University of South Carolina Libraries
CD REVIEWS/SHOW PREVIEWS Linkin Park conies last album “METEORA” Linkin Park out of BY MEG MOORE THE GAMECOCK Linkin Park apparently didn’t get the latest industry memo: Rap rock has lost its innovative allure. The band’s newest release, “Meteora,” retreads the same hip hop-infused musical territory pop ulated .by its previous hits. Granted, it does so with polished vigor, but “Meteora” ultimately revisits familiar terrain. Propelled by an inherent anger that sneers across the album’s sur face, “Meteora” lyrically attacks the ambivalent “You” — the inner demon and the real-world adviso ry. The album structures itself around this struggle, seething with and simmering in its own menacing sound. “Meteora” is de fined by its anguished message; just as its lyrics are uniform in tone, its tracks are exceedingly similar in style. Songs such as “Don’t Stay” and “Somewhere I Belong” sound much like revamped versions of “In the End,” combining rapped verses with guitar-driven refrains. In fact, the whole album basically follows that same premise. Beat driven beginnings lead into wall of-sound choruses that are defini tively catchy but grow redundant after a while. Linkin Park does step out of its musical shell for a few moments on “Meteora,” however — no tably, it trades its thundering gui tars for a uniquely delicate, yet beat-driven melody on “Breaking the Habit.” While the band clear ly knows how to deliver well structured rap-rock, such melod ic moments are needed to remind listeners that the band knows how to do more than cue the beat box and drive up the distortion level. “Meteora” will not win the group any awards for innovation, but it is a solid exercise for the group’s tried-and-true sound. The album’s veneered version of angst remains radio friendly amid the throes of psychological struggle. Yet “Meteora” might also evidence the tragic flaw of rap-rock music in general: Within the genre, the songs lack distinction. Dedicated fans will likely be rapt with the record’s familiar feel; first-time lis teners might lose interest after the first few carbon-copy tracks. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Bad lyrics disguise good voice “WHILE YOU CAN” Lucy Woodward ★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY JOHN NOLAN AND MEG MOORE THE GAMECOCK Lucy Woodward’s “While You Can” earns points for effort — un fortunately, she gets too caught up in her relationship struggles to produce anything truly listen worthy. Woodward has an in credible voice, and is quite obvi ously talented, but her latest col lection of songs stays safely with in the realm of self-loathing. It muses on everything from how misguided she is for being in love to how empty she feels for not. Essentially, she gives us 11 wounded love songs that attack love in 11 not-so-different ways. If you’ve just ended a relation ship and you’re looking for some thing appropriately angry, this al bum is for you. Listening to Woodward’s album drags out old aches, pulling at the leftover anger of the listeners’ lost relationships as it dives into a depressing spi ral of self-pity. “While Ypu Can” does have its momentary bright spot: the track “Getting It On,” her tribute to that age-old relationship rebound, the fling. This one song keeps the al bum from being an entirely de pressing flop. It shows an aggres sive Woodward at her impas sioned best. Lamenting lyrics aside, there is actually some decent, almost folksy music on “While You Can.” The mixture of Madonna-like rhythms with sounds reminiscent of Creed makes for an interesting overall effect — if you can turn the volume down low enough, it’s al most soothing. Woodward definitely has po tential — but it will go unrealized until she is able to dig that talent out of its accompanying mass of heartache. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com ‘Satellite Years’offers escape “THE SATELLITE YEARS” HopesfaU ★★★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY STEVEN VAN HAREN THE GAMECOCK Hopesfall is not your average rock band —its songs blindside the unsuspecting ear with its banshee-like vocals and jostling, shuffling, yet remarkably clean instrumentation. The Charlotte based group grunts and grinds into Columbia tonight at Uncle Doctors in support of its space age-themed album “The Satellite Years.” “Andromeda,” an elegant mu sical elegy, catalyzes the record into a high-energy frenzy at the onset. The song’s opening instru mental section, combined with the album’s booklet, which contains images of satellites and space phe nomena, makes the album seem like a new Pink Floyd release. The next track, “Waitress,” erases this misconception as lead vocalist Jay Forrest evidences those phantasmic screams. “Dead in Magazines’Cand “Dana Walker” advance the band’s oth erworldly exploration, showcas ing the melodic interplay be tween guitarists Joshua Brigham and Chad Waldrup. The fierce music takes an un expected turn on “Decoys Like Curves,” in which Forrest mel lows out to narrate a tale of es cape: “We drove these streets heads to shoulders/ Existing to tell the tales of letting go.” After an indulgent instrumental sec lion and the lush “Escape Pod for Intangibles,” the album ends on a full-throttle, guttural thud with “The Bending.” Guitarist Joshua Brigham said the band has learned from its past albums. “There1s no grand scheme, as far as I’m concerned. It’s simply a maturation from the last few years,” he said. Formed in 1998, the young band established itself amid the hardcore scene with the help of Columbia favorites Stretch Armstrong. Hopesfall, however, has never wanted to be labeled as strictly hardcore. Brigham said the band’s sound is simply heavy rock. “We’ve always tried to think of a name (for our sound), but couldn’t think of anything in particular,” he said. The obvious theme of “The Satellite Years” is escape. “We’ll start with a simple idea and build a theme around it,” Brigham said. “We wrote the mu sic over a period of two years with escape in mind.” Even before the October 2002 release of “The Satellite Years,” Hopesfall toured consistently. After 10 months of performing, the band is finally ready to begin writing for a new record. “We haven’t gotten much of a chance to write,” Brigham said, “but we’re going to get together to start writing again this summer.” When Hopesfall writes songs, Brigham said, it’s all in the hook. “Usually, someone starts by humming a melody,” Brigham said. “We usually don’t build a song from a guitar lick or drum beat.” Comments on this story?E-mail gdmecockmixeditor@hotmail.com www.dailygamecock.com Nobody covers USC better. Direction*: Jtuf across the Gervai* St. Bridge - Left at Second Light_ I I I SUNCOM STORE LOCATIONS COLUMBIA Five Points 539 Harden St (corner of Harden St and Blossom) 803-261-7510 Columbiana Centre (near Parisian) too Columbiana Circle 803-261-7570, 803-407-7738 (M-Sat toa-9p, Sun t-5p) Authorized Dealers Access Multimedia In the Army National Guard, you can have it all. You can work or go to school full time, and still have a social life. 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