Buckethead - Electric Sea

In a change from the last 2 weeks I'm actually reviewing an album from an artist who I've actually heard of. Oh Buckethead, Buckethead, Buckethead... what a great album you have made.
1 - Electric Sea.
This song starts out with an acoustic rhythm. Then Buckethead starts to play a smooth, almost soulful tune. It definitely has some sort of classical guitar playing influence on it. To say it is made on an electric guitar the tune is very relaxing. It's a song which could easily send you into your own little world. One of the amazing things about this song is it is a Buckethead song which doesn't feature many effects.
2 - Beyond The Knowing.
This is an acoustic. A sweet melody which obviously has classic guitar picking style. The song is not too long, quite repetitive, but still good.
3 - Swomee Swan.
Another great song. Because of the title it did remind me of relaxing near a river (at least the intro did). Then he decides to go to a proper guitar solo, showing off his amazing guitar skills. This song sounds relatively simple compared to his usual stuff. However don't let that fool you. This song is quite frankly beautiful.
4 - Point of Doom.
This song isn't as downbeat as the title makes it sound. It's another song with an acoustic rhythm. However, the quick, intricate playing of Buckethead is what separates it from the other acoustic sounding tracks. This song is much faster than most of the tracks. It doesn't have the sweet melodies of the other tracks either. For me this is the weakest track on the album. Although I'd still recommend it.
5 - El Indio.
This is probably the most "rock" track on the album as it has a clear riff. It is also another song that has an obviously Spanish influence (as suggested by the title). It's hard for me to say anything about this song that I haven't already said about the previous tracks. It does have a sweet guitar solo on it though.
6 - La Wally.
Quite simply a fantastic track. I cannot say anymore about it.
7 - La Gavotte.
When I first heard this it reminded me of Greensleeves. It sounds quite simple, but that's what makes it excellent. Tbh if you're in a bad mood and need cheering up, this is a song you should listen to. If only we heard more people playing stuff like this.
8 - Bachethead.
This shows how truly amazing Buckethead is. He can take a orchestral tune by Bach and make it sound as if it were meant for a guitar. Just amazing.
9 - Yokohama.
Another nice track. The tone he uses in this song makes it what it is. I sincerely hope he plays this song whilst touring as I feel this could be a standout live track. It's very short though which would be my main criticism of this song (if that is a criticism).
10 - Gateless Gate.
This is another short track. This is probably one of the only filler tracks on the album. Although this filler song is better than most of the music produced by modern artists today.
11 - The Homecoming Beacon.
A fantastic ending to this great album. It's similar to most of the album as the effects are kept to a minimum, allowing the song flow well. This is a song I really could imagine falling asleep to.
It also has a real classic feel to it. His style of picking really lends itself to this song as its a relaxing song with no complicating effects such as wah wah. I'd love to hear him do another album similar to this.
Quite frankly, this is the best album I have heard in ages. It's not like many of the Buckethead tunes I've heard. But then again I'm guessing you cannot really predict what a person who wears a mask and a KFC bucket on his head is going to do next. I feel sorry for the album I'm going to listen to next week as it has a lot to match up to.

