Lacey Sturm - Life Screams

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Ex-Flyleaf lead vocalist Lacey Sturm has delivered her debut solo record after staying generally quiet from the music world for a few years. Along with big names such as her husband, guitarist Josh Sturm and John Hodges, formerly of Evanescence being boasted on the album’s credits, Life Screams is a huge rock record and shows how Sturm has carved her own niche in the music industry, and, more personally, how she has lived through life’s hardships.

What makes the album so powerful to the listener is the subject matter of each song. ‘Vanity’ and ‘Rot’ are perhaps the most intense moments on the album. ‘Vanity’ is a spoken word interlude, and argument between a woman and man in an abusive relationship, each speaking poetically of their view of love. A bit cliché, but the words hold a lot of weight. ‘Rot’ is the response to the former, and you can just feel the seething anger and rebellious release against the prospect of an abusive relationship. With Sturm relentlessly proclaiming, “The most disgusting lies are dressed in beauty that'll rot / Oh my God, you've won the coldest battle we've fought / Deliverance is mine, from more of this beauty that'll rot,” it’s pretty evident this song isn’t to be taken lightly. Her voice has such a powerful demeanor to it, it’s hard to not feel anger and guilt listening to it.

‘You’re Not Alone’ is another powerful moment on the album, beginning with a hospital patient flatlining and then going into a motivational piece of art against suicide and depression. Backed by a gentle instrumental featuring an acoustic guitar in the verses and a distorted guitar chorus, Sturm delivers a positive message behind a darker instrumental: "Stronger than the pain runs through us  You can hear the angels sing / That you’re not alone.” Putting love in a more positive light, ‘Faith’ shows how love can be someone’s lifeline. Sturm’s vocal prowess shines with the powerful delivery on ‘Feels Like Forever’, while her gentler side is showcased on the slower tracks on the album, ‘Life Screams’ and the closure, ‘Run To You’.

Every song feels like it was taken straight out of the best of mid-2000′s alternative rock, definitely harkening back to her Flyleaf material, if not a little repressed and lighter. Lead single and opener ‘Impossible’ has a slight electronic vibe to it, though has all the heavy instrumentation of the time era in which she shined. It was a big riff accompanied by rebellious overtones, which continue over the next few tracks, especially the outsider track ‘I’m Not Laughing’. ‘The Soldier’ opens with a bass riff and acoustic instrumentation and builds into huge choruses. The closing track ‘Run To You’ is a more drastic buildup, starting with acoustic guitar and a light drum beat before taking the album out on the biggest acoustic rock ballad it could offer. Included on the album is also a live cover of The Police’s ‘Roxanne’, which drops its reggae roots and has Sturm putting her own punk rock spin on it, with her chilling screams being the most drastic change.

Lacey Sturm’s debut is a powerful statement on many topics, all of which are covered powerfully and with so much emotion that it feels like you’ve changed after listening to it. Her sound is immediately identifiable and true to herself, but also works to highlight the meaning of each song, the big focal points of the album. She doesn’t sacrifice anything for the meanings, though. Each song is crafted with each element in mind and form beautiful written pieces of music. Even after a bit of a break, Lacey Sturm has proven herself that she is a force to be reckoned with in the music world, band or not.

Favorite Tracks: Rot, You’re Not Alone, Feels Like Forever, Faith, Impossible

Least Favorite Tracks: Roxanne (Live), I’m Not Laughing

Rating: 8.5/10

 

Top Albums Of 2016 (so far):

  1. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
  2. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
  3. Foxes - All I Need
  4. Daughter - Not To Disappear
  5. Lacey Sturm - Life Screams
  6. David Bowie - ★
  7. BANNERS - BANNERS
  8. Savages - Adore Life
  9. Kanye West - The Life Of Pablo
  10. Jack Garratt - Phase

The Jezabels - Synthia

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Indie Rock has been quickly becoming the norm over the past few years. Acts like Cage The Elephant and Imagine Dragons have quickly taken over modern rock and the genre continues to grow. There are some hidden gems within the vast sea of indie rockers out there. Australian indie rock outfit The Jezabels have released their third record entitled Synthia and it is laced with heavy electronics and slow moving jams.

