The fall rush of albums is about to begin (seriously, I'm already getting inundated with September releases - whether good or bad, there will be a lot of interesting stuff to talk about coming up), so let's sneak in one more look at some single tracks before we get there.
Flying Colors - More
Oh, what could have been. The first album was a great experiment, with virtuoso players making pop music. Then they decided to ditch the man whose idea the whole thing was, and become another mildly prog band like all their other projects. The second album was not nearly as good, and this new song hints that the third won't be either. This song is just dull; sonically and compositionally. There isn't much of a melody to be found, which is it's biggest downfall, but the mix and tones are also drab. They seem to be trying to sound like Muse, but that's not what any fan of this bunch of 50-somethings want to hear. This record might be a hard pass now.
Lacuna Coil - Layers Of Time
This is one of those bands I like, but never listen to. I've thought from the very first time I heard them they would be great if they only had one singer. Every album since has been mostly the same, where I want more of Cristina Scabbia, and far less of the gruff male vocals. This song doesn't break the mold. His barked verses are mediocre, which leaves Cristina to save things in the chorus. Unfortunately, this isn't one of her best melodies. They say the new album is supposed to be heavier, and if this is an indication of what that means, I'm worried.
Michael Monroe - One Man Gang
"Blackout States" was my #2 album in 2015, and "One Foot Outta The Grave" was my #1 song in 2017, so my expectations for Michael Monroe's new album are sky high. This first taste of the record is pretty much what I was hoping for. It's a short, punk-ish number that has the same sound and energy as the previous record, but I would have liked for something a bit more melodic to be the first single. I found the most punk numbers on that record to be the weakest tracks, and I'm hoping this new record will have more of the melodic songs like "Old King's Road" and "Six Feet In The Ground". This one isn't disappointing at all, but I still have even higher hopes.
Year Of The Goat - Susperia
The first single from the upcoming album was an immediate hit. This one was not. I was disappointed the first time I heard it, finding it lacking the hooks I was expecting. But the more I listened to it, the more the subtlety started to show through. It's still a bit weaker, but it has legs. It helped to have it pointed out to me there are some similarities to early Graveyard, which is something I didn't hear at first, but I obviously love. My initial impression that the album might be a clone of "The Unspeakable" might not be true. That could be a good thing.
Tool - Fear Inoculum
The first taste of new Tool music in thirteen years is.... disappointing. When Tool is good, they do something incredibly unique, and there's an energy to what they do that it notable, even when I don't like it. When Tool is bad, they drag on without much of a point, being 'prog' in the sense of spending ten minutes on three minutes worth of ideas. That's what this track is. Despite being over ten minutes long, there is barely a single guitar riff to be found in the song, with much of the running time spend on atmospheric build-ups and droning passages. There just isn't enough in here to justify the song being so long, and what ideas are here aren't all that great. This is a far cry from "The Grudge".
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