The way we Listen

This my current favorite, a beautiful ballad by Duran Duran… That’s right! Duran Duran is not just the kitschest electro-music band from the 80s!

I’m glad to see that, even if most of new rock songs are not that great, it is still possible to make very exciting discoveries… There’s so many beautiful songs that were written in the past decades and still remain unknown by most people…Listen to it and tell us what you really think!

We have all been waiting for that… and it should happen in 2008. U2 is currently working on a new album and hopefully will announce soon when it will be released.

I would just like to quickly remind you the information we had about this album over the last few months…

December 2006 : The Irish band closes the Vertigo Tour in Honolulu, Hawaii. This world tour lasted for almost two years (it was interrupted in the beginning of 2006 due to family problems with one band member).

April 2007 : First news ! The Edge states in an interview for ABC News that U2 is working on new songs, but they are not specifically preparing the new album. They just get in the music and play for hours… composing new songs without thinking of the obstacles that are brought with the release of a new disc (which song would be the first single? do we have to find a coherence between the songs?)

June 2007 : Several sources reveal that Bono and U2 are in Fez, Morocco, in order to record some material for the new album. They are working with Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, with whom they worked for a lot of albums (The Unforgettable Fire, The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, All That You Can’t Leave Behind).

August 2007 : Daniel Lanois reveals filmed footage from the recording sessions in Morocco, in his new documentary “Here Is What Is“.

December 2007 : In an interview with The Independent, Bono talks about the new album and how different the sound and style will be, compared to what U2 has done before… He talks about african music influences, as well as trance influences, and metal guitar riffs. The article says that the band is currently working on this album in South of France. This is one hard-to-follow story!

January 2008 : Daniel Lanois, about the new album, tells us that there is  a lot of innovation in the band’s music. Some Jimi Hendrix influences. He and Brian Eno are fully part of the writing and composing process.

So what can we expect? There’s a strong chance that in the following month we will hear more official statements from the band. Even the date of release. My opinion is that, like in 2004, they release the album in late 2008 (october, most likely), and will begin touring in 2009. Keep connected, as soon as I know something, it would be posted here !

According to french blogger Zegut, Led Zeppelin might be thinking of preparing a world tour in 2008… Jimmy Page announced in an interview in Tokyo that “the amount of work that we put into the O2 concert for ourselves rehearsing and the staging of it, was probably what you put into a world tour”. He adds that “Robert Plant also has a parallel project running, and he’s really busy with that project, certainly until September, so I can’t give you any news.”

Zegut also adds that a “great band” has booked the Stade de France in Paris on September 6th… Are both rumours linked? Wait and see…

Today is the 50th birthday of the LEGO brick! Maybe, like me, you spent hours and hours building structures and robots out of small colored bricks.

Here’s a game for you today Here are several LEGO rock stars! Will you be able to recognize which artists or bands are represented?

1. An easy one to start

2. Who’s this guitar hero?

3. And this band ?

4. Oooooh yeah 

5. A red and white duet…

6. Who’s this long-haired band ?

7. And this short-haired band ?

8. Just like the photo on their album

9. Oooh I’m so scared!

10.Hey! There’s one bald man!

11. Just for fun… 

Most of this work is done by Dunechaser. More on Brickshelf.

I really like rock band stories… especially how they managed to survive throughout the years, despite unfortunate events of all kind. In 1974, The british progressive band Genesis lost their singer and acclaimed leader Peter Gabriel, who left for a solo career. Back then, fans and critics were very doubtful about the band survival. But thanks to Phil Collins, who only was the backing vocalist and drummer of the band at the time, Genesis released a new album two years later, called “A Trick of the Tail”. After auditionning several lead singers, Phil Collins tried to fill in on vocals and finally remained the new frontman of the band : a successful intuition.

A Trick of the Tail is the first Genesis album with the new line-up. Like previous albums, this one came with its universe and its set of fictional characters.

1. Dance on a volcano introduces us to a classical Genesis album, but the vocal talent of Phil Collins is surprisingly high. The song has a traditional rock part and a progressive rock part, so that everyone gets what he wanted. To me it is by far the best tune of this album : tempo acceleration, great drums, excellent melody. (8.5/10)

2. Entangled begins with a kind of faeric guitar and melody. This song has a very catchy chorus and carries you in a 7-minutes journey to another world. (7/10)

3. Squonk is more like a rock tune, with an odd pattern that can stay in your head for days! It reminds me of their earlier work, but with more modern sounds. (6.5/10)

4. Mad Man Moon is very similar to Entangled : a tiny piano melody starts and you immediatly switch to a faeric world. Not as catchy as Entangled, but technically more exciting… listen to the piano solo in the middle of the song. (6/10)

5. Robbery, Assault and Battery … kind of a strange title! It’s a relatively fast song, with melodies and voice intonations similar to Peter Gabriel. The song also reminds some of Toto’s early work (especially the song Girl Goodbye). (6.5/10)

