Big Mans Music Corner

Favorite Worst Nightmare

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Released in 2007 and the second album from UK rock band Artic Monkeys ‘Favorite Worst Nightmare’ is an album full of energy, though beneath its quirkier moments the band shows a more mature tone in the story it’s trying to tell.

If I was to talk about the album as whole from a sound perspective, it’s more of what you expect from Arctic Monkeys, that same high adrenaline rock sound but the way the album is constructed is what really has my interest.

‘Favorite Worst Nightmare’ feels as if it’s split into two parts. The first five tracks have this youthful energy to them, like a young adult going out every night of the week partying. It doesn’t let up with tracks like ‘Teddy Picker’ and ‘D is for Dangerous’ being particularly standout in the area. One of the bands most well-known tracks ‘Fluorescent adolescence’ has these quirky guitars throughout with some simple drums but the lyrics start to paint a different picture of these days ending for this young person, that they are growing older and that these days are over

‘The only one who knows’ does act as that bridge into the second half of the album. It’s this slow ballad with not much going on instrumentally outside of a guitar but it gives off this dreamy effect as if this young person is now having to face the harsh realities of adulthood so suddenly and they can’t quite cope with it just yet.

The second half of the album still maintains that same energy from the first half but it’s a bit more scattered and downplayed, having a bit more of a slightly heavier sound with tracks like ‘Old Yellow Bricks’ and ‘This house is a circus’.

The final track 505 is a good a closer and a good cap off for the narrative this album was trying to go for. Saying that’d they go back to 505, no matter how long it would take. Whether that’s this person trying to go back to their youth no matter what or some other meaning is up for interpretation.

Favorite Worst Nightmare is what I expect from Arctic Monkeys. The band was still relatively young at this point but the coming of age story they tell on the album is one that’s as engrossing as the sounds it produces.

The Eminem Show

Released in May 2002 and the third studio album by Detroit rapper, Eminem, The Eminem Show takes what makes the first two albums so good, meshing them together while showing us a much more personal side of Marshall Matters.

The album starts off hard with ‘White America’ With Eminem seeming to give us his perspective on rural white America, and a reoccurring theme throughout the album that I first noticed with this song and a few others on the album like ‘Sing for the moment’and ‘Without me’ is the effect that Eminem seems to think he has on Americas youth, bringing to light on how he’s aware of just how raunchy and offensive his lyrics can be. These two are some of the stronger songs off the album and pack a lot of feeling behind them as if Eminem is standing up for himself and any accusations made towards him regarding the effect he might have had on youth in America.

‘Cleaning out my Closet’ Is where we see a much more emotional and personal side of Eminem as it’s been no secret that Eminem has had trouble in the past with his homelife growing up and on this track, we see his frustrations come out, not giving his mother a second. It’s intense, it’s emotional and feels like much more of a callback to the Marshall Matters LP.

Things do start to look a bit up when Em does dip back into his ‘Slim Shady’ persona with the song ‘without me’. It has that similar energy, being a bit of a piss take on older generations in America. The flow and chorus on this track are Eminem at his peak. Things do start to get a bit silly after this track with the song ‘Drip’ which has no problem talking about the troubles of dealing with an STD and goes into vulgar albeit funny detail. There’s also the track ‘Hailie’s Song’ which sees Eminem try his hand at singing and the results are mixed. He’s not the worst singer but when you know how good a guy this rapper it’s is not hard to be a bit disappointed in his singing voice.

But for my money ‘The Eminem show’ has a career highlight with the track ‘Till I collapse’ which is this motivational romp where Eminem talks about his possible fading relevancy, calling out other artists and what making hip hop music means to him. It’s an incredibly powerful track and even after listening to this album multiple times it still sticks with me.

‘The Eminem Show’ to this day is Marshall’s most personal and consistent album, meshing previous styles to make one that’s more personal. Despite the album showing its age a bit, The Eminem Show is still a fine showing from Eminem in his prime

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Released in 2010, Kanye West’s fifth studio album ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ can be considered a massive turning point for not only the industry, but Kanye himself. Following several controversies in the media and with the untimely passing of his mother, Kanye went into seclusion for this albums production and what he has come out with here is not only an excellent hip hop album, but one that changed the landscape of the genre for the next decade to come.