There’s a lot of atmosphere and building on this record. ‘Come Alive’ is probably the biggest sounding song on the album, being to most true-to-rock song on it. It’s a bit disjointed with its layers of guitar and synths, the synths being very dark and brooding, almost industrial. ‘Pleasure Drive’ is another industrial-ish track, sounding like something that Trent Reznor would conjure up. The closure track ‘Stamina’ is a long build up full of huge percussion and distorted guitars. It builds up with vocalist Hayley Mary’s cries getting more and more passionate as the instrumental widens behind her. The intro track builds up a bit more quickly than the rest of the album does, ‘Stand and Deliver’ opening with a dinky synth and percussion line that becomes a driven indie jam. The album may be more electronic indie than indie rock, but there are still the bangers in the mix. ‘Come Alive’, and ‘If Ya Want Me’ are big rock tracks that would get crowds headbanging and jumping.

The lyrics on the album are hit-or-miss. There are some beautiful written pieces like ‘If Ya Want Me’ and ‘A Message From My Mothers Passed’, the latter of which has a very ethereal meaning. ‘Unnatural’ makes a powerful statement with its lyrics, as well as having a pretty interesting synth line throughout. There are some very sensually written songs too, like ‘Smile’, which is all about the intimacy of love. Other tracks, however, feel like an afterthought. ‘Stand and Deliver’ uses modern lingo that feels a bit too much for it, especially since the whole “daddy” thing doesn’t play itself well into the rest of the album. ‘My Love Is My Disease’ is an okay track, a bit too blunt, though; as is ‘Pleasure Drive’. ‘Flowers In The Attic’ is best left unspoken of.

The Jezabels brought a good album to the table this year with Synthia. It blends rock and electronic well with a modern pop sound blended into it. Lyrically, it’s not a masterpiece and it could use a little more variety. Not a bad album, but no masterpiece all the same.

Favorite Tracks: Come Alive, If Ya Want Me

Least Favorite Tracks: Flowers In The Attic, Pleasure Drive, A Message From My Mothers Passed

Rating: 7/10

Jack Garratt - Phase

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Debut albums should be triumphant and forever a standard to live up to and progress from. Hyped up underground singer/songwriter Jack Garratt’s debut album, Phase, is exactly that. Channeling The Weeknd and a soulful blues sound, Garratt’s debut is an explosion of color and sexuality that’s bound to blow up.

The most notable part of the record is Garratt’s vocals. There’s something haunting in his disposition, with a hint of sensuality deep within each meaning. The closure track, ‘My House Is Your Home’ is raw and unprocessed, featuring only his vocals and a piano. The track is unpolished and very much raw, but there was possibly no other way to end an album all about the sentiments of all things relationship. Other songs with notable vocals include ‘Weathered’ with a huge gospel, making Garratt’s soul sound even bigger, and ‘Worry’ which has some lovely R&B-esque harmonies. ‘Chemical’ has some folk chanting in its intro making it feel like Gaelic traditional song before becoming a disjointed electronic ballad. ‘The Love You’re Given’ has a chilling background vocal that serves as more of a sampled instrument than anything else. The hauntingness of the sample compliments Garratt’s pure vocals in the song, too. This album’s lyrics are perhaps some of the best this year has seen so far; songs like ‘Water’ on the deluxe edition and ‘I Know All What I Do’ have some particularly visual lyrics, and are pure poetry.

The album is largely composed of waves of synths, and when raw instruments are used, it’s more often than not piano, while some guitars are used from time to time. The intro track, ‘Coalesce’, has pulsating synths and a certain glitchiness to it in the outro that is reminiscent of Clarence Clarity. ‘Surprise Yourself’ also has a big pulsating synth, though this one has potential to be a ballad rather than a glitchy electronic wall. The album’s most popular song, ‘Fire’, starts off quiet and sensual, but explodes into a massive track by its conclusion. 

