Alright, as can be seen in my last two posts, I absolutely love Van Halen!!!!!!! Since I have already done a lot to preview the new album, I will just jump right in and cover all the songs that I have not yet discussed in the previous 2 posts.

The second track of the album is "She's The Woman". This song dates back to an old demo, and was a fan favorite before their debut album. The new version of this song is quite catchy featuring some wah-wah from Eddie, and Wolfgang gets to show off his bass skills for pretty much the first time. Alex holds the beat down well, although this song is not as impressive as some others later in the album. David Lee Roth sounds good when he doesn't try to hard, and the lyrics are fairly friendly to sing along to. To sum up, this is a great radio song and would have made a terrific first single for the band. So far in concert, this has been one of the staples off the new album.

The third song is "You and Your Blues". This song reminds me of a later Sammy Hagar track, although the guitar is a little crunchier. This song is not bad, although in perspective it comes off a little bland. It comes off as a mixture of every Van Halen style to date, which is like mixing every color of paint together and coming up with brown. This is harsh though, because the song manages fine and would have also been a decent single as the back-up melodies were quite catchy, and it has other moments of classic Van Halen bliss. The only real down side is during the chorus when David Lee Roth reaches for notes outside of his vocal range. This is one of the few songs that does not date back to any known demo.

The next track is the burning "China Town". Alex Van Halen is a monster and this song is a testament to that. The entire 3:15 minutes is spent with pounding double bass drums and ridiculous fills. The part of the song that works the best though is the chorus in which Wolfgang drops up and down with slides on the bass and Eddie comes in with some wah-wah guitar melodies. David Lee Roth's lyrics describe the struggle of life in the big city and the violent atmosphere. The first line "Headless body in a topless bar"pretty much sums the song up. This is another song that the band has been playing live, surprising since it features absolutely mind-blowing musicianship from all three Van Halen's.

The sixth track "Bullethead" dates back to an old demo. This song reminds fans of classic hard-hitting tracks such as "I'm The One" and "Atomic Punk". Although brief, this song grabs the listener by the shirt collar and doesn't let go until they have wet their pants! A great track for the fans of the heavier side of Van Halen with screaming guitars, lightning drums, throbbing bass, and wailing vocals.

The seventh track "As Is" is probably the best track on the entire album. The beginning is very reminiscent of "Everybody Wants Some!!" off Women and Children First. The main guitar riff was first heard on an episode of the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men about two years ago when Eddie Van Halen made a cameo. As fun as it was to see Eddie on TV, fans couldn't quite comprehend the magnitude of this song until experiencing it with the entire band. There is simply nothing wrong with this song, and it does not sound like a bunch of sixty year olds hobbling around, this song could arguably go head to head with any of the young musicians recording today.

Following that is the experimental, but intriguing "Honeybabysweetiedoll". This song begins with radio frequencies fading in and out before rumbling bass lines and squealing guitars slowly flood the airwaves. Although this song is very dark and out there, it is very entertaining and hard core fans as well as guitar enthusiasts will find it enjoyable. The drums are quite primal and are a lot of fun to crank up extremely loud. Typical tongue in cheek lyric work by David Lee Roth, but actually can be one of the catchier songs on the album after a few listens. This is the first time Eddie Van Halen has every used a Whammy pedal in his effects and it provides some very interesting sounds. Some believe this to be a remake of the old demo titled "Act Like It Hurts" the comparison is a bit of a stretch, but is entirely plausible as the band could have easily changed the song up quite a bit.

A lot of classic rock fans are enjoying "The Trouble With Never" a classic funk filled gem. This song features a ton of wah-wah from Eddie, which is not expected based on his history, however it works out very nicely. The guitar playing is very reminiscent and probably an homage to one of Ed's favorite guitar players Jimi Hendrix. The vocals truly keep this song in check as David Lee Roth doesn't try to hit anything out of his range and the back up's are spot on. The lyrics are also quite intriguing and kind of make the listener think a bit.

"Outta Space" the tenth song on the album is a reworked version of "Let's Get Rockin'" a fan favorite. The song was so great to begin with that there was not anything that need to be changed, and the only thing that was was the lyrics. David Lee Roth's new melodies are not bad, although the originals were probably a little better. Also the space theme does not really fit with Van Halen's usual schtick, they are typically a "party time lets get the girls and the party started" band, and the fictional space theme seems a little out of place. Although this song is still a big hit, especially the guitar solo and the way it wraps up. This song would have made a decent single, a little on the heavy side, but not enough to bother the masses.

The twelfth song is the tune "Big River". This is a new version of the classic "Big Trouble", similar to "Outta Space" the only thing changed was the lyrics. This song is pretty much old school Van Halen, catchy guitar chords, with a nice little vocal melody shifting to a great chorus hook. This song is sure to please a wide range of fans as just an all around solid track. Definitely nothing to complain about here.

The last song on the album is "Beats Workin'". This is a reworked version of "Put Out the Lights" an old Van Halen demo (my personal favorite). This time around with a new intro and breakdown which are improvements on the song, but there are also new lyrics and melodies which are difficult to adjust to when you know the old version so well. However the music is much better this time around, big fat guitar, with that "easy going good time" melody that everybody loves. And of course don't forget the COWBELL!!!!! All in all this is a runner up for best track on the album and it is nice and long to draw out the bitter sweet ending of the new Van Halen album.

