Mae - Singularity
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Free Music Notes for Singularity
Free Music Review: What Could Have Been the Best CD of the Year
Hit: 4 Stars
mae's previous CD, "The Everglow" was one of those few albums I got into from the moment I put it in my player. It was and still is in my opinion one of the best musical productions to ever grace my ears.
And then comes "Singularity," the follow-up album riding on the bigger saddle of a major record company named Capitol. Upon first listening to Singularity I thought to myself, "What is this?" It didn't sound like Dave's vocals, the guitars were harder and the piano seemed all but gone. Did I skip mae and buy some other CD? No, it was the right one.
While not as epic as The Everglow, Singularity still manages to pump out some well-crafted songs that, while they don't all flow together as well as it seemed the last record did, still manage to impress. If you were looking for another concept album with vacuum packed airtight streamlined music, you found the wrong CD. However, if you're looking for a good cd from a great band, you may just want to buy this cd. Songs such as Crazy 8s, Just Let Go, Release Me, and Home make this worthy of a purchase, even if not every song on the CD is as good as the next as it was with The Everglow.
Bottom Line: If you're a fan of mae, the style of music they play, or just want to experience a mood you may have never felt before, pick up this CD and give it a listen. Chances are, you'll like it.
Free Music Review: Mae's Singularity
Hit: 5 Stars
Mae's Singularity is distinctly different from its previous two albums, Destination: Beautiful and The Everglow. It provides us with a better look at Mae's ability to be a more guitar-driven rock band, much like they are live. However, it also provides a few of the slower songs that made D:B and The Everglow so good, such as Home, Release Me, On Top, and Reflections. All around, a good listen.Free Music Review: Getting Better, certainly
Hit: 4 Stars
Having fell in love with Mae the moment I heard This Time Is The Last Time, my expectations are for songs that really grab your attention. Destination:Beautiful, while flawed, contained amazing songs that all had a different catch to them. The biggest problem on that album was that the way that the other songs had to stand in the shadow of tracks like Sun, All Deliberate Speed and Embers. Still, the album is easy and fun to listen to and I've gotten any number of people hooked on that album.
Then came the Everglow. I had a much more difficult time getting into this album. The grooves just weren't there. Vocally, some songs were weak as they seemed to be forced to fit the concept of the album. I remained patient and eventually the album drew me in. The classic Mae touch to each song was on there . . . generally occurring in a bridge. These moments definitely showed that the band could pull out some tricks and create a great sonic attack that leaves you yearning for the moments to cover the entire album, rather then resting in each bridge. Still, it's better to have moments than nothing at all.
And now we have Singularity. And I can't be happier. There is definite growth on this album, if you can't tell simply by the up-front and in-your-face guitars on most of the albums tracks (SST, Rocket, Sometimes). This album sounds like Mae has finally written songs that kill when you see them live. Before, they seemed to come through better on a CD.
While I haven't had too much time to let the album to sink it, I have already found myself humming tunes and singing random lines. As the band have stated in interviews, they're an average rock band with a great keyboardist. I would have agreed with that . . . before this album. The rest of the band has come to rock. The keyboards don't add the same layering of sound as we're use to hearing (though it does pop up in that way in a few songs; see: Home), but instead the keys add melody, but in a much more driving way, I'm thinking, in order to keep up with the pace of the songs.
The songs on here definitely demand your attention, but a lot of times, I find that they fall short of capturing that "aha!" feeling from before. It's an interesting combination of a band growing and moving away from what I had thought made them great. The album is still good, don't get me wrong, but it does have its flaws. Every song has a bridge. Every song. The formula begins to wear after a few listens.
But if I drop my pretension and just listen to the album, I'm quite happy. This album rocks and is a much more cohesive album than Mae have put out before. All the elements have come together for the entire album, instead of for small moments in each song. In that way, Singularity is the perfect name for this album.
Recommended tracks: All. None are bad. You'll find something here . . . and it probably won't be what I like, or he likes, or she likes. That's what makes Mae, well, Mae.