The opening track ‘Dark Fantasy’ starts with an overly British sounding Nicki Minaj narrating as if the album is this children’s storybook before Justin Vernon and Tenyana Taylor open with this gospel sound before transitioning into Kanyes verse which feels like something out of one of his earlier albums. It’s a strong opening track and sets the scene. A couple tracks down you have what many would consider the defining track of the album ‘POWER’ which sounds like this ambitious and empowering anthem but at the grit of it talks about how someone could be so easily consumed by the wealth and riches of life and just how self-destructive one can be

The next track ‘All of the Lights’ has a beautiful Violin interlude before diving right into this pop-rap epic ‘All Of The Lights’ which has these blasting trumpets and is probably one of the more feature heavy tracks on the album with appearances from Rihanna, Kid Cuddi and Fergi. To my surprise the features don’t feel overwhelming or unnecessary each feeling well integrated into their track. The biggest standout verse on the album in the track ‘Monster’ isn’t even by Kanye but rather from Nicki Minaj who switches the complexion of her voice in and out to sound like this innocent child who could do no wrong straight into a verbal beatdown.

However, a big focus throughout the album focuses on Kanye’s life in those last few months. It’s not exactly hard to tell that Kanye is very troubled throughout the album and as things progress, we start to see Kanye slowly open about his issues. Whether it be with the difficulties of the press, his relations with women etc. It all comes to a head in the track ‘Runaway’. Production wise it starts stripped by with only single notes on a piano being played though as the song goes on, it starts to sound more troubled with Kanye singing about this lover that won’t leave, one he knows that he treats awfully. The whole track feels like one big confession, with all his pent-up emotion coming pouring out. Kanye is defeated on this song, and with the last 2 minutes closing being this obnoxious autotune ballad which really conveys the feeling that Kanye is just trying to close himself back up after having been so open to his audience.

In terms of complaints I really can’t think of much to say about ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’. The album is long, running at over an hour in length so that could be a turn off for certain people but to this day, it’s Wests most engaging album and we really get to see his personal struggle with fame and all the responsibility that comes with it.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is available on CD, Vinyl and for streaming on Spotify and Apple music.

Save Rock and Roll

Released in 2013, Save Rock and Roll is the 5^th studio album from rock band Fallout Boy. Known for being a quartertone of the 2000’s emo/rock scene along with other bands like My Chemical Romance and Paramore. With Save Rock and Roll it feels like a transition for Fallout Boy as they move more towards pop rock over what they had started off with. For a transition however, the band for the most part pulls it off in style and what we have here is a competent although at times underwhelming album.

The opening track ‘The Phoenix’ Starts off with a burst of tense violins take control of the song. The song itself acts like a declaration of war on whatever opposing force the band is taking on, sounding confident that they already have this won. Follow that up with ‘My Songs know what you did in the dark’ Which is another catchy rock tune, with an infectious chorus that you can’t help but get yourself into.

However, it’s here where you notice a trend that the album starts to sound a bit samey. ‘Alone Together’ is a solid track but for my money blends in way too much with the previous two, but things do start to pick up with the track ‘miss missing you’ singing about the nostalgia this man had for a previous of love his that’s no longer there all over a pretty poppy synth. However, the album dips hard, with the song Death Valley. Lil Wayne and Fallout Boy is just not a good mix, coming as a forced collaboration for two genres of music that simply can’t just be spliced together.

The album did come to surprise me however with ‘Young Volcanoes’ which is the folk inspired track, like something you’d hear around a campfire. It’s not my personal favourite on the album but the change of sound is refreshing and something the album needed more of.

The closing of the album is solid ‘Rat a tat tat’ Is full of energy and doesn’t let up, feeling like a proper climax to this war that had happened at the start of the album. The title track ‘Save Rock and Roll’ is easily my favourite song to come off this. It’s grand in scope, the lyrics are a bit on the cheesy side I’ll admit but the feature from Elton John is very welcoming in an uplifting finish to the album.

‘Save Rock and Roll’ doesn’t always hit the mark. While the overall album sounds good and the production is top notch, songs start to sound a bit samey after awhile and the dreadful Lil Wayne feature bring this album a bit down for me. Fallout Boy still has a ways to go before they can properly transition to the style of pop rock music.

Save Rock and Roll is available on CD, Vinyl and for streaming on Spotify and Apple music.

TRENCH

Twenty One Pilots are back with there 3^rd studio album, TRENCH. Following up there 2015 album Blurryface which saw the band really breakout into the mainstream with the single ‘Stressed Out’. While TRENCH doesn’t reach those heights of mainstream popularity, it’s an improvement over previous effort, bringing with it a direction and narrative which the band only touched on briefly in Blurryface.

