List for the Insomniac

June 26, 2011 -- 12:27 A.M.

1. Sound of the Guns - Diamond Eye
2. Sore Losers - Andy Gruhin
3. Six Days - LOVELOUD
4. Rain - All I Know
5. Nasty Mind - Cube41
6. Suburban Girls - Swing The Coast
7. Heartbleeder - 51/50s
8. Party Naked - Voted Most Random
9. Miss You - Homebrewe
10. Jack and Jill - Left on Red

List for the Insomniac

As I struggle with insomnia all the time, I've decided tonight to start a feature called List for the Insomniac. Every few nights or so (or whenever I can't sleep) I'll publish a list of the must-hear underground songs and artists that are filling the speakers in my room as I sit up and count the seconds to dawn. Enjoy guys, these are definitely some tunes that are must-hear songs, so why not listen when you can't sleep? After all, there's no time like the present!

June 18, 2011  --  1:05 A.M.

1. Rest in Peace (RIP) - Cloé Beaudoin
2. Crash -  Fit For Rivals
3. Dreaming - Have You Seen My Ghost
4. Tyranny of Saints - Tetrarch
5. Unstoppable - Almost Kings
6. The City That Never - The Swear
7. What Is It with Me - The Orkids
8. Tek No - Lost In Atlantis
9. Journey into Doubt - Into the Night
10. Photograph - The Riot Tapes

Bliss n Eso Rising Up

The story today is most simply a great song. From the beginning flails of the cymbals under Mike J 'Rivers'' drum sticks, "People Up on It" is a song that blasts through the speakers with a vengeance and power that enthralls me. Though rap and hip-hop tend to be a little outside my range sometimes, this song has just the right mix of hip-hop attitude and hard-rock sneer. Redefining a sound that I feel in love with the first time I heard bands like Linkin Park and Hollywood Undead, Bliss n Eso (featuring Xzibit) have a sick track that is power and thrash attitude from start to finish.

But that's only half the story. Making a guest appearance on the track is Ben Graham, lead guitarist for the Australian hard-rock band Into the Night. Graham's guitar licks serrate my ears and with the notes going off in the background as the drums rumble and roll underneath likes bombs in a war zone, my pulse is shot full of adrenaline in a way that leaves me gasping for breath at the end. The power that Graham lends to the song through hard guitar chords and pounding rhythm is only intensified by Rivers' rage-filled beats on the drums. As Bliss n Eso tear it up vocally, I can watch as Rivers breaks down his drums in a ceremony of driven attitude.
More than anything, "People Up on It" is a perfect example of the brilliant marriage between hip-hop and hard-rock. Building on the foundation that Linkin Park and Hollywood Undead have made their careers on, Bliss n Eso make "People Up on It" one of the tracks that will get you going and be stuck in your head for days to come. And the low-key, minimalist video just serves to add more edge to an already blistering song.  

A Five Hour Flight with No Delays

As it's been a few days since I've updated (sorry guys, but life happens lol), I thought I'd get an early start on the weekend with a group that seems to have both extreme exposure and no exposure at the same time. Ironic, huh? Well I guess that's what comes from posting music on a number of different sites that all have different exposure numbers.

