AFI - The Art Of Drowning

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Free Music Notes for The Art Of Drowning

Free Music Review: AFI's best release
Hit: 5 Stars

2) The Lost Souls - One of my all-time favorite songs by AFI, this epitomizes all of the band's talents. It has a great drum-introduction, some nice, melodic guitar, and extremely catchy chorus, and a heartfelt mid-section/bridge. It's on-par with Totalimmortal, Days of the Phoenix and God Called in Sick Today as one of their best. (10/10)

3) The Nephilim - While not as good as The Lost Souls, this song is still catchy and fun to listen to. I think it deserved more than one verse, but oh well. Nice sing-along chorus. (8/10)

4) Ever and a Day - Another one of AFI's top 5, for me. It took me while to realize how much I like this song, but it's truly amazing when given the chance. It's slow and mellow compared to the previous tracks, but it has an amazing amount of power and emotion, plus some great songwriting. I especially like the first minute. (10/10)

5) Sacrifice Theory - Here's a fast, short, driving song that is good even upon first listen. The lyrics are cool, and the bridge section meets the usual AFI standard. It definitely gets better the more you listen to it. (9/10)

6) Of Greetings and Goodbyes - Great lyrics and chorus. I especially like the psychadelic-sounding guitars strewn throughout, and the tribal drumming-based bridge section. "Go kill the lights, we'll glow till morning comes." Very catchy, heartfelt chorus. (8.5/10)

7) Smile - This is one of my least favorite songs on the album, but it's still not bad. Very fast and very energetic, but doesn't have much to say for itself other than that. Clocking in at only a minute and a half, this one won't need to hold your attention for long. (7.5/10)

8) A Story at Three - A unique song to the album, boasting both an interesting structure with slow bridge section, fast, hard verses, and a catchy punk chorus. Lars from Rancid even recites one line during the bridge ("Oh, they sing to me"). An extremely enjoyable song to listen to, due in large part to the powerful bridge. (9/10)

9) Days of the Phoenix - This is probably my favorite song on the album, as it is simply great in every way. Though it isn't as hard as The Lost Souls or Sacrifice Theory, it has great melody and atmosphere. It's catchy and has a certain quality that no other AFI song posesses. Davey's voice doesn't even sound especially unique here, but somehow, the song is just incredible. (10/10)

10) Catch a Hot One - Along with Smile and Battled, this one of the hardest tracks on the album. However, I find it more listenable than Smile, probably because it has a catchy, melodic chorus strewn throughout to offer a break from the screaming verses. The lyrics are especially dark, even for AFI. ("Let's tap your heart so we can paint the walls and see if anyone likes the tone or the pain." (8/10)

11) Wester - This features one of the catchiest choruses of any AFI song, which is saying a lot. Full of pulsing guitars, and Davey's signature vocals. It's fast and fun to listen to, especially with the extremely well-written finale, piling Davey's powerful bellows over Hunter and Jade's calling background vocals. It makes for a very nice effect. (8.5/10)

12) 6 to 8 - The longest song on the album, and also one of the slowest. Does get off to a somewhat slow start, but the chorus is very anthemic and emotional. The closing guitar solo is also amazing, as it sounds like Jade's guitar is singing. That moment alone is one of my favorite parts to any AFI song. (8.5/10)

13) The Despair Factor - One of the hidden gems on the album, The Despair Factor reaches classic status by giving us 2 minutes of straightforward, catchy punk, and then slowing things down for the second half of the song, building to an amazing climax. This is one of my favorite songs by AFI, due in large part to the incredible dynamic polarity the song presents. (9.5/10)

14) Morningstar - The slowest song on the album, with an extremely intense climax. The song alone would be incredible, if it weren't for the all-out finale, with Davey screaming the chorus to Jade's supercharged guitar riffs. This is a very sad, moving song that compares to God Called in Sick Today. A great exit to The Art of Drowning. (9/10)

15) Battled (Hidden Track) - About ten minutes after Morningstar is over, you'll be presented with a somewhat silly little generic punk song. Definitely not the wonder "Midnight Sun" from Black Sails was, but nevertheless a kind of fun little surprise. The worst song the album, but I guess there's a reason it's hidden. (7/10)

16) Dream of Waking (Vinyl Only) - Though this song can only be found on the vinyl of The Art of Drowning, it fits together superbly with the rest of this album, and I'd strongly recommend all fans of AFI listen to it one way or another (whether through download or purchasing of the vinyl). It has a very interesting style to it, while also being one of the hardest, darkest tracks on the album. The lyrics are amazing as well. (9/10)

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