Jack Garratt’s debut isn’t a revolution by any means, but it is a confident recollection of being in love. He sings with the disposition of a tortured lover, begging for more but fearing it all at the same time. His powerful lyrics soar over epic electronic instrumentals, which makes Phase one of the strongest electronic albums of the year. There is so much emotion resonating from this album that its hard not to feel it. Garratt’s hype didn’t die down, and for good reason. He’s 2016′s iteration of The Weeknd.

Favorite Songs: My House Is Your Home, Water, The Love You’re Given, Fire

Least Favorite Songs: Lonesome Valley

Rating: 8/10

 

Top Albums Of 2016 (so far):

  1. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
  2. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
  3. Foxes - All I Need
  4. Daughter - Not To Disappear
  5. David Bowie - ★
  6. BANNERS - BANNERS
  7. Savages - Adore Life
  8. Kanye West - The Life Of Pablo
  9. Jack Garratt - Phase
  10. Sia - This Is Acting

Foxes - All I Need

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Pop is becoming increasingly contrived and bland. More and more artists are becoming pop stars just because of their sex appeal or know how to use a bass drop. Then there’s Foxes. Her sophomore record, All I Need, is an emotion packed journey through love and life. The album is packed to the brim with massive pop bangers while still finding time for some stripped back emotional tracks.

You know you’re in for a treat when the intro track of an album gets you so pumped for what’s to come that before you continue, you have to listen to it again. ‘Rise Up (Intro)’ is incredible, building up into a symphonic and atmospheric ascension into this album. The album kicks in with ‘Better Love’, a beautiful track with an amazingly crafted instrumental, and a choir that adds a soulful vibe to the song that compliments the emotion of the song. This song is massive with its anthemic chorus and soaring synths and driving beat. ‘Feet Don’t Fail Me Now’ is another huge anthem, and is a more uplifting song in the sense that it’s about following your dreams. There are some pure feel-good pop tracks on here, too, like ‘Body Talk’ and ‘Lose My Cool’, the latter of which has so much appeal to it. It’s as if it was a Carly Rae Jepsen song and Bruno Mars song had a child together. The song ‘Shoot Me Down’ has a playful  and rebellious vibe to it that’ll make you dance.. Slower moments on the album include the breathtaking ‘On My Way’, the closing track on the regular version of the album. It references the track before it, ‘Money’, and tells of recovering form a relationship. ‘Scar’ is another particularly powerful track that has a strong message to it. ‘Amazing’ is an uplifting piano ballad following a sadder one, ‘If You Leave Me Now’, in which Foxes’ vocal performance adds beauty with it’s longing disposition and gorgeous symphony backing it. The last full track on the deluxe version of the record, ‘All I Need’, is almost too good for words. You can’t really describe it; it just has a beautiful, true to heart feel to it that is infectious and makes your heart beat with a longing feeling. It’s truly beautiful.

As much as the structure and vocals add so much character and voice to each song, the instrumentals are also just as important. The album is more of a symphonic pop album, most tracks having a beautiful orchestras behind them. ‘If You Leave Me Now’ has arguably the best orchestra instrumentation on the album, largely consisting of only piano and strings. The bridge has short arpeggios that flow into a huge final chorus that represents the true emotion of fearing losing the one you love. ‘Devil Side’ has a breathtaking string section too, with another strong meaning behind it. The percussion in ‘All I Need’ and ‘Better Love’ has an adverse effect on each song, creating a huge feeling and drives each song. As in every pop record nowadays, the synths play a huge role, and it works in amazing ways on this album. Foxes uses synths as more of a backing rather than a main focus in each track, using the more raw instruments and her voice as the prominent elements of each song. ‘Cruel’ has a cool vocal synth effect, like in CHVRCHES’ ‘The Mother We Share’. There are little tastes of interesting moments, such as the harp ending in ‘Wicked Love’, and the choir sections in ‘Better Love’ and ‘On My Way’ add a lot of color to it, especially in the latter of the two, which helped the song actually bring tears to my eyes (I’m a wuss, I know). The album flows in an interesting way, too. For example, ‘Amazing’ coming after ‘If You Leave Me Now’ has a uplifting piano ballad after a heart-wrenching one. It flows perfectly but also changes the mood of the album completely. The album does well at telling a wide variety of stories in a way that progresses smoothly.