Anyway, enough of this. Enter Five Hour Flight, a pop-punk quartet from down south in Tallassee, Alabama. Now although I just moved from Atlanta to Boston for school, and spent a long while getting to know the rock scene in ATL, I must admit I really didn't believe that there was all that much running around the South rock-wise beside southern-rock and post-grunge. And yet here I find a group that  marches to the beat of a different drum, so to speak. Composed of Patrick Mullins (bass and lead vocals), Jordan Cunningham (lead guitar and vocals), Dylan Baker (rhythm guitar and vocals), and Clay Amason (drums), FHF has a unique sense of what they think pop-punk could and should be: namely a sensible blend of catchy lyrics and melodies married to crunk beats and rhythms. One of the things I love best about Five Hour Flight is their completely shameless acceptance of their pop influences. There are so many artists nowadays who try to move away from the pop label (though it clearly applies to their music) because it's apparently become "uncool" to have a song that is pleasant to listen to. I must admit, I too was for a long time adverse to pop because it equated in my mind the over-played single that is run to death and everywhere. Despite ruining the song (a truly tragic end-result, I'm sad to say) this over-playing just takes away from the credit and clout of the music, while at the same time producing legions of would-be fans who are sick of hearing the song everywhere they go (and they're right). It seems that pop has now become a stigma, and now if you happen to create music that is radio-friendly somehow you're a major corporate sellout.
Yet Five Hour Flight slide right by this little hiccup that seems to snag a number of artists who are almost afraid of the label. Case in point, though, are the couple of tracks that FHF have, as of yet, uploaded to their Youtube channel. Playfully strutting forward with tracks such as "Until November" and "No One's More Useless Than Aquaman," these boys from down south know what they're doing and prove it at every turn. "Until November" is a strong start for FHF: the catchy pop-punk intro tumbles right into the piano of the first verse, something I am not at all expecting, and I love it. But then Cunningham and Baker step forward with palm-mutes that build on the rhythmic taps and kicks of Amason on the drums. And as Cunningham's and Baker's guitars start getting louder, Mullins' strong smooth vocals shoot from the speakers, and it's clear that this guy knows what he's doing. His bass lines are solid, and lock nicely with the guitar riffs (which enter an odd though altogether pleasing progression after the second chorus) just before the piano comes in again so send off Five Hour Flight with a fantastic finish to the song.
If nothing else, no one can say that "No One's More Useless Than Aquaman" doesn't have a great title. To any comic fans out there (Marvel or DC, it doesn't really matter) you all get this joke, and FHF score points here with me for just genuine creativity and good-natured comedy. Yet the upbeat title of the song is augmented by a catchy and polished rhythm that I can't get out of my head. Mullins' voice here has a certain dynamic with the guitar riffs and bass lines that I can't quite put my finger on; all I know is that I like it. Amason's drums are scaled back here, and for those not paying attention, they can easily be taken for granted. But I'm paying attention, and I can hear that his playing is tight and coordinated, a strong backbone for the stop/start riffs laced over one another by Baker and Cunningham. Clearly a radio-friendly song that still has great summer-drive-with-the-top-down appeal, "No One's More Useless Than Aquaman" can only help these guys get to where they wanna be. Whereas some songs become a liability later on, I can't ever see this being the case here, and if I ever see these guys live (and I hope I will), this is one I'll definitely wanna hear.
At the end of the day though, I have to be quite honest: was it their originals that drew me to them in the first place: no. Their originals are fantastic, but those came later. No, I found the Five Hour guys completely by accident on Youtube as I was searching for cool covers of classic songs, and boy did I get a shock. When I heard Five Hour Flight's cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'," I had chills and was absolutely floored. Many have attempted to make a decent cover of this song, and many have certainly failed. I've even heard it argued that this song is so classic, so amazing, that covers simply don't do it justice. While that may be true on a number of levels, if covered correctly, there could be whole new dimensions to it, so I kept hoping I would find one. The cover on Glee was brilliant (I'll be honest I've watched a few episodes--it's just a good show), but it was professionally done and very produced. The cover lacked a certain kick, a certain messiness that would make different than anything I'd ever heard before. Yet that's exactly what Five Hour Flight do on their pop-punk cover of one of the most classic songs of all time: shake it up a bit. Beginning with a gorgeous note progression by Cunningham, I already have a sneaking suspicion that this is going to be something different. Then Amason starts to build in on the drums and Baker starts filling in with riffs that add the punk to the pop in this cover. Mullins' voice is perfect pitch and oh so sweet on top of the building instrumentation behind him. His bass lines add to the impending power of the song, but what comes next is what does it for me. That first high note comes, and Mullins hits it like he's been singing this his whole life. The result is otherworldly and wholly irresistible. At near 100,000 views on Youtube, I'd say that I'm not the only one who thinks so either. Five Hour Flight's cover of "Don't Stop Believin'" will soon be a classic in the punk underground, and I won't leave any FHF show without hearing this in an encore. The precision with which the Flight crew execute this masterful number is epic, and if any hope for the future of pop-punk exists, these guys are certainly a big part of it.
Bottom line? These guys have uploaded just a few songs up until now, but they each have something to cheer for. Kicking and packing punches that will have you jumping for hard-rock joy, FHF's songs blast out in crescendos of addictive passion and dripping in pop-polish. For those who yearn for more, Five Hour Flight are here, everyone take notes.

Sounds Like: All Time Low, Hit the Lights, Cartel, Fenix*TX

Key Tracks: "Don't Stop Believin'," "No One's More Useless Than Aquaman," "Until November"

Check out Five Hour Flight more at: http://www.facebook.com/fivehourflight?sk=wall and http://www.youtube.com/user/FiveHourFlightMusic#p/u