Well, for all we know it could be another 28 years before the boys, well... experienced rockers, put out another album, but this one was sure worth the wait. Unfortunately in today's music scene, the album was beat out for the number one spot on the billboards, but for a band that made it big in the 70's, to have an album debut at number two 30 years later is very impressive, and deservedly so.

A Different Kind of Post!

This week was a landmark week, with Tuesday marking the release of Van Halen's first album with David Lee Roth in 28 years. Unfortunately since the album is so fresh, I need another few days to digest the 13 explosive tracks on the album before discussing them in a post. With that said, I will preview the album right here and now so that next week I can get straight down to business.

Van Halen was a wildly influential band, and as can be seen in the previous post, has a wildly tumultous history. For this post I will simply explain the bands history with original singer David Lee Roth, as this album seems to pick up where the band left of 28 years ago. Their first (and widely regarded as their best) album was Van Halen in 1978. This album was so important because it not only contained some of the wildest and most unorthodox noises and melodies from guitarist Eddie Van Halen ( see On Fire, Eruption, Atomic Punk, I'm the one) but it also included catchy melodic tunes (see Feel Your Love Tonight, You Really Got Me, Runnin' with the Devil, and Jamie's Cryin'). This album is widely credited for changing the ground work for guitar players everywhere, but found success by being friendly to listeners who weren't so musically inclined.

The next album Van Halen II was written in about a week. Part of this was due to the fact that some of the songs were songs that the band had written before their debut album. This is noteworthy because their is large controversy over the band's use of other unreleased material on their newest album. Van Halen II follows much of the same pattern of the first album and was recorded within a year of their debut.

The third album Women and Children First, is yet another landmark album, yielding many hits. This album though was a little darker and more experimental than the first two, although on virtually any given Van Halen album there is atleast one track that can be considered quite unique. The opening song "And the Cradle Will Rock..." is the first official Van Halen song to feature Eddie Van Halen on the piano although it is disguised to sound like a guitar. Most of the music on this album does not seem to hail from older material, but it is impossible to know for sure. For those who aren't a fan of typical Van Halen music, the final two tracks (Could This Be Magic?, and In a Simple Rhyme) are two of my favorite tracks, even though their styles contradict most other Van Halen work.

In 1981, Fair Warning hit. This album is cherished by many fans as their best, and possibly darkest album. The guitar playing on this album is fierce, although their are a few songs (Push comes to shove, Sunday Afternoon in the park, and One foot out the door) that contain very little if any guitar. However, between those songs are some great grooves and insane guitar licks.

Diver Down is a heavily underrated album by Van Halen fans. It is loathed mostly because it contains 5 cover songs, and three instrumentals in 12 tracks. However songs such as Little Guitars, Cathedral, The Full Bug and Hang 'em High make this an essential album for any guitar player or Van Halen lover. It is important to note that Hang 'em High was a reworked version of the unreleased song titled Last Night.

Then cam 1984. This album was a major success for Van Halen both commercially and critically. This album contained the popular hit songs that are still famous to this day. This album also marks the beginning of Eddie Van Halen's exploration into the realm of keyboards. While this album is good, it is not my favorite as most of the album can be heard on the radio and it is quite short. House of pain can be traced back to old pre 1978 demos.

Next week I wil review the new album and include some exciting videos of the new songs and their older counterparts. Also coming soon are new albums from bands such as Aerosmith, Joe Walsh, Bruce Springsteen, Slash and many more, so be prepared for a huge year!

Prepare for the Mighty Van Halen!!

Van Halen has been rocking the world since the 1978 with the release of their eponymous debut album. Since then they have gone through immense success as well as extreme turmoil. The height of the bands success came in 1984 as their run of immensely successful albums with original lead singer came to a close and the band seemed to split up. They seemed to have found an adequate replacement when they hit the scene again in 1985 with front man Sammy Hagar leading the band. Slowly but surely the bands popularity declined, possibly due to the changing times, although most blamed it on Sammy Hagar. In 1996 the band once again broke up leaving the three members alone without a singer. For three years, one album (that most view as a failure), and a lot of touring, the band attempted to fill the front man role with Gary Cherone, previously of Extreme. Unfortunately, this was not a good match for either parties involved, and they parted ways. Now after 28 years the band is ready to release a new album with original lead singer David Lee Roth.

The new album, entitled A Different Kind of Truth, is a landmark in the band in so many ways. First off, as stated above the album is the first in 28 years to feature lead singer David Lee Roth. Also note-worthy is that it is the first album to feature Eddie Van Halen's son, Wolfgang, behind the bass due to irreconcilable. I can say first hand that I have seen Wolfgang perform live on the 2007-2008 David Lee Roth reunion tour, and he is fantastic. As a bass player Van Halen alumni Michael Anthony was not known for his playing, he was known for his high pitched back-up vocals. Well as far as musicianship I have to say that Wolfgang surmounts  Anthony tenfold, and when I saw the band live the back-up vocals harmonization (which the band is somewhat known for) were absolutely phenomenal. 