Foxes may have scored the pop album of the year with All I Need. Each song is a wave of emotion washing over your heart. The album is a huge battle with love and life, and how they form a person. It also, admittedly, really reminds me of how much I love my girlfriend. Foxes really let every track come straight from her heart, written beautifully and with consideration. For another pop album to top this one this year will be a huge challenge. Nothing is more beautiful than the raw emotion of love. Except my girlfriend. She’s perfect. 

Porches - Pool

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Artists who create in the underground scene have to carve out a niche for themselves for their prosperity. Electronic-indie outfit Porches have offered their second full record, Pool as the follow up to 2013′s debut, Slow Dance In The Cosmos. While Pool is a dinky album full of catchy synthesizers, there’s nothing that makes it too interesting.

The album’s highest moment is right at it’s start: the opening track, ‘Underwater’. This song represents what this album should have been, but rather represents what it could have. It features an endearing and pulsating synth on top of harmonies in the vocals. The song is pretty simple as a whole, as is every song, but this song makes it work and manages to sound huge, whereas all other tracks sound like they’re missing something. ‘Braid’, for example, feels like to vocals lack inspiration. ‘Be Apart’ is a good track with a driving beat and a catchy synth that sounds like it came from an East India Youth record. A lot of songs have traces of other artists in them; ‘Hour’ has a Years & Years vibe to it, and ‘Pool’ features an autotune effect that Kanye West might use. There isn’t really anything worth mentioning as far as this album goes besides what’s already there... at some point around the halfway point, everything sounds the same and becomes pretty bland. Every track follows the same general formula and while ear candy does exist, nothing particularly impressive is exhibited.

Pool is a great album to chill back and relax to. If you’re looking for substance and layered pieces to make you think, this isn’t what you’re looking for. Pool is a very average electronic album - there’s nothing necessarily wrong with it, it just lacks a voice or uniqueness. It fades into blandness and becomes uniform by the end of the album, offering little, if anything, to take in. Minimalism requires the capacity to make something huge out of what it has. Porches didn’t quite grasp that with this record.

Favorite Tracks: Underwater, Be Apart

Least Favorite Tracks: Mood, Braid

Rating: 6.5/10

Wiz Khalifa - Khalifa

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Bringing you the soundtrack for stoners everywhere this year is Wiz Khalifa, offering up Khalifa. Wiz brings his signature trap rap game to the table, continuing to appeal to only stoners and those who think doing drugs make them cool. It’s an album that has little to offer to consumers outside of it’s intended audience but does have some small moments.

The greater majority of the album has little to offer instrumental. Most of it is trap beats on top of repetitive synth lines. There are some surprising moments on the album that over some variety, though. ‘Elevated’ - the only standout track on the album - has a great instrumental featuring a piano/synth line on top of an atmospheric bass synth, with a wonderful piano outro to top off the song. ‘Call Waiting’ also has a notable instrumental, featuring use of brass and being particularly jazzy. ‘iSay’, which features Juicy J., ruined by the lyrics, would be another great track with it’s driving piano instrumental. Much of the album just gets repetitive and stays relative to a formula of simple beats and minimalist noises that don’t offer any color to spice up the tracks.

