Last Update : 03/03/06
Artist: Matchbox Twenty
Title: Yourself or Someone Like You
Tracks/Duration: 12/46:44
Best Song: Real World
Worst Song: Argue
I don't normally listen to Matchbox Twenty, so it's a bit of a mystery why this is here. In any case, after listening to it, it's not a bad CD. It's not great, and won't be sneaking into my rotation, but I'm certianly not ashamed to own it. I know that I usually say a mouthful in this little blurb area, but there isn't really anything outstanding to note about this CD. There's a creepy fat man on the cover, and he appears elsewhere in the sleeve too. Damned creepy fat man. He's out to get you, you know. Kinda recommended.
Artist: Matthew Good Band
Title: Underdogs
Tracks/Duration: 13/57:22
Best Song: Everything is Automatic
Worst Song: Invasion
Yeah. There's a lot of Matt Good to get through and comment on. Underdogs isn't the MGB's first album, but it was the first one that hit it big. Or so I've been told. Before I go any further, let me tell you this: I don't think there is a Matthew Good/Band song that I don't like, so every "worst" song is just gonna be the song that I thought stood out the least. Just thought I'd get that out of the way. As for best song, it's really tied between "Everything is Auomatic," "Apparitions," and "Rico" for this one. Of course, the whole CD is great, and it definitely has all the traits I've come to expect and love from Matt over the years. And with every subsequent release, it all just gets better. Highly recommended.
Artist: Matthew Good Band
Title: Beautiful Midnight
Tracks/Duration: 14/1:05:10
Best Song: Jenni's Song
Worst Song: I Miss New Wave
Probably the hardest of Matthew Good's offerings to the music world. Also probably the most well-known release. I don't have the stats on me right now, but I'm pretty sure making up stuff is good enough. Anyway, while it seems a bit harder than the other CDs, it's still got the signature Matthew Good sound to it. The lyrics are cryptic and deep, and really make you feel the soul of the music. "Running for Home" will probably make you cry. Sometimes, the songs are even a little haunting, a trait which isn't as prevalent on other albums. Matt Good is easily my favourite current Canadian artist, and I know I said it in the last entry, but it's really friggin' hard for me to pick a worst song. They're all so damned good. On a different note, this is a good starter album if you're just easing into Matt Good. Highly recommended.
Artist: Matthew Good Band
Title: The Audio of Being
Tracks/Duration: 12/1:03:21
Best Song: Tripoli
Worst Song: The Rat Who Would Be King
This is a great follow-up to Beautiful Midnight, as it takes the MGB's sound and mainatins it while being radically different. It's about half hard, half slow, and it all blends together so well. "The Rat Who Would Be King" is the only song from Matthew Good that I didn't like. It's just that he literally drags the vocals so much that it gets really annoying after thirty seconds or so, but I found that it grew on me, and after I really listened to the song, I noticed how brilliant the lyrics are, and how much emotion is really in the song. The only reason I chose it as worst song is because I used to dislike it, and I can't say the same for any other track. "Anti-Pop" on the other hand, is a really great rock song but the lyrics don't really seem to mean much. As far as I remember, the video is pretty neat too, as the star is a lawn gnome. Highly recommended.
Artist: Matthew Good
Title: Avalanche
Tracks/Duration: 13/1:09:09
Best Song: 21st Century Living
Worst Song: Pledge of Allegiance
Matthew Good's solo debut is a great one. I'm really not qualified to talk about and rate music as much as I do, but I can't help but talk up Matthew Good. He is, in my humble opinion, the most quotable songwriter ever to walk the Earth. Just take any song and look up the lyrics. There are a couple exceptions, but I can honestly say that you can take almost any line from that song, and it will make an excellent quote. This CD is really all about that too. "Lullaby for the New World Order" is chock full of them, and so is "Near Fantastica." Also, his lyrics are always full of surreal and emotional imagery. Seriously, next time you listen to any one of his songs, just listen to the lyrics and let them work their magic in your brain. I chose "Pledge of Allegiance" as the worst song on this disc not because it lacks quality, but because it's a three minute song stretched into five. Most of the other songs on the album are lengthy as well, some lasting as long as eight minutes, but they never seem like they're too long. Highly recommended.
