Santa Dog - Residents, Uninc.

Since Christmas is tomorrow I decided to indulge myself. In a good, and great way. I've been listening to this group a ton lately and even watched the Demons Dance Alone DVD today. Tomorrow, or later on tonight, I might watch Eskimo. Well anyway, this is the debut release by The Residents. At the time of the release, had yet to be named. Each track was credited to a different artist, in a kind of sampler-esque way. It was released as two 7" vinyl records. I recognize the name Arf & Omega from Vilness Fats, which is also mentioned in the liner notes this is "from" that film which is "coming soon to a theater near you". For those who don't know the move was never released, and was never finished. This was sent out to some hundred people and legend has it, it was sent back by Richard Nixon. "The Residents" name thought, came from a similar thing but it was the Warner Brothers album that was sent back to "The Residents". I could go on forever, espically since I've read up lately on the Pre-sidents history.

1. Fire: This track is credited by Ivory & The Braineaters and written by Wanda Play. The song starts out with an awesome bass riff and the words "Santa Dogs a Jesus Fetus". For being "failed movie makers" this song is very fleshed out. I mean it's great and for two minutes there's quite a bit that happens. I love the backing vocals; and I also love how it's has three parts before it returns to the head, so to say. Trust me, you wont be able to get this out of your head.
2. Explosion: This track is credited by The College Walkers. Unlike the last track, most people might want to skip this after the quote in the beginning. This song opens with a quote from Jingle Bells, but it sounds like Jingle Bells from Hell. Well, at least by 1972 standards. This really sounds like an explosion, and I love the strings in this track.
3. Lightning: This is a track credited by Delta Nudes. This opens with whisteling and seems friendly enough. The music on this is reminicent of their later 70's electronic music, before turning into something off Fingerprince. Then a guy comes in and starts talking in a very Residents simple way. Except it sounds like its on a megaphone, then an epilouge that reminds me a little of maybe an early version of Not Available's ending.
4. Aircraft Damage: This is by Arf & Omega with guests The Singing Lawnchairs. The song starts out with this march type vibe. Then some vocals come in. For whatever reason the singer on this track reminds me a little of Eddie of Flo & Eddie. I don't know why, but he does. Later it's a very well assembled musique-concrete type piece that I wish I could assemble this well. At least that's the feeling I'm getting parts sound backwards and forwards. The Singing Lawnchairs sound like they are singing backwards.

Overall I have to give this double single a 9/10. There is nothing wrong with this, and if you don't like it it's only like 15 minutes long. This is a great way to start off such an amazing legacy, and it sounds like they got their stuff together. I love this, my biggest problem was I didn't get a copy back in 1972.

Electric Revolution

This is the debut Ep by Kenosha, Wisconsin band Electric Revolution. This was released earlier this year in 2014, and my friend Justin did a review here. I thought I would review this because it's an EP and the points he brought up were points I thought I could shed light upon.

1. Helpless: This opens the album up. I like that this has a hint of Draw The Line in there, and the tones are pretty cool. But the thing is, in today's day and age this might as well be a cover/tribute band with their sound. The vocalist sings ok, but nothing that amazes me. It probably hurts the songs more. Also the song structure isn't interesting. I'm picking up Yngwie 80'a vocalist flavor here, but is rather listen to him. Malmsteen's much more interesting. 
2. I'm Just Like You: This could pass as a Stone Temple Pilot track. You know, if Scott was afraid of singing out of tune so he doesn't try to hit pitches.
3. Hero: Hey, I didn't know the Pilots teamed up with Scott Stap, you know after he had his voice removed. This guy can't sing enough power into his songs.
4. The Love I Have: This song sounds like a Stray Cats song, and honestly is probably my favorite track here. I'm not saying it's good, just saying it's a nice little surprise. The vocals here remind me of Jerry Only. This actually could be a song off one of the Only led Misfits albums. Kind of Rockabilly flavorings here.
5. Brand New Day: There isn't anything I'ven't said earlier that I could say here. Maybe the slower parts that are heavier are cooler, but nothing that is great.
6. Gonna Make You Sweat: Justin mentioned jazzy drums, so I was looking forward to this track. The past two or three days I've been tampering with tones and listening to Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Wes Montgomery, The Ventures, The Shadows and other kind of things that would be jazz or surf music. Well, there isn't anything overtly jazzy here, this sounds just like an Aerosmith track, or maybe a Guns N Roses track. I know what he meant, but my hope was just a mis-communication.

