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Today I will be reviewing End Of Silence, by a Christian Rock band named Red.
Sound://This band is almost like a Christian version of Linkin Park, without the hip-hop and turntables. Being a fan of Linkin park, to me, this is a pretty good band. Most song on this CD are longer, due to piano intros or outros.
Singer Micheal almost reminds me of Scott Anderson (Finger Elven), and at times sounds like him when he yells/screams as well. And when he sings, Mike has a really, really nice voice, and sound good with a theater like band behind him.
*Just a quick note, this band is not "screamo" or anything, Mike only yells/screams occasionally...
Guitarists Anthony and Jasen can make up some cool riffs I.E "Breath into me" Nothing really special about the bass, and drum players, Randy and Hayden, with the exception of the cymbals sounding amazing on this album.
Well, since this band is really obscure, I thought I would try and promote them, as they are a great band. Anyway, I saw the video for "Breathe Into Me" once, on Much Music at like, 1AM. The video is nothing special, but this is one time when staying up late really payed off :)
Lyrics://Well, this is a Christian Rock Band, so this definitely means that there are no negative lyrics whatsoever on this album, but I will still quote some good lyrics from this CD.
In "Let Go" this is a lyric that means something: "I don't wanna be afraid, I don't wanna run away, I don't want to be evaded it's more that I can take" This has lots of meaning to it, and this is that he wants to be stronger, or run away from his fears.
This will be a long quote, but it was so good, I had to put it all. " I tried so hard thought, I could do this on my own I've lost so much along the way then, I'll see your face i know, I'm finally yours, i find everything i thought i lost before" See? Generally uplifting lyrics.
Impression:// See, before this, I thought Christian rock would be like, all pop style with lyrics like "Yeah yeah yeah, I love god, god is great" type of thing. But this band showed me, that you don't necessarily need to sound like that to be "Christian Rock"
01. Intro (End Of Silence) - Umm... yeah ?/10
02. Breath Into Me - This is the song that got me into Red, and at this point is still my favourite song on this album. Very good instrumental, I mean, in the chorus, there is an orchestra in the background, which sounds so cool. Not to mention the awesome lead riff. 10/10
03. Let Go - This song is more, sort of, alternative sounding, and to me strays away from the CD a bit. Excellent chorus, great lyrics though, and still not a bad song either. 8/10
04. Already Over - This song starts out with a piano intro, but the singer makes sorta a whiny voice in the verse, like some sort of sissy band. But, he sounds better in the chorus. Definitely not a favourite of mine. 4.5/10
05. Lost - The song, starts to get good at around 30 seconds, and then it's sounds a lot like a Linkin Park style song. This song's instrumental is...OK. But the lyrics are superb. 8/10
06. Pieces - This is a slow song all the way through. Good lyrics, good instrumental, gives me chills by the time the end of the song comes around. 9/10
07. Break Me Down - This song has a violin that really stands out at the beginning, which in combination with the chords that the guitar is playing, sounds great. 8/10
08. Wasting Time - From the intro, you can tell this will be AWESOME! And the impression the song makes at the beginning, is of course, correct. This song ROCKS! 10/10
09. Gave It All Away - This song really reminds me of Linkin Park, or even Papa Roach, because of the rapid stuttering. Well, it's hard to explain, but you would know what I meant if you heard it. 8/10
10. Hide - The song almost seems to begin, sort of, majestically, then goes on well from there. This song gets stuck in my head so very easily. I love it. 9/10
11. Already Over Pt. 2 - I personally think this song is just, meh. That's all I have to say... 5/10
If you like Hard Rock music in genereal, you will probably like Red. Regardless of the Christian bit.
If you have never heard of Red, which few people have, you may like them if you like some of these bands: Antimaniax, Linkin Park, Papa Roach, Three Days Grace an/or Sick Of Silence.
For my first review, I decided to review a fairly new album from the band Rise Against entitled The Sufferer & The Witness.