Sound wise, TOP is at their most consistent here. With the intro song ‘Jumpsuit’ starting off with moody and atmospheric whispery lyrics with revving guitars going on throughout to song before dropping as the guitars blow out over Tyler Josephs booming screams then smoothly transitioning into ‘Levitate’ where Joseph shows how far his rapping ability has come since the groups last album.

The synth filled ‘My Blood’ is a standout for me on the track with the song giving off this rushing feeling throughout, giving us the story of how dedicated one can be to those they consider family. The album continues in that similar synth direction, with the following track Chlorine having this addicting chorus much to what the songs subject it’s on. Addiction and how it effects the person in question and those surrounding them, having a dreamy sounding outro as a distorted voice.

The album only gets heavier with the track ‘Neon Gravestones’ as Joseph eerily raps his way through a song about how suicide has been glorified, with those suffering from mental illness seeing it as a valid option in life over a ghostly chorus.

I don’t find all of TRENCH to be as engaging as the songs named above. ‘The Hype’ ‘Pet Cheetah’ and ‘Legend’ all just blur together a bit too much for my liking and don’t stick out as well compared to what the album achieves.

However, the album does end on a decent note with the song ‘Leave the City’ being a fulfilling end to the story the album was trying to tell which I didn’t touch on too much in this review because there’s allotting to explain. ‘Leave the City’ starts off as defeat, with Joseph not having been able to beat the city in which he’s trapped in though as the song builds, slight rays of hope breakthrough as the synth picks up and some beautiful vocals by Joseph turn the song from an utter defeat to a realist’s point of view. You’re not always going to succeed at first but in time you will.

TRENCH is great, having a consistent tone and story. But falls flat in the latter half of the album with some forgettable tracks. When TRENCH hits its high points, it blows them off the scale and with a fulfilling conclusion, TRENCH is well worth the listen.

TRENCH is available on CD, Vinyl and for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music.

SATURATION II

Following up SATURATION after only three months, SATURATION II is Brockhamptons second studio album release and the second in what would soon be confirmed trilogy of albums. To put it simply, SATURATION II takes everything that made the first album as memorable was it was and refines it.

The opening track ‘GUMMY’ While not as heavy as the previous albums opener, is a fun bop. The song oozes confidence, as if the boys are steadily becoming more aware of just how good they are. ‘QUEER’ itself feels like an evolution of the format used on the song ‘BUMP’. Using that similar structure of being loud and abrasive before leading into a chorus that feels as if it’s warming to you with Kevin’s pitched vocals.

The album does dip briefly with the song ‘JELLO’ which brings back my previous grievance with the previous album, that being the use of chipmunk vocals. However, after that SATURATION II doesn’t really trip up all that much. Ameer Van’s solo performance on ‘TEETH’ is visceral, coming off as more of a statement on just how far he’s going to go with his stardom and that nothing will stop him and the boys from doing so. Possibly the albums biggest standout is ‘JUNKY’ Which has an incredibly powerful opening and closing verse from Kevin Abstract and Matt Champion. Kevin brings his sexual orientation into song, blatantly calling out homophobic tendencies and standing his ground as a gay man. Matt’s closing verse tackles the issue of sexual abuse against women, calling out those in such an aggressive manor.

‘SWEET’ is very much a shining spot for all the members involved, however standouts here have to be Merlyn Wood and JOBA both having such energy in their viruses. Merlyn is almost incomprehensible but his shouty lyricism sticks out as someone who’s energy just can’t be restrained. JOBA fluctuates from hitting these high pitch notes straight into something out of early 2000’s Slim Shady song.

The album then finishes with another guitar ballad piece in the form of ‘SUMMER’ with Bearface back again with his angelic vocals, continuing the narrative followed on from ‘WASTE’ now showing us the perspective of the individual seducing the one being lost on ‘WASTE’.

SATURATION II is an overall refinement of the boy’s formula from SATURATION. It’d be unfair to just say it’s more of the same as at this point there really isn’t anything like Brockhampton, and if they were to continue in this direction some would say it might get stale. As of right now however, Brockhampton has found there sound in the form of SATURATION II

SATURATION II is available to stream on Spotify and Apple music

IGOR

Released in 2019, Tyler the Creators ‘IGOR’ was an even further evolution of Tyler’s style as an artist. From being known for his brash and vulgar lyricism, ‘IGOR’ is a far cry from that style, being much more mature in its tone and delivers a very meaningful story throughout about heartbreak and a relationship falling apart.