Lyrically, it’s exactly what you’d expect from Wiz Khalifa. Besides exceptions in ‘Elevated’ and ‘Zoney’, while they do share similar themes with the rest of the songs, actually makes good use of the lyrics, the album is almost completely about getting high or being drunk. The lead single, ‘Bake Sale’ with Travis Scott and ‘Lit’ with Ty Dolla $ign are probably the lyrical low points on the record, literally offering nothing of worth besides the sentiment of weed. There really isn’t much to say lyrically about the album... ‘Elevated’ has some substance, but overall the album doesn’t have great lyrics at all. ‘Zoney’ features his son Sebastian on it, making the ending a pretty cute moment, but that doesn’t save the entire tracks from what it is - another average song on the album.

Wiz Khalifa brought little to the table with Khalifa, though if you’re looking for a record to put on whilst getting high, this might be just the album to party to. Other than the pop appeal and angst magnets, Khalifa is a flop. If you don’t fall under its demographic, there’s little chance you’ll enjoy it. There’s nothing worth focusing on - the instrumentals are repetitive and the lyrics sloppy and lack any meaning. Perhaps for his next record, reducing the amount of drugs in the studio may help the quality. Maybe.

Favorite Tracks: Elevated

Least Favorite Tracks: Lit, Make A Play, Most Of Us

Rating: 4.5/10

Kanye West - The Life Of Pablo

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Yeezus is back! After one of the most hyped up releases of the last 12 months, Kanye West has returned to the scene with The Life Of Pablo, a massive album with eighteen tracks clocking in just under an hour, as well as whole slew of notable guests. After the abrasive Yeezus in 2013, it was hard to predict where West would go next. Pablo brings back some of Kanye’s classic elements that made him so notable and also incorporates his current form and mindset, some tracks even being a considerate view of who he is.

The album kicks off with the massive, slow moving giant of a prayer, ‘Ultralight Beam’ which boasts brooding synths and a giant gospel backing it. The song, while absolutely huge, is relatively minimalistic in its execution, its layers and constant introduction of new elements making it the monster it is. Both ‘FML’ featuring The Weeknd and ‘Real Friends’ with Ty Dolla $ign have a similarly simplistic instrumental that Kanye manipulates in such a way that makes them sound grand. ‘Ultralight Beam’ has more guests than any other song on the entire album, boasting features from Chance The Rapper, The-Dream, Kelly Price, and Kirk Franklin. The-Dream’s clean vocals in the first verse at a lot of color and emotion to the song that’s already a heavy hitter. All of the guest stars add something to the song that make it the album’s masterpiece.

This album isn’t all about the slow moving heartbreakers, though. The album mostly consists of wild, jammable tracks with these little bursts of emotion in between. ‘No More Parties In L.A.’ featuring Kendrick Lamar in particular is a very “get up and move” track, with a strong verse from Kendrick and a funky instrumental. ‘30 Hours’ with André 3000 also has a driving beat, as well as ‘Facts’, which is perhaps the thickest and heaviest track on the record. The latter track is riddled with thick synths and a cinematic and evil-sounding backing instrumental that will definitely blow some speakers live. ‘Fade’ with Post Malone and Ty Dolla $ign has another funky instrumental, making the ending of the album just as triumphant as its beginning. Sampling ruins some tracks, such as in ‘Waves’ with Chris Brown where it immediately starts off and its disjointed and awful. ‘Wolves’ which features Frank Ocean and Caroline Shaw (and, in its superior demo form, Sia) has an interesting elephant sample at the end of it which adds a lot of flavor to it.

Lyrically, Kanye is either hit or miss. Sometimes it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what he’s rapping about, though it’s not necessarily easy to understand what he’s saying on a regular basis anyway. There are some heart touching moments such as those found on ‘Ultralight Beam’, but Kanye goes pretty hard throughout the album, such as on tracks like ‘Feedback’ and ‘Facts’ where Kanye fires shots left and right at specifics or the industry. There’s also that line on ‘Famous’ with Rihanna that has a certain line regarding Taylor Swift that’s a bit questionable. Kanye’s flow is overall pretty consistent and fresh in each song. Songs like ‘Freestyle 4′ are hard to grasp - it’s literally just him growling - but get by by having some strong moments. ‘Father Stretch My Hands’, which features Kid Cudi, is a stranger track, ‘Pt. II’ which boasts a spot with Desiigner of the song being much stronger albeit shorter. ‘I Love Kanye’ is literally a satire of himself, which is good to see - someone with such a serious persona can let go and make fun of himself. Always refreshing.

