Some 2009 releases please, surprise and disappoint fans

The Boy Who Knew Too Much
MIKA

Ivonna Thompson

Solo artist Mika returns with his sophomore album The Boy Who Knew Too Much,  selling approximately 25,000 – 30,000 records in its opening week.          

Of Lebanese decent from the United Kingdom, Mika is said to be the next Freddie Mercury by many critics. Even comparable to fellow Englishman Elton John with his strong falsetto and intricate instrumentals that have fans raving about his music just like his predecessors.            

Even with this new album Mika’s vocals are still the same when he gives listeners goose bumps. He still has the ability to convey how serious he is in his music when he lowers his voice in the songs, “Rain,” “I See You,” “Lady Jane” and “By the Time.”       

Album opener and first single off of the new album is “We are Golden.” Originally the name of the song was supposed to be the name of the new album, however, Mika decided to change it.       

There are an array of instruments used throughout the album such as the piano, electric guitars, bass guitar, drums, symbols, clarinets, flutes, keyboards, violins, horns and anything else a listener can think of. Mika has no limit when it comes to producing organic music and using the right instruments to please the ear.        

The opening piano handclap bass drum combination in the second single, “Blame it on the Girls”  make the listener want to groove, get up and dance to the track. Opening up with a dialogue in which Mika is describing a man who seems to have it all, but he is still unhappy with his life. Mika then sarcastically says what to blame the man’s problems and issues. Since he did not have much to be bitter about in life.         

“Touches You” is similar to “Love Today,” except the instruments have a slower tempo. “Touches You” has the deliciously catchy chorus in which Mika sings, “I wanna be your brother, wanna be your father too/ Never make you run for cover even if they want us to/ I wanna be your sister, wanna be your mother too/ I wanna be wanna be/ Whatever else that touches you.”         

“Toy Boy” also has an interesting touch with its opening of a sweet and innocent clarinet yet it does tell a story of a controlling lover. It also tells the tale of how miserably the “toy boy” fails to break free from the clenches of his obsessive and compulsive lover, yet the instrumentals seem to be able to prevent the listener from becoming too melancholy.   

There are both new and old touches Mika adds. His maturity shows, but we still know that it is the same artist that fans love. No doubt Mika has been successful selling approximately six million copies of his debut album Life in Cartoon Motion. Now returning with The Boy Who Knew Too Much, Mika is not stopping his journey of success any time soon.

Brand New Eyes
Paramore

Brian Rentas

Within the past two years, Franklin, Tenn.’s Paramore faced a large amount of success — a platinum-certified album, Riot!, a Grammy nomination, a sold out tour and a great surge of popularity-- as well as several downfalls, culminating in a near break-up last year.

After nearly a year of patiently waiting, Brand New Eyes, Paramore's third album, one of the most anticipated albums of 2009, has finally been released, ushering in a new era of music by the famed pop-punk band.

Fans will immediately notice that this album's sound is a complete departure from Riot! and debut album, All We Know Is Falling. Showing a hard-earned maturity within the quintet, Paramore is quickly proving that this album may be their best yet.

Brand New Eyes was surrounded by high anticipation after being announced earlier this year. Fans quickly realized that this album’s writing and lyrics would primarily stem from the inward fighting that caused the band to cancel several dates of their European tour with New Found Glory in February 2008.

This cancellation almost immediately sparked break-up rumors, especially after the band released a statement saying, “There are a lot of internal issues that have been going on in this band for quite a while now.

"We were able to fight through all of it for this long but unfortunately we weren’t able to keep it together long enough to make it through ’til the end of this tour...” Due to this, listeners are treated with an inside look of the relationships between the five members of the band.

Upon first listening of this album, any fan will notice how much this band has grown up since Riot! The lyrics written primarily by singer Hayley Williams, with help from guitarists Josh Farro and Taylor Yorke, stem heavily from the events that caused the almost break-up of the band right at the peak of their popularity.

Songs like “Careful,” “Playing God” and the lead single “Ignorance” show a side of the band that many listeners may not be used to. “Playing God,” with a somewhat moderate tempo, blasts Williams’ feelings to an undisclosed member of the band. “You say that I've been changing, that I'm not just simply aging/ Yeah, how could that be logical?/ Just keep on cramming ideas down my throat.”

The song “Turn It Off” showcases Williams’ fear of losing faith in God and those she has believed in throughout her life, lamenting “The tragedy, it seems unending/ I’m watching everyone I looked up to break and bending/ We’re taking shortcuts and false solutions/ Just to come out the hero,” continuing later with “so on the way we’re working/ Towards a goal that’s not existent/ It’s not existent, but we just keep believing.”

A definite highlight of this album would be Williams’ vocals, which are at their prime. She is able to transcend vocal flourishes with little to no arduous work. This young woman, who is only 20, is an extremely talented singer and this album just furthers this point. “All I Wanted” and “Brick By Boring Brick” are two songs that particularly promulgate her talent with the microphone and they should not be ignored.

With deeper exploration of the 11-song album, listeners will realize that each song varies from one another in terms of general sound, and for the most part, completely sets itself apart from All We Know Is Falling and Riot!

Guitarists Farro and Yorke, along with bassist Jeremy Davis and drummer Zac Farro — Josh Farro’s younger brother — worked hard to deliver a sound that is different from their two previous attempts, yet some songs seem to wander a little too far from the track.

For example, the all-acoustic “Misguided Ghosts” seems to feel quite more at home on a Regina Spektor album rather than a Paramore album, while “Where The Lines Overlap” and “Feeling Sorry” draw upon more indie-rock influences.