Also recently released was an acoustic recording of the band's classic Kinks cover "You Really Got Me". In this live "stripped" there is now way to artificially replace the back up vocals which were definitely up to the high standard that has been set! If even mildly interested I would check this video out to silence any of the nay sayers. 

The next goody that has been released by the band to date is the lead single and music video "Tattoo". Upon first listen this song has caught many listeners off guard. After all this time people really didn't know exactly what to expect. Personally I was not exactly in love with the song the first time i heard it, however, each time I listen to it I enjoy it more and more. The vocals are not bad, but after the years David Lee Roth is simply not able to scream and yell like he used to, some listeners may have trouble adjusting and accepting this. The drums are not too fancy or up front, but they are solid and much less cheesy than the drum pads Alex used during the 80's. The bass is not as up front as some of us might have hoped, but there is certainly nothing to complain about. Lastly, Eddie van Halen sounds fantastic on the guitar, nice crunchy guitar tone and he really gets to let loose on the solo. There has been some controversy about this song and the fact that the music is a reworked version of their old club (and never before released) song titled "Down in Flames". In regards to that, many, many, many songs that Van Halen has released over their entire career have been based off of old songs from the surplus that they had written prior to their first album. Personally I think it is great that they are trying to capture the spirit and music that they used to have when they were young, the songs so far have a youthful energy which is excellent considering the dark and tumultuous relationships experienced by the band in recent years.

The next song to have been released is the track "Blood and Fire". This is another rework of an unreleased tune, this one from 1984 titled "Ripley". This song is very pop oreinted with a classic mainstream Van Halen vibe such as a "Little Guitars" or "Dance the Night Away" happy light-hearted feeling. The guitar tone is very reminiscent of more recent Van Halen work (in the last 15 years) and is very clean as opposed to the crunchy dirty "brown sound" Ed was said to have in the "classic era". The vocals aren't bad from Dave, although some listeners may have been expecting something heavier from a tune titled "Blood and Fire". The bass is lively in the sample so far from this song, although what I know from Wolfgang is that he has a lot more talent to be expressed later on. Alex sounds so classic retro Van Halen on the drums this time, really takes fans back to the good old days.

The third and final sample available thus far is my personal favorite "Stay Frosty". This is a blues oriented rocker with similar musical formula to Van Halen classics "Take Your Whisky Home" and "Full Bug" and most of all "Ice Cream Man". In fact many fans are calling the song "Ice Cream Man Part 2". The song begins with excellent acoustic guitar and Dave's good if not a little too speedy lyrics. Towards the end of the sample is when the treasure chest opens and the band floods in and unleashes this unrelenting battle ground of noise that could only be created by three men, nay three gods, with the name Van Halen!

Until February 7th this is what I have to offer the hungry Van Halen loving masses. Enjoy, and Stay Frosty!

The Great Escape Artist - Jane's Addiction

Formed in 1985 Los Angeles, Jane's Addiction was a pivotal band in the turning point of the 1990's music scene. At a time when music was ruled by "Hair Metal" bands such as Poison, Mötley Crüe, Ratt etc. this type of music peaked around 1989 and when the 90's hit Hair Metal had become so big and so rampant that it imploded and out of this came such bands as Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Jane's Addiction. Their first album the eponymous Jane's Addiction was a live recording at the Roxy Nightclub, in attempt to capture the underground energy that they were known for. It wasn't until their second album Nothing's Shocking, released on a major record label, that the band garnered the respect that they deserved. The band encountered quite a bit of success with this album and continued with the same formula on their next album  titled Ritual de lo Habitual. This was perhaps their most successful album to this day, but after it's release and subsequent tour, the band broke up and went off to experiment with many solo projects, as well as guitarist Dave Navarro joining the Red Hot Chili Peppers for a while. Later on the band reconciled and toured successfully. Following the reunion tour, the band entered the studio in 2001 with renowned produced Bob Ezrin(Alice Cooper, Kiss). The outcome was the album Strays, which while not reaching the levels of it's predecessors was a very underrated album. It is understandable that after a decade the popular music scene had changed and Jane's Addiction wasn't quite what the masses were interested in. However Strays is still a very good listen for anyone who appreciates the band. Finally, after a few tour and substitute bass players including Duff McKagen (Guns N Roses, Velvet Revolver) Jane's Addiction has delivered their fourth major label album The Great Escape Artist. This album was recorded with the original band members with the exception of Chris Chaney behind the bass.

The first song on the album is "Underground". This is a good song to open the album with as it starts with typical vocals standing alone before the pounding bass riff hits the listeners hard. Navarro's playing on this song consists of a heavy use of guitar effects giving the song a very spacey and bold essence. Overall the song has a great groove lead by the slow but firm bass riff that ties the song together.

The second track "End to the Lies" is a very good follow up track. This song is lead by lead singer Farrell's aggressively infectious vocals. Perry Farrell has hardly sung this well since songs like "Mountain Song" off Nothing's Shocking. at the end of the first chorus Navarro has a very cool guitar interlude where he really expresses the frustration that can be felt throughout the lyrics and vocals of the song. This song, while dark, is a very good song to capture that specific "done with it" attitude that we all experience from time to time.