The Life Of Pablo is now Graduation or Late Registration. Nor is it a sequel to Yeezus. It is its own work of art that takes Kanye too a new level, showing his growth as an artist and even as a person. Some lesser moments on the album make this album fall short of being a masterpiece, and unfortunately when these moments happen they may completely ruin one song. But Kanye has proven he is still an authority in the music world, and even though he may be a dick in his own time, his music is pretty good.

Favorite Tracks: Ultralight Beam, Facts, Wolves, Real Friends

Least Favorite Tracks: Waves, Low Lights, Highlights

Rating: 8/10

 

Top Albums Of 2016 (so far):

  1. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
  2. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
  3. Daughter - Not To Disappear
  4. David Bowie - ★
  5. BANNERS - BANNERS
  6. Savages - Adore Life
  7. Kanye West - The Life Of Pablo
  8. Sia - This Is Acting
  9. Grizfolk - Waking Up The Giants
  10. Rihanna - ANTI

Future - EVOL

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Atlanta-native hip hop artist Future just released his third major album in under a year, other releases including 2015′s DS2 and his collaboration with Drake, What A Time To Be Alive. He also released a mixtape in January, entitled Purple Reign. With major releases one after another after the success of DS2, Future became the fastest hip hop artist to get three consecutive number one albums on the Billboard 100. Sadly, throughout all the hype, Future still can’t deliver much substance. EVOL continues his journey through success but also continues to saturate his sound.

Future’s music is catchy and good to vibe out too, that goes without saying. The problem with this album is that every beat sounds the same. It’s the same programmed 16th note hi-hat and snare hit in each song, with the deep underground beats doing essentially the same thing. Every song does have a different synth line on top of it that proves to be interesting at times. ‘Maybach’ has a particularly interesting synth line that sounds like they programmed an acoustic guitar progression over the synth. There are some big moments in the instrumentals, but that’s basically all of the good moments of the album. ‘Lil Haiti Baby’, the album’s success story, is pretty big with a big band section in the background blaring horns like it’s the theme song of “Rocky”. ‘Fly Shit Only’ has an interesting instrumental too it, as well, the only thing stopping the acoustic guitar backing from being great is the excessive clipping in it. ‘Seven Rings’ has a pretty thick beat and a great, atmospheric middle eastern bell vibe going on.

Another problem in much of Future’s music is that most of his raps lack any conviction. In songs like ‘Seven Rings’, he goes hard, rapping as if he believes in his message. Other songs such as ‘In Her Mouth’ just sound like he’s reading off a paper, without any message in his voice, as if he’s doing it just to get the payments in. He has an acceptable flow throughout his music that has come to characterize him, as well as his taking to minimalistic and distant instrumentals. He doesn’t like to edge away from his trademark flow and experiment, sadly. The album doesn’t contain much singing, except for in ‘Low Life’, where The Weeknd is featured. That would usually mean something huge, with one of 2015′s biggest artists guesting on your track. However, the lyrics don’t fit it at all. His singing is too sensual for the track and the words he’s getting across. Sampling wise there isn’t too much going on, besides the miserable use of the overused sample in ‘Lie To Me’ that automatically makes the song a failure.

Future’s new album EVOL is a blessing to Future fans, as they’re getting more new material than they can handle within the last year. Unfortunately, with this influx of music and a lack of experimentation, Future brings little to offer. There are some big tracks on the album and from a listener’s standpoint, it’s quite enjoyable is you take any track separately. Altogether, it just becomes boring and hard to get through. Hopefully Future takes some time to work on his next effort, in order to make his material more diverse.