Artist: Matthew Good
Title: White Light Rock & Roll Review
Tracks/Duration: 12(+1)/48:37
Best Song: Hopeless [hidden]
Worst Song: We're So Heavy
Rock 'n roll. Straight up. Just like the title says. This album is probably the most focused of all of them. It's all in the same rock vein, and doesn't go down so many different roads as the other Matthew Good CDs do. Not to say that it's all the same, either. The real gem of the CD is it's hidden track, which is [apparently] unnamed but lovingly referred to as "Hopeless," which is like the greatest song ever. Yeah, it's more or less country, but that doesn't mean a damn thing. The rest of the disc rocks out hard. Not face-melting hard, but enough to get you up and going hard. It's hard to describe, but listen to it and you'll see what I mean. Also worthy of note is that there is a message on the disc itself that says "Insert in player/Feel the glow of commerce," which sets the tone for all the sociopolitical commentary and whatnot in the song lyrics. Highly recommended.
Artist: Matthew Good
Title: In A Coma
Tracks/Duration: 17/1:12:12 - 19/1:13:08
Best Song: Pony Boy - Strange Days (acoustic)
Worst Song: The Future is X-Rated - North American for Life (acoustic)
What more can I say that I haven't already? In A Coma has three discs worth of content. The first is a simple "greatest hits" package, featuring 15 songs that you know and love as well as two killer new tracks. The second disc is separated into two parts; firstly are acoustic versions of nine classic songs and secondly are all the songs from the limited release EPs Loser Anthems and Lo-Fi B-Sides - 19 songs in all. the last disc is a DVD that sports 17 music videos, a documentary, some pictures, and a discography. Honestly, I nearly shit myself when I heard about this collection. It's like the greatest thing that has ever happened to music. And it was all only $30. Oh, and there's even a little booklet that comes with it that's full of liner notes written by Matt's A&R guy. Never thought I'd be interested in such a thing, but I ate it up with a fucking spoon. Nummy nummy. Recommended to the Nth degree.
Artist: My Chemical Romance
Title: I Brought You my Bullets, You Brought me Your Love
Tracks/Duration: 11/40:52
Best Song: Demolition Lovers
Worst Song: Early Sunsets over Monroeville
I actually bought this CD a while after I got into My Chemical Romance. And don't get me wrong, I had listened to more than half the songs on it before I got Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, so I knew exactly how different the two albums are. MCR was actually also my first real venture into the world of emo/screamo music. Personally, I can't see what's so bad about it, aside from the whiny bitches like Simple Plan. Emo people (do they really deserve to be called people?) should be wiped out entirely, but the music is still mostly respectable. This CD in particular features a little more gothicism than I normally like (the copyright says "Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws and will result in Gerard coming to your house and sucking your blood"), but the music quality is still there. It's got that unpolished quality that all those punk knowitalls find so very desirable, and most of the songs are great. Highly Recommended.
Artist: My Chemical Romance
Title: Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
Tracks/Duration: 13/39:36
Best Song: Thank You For The Venom
Worst Song: I'm Not Okay (I Promise)
Because I'm afraid of being called a poseur or something, I got this disc when it was released. Not a year afterward when they finally broke into the mainstream and all the media sheep started "getting into" it. I hate to go all highbrow-hipster-connoisseur-jekoff like that, but I can only preserve half of my dignity either way, and I'd rather be a jerkoff than a mindless idiot that will advoce whatever's popular at the time. Anyway, I still think it's a rather excellent CD. Over time I've come to prefer the honest punkish sound of I Brought You My Bullets..., but I still enjoy this one to a good degree. By the way, if anyone knows the title of the classical piece in "Romance" please tell me! It's friggin' killing me! Recommended.
~Ryan
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