By the time the third track, "Curiosity Kills", comes on the audience thinks they are adjusting to the obscurity of Jane's Addiction; they realize that they are wrong. This song is very beautiful in it's own sort of way, as it is quite psychedelic and features keyboards and important backing vocals. Towards the end of the song it hits a very cool breakdown of bass followed by piano, then drums, then Farrell's lone voice. The song then picks up and finishes off with Navarro detailing with interesting guitar melodies.

The fourth track "Irresistible Force" was the lead single off the new album. I will admit that at first I was not completely thrilled with it as the single, but after listening to the song in the context of the album, it has grown on me greatly. The song starts again with a very entertaining bass riff accompanied by shuffling tom drum rhythms. Perry starts out practically talking into the microphone, but as the song builds the vocals build up along with it. The one thing this song lacks is guitar as Dave Navarro's tracks are very subtle up until the guitar solo at the end.

The fifth track "I'll Hit You Back" picks up as the album seemed to be slowing down. The song opens with the bass and drums in a very modern but tasty groove, soon Farrell joins in and the audience sinks in. After the first verse Navarro finally kicks it up with some distorted electric guitar building it up and leading into a very pleasing guitar melody. This song seems to have a very typical modern sound, but fans of Jane's Addiction can find peace in the aggression and life that can be found in the band's classic albums.

The sixth track "Twisted Tales" is exactly as it sounds. The song opens with bass melody, drums, and guitar arpeggios. When the vocals come in, Farrell is using effects to lead the audience into another psychedelic and offbeat sort of song. This song is not bad, it just does not contain any of the greatness to make it memorable.

"Ultimate Reason" is the seventh song on the album, and it provides a refreshing change to the formula of the first half of the album. The song starts with only bass and guitar drawing the listener in to be impacted by Farrell's voice. What makes this song so successful is that the drums don't come in until the second verse and the song picks up and Navarro's track comes out more.



The ninth song "Broken People" follows the same formula as the last track. The exception to this song is the keyboards combined with Perry Farrell's voice that truly make this ballad great. Everyone has experienced that e=feeling that they are broken inside and this song, this band for that matter is excellent at capturing that feeling. This is an example of Jane's Addiction doing what they do very best.

The final track "Words Right Out Of My Mouth" finally reaches the peak of energy that the rest of the album is lacking. Dave Navarro finally gets to play a funky riff of obscure chords that in my personal opinion is where he excels in this band. The bass although typical rock line, is very fun and keeps the steady energy of the song. The break down in the middle brings in some acoustic guitars which sound really cool, before picking up into a decent guitar solo. Throughout the whole song Farrell does a good job of not being overzealous and grinding(which his voice does from time to time), but rather complementing the already supreme music.

Jane's Addiction is definitely not a typical rock band, and anyone interested in that kind of music needs to look elsewhere. However, this band is like a fine exotic dish, that once in a while is a great taste to the musical palette. The one thing this particular album lacks is a really funky jam such as previous hits "Been Caught Stealing" "Wrong Girl" or "Idiots Rule". This album has some very deep and dark secrets that are truly written from the sound

Chickenfoot III - Chickenfoot

Chickenfoot is a supergroup composed of guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, the Red Hot Chili Pepper's drummer Chad Smith, and Forme Van Halen members Michael Anthony and Sammy Hagar (also a very succesful solo artist). As an avid music fan I am very familiar with most of their pre-Chickenfoot music and they are all excellent musicians. However, Chickenfoot is a fairly recent endeavor having only one album (released in 2009) prior to this one. Their first album was very much a hit, and was a great success for the band, and thus lead them into their latest release, the second album titled Chickenfoot III.

This album opens with the track "Last Temptation". This songis a fun one that the band truly lets loose on, which is their specialty being that they are made up of such supreme members. Unfortunately with the first song comes my first complaint on the album: J. Satch's guitar tone. I love Satriani and have never heard him have this type of issue, but somewhere along the line, his tone got muddied up. I can not tell whether this problem stems from the producers or engineers of the album or whether Joe was messing around with different sounds and equipment, but for most of the album the sound sounds like its coming through a wall of cardboard. It is such a shame because musically the guitar playing is well done, but the sound is very weak. None the less this is a very fun tune to start the album on, especially compared to some of the darker material on the first album.

The second track "Alright, Alright" is another succesful track that gives homage to truly classic rock bands such as the Rolling Stones. This is a little different style for Chickenfoot as a band, but each member holds his own and does justice to such a classic sort of sound. The solo section is a little bit of a departure from the rest of the song as Satriani lets loose, and the break down is quite different as well, but the song returns to form and wraps up succesfully.

The third track "Different Devil" is perhaps the deepest and best song on the entire album. The song begins with and acoustic guitar strumming, glittered with electrick guitar chords. The sound of the acoustics is a refreshing change for Chickenfoot who remained electric throughout the first album other than the bonus track. This adds another layer of depth and dimension to the band. Hagar sings his heart out and really comes through on this track, really pulling in the audience.

The fourth song "Up Next" is a fairly solid track. This is where Chickenfoot begins to falter (similarly to Last Temptation) this song has very exciting punding music, but is more fit for serious hard core rock. This is alright, but Hagar wants to have a lot of fun with the lyrics which doesn't add up with the tone of the song. The melody and music backing Hagars voice takes on a very serious and heavy tone while his lyrics are just kinda for fun. This doesn't harm the song horrible, it is ust a reocurring element in Chickenfoot's music.

