DUZZITROCK

_  A band that teased us with their EP (Last Days of Rome) then left us wanting for more for more than a year, Daytrader finally released Twelve Days, their first full length album. Heartfelt lyrics and infectious melodies, this is an awesome LP that I’m planning on buying (even though I got sent a free copy for review) just so I can support the band!

The opening track Deadfriends is probably my favorite track and by far the most recognized in my memory from listening to it so many times!

The first single Firebreather, at least to me, mixes modern day rock tunes and a classic rock sound and vocal style reminding me of Stereophonics (which isn’t classic rock but they definitely embody the sound).

The fast paced Firebreather lets off into a slower song called Skin & Bones. Though Skin & Bones is one of the less fast paced song on the album, it’s still rife with heavy focus on guitars competing with emotional lyrics that at one point quiet into an angst ridden voice singing “It’s a lie” over and over until going back into the chorus.

Overall they encompass a lot of styles including straight up rock, classic rock sounds mixed throughout, emo, and even some more pop rock. The singer’s style is full of sincerity putting more weight behind songs that already make you feel. I like every single song and I’m excited to hear more from the band, I just hope they don’t make us wait so long again – then again, I’d rather wait and have amazing music than have another band peddling sub-par music in order to keep in pace with a demanding music industry.

_ This was my first year attending the Extreme Thing Festival in Las Vegas, NV. While I thought the lineup this year was quite good, I’d heard countless complaints about how the lineup didn’t compare to past years. One of the main issues I had was the venue – while quite beautiful and open it was way too spaced out. Many of the bands started about fifteen minutes apart, so that would be enough time to photograph a band for the first three songs and get to the next stage and take pictures right? Wrong! The distance between the upper stages and the lowers stages was ridiculous, coupled with a mass amount of people and poorly made traveling paths, it took fifteen minutes in itself just to get from one end to the other. There was very little shade (coming from Oregon to Nevada I almost cried) and the only source of running water was the bathroom sinks.

The next big issue I had was with security – They had no idea what they were doing! Upon entering the venue (which didn’t have single file lines and instead was a giant crowd attempting to push their way to the security check) it was a typical security check with guards patting down patrons and checking bags. However their setup was so disorganized that I got through completely without being check at all while my assistant (lacky), who was carrying my laptop, got her bag ripped from her and slammed down on the table. On one hand I understand them being rough, it is Las Vegas after all, but on the other hand, they obviously didn’t do that good of a job. There were kids openly smoking weed and snorting cocaine. While the weed I can understand at a festival, who goes around openly snorting coke?! After that though, my next issue was that I was unable to take photos for about two hours while PR and security got things sorted out. While my photo pass was on my shirt and plainly visible, it matched the one on the picture given to security in every way except for the color, theirs was scanned black and white while mine was a pinkish purple color. So because mine wasn’t the right color they weren’t letting me back to take pictures. The security men posted as the stages didn’t know their job! While they got better with the photo thing, they didn’t seem to get better with their job as the day went on. When I was waiting at one of the main stages for Less Than Jake to end so I could go backstage and interview The Used, the security guard posted at the stage was letting random pretty girls back. I’m not sure what they said to get back there, but you know they weren’t supposed to as one came over to her group of friends right in front of me and said, “We’re getting back, Squeeeeeel.” Yet when I was actually back there, still waiting for my interview, Austin Carlile from Of Mice & Men was trying to get backstage. He didn’t have his pass on him but he’d performed earlier in the day. The security guard wouldn’t let him back even though people, even me, kept telling him that he was in a band.

Time for my press complaints – I’ve done a couple interviews (not many because of my location and very few concerts near here) and this is the first time I’ve ever had a “handler” of sorts. My first interview with The Word Alive I was backstage and interviewing Telle when one of the women from the press agency called me asking where I was so she could take me back for the interview… oops. The next was where the interviews were, right next to the stages. Fortunately for The Word Alive we didn’t have a band playing during the interview, but when The Used came back for the interview they came back like twenty minutes later than scheduled and since I was the last one interview them Underoath started during the middle of our interview and the sound interfered with so much of it that I missed chunks.

While the things I’ve said are negative, the music itself was awesome. I hated that some of the best bands were put on the smaller stages because they weren’t “huge” bands. I definitely enjoyed the music – Transit, The Word Alive, The Wonder Years (better live), The Used, Less Than Jake was fantastic and very funny.

I’m mixed with my feelings of Extreme Thing Festival and not sure if I’m going to make the trek to Vegas so I can attend next year, we’ll see I guess.

