Singles Roundup: Harem Scarem, Cosmic Cathedral, W.E.T., and Jules & The Howl

The grab bag is once again full, so let's pull a few new songs out.

Harem Scarem - Chasing Euphoria

This song comes as good news, in two forms. The first is that it is the title track to a new album that will be coming in April. The second is that it shows the band has not lost their creative spark just yet. Their last two albums have been as good as melodic rock gets, and this namesake song for the album is no different. The band has a knack for writing choruses that balance sugary hooks with Harry's gritty voice, finding a sound that is both sweet and powerful. It's a delicate balance, and most of the time bands wind up falling too far in one direction or the other. This track gives the impression they are inching closer to the saccharine side, but not so much it becomes cloying. As we hope Spring will be arriving, a bit of sunny-day music sounds like just what we need.

Cosmic Cathedral - Deep Water Suite: Launch Out, Pt I

I don't exactly know how the relationship between me and artists becomes severed, but it happens too regularly to be a fluke. There was a period where I loved everything Neal Morse was a part of, and now it's been a decade since the last time he put out a record I genuinely loved. This newest prog collective is not sounding like it will change things, in that regard. Their first single is one part of a multi-part prog suite, and is structured with three minutes of instrumental work, followed by a cool-down solo rather than a final rousing chorus. It's exactly the kind of song that shouldn't be released as a single, as it can only appeal to hardcore prog fans. What's worse is that the hook that is there isn't great, and Neal's voice is once again laden with so many effects he barely sounds human half the time. I should be done with him by now, shouldn't I?

W.E.T. - Believer/Where Are The Heroes Now?

I'm a bit wary about the upcoming W.E.T. album. In the time since the last one, Erik Martensson has put out three albums with his band Eclipse. That's a lot of songs, and given how much some of them have been running together, I worry he's run out of good ideas for his side-projects. These first two tastes of the record are not allaying those concerns. There's nothing wrong with them, and I still prefer hearing Erik's writing without his voice (although he takes too much of the lead on the latter of them), they also aren't standing out the way the singles off the last couple of albums did. If these are the highlights, it's not a good sign. I fear the Frontiers factory system has burned out another writer.

Jules & The Howl - Boys Club

The patriarchy does not go quietly, but the noise it makes is rarely worth listening to. The best music comes from protest, not oppression, which comes through in Jules' newest song. After a year in which women were disappointed to see our society has apparently ensconced men with Roman concrete, Jules is keeping her faith in the fight with this anthem of independent rebellion. With equal parts punk energy and dance-rock rhythm, Jules raises her voice for the cause, raising middle fingers in the air like lighters as she belts out a chorus of self-empowerment. Here's the thing about a boy's club; the men in them are keeping women out because they're scared of them. You don't have to hold down people you aren't worried about being more powerful than you. Jules is reminding us of that. Sadly, I don't know if the people who need to hear that message will be smart enough to hear it.