomorrow I will be writing a little review for one of the albums I've been listening to, we'll start off with Citay's "Dream Get Together". See you in the 'morrow.

Hugh

Huey, if you prefer