_  I was writing while listening to the 6 track EP ‘We Are Not Humanity’ by Hollow Earth and I was wondering “when does this track end?” Checking the music player I was already on track three. Which could be taken as me getting into the music (which I did, these guys are awesome) but at the same time it’s more me being left with an unfulfilled feeling. The length of the first two songs added together are shorter than the third song. With similar sounding music and seamless transitions, the first three tracks all felt like one long song. It wasn’t until the fourth track ‘There Will Come Soft Rains’ that I really heard some diversity.



The band became a thought in 2010 and after a year they finally made the band a reality. In only months they completed this EP and with a release date set at April 17, I can already say though this EP progressed a lot faster than a lot of bands, the music is completely solid. It’s an awesome album and I think this new band Hollow Earth will go over well with fans of hardcore music.



You can listen to a couple songs from their upcoming EP on their facebook page

http://www.facebook.com/HollowEarthInc?sk=app_123966167614127

_  Belle Histoire’s EP “I Can Tell” recently came out and it’s taken me a while to come out with the review for this. While this was released through InVogue Records this album is a big step for the label in a direction their not used to. While we’re used to hearing a lot of heavier stuff released through InVogue, this is an Indie EP on the softer side of upbeat.

When the first track came on, titled Stay A While, I’d like to say I loved it right away. To be honest though I hadn’t heard this band before so I didn’t know what to expect. The sound that came out of my speakers was so different than what I was expecting I stopped listening to it right then. While singer Jane Smith belts out lyrics beautifully there’s something about the way she sings the majority of this song that just completely annoys me, yet the more I listen to it the more I find myself repeating it because it’s still a very good song.

Aside from that first track, I’ve absolutely adored the other three songs. While the band is classified as Indie, you can hear a big dose of Soul in the second track, Be Alright. One song I particularly enjoy is Sailing Ships because of the male/female duet they get going on.

Jane Smith is a fantastic singer, she’s able to hit a huge range of notes and really shows off that talent throughout the songs. Listening to all four songs, you can really hear the range from the band. While this is the band’s first release through InVogue, it feels like it’s just a sample for what’s to come. Fortunately they’re hitting the studios in March and planning a full length release for Summer 2012. 

_  While the debut of San Diego, CA quintet Secrets was only released January 17, this is a band I can see leading the pack when it comes to the hardcore music scene.

When it comes to what CDs I review, I’ve begun to neglect a lot of the more hardcore ones I get sent, because after a while they just start to sound the same and I hate writing a review that I could just copy and paste from the last band.

The Ascentby Secrets is a unique piece of post-hardcore music. With moving and passionate, talent filled clean vocals and screaming worthy of any metal band; the vocals really are solid from both ends. This band does a great job of putting vocals to music, with great drum beats and fantastic sounding guitar, none of it gets overpowered or drowned out, which blends into an amazing sound.

Filled with amazing hooks and breakdowns, this band’s also got an amazing beat which can’t helped but we noticed from the start with opening track Genesis. Just with the synthy drum opening you get more of a dance club feel than something from your typical post-hardcore album. The synth drums are abruptly cut off though with a scream of “I am your enemy” and from there you get sucked in, it’s hard to stop listening to this song after only one song.

As far as lyrics and general sound goes, I think 40 Below is my favorite track. The clean vocal chorus with an almost pop-rock sound blend’s perfectly with the pissed off screaming verses that comprise the rest of the track.

Listening to this album, I think making music comes easy to a band like Secrets, with a style and cleanness often unheard of for a debut, The Ascent is an amazing CD that’s hard to stop listening too. I’ve listened to it 3 or 4 times through in one sitting before, not counting the times I’ve replayed a song right after it has finished. Not one song on this CD is a dud, and I will definitely be looking forward to more from these guys in the future. You can catch them on tour with Sleeping With Sirens, Abandon All Ships, and Conditions this March. You can find the dates on their facebook page, www.facebook.com/secretsofficial.

_  While this band is currently working on a full length, the Dreamcatcher EP released by Valise in 2011 is a good look into the changing music scene. This up and coming band mixes some upbeat pop with laid back vocals. With not label to call their own, it’s hard to expect such a spectacular sound as the one you get from Dreamcatcher.

The short four song EP opens with the title track Dreamcatcher. The ethereal track captivated me upon listening it, it really drew me in. They provide seamless transitions throughout the song, and one they seem to be particularly talented in is going from slow to fast and back again and making it all flow so nicely.

Heartbeat has more of a rock feel than the other songs on the EP, yet at the same time it keeps completely to the same sound as the other tracks. This song seems to have more solid vocals than the other songs, and I think that’s what gives it that more rock feel. The vocals in the other tracks seem a lot more … floaty.