The fifth song "Lighten Up" is a similar song to "Up Next". It certainly delivers with the pounding rhythm section and excellent fills by Satriani, clearly demonstrating his Van Halen influence. How ever teh vocals feel just a tad bit off, not catastrophic, but enough to feel slightly out of place. This is perhaps the best demonstration of Joe Satriani's guitar skills on the album as he rips through a blinding solo. Overally this song is fun and really gets the audience pretty pumped.

The next song is titled "Come Closer". This song deals with many heavy societal issues, and is a much deeper song than most of those on the begining of the album. While Sammy Hagar does a good job singing on this song, it just doesn't pick up or have enough to draw the audience until the beautifully crafted guitar solo in the middle. In fact in that solo Satriani works his magic giving the solo a sound similar to an organ, this gives the song a sort of gospel feel. This song is just so-so overall, in my opinion it is a little too melancholy.

Perhaps the most experimental song to date for Chickenfoot is "Three and A Half Letters". This song consists of Sammy Hagar reading letters from his fans asking for finanncial help during this recession. The chorus is just Hagar wailing "I Need a Job" over heavy rock music. While I respect the effort and attempt behind this song, it almost hurts that the music and singing is so unpleasant. If instead of simply reading the letters, Hagar had sung them a wider audience would appreciate the song. This song is very raw and real, pressing down the real world problems unto it's audience. The other problem I have with the song lies within its music video which, while showing the unemployed army veteran, shows an actor portraying him sitting on the couch playing videos and looking helpless and useless. It is note worthy that Chickenfoot has since used this song a lot to promote many charities and funds to help those in need.

The lead single, and eighth song off the album is "Big Foot". This song returns to the silly party attitude that Hagar and Chickenfoot are used to. As good as this song is, I would say that it probably doesnt trump "Lighten Up" "Up Next" "Last Temptation" or even "Alright, Alright" for the lead single spot. The main problem with this song is that the main guitar riff isn't that fun. Once the song gets into the verse, and the chorus it picks up and is much better, but the opeining and main guitar part is a little bit annoying.

"Dubai Blues" the ninth track off the album is a great groovy jam by Satriani, Smith, and Anthony. The music laid down by this song is just so that as long as Hagar doesn't try to dominate it or do anything radical there is no way to ruin it. The shuffle of the drums ad the subtle but smooth guitar just makes the listener want to move and join in the song. This is the kind of music that Chickenfoot should try to stick to; it sound like the kind of song that happens when a guitar, bass, and drums just get together and spontaneously create something, with some singing joining in to give the audience something to sing along to. Hands down this is the most fun song on the album.

The tenth track "Something Gone Wrong" is a decent track. While it is more interesting than "Come Closer" it is a slow song focused around mostly acoustic guitar. This acoustic sound once again works well for the band, however this time it carries a rather Eastern tone to the music. The lyrical material for this song deals with the injustice and hardship experienced in the world. Once again Hagar is attempting to reach higer ground with a deeper and more spiritual approach, but it isn't overly succesful. Audiences can enjoy a beautiful song, but they aren't going to ind enlightenment beneath this ones lyrics.

The final song is the hidden track titled "No Change". While Hagar once again tries to be prolific in this song he comes off as a ranting raving songwriter yelling at "the man". Apparently we have all been "lied to" and cheated by our government/society/etc. I do not wish to turn this blog into a political discussion group, so the main point is that this song is too serious to be fun. The music is bland and at some points grating, even though the musicians are obviously talented. Musically, the band just needs to stick to having fun and jamming rather than overthinking what they are gonna play.

Overall this album is very much up and down. There are some really good songs and some not so good songs, and virtually each one of them different. Chickenfoot is still a young band, experimenting and deciding what works and what doesn't work for them. Personally one thing I would be interested to hear from them is a cover song seeing as they all have versatile backgrounds and Hagar has recorded many impressive cover songs in his career.

Welcome 2 My Nightmare - Alice Cooper

Alice Cooper has been around since before the release of the band's first album, "Pretties For You", in 1969. Born Vincent Damon Furnier, he decided to name his band Alice Cooper in 1968, simultaneously adopting it as his stage name/persona as well. Thus was the beginning of a very long and complex career. An explanation of all the different albums and musical paths that Furnier took to arrive at his latest achievement would take days to complete. The most important background information to this album, was the prequel, Welcome to My Nightmare, recorded in 1975. This was a phenomenally disturbing album that combined a continuous narrative, with incredible songwriting that produced one of Cooper's all time biggest hits "Only Women Bleed". To summarize the story old throughout the album, it follows a deeply toubled protagonist named Steven, beginning with a voyage into his nightmares (with a superb use of Vincent Price's voice as "The Curator). The story follows Steven as he tries to survive the dark depths of his own mind, as he is schizophrenically conflicted with a childlike personality and a necrophiliac murderer of women. Througout the trek, Stephen imagines himself doing cruel and unspeakable acts to his wife, but in the track "The Awakening" the audience realizes as Steven realizes that he was sleepwalking and that he has murdered the love o his life. Perhaps the most chilling aspect of the story is that it is told from a first person point of view, and that Cooper embodies the character of Steven so well the audience loses themself in the narrative. Throughout his career, Alice has brought back "Steven" on occasion, but the story has always been left open ended. I must admit that as a diehard fan of the original Nightmare, I was very much anticipating the sequel and had very high expectations. The sequel was created partially due to the 35th anniversary of the 1975 original, and much has changed since then. One aspect of the new album is that Alice Cooper uses a lot more humor in his lyrics now, and is not as dependent on the gruesome and gutwrenching subject matter of his early works. The sequel, like most sequels, is more modern, more fun, and longer. I cannot stress how highly I reccomend listening to the original Nightmare, as it is not merely a musical album, but a life experience to follow the story. With that said, let us commence our disection of Alice Cooper's Welcome 2 My Nightmare.

