Singles Roundup: Creeper, Amorphis, The Nearly Deads, & Guns N Roses

The singles grab-bag is once again full. Let's see what we pull out this week.

Creeper - Ghost Brigade

A new Creeper song was not expected, but is certainly welcome. After the wild shift from album one to album two, this new song sort of bridges the gap. There are chimes and tempo shifts that pull from the "Sex, Death, & The Infinite Void" playbook, while the guitar crunch and straight-ahead hook are right off the "Eternity, In Your Arms" blueprint. In a way, it sums up what Creeper has done before, but I'm not sure what the purpose of doing so is. Is this to prepare us for a third album that will fuse the two sides of their personality, or an album that takes them in yet another completely different direction? They've been good enough to warrant a bit of faith, but I'll be honest and say the parts so far that have stayed with me the most are the punky, "Sing The Sorrow" type songs. This has enough of that to be enjoyable, but I feel like it doesn't commit one way or the other.

Amorphis - The Well

They've done it too. Amorphis is now putting out a 'tour edition' of "Halo", which includes this bonus track. So if you bought the record, and you're a collector who needs everything, it sucks to be you. I hate this trend so much. As for the song, I'm glad they didn't include it on the album. Being a straight-ahead progressive death metal song (ironic, huh?), the song lacks the emotion and melody the clean vocals wring out of every song. This one is more one-note than their usual fare, and it sounds less interesting for it. Amorphis' music is all about the push-and-pull, and this one only pushes me away.

The Nearly Deads - Relentless

The band is back with a new full-length on the way, and this first taste of it shows they haven't lost a step. The string of singles they put out before taking a bit of a break were all excellent, with "Freakshow" being one of my favorite songs of recent years. This track falls in line with that, with a stomping riff that gives TJ plenty of room to build a sticky melody for the chorus. Her voice has an ethereal tone to it that not only stands out from the usual modern rock, but cuts through the guitars to amplify her hooks. It's nice to hear the band back, and it's even better to know we're in store for much more.

Guns N Roses - November Rain (2022 Version)

This song is the "Stairway To Heaven" of my generation (actually, am I old enough to say that?), and now we are getting a new version of the song to showcase what it was always supposed to be. Brand new string arrangements have been recorded and placed into the mix, replacing the samples we have been listening to all these years. It's intended to be a more grand, more lush, experience than ever before. I suppose it is, in a way. There is more room in the mix, and the real strings add more depth. That being said, I don't think the song is really any better for the new accoutrements. There's a slight disconnect between the shimmering strings and Axl's thirty year-old vocal track, and it sounds to my ears like the strings are pushed further back in the mix, which makes all the effort feel like a waste. A pure remix would have sufficed, as there is something to be said about clarity bringing out the best of a dirty rock band.