Chains goes from the slow verse to the faster more powerful chorus, the transition is made all the more beautiful by the music. This song seems to just have so many things going on at once, my ears strain to hear all of it and I find myself playing it over and over again just so I know what’s going on. But it sounds wonderful, it’s not a random clashing of noise and instruments, it’s a beautiful mixture of music to create the sound that is Valise.

The EP is brought to a close by Scary in the Dark. This isn’t a song I’d expect to hear on the radio, but it’s a song that I’d expect to be a hit, if only people heard it.

It seems no one’s really heard of Valise. Aside from this short EP, I haven’t heard of them either. This isn’t some mainstream band and with their Indie genre I can’t imagine seeing their shirts at Hot Topic or hearing them played on the radio. This is the kind of band that’s going to get famous because they play great music, and it’s still so early into their career that we can expect a lot more to come. The only problem is getting the word out, give this band a listen and if you like it check them out on facebook, see them when they play in your town, and tell your friends about them.

http://www.facebook.com/ValiseMusic

I wasn’t even finished with the first song on The Days Ahead, the new EP by The Scene Aesthetic, and I was asking myself, “Why aren’t these guys signed yet?”

When the Seattle, WA duo started playing together in 2005 it was to make music. Not for fame or fortune, they made music for the sake of music, and I think that shows in the sound. They don’t have a record company telling them how to sound or pressuring them to pop out album after album.

Back in the distant days of Myspace, these guys built themselves a following, prompting them to share more and more of their music, and inevitably a full length album was created. After a two year hiatus in which Eric Bowley left for Argentina on a two year mission, they reformed and released another EP. Now, December 2011, they’ve released their newest masterpiece, The Days Ahead.

The seven song pop/rock EP is very vocal oriented. While there are catchy, hip shaking beats, a lot of the emphasis is put on the singing, and I’m not the only one listening to this that can’t help but sing along. This is a great EP for anything really. I’m sitting in my room alone, listening to it and feeling perfectly content, but I can see myself playing it at a party or just popping it in my car stereo and listening to it on my way to work.

From opening track to closing track, it’s really just full of sweet songs. It’s not mushy enough to push the gag reflex, but to fill you instead with a feeling of contentment in the enjoyment you have just sitting back and listening to music.

A Little Bit More is a fun track, and don’t get on me for this one, but I can see this being on a rom com soundtrack. It’s upbeat, and sweet, the chorus makes me smile, sing, dance, and look like a loser but I’m ok with that because it’s just that great of a song.

The final song, Everybody, felt like a goodbye song. Not goodbye for the band in this case, but obviously for the EP, perfect way to close the album. I hate it when the final song gets you amped up for more and then BAM, first song again. The repetition of the final line, “Oh I’m just glad that I have you, and I know that’s never going to change,” really just brings back that feeling of closure and contentment.

This is one of those bands that I have a problem with, my problem is that I haven’t heard of them before, and if I had it was something that just didn’t stick. The music is fantastic and I can see these guys being a huge band, the only problem I see is that people haven’t heard about them, or at least heard their music. So I’m asking my readers to send this band to your friends, and ask them to send this band out to their friends, word of mouth and social media sites can do wonders. I can’t wait for these guys to release more music, and I hope you guys enjoy this CD.

A band that’s been around for just over a decade, A Loss for Words recently released their newest CD titled No Sanctuary. Just hearing that this band is a pop punk band, you’ll probably already have an idea of what they sound like. I’d just like to tell you to get that idea out of your head. While these guys do have a distinct pop punk flair this album more than anything sounds like a pop rock album with hints of that punk sound they’re known for.

Opening the CD is Honeymoon Eyes, which is possibly my favorite song on this CD, certainly the one I’ve listened to the most. It’s a fun, upbeat song with catchy lyrics that linger in your head even after you’ve finished the album.

Title track No Sanctuary opens faster and more hardcore than the other songs on the album. About thirty seconds in though, the screaming lets into clean vocals, before going back to more yelling and screaming. Even with this change in sound it’s still a solid song. The clean vocals open the chorus, leaving you dancing and singing along.

The slow song, Jetsetter, is a really pretty song. I was actually just listening to this CD as background music but it grabbed my attention as singer Matt Arsenault crooned the word “Unbreakable” which is undeniably one of the most noticeable parts of the song. Only passed by, “I only wish you could be here now.” It really is a beautiful song .

The thing with this CD is, I really loved all the songs on it; Pirouette, Raining Excuses, and Wrightsville Beach were some of my personal favorites.

No Sanctuary is a high energy album, throwing out fast paced guitar and drums to catchy beats, I can honestly say there isn’t one song on this CD I don’t like. The only way I can see people not liking this album is if it’s not their proscribed “genre”. But if you like rock music with awesome beats and catchy chorus’ I’d definitely recommend you check out this CD.