The premier track on the album is titled "I Am Made Of You". Let me first say that I am not a fan of auto-tune in music. I feel that it takes away all the essence and creative freedom of a singer to truly express themselves. Upon hearing this song for the first time I was initially dissappointed by the modern sound. However, listening through the track from beginning to end a few more times, it is quite frightening and one of the closest tracks to the tone of the original album. This song isn't the greatest, but it has the Alice Cooper essence to it that chills the listener down to the bone, and it is a great transition into the sequel album. Side notes on the track include the inclusion of the piano melody from the eternally bone-chilling "steven" from 1975. Also, the guitar solo on this track is superb, and Furnier stated that it was one of the best guitar solo's he had ever heard from original guitar player Steve Hunter. As far as story goes, this song simply sets the stage for the story to come.

The second track is a fun one called "Caffeine". The subject mater of this song deals with the protagonist struggling to stay awake, in desperate frantic need of caffeine to protect himself from the horrors of his own mind. This song has clever and comical lyrics "A little speed is all I need" while at the same time delving into the scenario of the story. The song ends perfectly with Cooper wailing "gimme, gimme" over and over and over until his voice is finally slowed down as the character sinks into sleep.

The third song "The Nightmare Returns" is very similar to "Steven" from the original album, and even recycles the same piano melody. This song displays the personality of a frightened child who is terrified of his own mind and is tormented by the thoughts that await him. the second half of te song is mostly instrumental and meant for theatrical purposes rather than pare of the plot.

The fourth song is called "A Runaway Train". This song is a great Rock n Roll track, going back to the early Alice Cooper sound. The band is really free to explore their many dimensions. This song picks up speed as an introduction into the true nightmare part as the protagonist boards a train of men on the fast track to hell. Cooper plays with the lyrics beautifully in this song, having a lot of fun ("I'm sleeping in the graveyard, on the wrong side of the dirt") while also painting a clear picture of the story. This song ends in the only way it possibly could, with the train wrecking at its destination. Hell.

The fifth track is a vaudeville tune titled "Last Man on Earth. This song is a break in the story as the protagonist finds his way out of the rubble  of the trainwreck and sings about his new found freedom as he finds himself alone. Musically, this song is fun and different as Cooper ventures into the territory of such artists as Tom Waits and other bluesy jazzy, vaudeville artists. Once again, Alice Cooper has a lot of fun playing with the ideas and lyrics of the song, singing of how barbaric he may become now that he is all alone. The song comes to an end with an audience who has (unbeknownst to the main character) collected to watch and listen to his music. The laugh and clap mocking the amusement he has provided. The protagonist has now arrived in Hell.

"The Congregation" is the sixth track on the album. This particular song is a lot of fun for the listener musically, as it is one of the most exciting rock tunes.The pounding drums adaquately break up the song, while bluesy guitar fills provide the flavoring atop this catchy tune-sandwich. This song is sung from the point of view of the residents of Hell, and they explain and welcome the protagonist in as one of their own. towards the end of the song, Rob Zombie makes his guest appearance as "The Guide" and he explains the different rooms of Helll as they correspond to their separate inhabitants. A parallel can be drawn between Zombie's character and Vincent Price's character from the original, however Price was much more terrifying while Zombie has a bit more fun.

The seventh track is known as "I'll Bite Your Face Off". This song was the first single off the album, and it lives up to that credential, being a fun and exciting classic rock song. The subject matter of this song deals with the protagonist being seduced by a female that absolutely frightens him. He explains that he wants only to run and hide from her, but he is paralyzed by his lust mixed with his fear. The female takes control of him and throws him down on a bed, but rather than engaging in coitus, she explains that she is going to "Bite his face off". This song is not completely humorous, but only Alice Cooper could write lyrics that are so frightening and produce a song that is so much fun.

There are a few different interpretations of the eighth track titled "Disco Bloodbath Boogie Fever". One is that Disco is so completely horrendous that it lives on for eternity in Hell. Another interpretation is that even in Hell everyone gets into the disco fever. Either way, this song details a very unusual disco taking place in which there is much gore and many disturbing creatures letting out their barbaric side to the music. Musically, this song is so-so, kind of catchy, but it is disco. After a few listens it is not too bad of a song, but initially I was not crazy about the disco song. Overall the listeners will find this song hit and miss, but the guitar solo towards the end is very exciting as it features guest artist John 5.