Sound:// First off I would like to say that vocalist Tim McIlrath has a very distinctive voice, you will not find an other singer who sounds like him. One thing I love about this album, is that no two songs sound the same, which is a very good thing. On the guitar is Chris Chasse, who is a new member in Rise Against. He has some pretty cool riffs on this CD, which fits the music very well. On Bass, we have Joe Principe, who shows off some of his bass playing skills in "Bricks". On the drums, is Brandon Barnes, who has some good beats, not bad in my opinion.
The first single off this album was "Ready to Fall". A song about animal, and environmental cruelty. The video for this song fits perfectly. It shows the way people don't really think about the harm we cause to animals, and the environment. There are two versions of the video, one of which was too graphic for television.
The second single from this album was "Prayer of the Refugee", which shows how superstores such as Wal-Mart and Costco use foreign labour to manufacture some of their products. In this video, there are scenes of the band playing in a store such as Wal-Mart, with short scenes of children manufacturing items such as shoes.
Lyrics:// Rise Against mainly writes lyrics about Human & Animal writes, and politics. The lyrics on this album are very strong lyrics, and have lots of meaning. For example in "Drones" Tim sings "The drones all slave away, they're working overtime, They serve a faceless queen, they never question why". Obviously about forcing children to work, when they are very young.
An other good example is in "Bricks", Tim sings "...And when our children fight our wars, while we sit back just keeping score" with such a strong voice shows you how cruel some parts of the world are.
Impression:// This album makes a very good impression on you. It's fast paced, loud, and meaningful. Full of catchy riffs, most of these songs will probably end up stuck in your head after only one listen. One thing that is really cool about this CD is that each song blends into the next, to create a cool effect.
01. Chamber the Cartridge - As soon as the song begins, you know this album will be something special. The intro leads into the song well, then blasts off from there. This song gives you a good taste of what is coming. Good start to the CD. 9.5/10
02. Injection - Chris Chasse's guitar riffs in this song are wonderful. From the beginning to the end there is excellent guitar playing. Tim's yelling is perfect in the bridge. Not my favourite song on this CD, but nonetheless, a good song. 8/10
03. Ready to Fall - For some reason, i can't seem to get used to the intro, it just doesn't seem to fit the rest of the song. In the verses, the use of only a bass, and small amounts of guitar really sound good. Very catchy chorus. 10/10
04. Bricks - This is a very, very fast song reminiscent of older punk bands. I give Chris props on his guitar playing, because this is very fast chord playing. Brandon does a good job on the drums, keeping a nice rythem. 10/10
05. Under the Knife - Cool intro on this song, but I do not like this song as much as I like their other stuff. 7/10
06. Prayer of the Refugee - Probably my second favourite song on this CD. It has it all. Meaningful lyrics, killer bass lines, and some wicked guitar playing. I personally love the main riff in this song. I love the way Tim sings in the chorus, sound awesome. 10/10
07. Drones - Branson's drumming is excellant in this song it sounds so good at the beginning of each verse. This song is decent, and would be cool to see live. 9/10
08. The Approaching Curve - This is my least favourite song. I mean, this is supposed to be a song, not a time to listen to Tim talk. Good lyrics, but would be better if sung. 5/10
09. Worth Dying For - This song gets you right into it, very fast paced, very punk like, and lyrics that talk about obtaining peace on earth and protecting wildlife. 9/10
10. Behind Closed Doors - Starts off with "Chairs thrown and tables toppled" It is a cool song, where the bass line stands out a lot during the verses. Stellar riffs on the guitar. A very cool song that I can listen to many, many times. 10/10
11. Roadside - This is the only slow son on this album, and it rocks! You can hear what Tim sounds like when he sings calmly, and he's pretty good too. Guest vocals from Emily Schambra of Holy Roman Empire gives you goosebumps. 10/10
12. The Good Left Undone - I personally don't find anything special about this song, but there is a catchy chorus. 7/10
13. Survive - Very fast song, with excellent performances all around. This is my absolute favourite song on this album. It stands out, and ends the album very well. 11/10
Some bands that sound like Rise Against are : Thrice, Strike Anywhere, AFI, Strung Out and Alkaline Trio.
Overall, this is an excellent album, and I definately reccomend it to anyone who likes Rock music.
--Jacob