‘IGORS THEME’ Opens the album with this intimidating instrumental, and as the track goes on it starts to feel more monstrous, foreshadowing what is to come with the album. Following up that you have the incredibly catchy ‘EARFQUAKE’ which keeps building on that narrative of a relationship not quite working. Tyler’s fixation on this person seems like borderline addiction with the poppy and upbeat ‘I THINK’ obsessing over this individual like that’s the only thing on there mind.

However, things start to take a bit of a darker turn with ‘RUNNING OUT OF TIME’. Tyler is desperate to keep this individual in his life, but they want to move onto and out of this relationship.

I haven’t talked much about the sound of this album however it’s not to be underestimated. Each song serves its purpose in this story about heartbreak so the focus is more on that and less how the songs sound. However, an album could have the best narrative going for it but sound like garbage. Throughout IGOR we do hear the different phases of the story just by how they’re portrayed.

Within the latter part of the album, we start to hear just how nasty this breakup has become. ‘WHAT’S GOOD’ Brings back shades of old Tyler as he verbally boasts about himself and starting to realise that he doesn’t need that love at all. Then followed up with a dual feature in ‘GONE GONE//THANK YOU’ Showing us how Tyler has embraced the fact this part of his life has passed, with the songs first part being this summery cheery freedom that Tyler feels where as the latter part is the realisation setting in that it’s over but’s grateful for it all.

The last two tracks however feel like they thread over territory that the album had already explore, more so in the track ‘I don’t love you anymore’ Which at this point in the album seems clear and comes off as just a bit redundant. ‘Can we be friends’ I’m a bit more forgiving towards as it does end the album in style. After everything Tyler and his former significant other have been through, he still wants to make it work despite everything that has happened.

IGOR was my favourite album to have come out in 2019. The story it tells is one that’s captivating and brings you in. Tyler is still as good an artist as ever, the production is top tier and with the added maturity of the themes it explores, IGOR deserves every bit of praise it gets.

IGOR is available on CD and Vinyl and to stream on Spotify and Apple music

The Protomen

Formed in 2003 and releasing their debut album of the same name in 2005. ‘The Protomen’ is the unexpected fusion of a tribute to the famous video game series ‘Megaman’ presented in the form of a rock opera.

To my surprise however the mesh works quite well. The band presents the universe in a much more dystopian, darker way. As the opening song ‘Hope Rides Alone’ tells of a man building a robot, humanities last hope to beat this tyrannical evil that rules over this world which starts off with this slow acoustic before bursting into a full-on rock performance. The album is very much tied to the story it’s trying to tell, so I feel that songs out of the context of the album don’t hold their ground as much

For example, the follow up track to the opener ‘Funeral of a Son’ ties directly in with ‘Hope Rides Alone’ telling us that they couldn’t do it, the last hope that humanity had could not win in the face of it all. It’s not to take from Protomens over all sound, as there are some especially impressive performances on here. Standouts to me are ‘The Will of One’ and ‘Vengeance’ which have some especially impressive performances from lead singer Raul Panther III, who reaches an especially high pitch and his almost desperate cries really add to the struggle that you feel the album is going through in the latter half of the album.

I personally think that ‘The Protomen’ is competent album in what it’s trying to portray. It’s desolate, moody and a struggle but presents itself in such a grand way where it’s one of those albums you’d find yourself listening too in one sitting. And at 8 songs total, with some that can run on for a while, it’s well worth the listen if you’re looking for a solid rock opera album

Protomen is available to stream on Spotify and Apple Music.

Random Access Memories

Released in 2013, eight years after there last studio album ‘Human after all’, Daft Punk comes back swinging with an impressive effort that sees the group change up the foundations of what they were known for in the dance music scene, with more variety in its sounds and structure.

‘Bring life back to music’ opens the album and it still gives off that old Daft Punk feel with the repetitive chorus throughout, giving us, that dance club feel that Daft Punk is known for. However, part way through the jazzy use of a base comes into play before the sounds of a rooftop party come in playing over a solo. The first song already shows that bit of change that the duo is going through.