Favorite Tracks: Fly Shit Only, Seven Rings, Lil Haiti Baby

Least Favorite Tracks: Lie To Me, Program, Xanny Family, Low Life

Rating: 4.5/10

Dream Theater - The Astonishing

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The art of storytelling can go beyond just a book. However, in The Astonishing’s case, a novel might be necessary. Dream Theater’s thirteenth studio effort, The Astonishing, is a musical told through a two hour-long epic double album. Along with an epic storyline that captures its listener, The Astonishing is a musically impressive and diverse album sure to stun any listener.

The story of the album takes place in 2258, in the northeastern United States, which has become the dystopian territory of the Great Northern Empire Of America, ruled by Emperor Nafaryus, Empress Arabelle, Prince Daryus, and Princess Faythe. All entertainment has been sacrificed, the robotic NOMACS’ electronic noise. There exists one man, Gabriel, who has the power to sing and unite the people. This album tells the long epic tale of his journey to free the region from oppression.

Before addressing the storyline in detail, the music of the album should be addressed. It’s everything you’d expect from a musical: operatic (not an opera, since the album contains some spoken word), grand, and invigorating. The album’s opener tracks, ‘Descent Of The NOMACS’ and ‘Dystopian Overture’ paint a vivid picture of the setting of the story: dark, oppressive, and moody. Every single song is this album perfectly represents each point of the plot. You’ll rejoice at the uplifting sounds of ‘The Gift Of Music’ and ‘Our New World’, but tense up at critical parts of the story such as ‘A Tempting Offer’ and ‘The Walking Shadow’. The performing is just as great as the story - massive orchestra under intense riffs define the album sonically. Epic, soaring guitar solos can be found in ‘The New Beginning’, ‘Moment Of Betrayal’, and more. That doesn’t leave out some softer moments, too: beautiful piano ballads like ‘When Your Time Has Come’ and ‘Ravenskill’ are present, as well as some tracks beginning with acoustic guitars like ‘A Life Left Behind’ and ‘Astonishing’. Some diverse elements find their way into the album, too. Bagpipes are present at the end of ‘The X Aspect’, ragtime and jazz influences can be found in ‘Three Days’, and marching band influences make their way into the epic conclusion of the album, ‘Astonishing’. There are too many epic moments on this album to count. Every song has its niche and tells its part of the story perfectly.

The story of the album has very carefully been written into every song. The introduction tracks introduce the setting, ‘The Gift Of Music’ introduces Gabriel, the protagonist, and ‘The Answer’ tells of his significance. The album starts taking a darker turn with ‘A Better Life’, when Xander, Gabriel’s brother and leader of the Ravenskill Rebel Militia, is introduced, and this dark then continues when Nafaryus makes his way to Ravenskill to see Gabriel for himself. The beauty of the album returns after ‘A Savior In The Square’, and the love arc between Gabriel and Faythe begins in ‘Act Of Faythe’. ‘Three Days’ returns to the urgency of the plot, and the action of the story begins to rise and take form. No song on this album serves as a filler - every song tells its progressive part of the plot, not leaving anything untouched, and inspiring the emotion of the characters and scene in its listener. Tragedy strikes in the second half of the record, leading to the tragic conflict in the love arc (in ‘Losing Faythe’). The following track, ‘Whispers On The Wind’, describes how Gabriel can’t use his gift to save his love after being accidentally attacked in ‘The Walking Shadow’, due to his scream causing him to lose his voice. But, what follows is one of the most beautiful moments of the album: ‘Hymn Of A Thousand Voices’, where his followers give him the strength to save Faythe and complete his quest. By the closure track, Gabriel has triumphantly freed his people from oppression and can move the region into a new and bright future.

Something as grand and electrifying as this can only come from the likes of Dream Theater. Every note plays a part in the story, and every song is crucial to the plot. The mood of the story is perfectly captured in each song, and in such a vivid way it’s as if you’re watching it all unfold before your very eyes. Dream Theater has proven themselves as one of the most eclectic and exciting bands of progressive rock, delivering one of their most brilliant works. The Astonishing is a timeless classic, for sure.

