Calling All Indie Bands!

If you're an independent band, please be sure to drop us a line with a link to your EPK. We love reviewing new artists as well as established ones! Rawk on!

Radiohead or Radiodead?

This is not so much a review of RADIOHEADs latest outing as it is a comment on their horrendous lack of consistency since KID A. KID A was a brilliant piece of work. It was an about face from RADIOHEAD'S previous guitar driven efforts but its textured layers were 100% Radiohead.

The KING OF LIMBS lacks the melancholic beauty of KID A and the songwriting cohesiveness as well. This is not say that the album is bad. After what appeared to be a glorious return to form with IN RAINBOWS, RADIOHEAD again attempt to turn things around, but this time it comes across as being contrived. We know that RADIOHEAD doesn't like to repeat itself but I doubt long term fans would mind if the band chose to revisit THE BENDS or OK COMPUTER era songcraft.

Buy the new album if you're a long term fan, but if you're new to Radiohead's electronic ambitions, check out KID A first. Despite a lack lustre turn out this time around, the Musical Maelstrom team looks forward to their next effort :)

Overall Impression: 2.5 out of 5.0

STAY tuned for a full album review of Opeth's Heritage album, due out tomorrow, September 20, 2011.

CD Review: Radically Poetic by DREAMS OF REASON

Canadian artists seem to be the focus of a lot of attention these days but most bands still fall into the unsung hero category. Take Canadian bands like the new reunited TEA PARTY or BIG SUGAR. Both are icons in their home nation. Both have fanatical followings at home yet neither has captured major State-side acclaim. Pop-rockers, NICKELBACK have been able to break the Canadian curse with multi-platinum record sales in the US, but the majority of Canadian artists toil in obscurity.

Enter Calgary, Alberta’s DREAMS OF REASON. Uh, ya, who right? The band is a smash hit within its own enclave. Its shows manage to attract drunken hooligans, aloof college students and white haired senior citizens to a spectacle that gets larger every time the band plays.

RADICALLY POETIC'S 12 tracks feature world class musicianship and high production values, courtesy of Greg Hampton (Alice Cooper / Lita Ford). What really stands out on Radically Poetic is the song-writing. Unlike much of today’s “rock music”, DREAMS OF REASON truly are a rock band that manages to sound new while sticking to tradition. Favouring simple arrangements and very few vocal harmonies, the band throws it all down on the line, delivering a believable performance that is beautiful even during its most crushing moments. The arrangements are as close to perfect as things get, while the choruses are generally memorable but could feature a little more pay-off.

Like their major influences, the STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, Dreams of Reason are hard to classify. Songs like “Hunting” and “New Low” serve up classic METALLICA style metal with tribal and world music undertones. The power ballad “Surrender” rocks out like early psychedelic era VERVE on steroids. Throw in the eccentric rhythm and middle eastern modalities of “Show You Need” with the reggae tinged “Everything Ordinary” and you’ve got a pretty strange brew that somehow manages to sound like one band. It’s as if Dreams of Reason managed to harness the song-writing consciousness of bands like the BEATLES or NIRVANA, melding it with instrumental virtuosity.

Radically Poetic is the sound a young band getting its feet wet. There are moments where the performances could convey a deeper sense of passion, but this a minor flaw on a great debut. Although not radically inventive, Dreams of Reason could breathe life into a rock genre that seems content to repeat itself. I'd really like to see the band unleash its virtuosity and go for it on their next outing.

Overall Impression: 4.0 out of 5.0

We're Back!

After a long absence we're back in the blog business! Thanks to everyone that supported my previous printed zine but alas all good things must come to an end. No hard feelings. I still love everyone from back in the day.

Without further ado, we're going to kick off the Musical Maelstrom with some hot Canadian releases. Focusing first on a couple lesser knowns, we're going to move onto review & interview industry heavy weights.

Light up. Drink up. It's time for Musical Maelstrom to kick things off...