ASHES dIVIDE - Keep Telling Myself It's Alright
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Free Music Notes for Keep Telling Myself It's Alright
Free Music Review: Good SoLo Effort!
Hit: 4 Stars
Did you guys read the Editorial Review... & the Product Description?
That's nuff said about the album I guess.
So My review about this album will not be long, just a few points to note..
SOUND: U guessed it, almost like listening to APC if you don't see the singer!
PRODUCTION / MIXING: Superb!
ARTWORK: Superb!
SONGS: The songs could mistake anyone for APC, Though there are a few songs, that could take you by surprise! But lyrics are not as deep thought as Maynard, still a good listen. My favorite track is Forever Can Be, one which I listened to everyday everytime for almost a month, & @ one point it was even my phone ring tone, heh!
Overall, this album is a good listen, one that will grow on you in time, & make you fall in love with it. Mostly it shows how talented Billy Howerdel really is on his own, which alone is a statement & a big F*** You to all the Haters!
Free Music Review: Don't Be A Square
Hit: 2 Stars
When Billy Howerdel formed A Perfect Circle, he wanted a woman to sing the words. He got Maynard Keenan of Tool. That might have been a mistake, and possibly a regret in Howerdel's book at this point: Keenan's distinctive voice drew the support of droves of Tool faithful, but with the Tool faithful came the assumptions that A Perfect Circle was a "side project of Maynard James Keenan." With expectations set high by the brilliant and unique guitar riffage present on 2000's Mer de Noms, A Perfect Circle's follow-up Thirteenth Step failed to make the same impression outside of a spare few tracks. What it boiled down to was that they had essentially become a Tool side project at that point, sonically if not in fact.
"Keep Telling Myself It's Alright" is Howerdel's long, long-awaited new record, ostensibly free of the influence of Tools. This time around, he's taking the Reznor approach and doing all the heavy musical lifting himself: composition, guitar, and vocals. Can he stand on his own two feet?
Not for very long. While Howerdel's much-lauded skill in creating guitar-borne survives in spots, nothing here is immediately gripping like the spidery, harmonic-laden riff of "The Hollow"; the attention-demanding power chug of "Judith"; or the whisper-sung, electronic jungle catharsis of "Thinking of You." Unfair to judge the output of one band against another? Perhaps, but like a hard drug, classic A Perfect Circle haunts the dreams of thousands. We collectively breathed a sigh of relief at the debut of that band's cerebral brand of hard rock, much needed at a time when Limp Bizkit and Papa Roach leeched radio airplay.
"Stripped Away" is a passable opener and one of the better Ashes Divide songs, but its simplistic, bastardized Eastern riff still comes off rather one-dimensional in the end. It's the combination of evolving instrumental interplay and a suckerpunch chorus that makes first single "The Stone" the head of the pack---that, and a vocal melody that doesn't strain Howerdel's admittedly paper-thin voice too far out of his range. The rest of the tracks mostly fall short of expectations: "The Prey" sounds like a purloined Queens of the Stone Age riff; the morose "Denial Awaits" is a perfect example of why Howerdel should continue to hide behind a more capable vocalist, if these are the types of songs he has stored up; and "Defamed" is just way too... happy sounding and bland modern rock for comfort.
Perhaps it's simply a case of rediscovering sure footing. Mer de Noms exhibited the results of years of playing roadie for top acts like Smashing Pumpkins, Faith No More, Nine Inch Nails and Tool while recording ideas in secrecy on the side.
As the old saying goes, "A lifetime for the debut, two years for the follow-up." Keep Telling Myself It's Alright feels rushed and unfinished---if it all crackled with the fiery energy of "The Stone," or better yet, some of the songs Howerdel thought up while he was only allowed to tune guitars on stage, it would probably have landed a spot on more best of lists. Unfortunately, it's little more than a disappointing mess of barely-above average stadium rock.
Free Music Review: great album
Hit: 5 Stars
every, and I mean EVERY, song is good to amazing. If I had to choose a favorite, right now it would be the Sword. It was Forever Can Be, Ritual, Enemies, Too Late, Stripped Away. This is definitely my favorite album of 2008. Billy's got a great voice, this album deserves more recognition. Free Music Review: A new level of brilliance from Billy Howerdel
Hit: 5 Stars
The first song I ever heard from ASHES dIVIDE was The Stone, but listening through the album for the first time the song that jumped out and instantly became "mine" was Enemies, it simply wraps you up in sound, creating a whole new world for the listener.
In total ASHES dIVIDE has made a rock solid album, lead on by Billy Howedal's amazing vocals. The strings and pinao opening of the Sword is beauiful, and the lyrics are of the kind that makes you stop and listen.
Currently touring the USA, we can only hope they will move over to Europe too eventually. I highly reccommend you buy the album and take part in the new leve of brilliance from Billy Howerdal.
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Free Music Review: Great effort from a very talented muisian!
Hit: 4 Stars
I first heard this band just before going to an STP show that they were opening up for. When I first heard the CD prior to the show, I wasn't very impressed, dismissing them as an acceptable opening band.
After hearing them live, and listening to the CD a few more times, this album really grew on me. The songs really have some depth, both musically & lyrically, and each time I listen to them they just get better.
Anyone dismissing Billy Howerdel's first solo effort as weak follow-up to A Perfect Circle, or saying that it's not as edgy as that effort clearly hasn't listened to this album. Billy has done a great job on vocals within the context of the music, and it's unfair to dismiss his vocal abilities compared to Maynard's (VERY FEW people could compare to that in this genre of music). Take this for what it is without comparing it to anything else: a great rock album with some real substance.
I can't wait till ASHES dIVIDE starts working on their next one!