It continues even further, with the slow ballad piece ‘Game of Love’ then transitioning onto one of the albums standouts ‘Giorgio by Moroder’ which is this nine-minute song that starts off with famous techno musician, telling us how he essentially developed that style of music. The song builds with use of a shredding electric guitar over this funky synthesizer and all culminates to this explosive ending. This isn’t the only time the album has these long tracks which are on such a grand scale. ‘Touch’ and ‘Contact’ are both just as powerful, though have their own individual qualities that make them standout. ‘Touch’ Starts off as this disturbing pitched down voice then comes into what seems like poetry before transitioning into a choir. ‘Contact’ Gives this feeling of meeting the unknown, with the song starting off with a sample of someone possibly talking about a UFO before going into this thunderous Oregon mixing in with speedy drums before finishing off with the song almost sounding as if it’s going into overdrive like it can’t contain itself. These tracks to me are the standouts of ‘Random Access Memories’.

Which I can see being a problem for old Daft Punk fans. This is less an evolution of there previous efforts and more of Daft Punk going in a different direction. The album still does its fair amount of dance tunes but even those are a bit more lyrically focused. ‘Lose Yourself to Dance’ and ‘Get Lucky’ featuring Pharrell Williams are poppy, having this real youthful feeling in them thanks to Pharrell. I do feel these songs do drag on a bit however, mainly ‘Lose Yourself to Dance’ which is something straight out of the disco scene, but Pharrell’s delivery gets a bit grading after a while.

I have to say that even though it is a different direction that Daft Punk has taken with this album, it’s a welcome one. If you were one looking for more of what made Daft Punk who they are in the first place, you won’t find it here. I’m still open to another album of that style, but if this is direction Daft Punk were to take from now on, with the sounds they’ve explored on this album. I’m all for it.

Random Access Memories is available on CD, Vinyl and for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music

Demon Days

Released in 2005, the follow up record to the virtual bands first outing and of the same name ‘Gorillaz’, Demon Days aims to go in a different direction from its predecessor having an overall much more fluid structure and more defined in the message it tries to deliver.

If their self-titled record was experimented, Demon Days keeps a much darker and grounded approach. The first track ‘Last Living Souls’ Sets the tone for the album, a story about making it through dark times only to come out at the other end of a tunnel. The first half of the album all the way up towards the iconic ‘Feel Good Inc’ has this dystopian feel to it, as if the album is controlled by the world it’s set in. The songs within the fist half our amazing. The already mentioned ‘Last Living Souls’ and ‘Feel Good Inc’ both really bring this albums theme into light, especially ‘Feel Good Inc’ which is THE Gorillaz song or at least one of the first songs one would think if they were to grow up in the 2000’s.

Other songs like ‘Kids with Guns’ with it’s funky baseline all building to this climactic pile of instruments to ‘Dirty Harry’ with it’s fairly on the nose story about the struggles of war going on in this time period really just set the vibe.

The album isn’t innocent of having its weaker songs but even then, I still feel like they overall contribute to the messages ‘Demon Days’ is trying to communicate to us. ‘O Green World’ Is allot of noise, a bit ear grating at times and the crow constantly squawking throughout doe come off as a bit much. Similarly, in the latter half of the album ‘November has come’ and even the iconic ‘DARE’ feel more filler then anything but does come off as a nice break from the albums overall concept.

The latter half of the album keeps the consistency going with the dramatic ‘El Manana’ Which is such a drastic shift after the energised ‘Feel Good Inc’. However, it does pick up again with this almost western inspired saloon type song in ‘Every Planet We Reach is Dead’ having this constant escalation that just goes on and keeps building to the point where the song feels as though it’s going to burst.

With the last few tracks Demon Days really hammers down on the narrative. ‘Fire Coming out of a Monkeys Head’ is less of a song and more of a spoken story, telling us about these monsters attacking this small town which the villagers are oblivious too. We come to the last two tracks which close out on what ‘Last Living Souls’ showed us at the start: Making it through the dark towards the light. ‘Don’t get lost in Heaven’ and ‘Demon Days’ is the only way the album could have ended, which keeps giving us these new sounds with some choir and reggae influence.

There are few albums that I can praise as highly as Demon Days. Its structure is tight, the story and concept it’s trying to tell is something that still rings relevant to today. The songs range from energetic and full of life to being more grounded in their emotions. It may not be my favourite Gorillaz record, but Demon Days is the bands best effort to this day.

Demon Days is available on CD, Vinyl and for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music.