Overall I have to give this EP a 4/10. These guys are a straight Steel Panther the thing is they aren't youthful and they probably won't ever change their sound. Also if they don't change a little tiny bit on their debut album I won't probably even take a chance listening to it. Sorry, if you want to check them out go on Spotify before you put up $5 for this ep. There isn't anything slightly revolutionary about this band.

Oingo Boingo EP

This is their self titled Ep released in 1980. It was produced by Michael Boshears and Jo Julian and released on I.R.S. Records. And thought this isn't from 2014 I am going to use this as a building block for my next album.... kinda. Well I thought I should do this before I do Only A Lad and you know that's their debut album.

1. Only A Lad: I'm going to be honest right now, I think that I prefer this verison of the title track from the 1981 Debut album. The production on this I think may not nessicarly be better I enjoy the sounds here. It also reminds me a little of The Forbidden Zone soundtrack. That and Edward Scissorhands is my two favorite things Danny Elfman's composed, you know like the score and stuff. This is so quick and  actually longer than the album version. I also love the guitar tones here. The "choir" part you know the "Society has made him go astray" sounds way cooler robotically than it does on the album. This sounds very clowny and just the tones on this track are beautiful.
2. Violent Love: This song, thought a cover, is one of my favorite songs ever. There isn't any other version, other than possibly their rerecorded 1988 Boingo Alive version of the song, that can even stand up next to this bad boy. This is a cover of a song that Willie Dixon wrote and was actually recorded at one point by Muddy Waters. The voices in the intro sound like Iggy Pop, and this is like a song that should make Ska a genre taken more seriously. I mean, yeah the lyrics are hilarious, but everything about this track from the vocals, to the guitar tones, to the production to the horn solo just make this song a prefect candidate for my favorite songs of all time. This reminds me of Good Lovin' in a way by Grateful Dead, but it's much better and not as boring upon repeated listens.
3. Ain't This The Life - 10" EP: If I'm correct the difference between the 10" and 12" is the drummer and the length. Not a big time difference, but still. This track.......... the harmony and the vocals and the every which way about this song screams to me. I'm infatuated with this track. And the fact that on their debut release, not the Demo EP or the 1976 single You Got You Baby Back (they were The Mystical Knights of The Oingo Boingo) this is great and makes anything after this live up to it. I still love the debut, but this is tough competition.
4. I'm So Bad: This sounds like an outtake from the Forbidden Zone, well it doesn't have a bunch of different singers, but Squeezit The Moucher doesn't either. While I don't think this track is as good as some of the others here, I still like that it's dark in contrast to the other tracks. I mean they all were, but this is darker sounding and more moody than the others. This also appears on the Demo EP from 1979.
5. Ain't This The Life - 12" EP: This sound quality is a little more foggy here, it's also 9 seconds shorter. The feeling on the 10" is what I perfer, but this is also crazy and probably more silly sounding. This is only included on the 12" and cassette version of the EP.

Overall I have to give this EP a 9/10. The Ep is a great beginning for a great band, and I just love this. I'd pay how ever much to get my hands on this vinyl copy.

Kiss & Kill - Le Butcherettes

This is the, I believe, debut release by Le Butcherettes. This was released in 2008 and I'm just gonna do a quick review for today. Why not, this things like under 20 minutes right. So here we go.......