6. Ripples is another faeric ballad, although I find it even more catchy and beautiful. The chorus “Sail away, awaaaay” really emphasizes the newly discovered singing talent of Phil Collins. The structure of the song is really similar to progressive songs (I’m thinking about Dream Theater ballad songs : slow verse and chorus parts, then a completely different instrumental section, then the chorus). Can’t get it out of my head right now (8/10)

7. A Trick of the Tail is kind of a Beatles song, with an upbeat tempo. You can find aspects from both periods of the band, with really shows the transition between the Peter Gabriel era and the Phil Collins era. (6.5/10)

8. Los Endos… what a weird title too ! Like you might have guessed, this is the ending track of the album. It’s an instrumental track, like a recap of the album. It contains themes from every other song, mixed with a crazy drum beat. When played live, it used to follow the special drum duet performed by Phil Collins and Chester Thompson, Genesis’ tour drummer since 1977. (6/10)

In conclusion, this album is really a classic progressive rock album, it contains a lot of elements which are significant to progressive style. The overall theme is really faeric and carries you in another world if you just close your eyes. And above all you can see the transition between progressive rock Genesis and pop rock Genesis… all fans will be pleased! On the other hand, the progressive aspects and the faeric environment can keep away a lot of listeners, so I will mark this album 7.5/10.

Share your thoughts !

Here comes the summer… Another concert is scheduled in june… Quick! Listening to their albums before the date of the concert arrives… And then let’s take a break…

7. Listening to Genesis (June-July)

July 12th : we’re going to see Genesis in Lyon, France!! I have always been very impressed by Genesis and Phil Collins work. But my knowledge of Genesis music was very limited : 4 songs. Great songs but I wanted to discover more. Then I learned about the famous “Pre-Duke era” where Genesis music was much more progressive… I discovered a whole new side, and I became enchanted : I especially like Dance in a volcano, I know what I like and the whole double-disc album The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. I also learned more about the more notorious side of Genesis with albums like Invisible Touch… I really like the way they managed to mix up progressive music and traditionnal rock music. So, what are you waiting for? Go listen to these guys!

8. Genesis, live in Lyon (July 12th)

10 years of silence… And then they reappear! Genesis is back for a big reunion tour and cool they come to France, our country… What a show, one of the most incredible shows I’ve seen in my short life (I’m 22 years old :p). 2 hours and a half travelling all the periods of Genesis music. Progressive songs, “radio rock” songs, … they managed to please everyone. And the lights and video effects were incredible : we even got the pleasure to see amazing fireworks at the end of Invisible Touch. The DVD of the tour will be released in March 2008, so if you missed that, I recommend to take a look at the live DVD!

9. Instant Karma (June 12th)

In August, the non-governmental organization Amnesty International released a compilation titled Instant Karma : Make Some Noise, Save Darfur. The benefit album is part of Amnesty’s campaign to stop the crisis in Darfur. Several artists recorded cover versions of John Lennon songs and the sales benefits would help saving Darfur from horror. I found it a great initiative, a lot of great artists participated in this : U2, Green Day, R.E.M., Aerosmith, even Duran Duran ! Anyway, I hope you bought it because this is a small gesture that can save a lot of lives. Here you can find the official tracklist.

Let’s resume our restrospective on the year 2007. May and june were two “heavy” months!

4. Scorpions, live in Paris (May 14th)

Just when I was beginning to discover the band’s discography, I got the chance to go to one of their concert. And so I realized that they are still really probant. A 2-hour set in “Zenith de Paris”, no false move. Just a few lights, no video, just the band, and the music. Some of their tunes became even greater to me, like Holiday, Coast to Coast, or Big City Nights. The surprising event of the evening was the guest appearance of Uli Jon Roth, the first guitarist of the band. Moreover, I found the musicians very energetic, especially Rudolph Schenker and James Kottak. As a conclusion, I’d say : Yes, the Scorpions are still there!

5. New Dream Theater album : Systematic Chaos (June 5th)

Here is an album that I have been waiting for months… I am a really big fan of the band, I could not wait to hear their new compositions, to prove myself that they still are the ultimate progressive metal band… And it turned out to be true! As usual, you will need several listenings to really appreciate the quality. But I think that the achieved result is great : nothing to throw away, every single song has its own athmosphere. Here’s a small preview.

6. Aerosmith, live in Paris (June 19th)

Everything keeps rushing! As soon as the new DT album is really appreciated, here comes a new important event : Aerosmith is back in France, after a long time of abscence. This time we spent the worst day ever, before the concert… But what a great show! Steven Tyler, the band lead singer, is still very impressing despite his age (58) : a really torn voice, but always on the right tone… and full of energy during 2 hours. What a pleasure to hear live versions of excellent tunes like Crying, Dream On, Walk This Way or Sweet Emotion.