The ninth song "Ghouls Gone Wild" is a ton of fun for all listeners. This song continues with the theme of party-hard spirit of the creatures of the underworld. At this point it seems that the protagonist is slipping into more and more of an animalistic state, and that he is quite enjoying this side of hell. The music of this song is a surf-rock type of theme and it stays snappy and keeps the audience in the groove. Background vocals on this song are provided by guest artist Mark Volman.

The true ballad of the album comes in the tenth track "Something To Remember Me By". As far as the stoy continues, this song finds the main character singing to a victims corpse. The lyics are not completely relevant to the plot, but this song has been adapted from its original conception back in the 70's. Musically this song is supreme, as the first slide guitar introduces the melody of Cooper's voice, tears begin to well in the audience's eye. Ignoring the context of the story, the lyrics to this song are absolutely beautiful, and Furnier tells a tale of truly unconditional love. Musically this song is similar to classic Alice Cooper ballads such as "I Never Cry" and "You and I" while lyrically it is more similar to the latter.

The eleventh track it the deeply disturbing "When Hell Comes Home". The song opens with dark depressing bass pounding setting the scene for the main character to reminisce on his gruesome childhood. This song explains how the protagonist watched his father continually abuse his mother, and how his mother tried to protect him and tell him "everything's alright". Eventually he snaps and says he is tired of always being scared and how he is going to put a bullet "right between his [father's] eyes". This song is set apart on the album as it is much more macabre, whereas the other songs on the album tended to me more humorous and playfully dark.

"What Baby Wants", the twelfth track, is an interesting diversion in the album. The sound of this track is much more modern including guest artist Kesha, assuming the role of the male-consuming demon from the earlier track, "I'll Bite Your Face Off". At this point the only real relevance to the plot is that, after the protagonist has had his tour of hell he must now offer up his soul in order to complete the whole ordeal. The music of this song is very modern and at first seems to abandon rock and roll. However once Furnier begins wailing and the electric guitars chime in, the listeners start to understand the direction of this style and they can get into the groove. This song is anything but typical Alice Cooper, but in a strange sort of way it works. Overall this song is fun and can be enjoyed by a much more diverse audience than other songs by Alice Cooper.

The penultimate track "I Gotta Get Outta Here" is one of the best, and strangest songs on the album. This track begins with the protagonist asking to go home, saying he gets the message and has learned his lesson. In the second verse he recounts on the various events that have taken place throughout his adventure. Lyrically, Furnier does a great job of being clear, concise, and extremely cathchy. The strange aspect of this album comes with the music and melody, it is truly quite upbeat and enjoyable, and the audience really feels enlightened by the humanity of the main character. Just as the audience begins to rejoice and relate to the protagonist a choir of voices blares out "What part of dead don't you get?!?!?" and the protagonist is baffled. At this point the audience can truly appreciate the Alice Cooper brand of humor. Although it is not certain whether this is a ploy to torment the main character, or whether he is truly dead as the ending is left open to the interpretation of the audience.

The final track titled simply the "The Underture" is a bit of a bittersweet gem. This track is an all instrumental medley of various songs spanning both the original and the sequel album. While much credit is due to the orchestra and band that executes these many melodies flawlessly, the audience must also note that this song shows how truly gifted Alice Cooper is that he can craft such incredible pieces of music on top of the lyrics and vocals that he sings them with. This song brings about the end of the album, and although it is a phenomenal recording it is a bit sad and lonely with out the main character. If this album were a movie or play, this song would certainly be played over the credits or final bows.

All in all, this album was a lot of fun and has a little bit of music for virtually any listener. I sincerely reccommend this to any Alice Cooper fan, or any fan of some good solid Rock N Roll music. While as a concept album, this cannot be compared to the original, and it shouldn't, it has been 35 years and much has changed. The musicians played their hearts out on this album and Alice Cooper did a fantastic job on every aspect of the album. Especially considering Halloween is around the corner I suggest to all readers that you race to your local record store and pick up both Nightmares because they provide a perfect soundtrack for a memorable holiday.

Born Free - Kid Rock

Kid Rock has been known throughout his career for many different things. Musically Robert James Ritchie (Kid Rock's birth-name) rose to fame through his unique brand of southern rap metal. After a three albums that did not find much success, Kid Rock had earned enough money to do a larger more produced album, Devil Without a Cause. This album was a breakthrough as it had a very grandiose and heavy sound from the heavy metal played by the band, along with Kid Rock flaunting his talents at writing lyrics. After the enormous success and attention of Devil Without a Cause, Kid Rock released The History of Rock, an album full of his older songs that he had rerecorded and improved with the larger budget, along with the smash hit "American Badass". Then in 2001 can the album Cocky. While this album was very heavy and hard like Devil Without a Cause, it showed a little more of Ritchie's southern influence. After the mega success of Cocky (especially the single "Picture" which was very popular with the country audience) Kid Rock ventured into a lot more southern rock with the next two albums the eponymous Kid Rock and the very sucesful Rock N Roll Jesus. While the hardcore fans enjoyed the rock and rap sound of Kid Rock's unique songwriting, his most commercially succesful songs were the deep rooted southern ballads that he wrote. As a result for his most recent venture, Ritchie discarded his usual foul-mouthed head-banging rhymes, for a more soulful and bluesy album. This resulted in "Born Free" a phenomenal album in all senses of the word, but something very different from what is to be expected from Kid Rock.