Have You Seen My Ghost's Dreaming in Existence

New Have You Seen My Ghost promo

After spending so much time looking at textbooks, it's great to be able to get back to being able to review new albums and releases. I think it's only fitting to start the summer reviews off with a review of a new EP by one of my favorite groups from here in Atlanta: Have You Seen My Ghost. An eclectic mix of screamo-punk and emo-pop, Have You Seen My Ghost are something special, and it's still surprising to me that these guys aren't racking up hits on Purevolume as fast as some other groups. As much as I loved HYSMG's previous releases like the Black EP and Ghost Kids, I love what they've done on their new recording. EXIST is an EP filled with new directions for the Ghost guys, and one that I'm more than a little excited to hear.
Right from the start, Have You Seen My Ghost start their new EP with a departure from their hardcore screamo-punk sound and opt for one that's focused more on underlying melody and rhythm. With a sound that I can only characterize as dark-pop and romantcore, HYSMG start blazing a trail that is impossible not to follow and explore.
The first song on the four-track EP is "Darkest Days," a song that is from the start something new from Have You Seen My Ghost. The studio production on this recording helps to shape the depth and reach of HYSMG's lyrics, and as the guitars make their grand entrance, Lee Jennings voice comes through the speakers in an epic rush. As Mike Gardella picks up guitar responsibilities for the EP, the sound  is different than what I've heard before: rather than the punk-driven chords I've heard on earlier HYSMG recordings, here Gardella decides that the sound he wants is more epic, more grand. As much as I loved the guitar work on the earlier works, the work here is new, tentative, pensive, and I can't unglue my ears from the speakers. As the guitar notes prance across Grayson Blanchette's bass lines, Eric Dolive's drums create wave after wave of rhythm. The end of the song is brilliant, as in an epic crescendo, Jennings' voice and HYSMG's music come crashing down in a romantic grace. The first new song I've heard from Have You Seen My Ghost and I can't catch my breath. Amazing.

EXIST EP

"Passengers" works along the same lines as "Darkest Days:" it's dark undertones are highlighted by the intriguing pop polish that HYSMG execute on it. With an interlude that plays host to a great group vocal and pensive mood, "Passengers" provides a stage for Dolive's drumming that it benefits from. Sprinkling the guitar riffs with rolls and high-hat fills, Dolive lends to "Passengers" a quality that it would have missed without it. A solid song with a great rhythm and musical execution, "Passengers" is another example of HYSMG's versatile song style.
As much as I loved "Passengers" and "Darkest Days" though, my favorite song on the EP by far is "Dreaming." Starting with an interestingly creepy guitar-note progression, "Dreaming" crashes into existence amidst a whirlwind of melodic power and brash grace. The lyrics of "Wake up, it's just a dream" speak to me on a level I can't even explain, and the more I listen to this song, the more I'm addicted. Jennings' voice and Blanchette's bass lines are crisp and powerful laced between Gardella's grasping and solid guitar chords and notes. If Have You Seen My Ghost didn't have me hooked before, they do now, and as I listen to the notes play out and then fade, the only thing I can think of is how much I'd bet that this song could take them to the next level in their careers. Just as I heard something special on their song "Gravity" when I first heard it, so too I hear that special something on "Dreaming" that transcends musical genre into a new domain that artists are lucky if they ever find. Definitely my choice for lead-single from the new EP, and clearly one of HYSMG's best efforts ever, "Dreaming" is epic is its power and proves that new directions can sometimes yield gold.
Rounding off the EP with "Between an Ambulance and Forever," Have You Seen My Ghost touch on new levels that make their music all the more intriguing and unique. Whereas many groups find a safe mode and stay there, HYSMG have ventured out of their comfort zone and experimented with something new to create an album that is at its core unforgettable. If I were one of the Ghost guys, I would certainly be proud of my performance here, as it is something that is filled with drive and passion.    
One of the things I loved about this band when I saw them live was their steadfast dedication to their fans. HYSMG wants their fans to get so into their music, that I literally saw them bring everyone in the audience up onto the stage for their encore. As Lee Jennings and Grayson Blanchette played their guitars around the twirling hands of their fans, the only thing I could think was that I wished every concert was like that. EXIST as a recording works much the same way: its music is so all-encompassing that I can't help but feel I'm up on stage with the Ghost guys, rocking out as they play me into oblivion. If nothing else, Have You Seen My Ghost have succeeded in making a recording that pulls the listener so far in that they feel as if the band is playing right to them. As I close my eyes, a dark symphony of melodic grace and rhythmic romance appears before my eyes in a technicolor tapestry. With the title as EXIST, Have You Seen My Ghost make it clear that this is an EP of philosophical proportions, tackling deep-set emotions in musical harmony and telling a story that needs to be told. Most certainly one of my favorite new releases of the summer, Have You Seen My Ghost's EP EXIST is going to open doors for these Marietta natives that weren't even visible before. With a recording as powerful as this, Have You Seen My Ghost are on their way. It's only a matter of time now.  

Key Tracks from EXIST: "Dreaming," "Darkest Days," "Passengers," Between an Ambulance and Forever"