A Jealousy Issue If the Flames Don't Kill Us
* (1 / 4 stars)
(Indianola Records) Metalcore
Who would've known 30 minutes could feel like an eternity. With a total of nine songs - the last being a Wake Up Dead cover - recorded at Studio 13, A Jealousy Issue is pure disappointment, both musically and lyrically.
Repeating, "You'll never forget us," about five times before the start of the song makes the listener want to forget. Tiresome power chords echo throughout the whole album and recall the sound of an amateur high school band.
Instead of each track being separate and original, all the songs seem to blur into one long ode of bellyaching growling. Although the band attempts some melody in the fifth track, "Burning Butterflies," there is an awkward pause, followed by constant shrilling.
Consisting of ex-band members from Poison the Well and Keepsake, A Jealousy Issue definitely does not live up to its "ex" status on this album. It should've been short and sweet; instead it's long and overdone. The one star out of four is given to the album cover artwork.
- DEBBIE KANG
U2 "go HOME: Live from Slane Castle"
(.5 / 4 stars)
(Interscope) Rock
It's been a long and painful descent for U2 ever since 1991's "Achtung Baby." The band's downward spiral into bloated, trite arena rock is disheartening for those infatuated with the classics of "War" and "The Joshua Tree." Bono is more preoccupied with his messianic complex, general and intentionally vague activism ("War is bad, starvation is bad"), as well as his self-appointed position of praising the recently deceased (Joey Ramone, Johnny Cash) for the personal gain of hearing himself speak.
That said, "go HOME," U2's live DVD, is a frustratingly stale and painful two hours and 12 minutes. Shite anthems aplenty, but the 80,000-plus Irish fans eat it all up. But "go HOME" has a few surprisingly redeemable tracks, namely in "New Years Day" and "One," but the annoyance and disappointment of all U2 tracks post-'91 make this disc a chore I wouldn't wish on my worst enemies.
- COSTA CALOUDAS
Bayside "Sirens and Condolences"
*** (3 / 4 stars)
(Victory Records) Rock
Watch out, it's yet another promising band emerging out of the Long Island, N.Y. scene: Bayside. Recently signed to Victory Records, the band is named after the alma mater of the characters of the classic TV sitcom "Saved By the Bell." However, Bayside is quite a bit darker lyrically than its light-hearted name might suggest.
With song titles like "Talking of Michelangelo" and "A Synonym for Acquiesce," you can tell that Bayside is more intellectual than the typical screamo band. The vocals and lyrics of "Sirens of Condolences" are similar to the dark and often morbid style of Alkaline Trio.
Bayside will probably not be played on most radio stations anytime soon, but the band could see the kind of growing buzz that helped bands like Thrice and Brand New break on radio.
Check out the Victory Records Web site (www.victoryrecords.com) to download free mp3s of "Masterpiece" and "How To Fix Everything."
- JORGE DEL PINAL
DrugMoney MTN CTY JNK
** (2 / 4 stars)
(Hybrid) Rock
DrugMoney's debut, "MTN CTY JNK," will grow on you.
Initially, lead singer Fisher Meehan's voice stands out and seems to clash with the upbeat sound of the keyboards and acoustic guitar. His voice is like Kurt Cobain's ragged grating, without the punch.
On the second time through, you realize it's not bad, just different. It's something we haven't heard since, say, the early '90s. There is a truly Collective Soul-meets-Foo Fighters sound that resonates throughout the album.
On the third time through you realize that the mellow tracks are the album's forte. They are effectively written and eloquently performed.
Overall, the music smacks of attempted '90s alternative revival. Nevertheless, DrugMoney shows promise for the future and presents a revitalizing step back from today's infatuation with pop-punk.
"MTN CTY JNK" will be available in stores Jan. 27.
- LISA LEONE
Hurry-Up Offense The Labor Day EP
*** (3 / 4 stars)
(Independent) Punk
"The Labor Day EP" from Hurry-Up Offense takes Biggie Smalls' "Juicy" to the punk level. Hurry-Up Offense (H-UO) ingeniously takes its inspiration for the first track, "Punk Life," from the notorious rapper's account of his rough life on the streets. The band uses the original refrain, "Don't let them hold you down/Reach for the stars," but replaces Biggie's accounts of his "gangsta" upbringing with the band's own punk-related memories.
Not only has Hurry-Up Offense improved hugely from its first two albums, but it colorfully confronts society's ills and the need for self-motivation. "Knock Down," the second track, provides inspirational advice for today's pop-punk youth, while "Think Out Loud" encourages independent thought. "The Labor Day EP" is more serious than Hurry-Up Offense's first album, "We Pick Up Where You Left Off," and the music is more controlled than the fast thrashing of its second album, "Donald Moore."
Hurry-Up Offense is from New York City and is currently touring with Washington's Army of Me and Cordalene.
- LISA LEONE
Premonitions of War "Left Of Kowloon"
** (2.5 / 4 stars)
(Victory Records) Metal
If "Left Of Kowloon" doesn't blow you three feet backwards from its first double-bass blast to its last, then you never listened to it.
On its third release and first for Victory Records, Premonitions Of War further establishes itself on the brutal end of the metal spectrum. Featuring a discordance and cacophonic chaos as its most significant musical qualities, "Left Of Kowloon" is not a record for the average listener.
In place of melodies, there are only crunching guitars and pummeling drums. Instead of choruses, there are next songs. Essentially, "Left Of Kowloon" is Deadguy's "Fixation On A Coworker," only instead of those mythical breakdowns, Premonitions Of War devotes most of its time on perfected 60-second full-on assaults, with the two exceptions being the mammoth "Black Den" and "Cables Hum Overhead."
Warning: This is not for the faint of heart.
- ALEX KARGHER
