Teenage Time Killers

Foo Fighters – Saint Cecilia EP Review

Posted on by edwardlayland

Saint-Cecilia-EP-640x640This surprise EP, recorded at the Saint Cecilia hotel in Austin, Texas, dropped on Saint Cecilia’s day; well, perhaps not so surprising after all then, especially considering she’s the patron saint of music and that there was a countdown clock on the Foo Fighters’ website. Anyway, it’s a kind of end of tour (or possibly end of career given the tone of the accompanying letter) thank you from the Foo Fighters to their fans and was recorded in a series of Margarita fuelled sessions that picked up the pieces of some riffs and song ideas that had got left on the studio floor.

As a result, it feels like a step back in time and is actually quite fun, although it’s a bit like listening to Noel Gallagher in that you get the feeling he’s used that melody/riff/lyric somewhere before and if you looked hard enough you’d probably find it. But what the hell, we all love Dave, so if he wants to give us free music, then great!

‘Saint Cecilia’ kicks things off and it’s Foo Fighters being Foo Fighters; straight forward rock n roll riffing, a catchy chorus, a tempo change in the mid section and a perfunctory guitar solo. Pretty much everything you’d expect, and well, it’s Dave, so it’s pretty good. ‘Sean’ is uptempo Foo, this time the mid section has a punked up Rockabilly feel to it and again it’s good fun, albeit relatively disposable.

‘Savior Breath’ is more retro with its punky riffing and raucous feel; this would have fit nicely on the Teenage Time Killers record, although it is not the best production wise (which may be deliberate); the vocal being a little distorted in the mix. ‘Iron Rooster’ is a straight rip of Neil Young’s ‘Old Man’ up to the dreamy Zeppelin esque mid section, and serves as nothing more than a little respite.

However, ‘The Neverending Sigh’, a twenty year old tune, is far and away the standout moment; an atmospheric opening segueing into multi-layered riffing that ebbs and flows around time changes and hook filled melodies. OK, so it follows the Foo formula, but it sounds fresh and epic at the same time and would stand up amongst their classic material from the same period.

So, what you’ve basically got here is the Foo Fighters celebrating themselves as a treat for their legions of die hard fans, it’s hardly groundbreaking but is all very enjoyable and seems like a fitting way to close this chapter. Maybe Dave and co. need to do something else for a while and this gives fans a little something to hang onto while they are away.

8/10

The free download is available here:

http://www.saintceciliaep.com/

Latest Twitterings

Posted on by edwardlayland

In the current musical climate use of social media has become an imperative marketing tool for, well, pretty much everyone really (me included!), and like U.S senators the adherence of musicians to Twitter is somewhere in the region of 100%. So, since I started this site and started being much more active on Twitter, I have been getting more and more musicians following me and whenever possible I’m featuring them. So here goes the latest batch. Enjoy!

Tairrie B.
For those who don’t know, she is the voice of metal band My Ruin, one of the guest vocalists on the Teenage Time Killers project and a totally badass rapper. Also, from my contact with Tairrie so far, she seems like a really fucking cool human being – sharp, honest, intelligent and extremely courteous, oh yeah and her husband plays a mean guitar. Here’s a remix of the first track from her recently released and thoroughly enjoyable rap album ‘Vintage Curses’, a free download of which is in this link to my review. https://hardpresseded.wordpress.com/2015/08/18/tairrie-b-vintage-curses/

Blind Wives
This is another band I’ve also had the privilege of reviewing and have previously featured in an article on upcoming bands. They play a cool blend of indie, rock, punk and pop and write some fine tunes. Well worth checking out.

Gavin Mikhail
Bit of an internet sensation this talented singer songwriter. He has a fair whack of original material but also seems to like getting behind a piano, stripping down a song and putting his own spin on it, his cover of Death Cab for Cutie racking up over a million views. He’s also covered a whole slew of British artists as diverse as Bon Iver and One Direction.

Romeo Crow
Super positive singer, songwriter, producer, film maker, family man, already has a stack load of followers and is infectiously upbeat. What I listened to was blues tinged pop/rock with some fine guitar playing. Head over to his site and he’ll give you six songs; be inspired! http://romeocrow.com/about/

Neal Hoffmann/Amphibic
Neal is a singer songwriter fusing his love of indie pop and Americana into his own atmospheric sound.

Color Theory.
Not really my thing but if you like your pop music heavy on synths and melodies with easy on the ear vocals this may well be for you.

Faded Paper Figures
I will admit to starting out with the intention of checking out a couple of tracks to see how they sound, expectations were low after a long day, but six tracks in and I was still uncovering surprises. Their brand of instrumentally rich electronica heavy indie is kinda quirky and makes for interesting listening, no two tracks sound the same and they have a real ear for a hook; cool vibe.

METHEDRAS
Slightly chaotic thrash that is not afraid to experiment with song structures and tempos, with an impressively tight rhythm section and plenty of hard hitting riffage. It’s nice to hear a band put a twist on the traditional bay area sound and make it sound fresh and exciting – well worth a listen.

The Uppercuts
Good time British rock band playing an upbeat blend of punky rock n’ roll with a hint of SKA. It’s an enjoyable listen as it’s all very boisterous and good fun, live shows must be a riot!

Leah West
Easy listening country tinged acoustic rock/pop with an atmospheric laid back vibe. Leah has a lovely voice and composes a nice straightforward tune with a penchant for romantic storytelling.