Standout Track = Electric Sea 10/10
Album Review = 10/10

Sleigh Bells - Reign Of Terror

I decided to review this album because, even though I've never heard of the band, the preview sounded like something I would enjoy. How wrong I was. I was very disappointed with the album.
I find it hard to describe the sound of this album and I cannot really compare it to any acts out there. But here goes...
1 - True Shred Guitar.
This is a live song. It reminded me very much of 80's acts such as Bon Jovi and Europe. It's sounds ok, guitars and vocals are ok. I found myself struggling to understand what was being said some of the time.
2 - Born To Lose.
This is an ok track. It's not great though. As before, vocals and guitars are fine but it really sounds like an album filler.
3 - Crush.
This very much reminded me of Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend" only it's less catchy. Yet again it's another track which I couldn't hear properly. This song could be a grower though. If the vocals were more powerful or the guitars less prominent then it could be a good track. It's also very short which doesn't really allow the track to develop much. Shame really.
4 - End Of The Line.
It was at this point in the album that I started checking to see how long it had left to run. I'm really not sure what this song was supposed to be. Was it supposed to be a bit of a ballad or a pop song about heartbreak. I have a feeling this song could be very radio friendly. I also feel that a dance remix of this track could work very well. Lyrically it seemed ok (ok meaning I could tell what was being said).
5 - Leader Of The Pack.
I really don't know what to say about this track. It's not particularly brilliant, I couldn't understand the lyrics (again). At least it's short. I feel that as a live track it could be ok.
6 - Comeback Kid.
I actually think song is ok. It's catchy, has a good melody and rhythm. It's probably the most pop song on the album. It's also a song which I could easily find myself singing along too when going for a walk.
7 - Demons.
Probably my favourite track on the album. It's a good rock song. I could easily imagine a band like No Doubt performing this song. The riff is very good. It's quite a headbanger. The repetitive lyrics means its easy to sing along to. I feel if they are to improve as a band, they should use this song as an example of what they can do.
8 - Road To Hell.
Pretty similar to the last song. An ok rock song. Lyrically it's not great as half the song is just a repetition of the title.
9 - You Lost Me.
A good track. Good melody, good rhythm and the vocals actually work quite well with this song. This song sounds like a mixture of Kylie and No Doubt (an odd combination). The guitars are used to good effect in this song as I think the solo towards the end works well with the song and doesn't sound out of place.
10 - Never Say Die.
Yet another song I couldn't understand. The vocals on this song seem very weak. Not that good a track although it will get some people tapping their feet. The guitar saves (and possibly hinders) this track. The guitarist obviously has talent, they just need to home it more.
11 - D.O.A
When I first heard this track I thought it would be like the Foo Fighters song of the same name. I was wrong. It's nothing like it. It's an ok track. It's epitomises the whole album though. It lacks anything that makes it stand out from the crowd and is pretty meagre to be honest. It's a very poor end to the album.
All in all this album is pretty average. If they are going to improve then they need to become a bit more like No Doubt. They need to have more of a rock or pop edge to them. Otherwise they will just become mediocre.

Standout Track = Demons 7/10
Album Review = 6/10.

Emeli Sande - Our Version Of Events

I have to admit until very recently I hadn't heard of Emeli Sandè. This was one of the reasons for choosing her as my first musical blog subject. Anyway,here goes.
I found the first 4 songs very hit and miss. It wasn't until I heard the song Clown that I truly appreciated how good this album could be. The song has a great piano melody, allowing miss Sandè to show off her great vocal range. Mountains is also a very solid track too. Not brilliant but a good addition to the album. Maybe is another great track. It's one of the more upbeat tracks. The song is about heartbreak which is very obvious when you listen to the lyrics "We broke up last sunday night
Keep on thinking about the fight
Rest my head against the wall
Your bags are by the door
Then your key turns in the lock
I see you on the stairs and stop
Have you had a change of heart
Can we go back to the start"
Suitcase is another very good track. The acoustic intro immediately hooks you in. However the intro is quite misleading as the song itself isn't an acoustic song.
The next 2 songs are very good, solid solid songs with "Next To Me" being the most Pop song on this album. The song will be very popular with radio stations such as Radio 1. The next 2 songs River and Lifetime are good tracks well worth a listen. The final three tracks (Hope, Read All About It Part III and Tiger) however are outstanding tracks. They have sweet, simple melodies, they're not too long and show off Emeli's great vocal range.
I would hazard a guess and say many people would be comparing this album to Adele's albums. However I never heard any of them. I they are as good as this though I shall be buying them tomorrow. All in all this is a great album which you should buy ASAP.

Standout Track = Clown 9/10
Album Review 8/10.