1. Feminist Politics: This song starts out with an electronic drum beat. It also features a woman talking in Spanish.
2. I'm Queen: This song starts out with a punk riff. This is relatively simple and reminds me of The Runaways or The Slits (I like the latter way more). It's a good song and I enjoyed it.
3. The Problems Hide In Our Backs: This is just the two girls talking. This reminds me of the G.T.O. album. The way that they would have tracks where they just talked, and the sound quality of it too.
4. Kiss & Kill: This has another solid riff that reminds me of One Way Or Another, but with variations. I actually like this song more than I'm Queen. This song is a little more catchy and guitar sounds great. 
5. Last Tear: This opens with a telephone conversation in Spanish then the song starts. The lyrics are obviously tongue-and-cheek. They are actually kind of funny too.
6. Honey Honey: This is a bluesy song. For some reason I am not getting bored of this song. Possibly because it's short, but still.
7. For You're Bleeding: This is probably my favorite song on this Ep, it's the funniest song on here, but it's also the best. I think the pitch wavers in the voices are pretty funny. This is a fun song and hopefully the next song will be good too. It's also the longest track too. This ends with a sound that sound's like a rappers gonna come on pretty soon, but the singer laughs and coughs.
8. Six More: This is the last song on the EP, and by this point there isn't really anything here on this song that isn't anywhere earlier in the album.

Overall this thing gets a 7/10. It's short, and doesn't really get overbearing because of that. I also like the kind of, what some would say as "filler". I think it's pretty funny and gives personality to the Ep you know what I mean.

The Modern Age - The Strokes

This is the first release by The Strokes. This precedes Is This It and features "demos" of song that would be rerecorded for their debut. Kinda like on As I Lay Dying's split album, going on to Re-Record all those song for different albums. (Note: This paragraph was written before school, and the review was done during school, and the summary was just now).

1. The Modern Age: Now, I do like this song. I think that I might like this ones a little more.This band has a garage band/Alternative vibe to it. Lot's of times those types of bands have a DIY vibe to everything. The solos are cool, I like the way it is double picked. I also like the start stop feel of the riff. I like Julian's vocals, on songs like Reptilia, but I also like this one too. I also like the kind of "jams over" stop thing they do at the end of the song. It just ends. 
2. Last Nite: I also like this version more. I don't know if this is a thing. Like liking the rawer sounding versions of songs. A good example is, though it's not really other versions of the same songs, but Nirvana. The sloppy, raw grunge vibe off 1989's Bleach. Another example is Soundgarden's two slops from the 80's. Maybe it had to do with the money reasons, but I still like those and the sound more. This version sounds more DIY. And I like it because of that.
3. Barley Legal:  Quite possibly my favorite Strokes song, either this or Reptilia or the MGMT vibe of Machu Picchu. The verses are pretty solid but on top of that I love the chorus. I don't know why, but that kind of hooked me on the band. Actually I have Is This It and Room On Fire coming in the mail, and they should be here with Bowie's Zeit on Monday.

Overall I have to give this album a 8/10. This is short, but it's also great. Since it's short it doesn't get very redundant, and it is able to keep my interest. If you have any interest in this band at all you might want to hear this before you even hear their 2001 Debut classic.

Exquisite Corpse- EP - Warpaint

this is a band that formed in 2004 in Los Angeles. I remember listening to the first I heard Elephants. That song, along with the video, remind me of those late "Summer Nights". The ones where I listened to Faith No More and Mr. Bungle. It also gives me that good feeling that I got from, this will sound ironic, summer school. I felt like that was a new family for me. It was fun, but it stinks getting up. I do kind of miss it though. Enough info crap and back to the review. This is for realz holmes and now to the review. PS I'll fix the album cover later. Doing this on my iPod. Also note to self this was uploaded at 12:37pm