The first song is the single "Born Free" a beautiful ballad written about the American spirit. This song begins with a simple acoustic guitar melody joined by some piano chording. The song gains much of its essence from teh wailing of Kid Rock's raspy yet well tuned voice. The song becomes more layered at the chorus with electric guitars and more prominent drums, but for the most part Ritchie's voice and lyrics truly carry the feeling and meaning to the song.

The second track "Slow my Roll" is an up-beat and laid-back tune. The title "Slow my Roll" is humorous in reference to the titles and lyrics of past Kid Rock rap songs, but this song is still quite bluegrass. Even though the tempo increases on this song, it is still based in simple but layered musicianship coming from acoustic and twangy electric guitars blended with simple but driving drum beats. Ritchie's vocals hold strong through the second song and remind the audience to relax and enjoy the ride.

The third track "Care" is an interesting song. This song slows back down and deals with prominent issues such as world hunger, world peace, and other societal problems. Kid Rock explores his vocal range in this song and shows his more gospel and smoother side. Kid Rock features two guest singers on this song as well, first is Martina McBride who does a great job and harmonizes very nicely with Ritchie.  The second guest is T.I. who begins rapping in the middle of the slow peaceful ballad. While this represents a unity of univeral cultures and lifestyles (Men and Women, White and Black), the singing distracts the audience from the flow and rhythm of the song.

The fourth track "Purple Sky" is another powerful tune, similar to Born Free. The music is similar to the first two tracks with the electric guita being a littl e more prominent on this song and carrying more of a melody rather than simple chords. By the time Kid Rock begins the chorus the audience is already hooked and it only gets better as he pours his heart out into this beautiful and elegant love song.

"When it Rains" the fifth song on the album, and a little bit of a detour from the inspiring and encouraging first few tracks. Not to say that it is not a good song, it is just much more sad than the first few tracks. "When it Rains" deals with reminiscence of a time long since past, and is a great representation of the album, showing where Ritchie has come from. Kid Rock sings very well on this song once again and by the breakdown towards the end of the song, the audience is nearly brought to tears.

"God Bless Saturday" is an up-beat anthem for the working class. The song opens with a fun twangy electric guitar riff, leading to Kid Rock howling about the tough workweek. However when the chorus hits the band picks up and rejoices in the fun and excitement of saturday. This song is thematically targeted to show respect to the blue collar workers which make up much of Ritchie's audience. Thematically this song carries along with the rest of the album talking about working hard but enjoying and being grateful the good times that we have.

"Collide" is a very slow ballad with two guest stars featured. Kid Rock duets with Cheryl Crow once again, playing off of the success of their previous song "Picture" off the album Cocky. Kid Rock once again proves his range as he gets down and connects soul to soul with the audience with this heart-rending lament. Kid Rock and Cheryl Crow produce another great song about lost love. The other performer on this track is Bob Seger on the piano, Seger is a great influence of Kid Rock and perhaps this helped Kid Rock tap into his spiritual essence in his singing.

The eighth song "Flyin' High" is possibly the most fun song of the entire album. This song keeps up a slow tempo, but remains up beat. The feeling portrayed is the unwinding after a long day and enjoying the litte thing that are present at that moment. Instead of remembering a good time, this song makes a good time out of what and whom ever ever is present at that moment. After the guitar solo Kid Rock shares a verse with Zac Brown a famous country singer/guitar player who typically sings this style of relaxed and happy tune. No matter who you are where you are or whats happening, when this song is played it instantly produces a good time.


"Times Like These" is another song that brings back reminiscent feelings like "When it Rains". However, this time Kid Rock sings more about sitting back and enjoying the day you are in and living life to its fullest. Even though today may not be as good as yesterday it is still great to be alive and can be made into any number of great memories. The acoustic guitar strumming on this song is simple but once again accompanies Ritchie's vocals superbly.

"Rock On" is a slower song very much similar to a classic ballad by a southern rock artist, such as Lynyrd Skynyrd might record. Even though this is one of the most dismal and mournful songs on the album, it still has the essence of "Rolling on" and the spirit that Kid Rock has kept through the album to push through adversity and never give up.

The penultimate song on the album is "Rock Bottom Blues" a very fun throwback bluesy tune, complete with harmonica and clapping. This song starts off slow but determined with a straight blues driven rhythm guitar, and the then band keeps joining in and the song snowballs to a great jam session piano, singing, and guitar.

The final song "For the First Time (In a Long Time)" is a bit of an experiment for this album. Kid Rock uses falsetto singing on this track, a unique quality that is not present in most music. For the most part this song comes off as a shock from the unbelievably consistent album that surrounds it, however when this song is isolated and listened to on its own, it holds up. This song isn't neccessarily the strongest track on the album, and maybe not the best track to finish on, but if this song is considered the blemish it says a lot about the rest of the album.

From cover to cover Kid Rock truly explored a new musical genre and style, and left everything he had on this album. Ritchie proves his gift for writing truly legendary songs from chorus after chorus that makes you want to stand up and sing along, to the heartmelting emotions that he brings out in his ballads. This is an incredible album that anyboddy who enjoys music can appreciate.