Due to this difference in sound, some fans may be turned off by this album, while many others will cherish it because it is no longer the monotonous and generic pop-punk mantra that many bands try to copy and fail.

This sound may take a little while to get used to, but in the long run Paramore may appeal to more fans because of this somewhat unique sound.

Brand New Eyes is an album that hundreds of fans eagerly waited for and during this dormancy their anticipation went unquenched.

Without a doubt, this album will not disappoint a great majority of Paramore’s fans and that majority will proclaim this album the best so far. However, there will be a small minority that may be disappointed by the great departure that occurred in the sound between Riot! and Brand New Eyes.

Yes, this album does take some getting used to and no, it is not more of the same pop-punk sound that Paramore has been known for, but it is definitely a great album and without a doubt will be on top of many “Best Albums of 2009” lists.

Thank You For Saturday
The Furious Seasons

DJ Hopson

On Oct. 1 The Furious Seasons released their second album Thank You for Saturday.
With only a year in between albums (The Furious Seasons, 2008), the band’s folk-pop sound shows a continuous love affair with the acoustic guitar and breathy lyrics. 

Produced by Scott Taylor, the band has been trying new forms to get recognized such as Facebook fan pages and a new Twitter account which recently said, “Playing a huge party in Venoce on Sat in a backyard I feel so high school.”

Brothers David and Jeff Steinhart started their career in the 1980s with Pop Art, but after five accomplished albums they disbanded. David tried his hand at gathering others to form Smart Brown Bag and succeeded in putting our 10 albums.

The new album is in loving memory of John Glogovac (1958 – 2008) who gave his talented drum skills to Smart Brown Bag and lost his battle to lung cancer in 2008.
So when the idea to create The Furious Seasons came to mind – consisting of David Steinhart on the guitar/vocals, Jeff Steinhart on bass, Ray Chang on violin, John O’Kennedy on array of strings, Bob Gannon on drums and more contributing to background vocals  – it seemed as if failure could not be an option.

But it was, every song sounds the same, every guitar rife is the same. Yes, the band started in the 1980s, but it seems as if they decided to nest permanently there. They are stuck on the guitar strokes that made them famous. A simple 10 song album was their product. The sound is something that should be featured in the background of an Indie film with mellow cords and tight harmony.

The violin in the background is misplaced. Maybe the intention was to make The Furious Seasons classier, but instead you are guessing when the strings will stop and silence will come around.

The Furious Seasons’ lyrics are a sadder version of what Elvis Costello would sing. There are no reasons to want to get up and dance or even wait until the first stanza is over. In the track “Where are you?” they sing about smoking on a day bed, refer multiple times to someone or something named Jackson, hopefully a dog and revealing how dependent they are on one another. The lyrics just don’t make sense.

I would even pick The Replacements over The Furious Seasons. At least The Replacements have some passion behind their words. Yes, the lyrics are simple, but there is a power behind the vocals and The Furious Seasons are dead pan boring.
They sing “I can’t drown you out/ And I am so sick from trying/To drown you out” from their track “Drown You Out”. Well fellas, I’m just as sick of trying to drown you all out too.

A Message to Garcia
Visqueen

Kim Bui

Visqueen’s third album A Message To Garcia, gives audiences a peek into the world of front woman Rachel Flotard. Caught between the worlds of New Jersey and Seattle, Wa. Flotard and Visqueen present a pop-punk album that will keep you wanting more.

A Message To Garcia revolves around Flotard’s father, George E. Flotard. Passing away in 2008, Flotard remembers the great hardworking ethic he exemplified. Even naming her record company after the company he worked for long ago, Local 638, he still very much remains in her life.

"He was our unrelenting hero for 35 years and never let us drop. These songs are my friends. I wrote them through a long ride of self-conscious anguish and joy. They are braided with sunny, ubiquitous problems and snare drums. They reflect the part of me that wants to be happy and make out with Bad Company,” said Flotard on Riotactmedia.com.

First track “Hand Me Down” opens with fast guitar riffs and pounding drums as Flotard’s voice eases into the song. Instrumentals build up with her escalating voice as she sings “Boy you give me love/ Come and get your love.” Ending just as the song had started, riffs and drum beat finish the song with a bang.

The piano segment in the next song “The Capitol” creeps in and is a pleasant surprise to the full instrumentals of the song. The use of violin and piano throughout the album adds an eccentric sound to the rock based songs.

“Forgive me,” starts slowly and  builds up as the song continues. Steady guitar begins as Flotard’s voice flitters into the song at a whimsical pitch with chimes as steady drum beat join. Though still very powerful, Flotard’s voice switches to a softer tone, almost anticipating the albums end.

Flotard’s vocals juggle between whimsical harmonies to powerful notes that she carries out in all of the songs on the album. Each has a personality of its own. “Fight For Love,” features handclaps that make you want to clap right along with it wherever you’re sitting. “Janitor’s Waltz” has the same affect where finger snaps close the song, making you want to join in as well.

Visqueen’s third album has a very unique sound and although pop punk is how they may come off, a little bit of folk can be heard here and there.

A Message To Garcia also features Neko Case, John Roderick and Jon Rauhouse. With a fast pace throughout the album, Visqueen’s sound mirrors that of rock band Be Your Own Pet and legends Cheap Trick in a way. Passion and love, the basis of the album echoes through Flotard’s voice and powerful lyrics.

Flotard and Visqueen definitely “delivered it,” with this album. A Message To Garcia will leave hooks and guitar riffs stuck in your head as you continue on with your day.