1. Stars: This song starts out with a feeling that reminds me of the Foo Fighters. With the exception that it's a girl singer. The song in particular that comes to mind is The Pretender off the 2007 album, whose name I can't think of but if you knew those Foos you know what I'm talking about. The drums and bass through the entire track remind me of that. The song then changes a little way into it and it turns into a Zeppelin sounding guitar with vocals from girls. The second half of this song remind me of that breakdown of the lie version of Since I've Been Loving You {7/10}.
2. Elephants: The video to this song is a welcoming one. I love it so much. This has like a magical feeling to it to where it's hard to explain. I don't really know how I can explain it. This is a very psychedelic song and has awesome guitar finger picks. The distortion to the guitar and vocals is awesome. The drums an the bass are so clear. The drums are sick and they just add to the song. This song is so clean and clear and easy to hear everything. There is a part where the girl's voice sound like its underwater. At that same part the guitar cuts out and it's just bass and drums going with her voice. The part where the song slows down and then just ha this feel of building up. Orgasm, because it goes back to the beginning. {10/10}
3. Billie Holiday: This song is ok. I don't think that it's the best song on this album, but I do think that it is neat. This song is an acoustic song, that with headphones, sounds better and more pretty. The drums in this song are a little quieter in this than the last track, but they still are sick sounding. This drummer on the Ep is really cool style of drumming, at least I think. This song is a love song and could be a love song that I could see someone having in a movie after the lead lost their love interest. There is this synth that sounds like strings. In the ending they have one of those two different people singing two different things. That is followed by two acoustic part that was in the whole song an is goes into like a distorted underwater sound kind of. Then is goes to the fade, and tw0 track fades in and his this cool feel that it comes back in. This is a really cool song {8/10}
4. Beetles: This song reminds me of Elephants, but it doesn't. This is a cool sounding song like Elephants but it has a more clear almost Undistorted feel to it. The bass and drums are more loud than the guitar. The song goes into a breakdown and during this breakdown the song has this type of pretty arpeggios that are accompanied by drums and bass. That ends and it's sole guitar playing what sounds like Greensleeves. After that a synth comes and gives it this more emotional feel to it. Then come the drums and after that the vocals. That part kind of reminds me of the breakdown in Since I've Been Loving You off the legendary live album The Song Remains The Same. After that it goes into this other kind of sounding Led Zeppelin feel. They pull it off like pros. I really enjoyed this song {9.7/10}
5. Burgundy: This song starts with sole bass and drums and then the vocals. There is the guitar that sounds like it is waiting in the background waiting to attack. This song seems like it is a tiger, so to say, and is waiting to attack. This song progressively gets louder and faster. It has this slow fade in feel to it. The most of the track sound like it is still fading in. This is really cool and I like that that the way it was produced. The instrumentation impresses me like a mofo. I can't believe I enjoyed this so much. This is a really sick song. The song then sounds like it begins to fade out to acoustic arpeggios. {9/10}

Over all I would have to give this album a 8.6/10. I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I would suggest this album to anyone who in interested. This is a good Ep, and from what I understand the album is better. Can't wait to do that one. I think that this is neat, especially since I poked out the Led in there. Ha ha ha ha… I am hoping to get this, one day, on Vinyl and CD too, if that make that. That would be sick. Oh yeah one last thing I'm doing one tomorrow but after today the daily reviews is going to end and I will upload them as I feel. But the weekend ones will still be there. I'm hoping for, excluding the weekends, three a week. So yeah, that's it

Through The Rough - Merriment

This is the debut Ep by the band formed by Christie DuPree and her brother Colin. They are the siblings of the Elsley band members. The first releases was credited to Christie DuPree. I haven't really given her a chance. So why not do this now and review it today. I hope it's good because my favorite song off the Eisley Christmas Ep thing was her cover of Oh Come Emanuel. I recently saw these guys, along with Eisley on July 10th, 2012. They were way better live than on the Ep. So I'm re updating the albums review.

1. I Give Up: This is the first song that I heard of the Ep and I didin't like it. I gave it a couple tries and spread them apart, but I can't get into this song. And it only gets harder from here on out.
2. Blessed Soul: This song sounds like Stacey singing someone who can't really write music's song. There is also a country feel to it, and it isn't fun.
3. Through the Rough: This song kept up that overall boring vibe I get from this Ep. It isn't a fun listen.
4. Rewind: I am completely serious, I fell asleep to this song. That's how good I thought it was.
5. Sunday Morning: This song went over my head. I just didn't like it, I couldn't pay attention

Over all I unfortunately give this a 3.5/10. I wasn't interested in this and probably will be timid to check out anything Christie does like this again. After relistening to this, and having their live performance I hav to give this a 6/10. When you see them live you gain a new appreciation for them. Not a live video, a live performance.