Favorite Tracks: Moment Of Betrayal, Hymn Of A Thousand Voices, Three Days

Least Favorite Tracks: The Answer, Digital Discord

Rating: 9/10

 

Top Albums Of 2016 (so far):

  1. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
  2. Dream Theater - The Astonishing
  3. Daughter - Not To Disappear
  4. David Bowie - ★
  5. BANNERS - BANNERS
  6. Savages - Adore Life
  7. Sia - This Is Acting
  8. Grizfolk - Waking Up The Giants
  9. Rihanna - ANTI
  10. Megadeth - Dystopia

Sia - This Is Acting

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The songwriting queen of the pop scene, Sia, topped January off with an album full of pop jams. Almost every track on her new effort This Is Acting was written for another artist, unlike her last effort, 1,000 Forms Of Fear which featured her turning pop hits into the pain and struggle of living with bipolar disorder and drug addiction.

The album has a pretty diverse soundscape. There’s the piano-pop ballads, ‘Bird Set Free’ and ‘Alive’, while there are also the feel good radio bangers like ‘Reaper’ and ‘Cheap Thrills’. Sia channels her inner Adele on ‘Alive’ (since the song was written for and about her), but keeps the strength of her voice evident in other tracks like ‘Footprints’ and ‘Unstoppable’, the latter of which could be this album’s toned down ‘Chandelier’ (musically, at least). ‘Unstoppable’ brings out a punchy brass sound towards the end, building up the track dominated by massive synthscapes and a huge beat to an epic climax. She adds some worldly flavors into the mix, too: ‘Broken Glass’ has some eastern vibes sewn into it, and the track intended for Shakira, ‘Move Your Body’, retains some Latin elements and the flashiness expected from a Shakira track. Sia’s instrumentals always have tons of texture and layers to them that leave every listen with something new to discover. Try dissecting every background vocal melody in bonus track ‘Fist Fighting A Sandstorm’ and you’ll get a sense of all of the complexity that is interlaced into these tracks.

While diverse, the album has a major flaw: it lacks integrity, in a sense. Barring the quirky ‘One Million Bullets’, basically every other song on the album was written for a different artist. Rihanna turned down ‘Bird Set Free’, ‘Cheap Thrills’, ‘Reaper’, and ‘Space Between’, while Adele also let go of a few tracks. Other artists such as Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez can also be credited to turning down ‘Footprints’ and ‘Sweet Design’, respectively. Writing songs for other artists and then recording them yourself takes something away from it. Not necessarily the meaning of the song (though ‘Alive’ is a big counter against that, as it’s literally about Adele), but perhaps the artist’s connection. A powerful performance can be taken a step further if the artist feels something resonating in them while performing this song. This Is Acting is full of great moments for Sia, but most songs have some sense of distance between her and the meaning.

This collection of songs written for other artists were given one more chance for their chance in the limelight by their composer, Sia, who took these rejects and turned them into her own. Some artists really missed out on incredible works. Sia’s powerful voice and artistic visions pull through again on her seventh record. Hopefully her next effort will feature more work intended for herself and not others - that’s the next step to making a true pop masterpiece. Until then, this album has plenty of tracks to jam to.

Favorite Tracks: Bird Set Free, Footprints, Alive, Reaper

Least Favorite Tracks: Move Your Body, Sweet Design

Rating: 7.5/10

 

Top Albums Of 2016 (so far):

  1. Panic! At The Disco - Death Of A Bachelor
  2. Daughter - Not To Disappear
  3. David Bowie - ★
  4. BANNERS - BANNERS
  5. Savages - Adore Life
  6. Sia - This Is Acting
  7. Grizfolk - Waking Up The Giants
  8. Rihanna - ANTI
  9. Megadeth - Dystopia
  10. Krallice - Hyperion