MUSIC ZONE 3 Doors Down — 3
Doors Down
(Universal) Saurabh & Gaurav
3
Doors Down returns with another shot of arena-ready rock in the
form of their self-titled album. The melodic
Mississippi/Nashville-based quintet first thundered into the
rock scene at the top of the decade, redefining the music
landscape with their smash hit Kryptonite. Their 6
million selling 2000 debut album The Better Life
epitomized their signature sound, establishing the band as
top-notch songwriters and a roaring live outfit. On this
self-titled fourth album, 3 Doors Down offer the strongest
collection of their career, and fortunately separate themselves
a bit from the mainstream rock crowd. The band maintains its
fiery mix of southern hard rock and mid-tempo ballads with
pulsating energy. The album spans the entire spectrum of the 3
Doors Down sound. Opening with Train, the song is an
anthem of exploration and seeing what's hidden. Mistakes will be
made but chances have to be taken. The band knows how to rock
out as seen in similar tracks Pages and Give It To Me.
The latter is a softer rock tune layered on a minor vocal key
giving the listener a chance to hear the passion behind the
music. 3 Doors Down hits a grand slam with the lead single It’s
Not My Time, already a hit, loaded with catchy riffs and
crowd-pleasing chorus. Disc closer moody tale She Don’t
Want The World sees the band exploring new territory, backed
by minimal guitar and slick overdubs.
Best track: She
Don’t Want The World
Worst track: Runaway
Rating: **
Album of the month
Def
Leppard — Songs From The Sparkle Lounge (Universal)
The
first album of original material in six years, Songs From
The Sparkle Lounge sees Sheffield rock giants Def Leppard
largely eschew the power ballads that defined 2002's X
album in favour of their signature crunching pop-metal.
Closing in on 30 years as arena rock staples, Def Leppard
deserves credit for keeping it fresh and somewhat
surprising on this album. Hallucinate is much more in the
classic Def Leppard 80s vein, with a Photograph-like riff
that would make this track equally at home on the classic
Pyromania album way back in 1983. Def Leppard is also
evolving and including new styles to stay fresh. The song
following Go is their current single in rotation that
features country sensation Tim McGraw. McGraw lent his
hand at writing for them on the hit track Nine Lives.
"Nine lives, nine times to die" begins the
chorus of survival and having chances over and over not
being afraid. Love is a mix of subtly and rock. Placing
the vocals along an acoustic finger picking style, you
hear the pain of a hurting love with no remorse from the
other person. "Love, love why do I keep searching
high and low/ You take me in your arms then let me
go." There’s a distinctly harder edge heard on this
album over the band’s last couple of efforts, with
Collen and Campbell dominating on tracks such as Come
Undone, the moody Cruise Control, the 60’s tinged Only
The Good Die Young and Gotta Let It Go. Welcome back Rock
dads!
Best
track: Go
Worst
track: Bad
Actress
Rating: ****
Al Green — Lay
It Down
(Blue Note)
Following
his Definitive Greatest Hits collection from last year,
legendary '70s soul singer Al Green continues the revival of his
classic soul sound with Lay It Down, his third release.
The production team, Roots' Ahmir ‘Guestlove’ Thompson and
James Poyser, manage to evoke the supple groove of Green’s
early-70’s collaborations with producer Willie Mitchell more
precisely than Mitchell himself did on 2003’s I Can't Stop
and 2005’s Everything’s OK. Lay It Down is
Green’s perfectly realised tribute to his own past, with all
the trademarks — the slinking guitar, the soft organ, the
pulsing drumbeat, the snappy horns — positioned impeccably in
all the right places. Green still sounds best when he’s on his
own. The open-throated midtempo ballad No One Like You,
with gorgeous backing vocals by Jaguar Wright and Mercedes
Martinez, and the closer, an Otis Redding-esque up-tempo track
titled Standing In The Rain, are cases in point. Neo-soul
lover man John Legend shares the microphone on Stay With Me
(By The Sea), a lilting soul stirrer gently propelled by a
nimble bassline and lush backing vocals. Take Your Time
and Too Much are pure waltz, graced with mellow piano,
sweet strings and gently swelling horns. What More Do You
Want From Me is a slow groover of a soul record- its
dynamics and textures shift delicately to keep Green's voice at
the center of its sound.
Best track: No
One Like You
Worst track: I’m
Wild About You
Rating: ***
Buddha
Lounge — The Best of (Silk Road)
After
listening to this compilation, it is obvious that lounge
music has come a long way since its birth in the 50s.
Originating as a reaction to euphoria and the advent of
hi-fi, lounge music was the accompaniment to a novelty
recreation: entertaining at home. Branching from
latter-day swing and big band, lounge music has come to
occupy a unique place in the music spectrum. Best of
Buddha Loungeis a compilation spin-off from
the successful Buddha Lounge series. As the earlier tracks
suggest, the concept of the compilation succeeds in
showing that this is the new-age lounge reinvented with
cutting-edge electronic enhancements and club-friendly
programmed beats. Aloguina by Kimikumana opens the
album. Technically, this is a flawless track and perhaps
that is why it can potentially leave you cold. Ratnabali
delivers some of the most impressive tracks, including Rama,
Cosmic Dance, Breeze, Guru, Liberation
and Spiritual Trance. Marcel Gallo’s Secrets
and The Old Man Memory are hauntingly beautiful and
the perfect tools for conjuring the magical ambience. The
arrangement is delicate, retaining the essence of music
while coating it with an electronic varnish. This is a
superb compilation and there is nothing understated about
it. Put down the wine, sit up, pay attention, and you’ll
be blown away.
Best track: Secrets
Worst track:
Mon Palais De
Solitude
Rating: ***
Top 10
singles
Lollipop
Lil Wayne feat. Static Major (CU)
The
Time Of My Life David Cook (CU)
Bleeding
Love Leona Lewis (FD)
Viva
La Vida Coldplay (CU)
Take A
Bow Rihanna (FD)
Love
In This Club Usher feat. Young Jeezy (NM)
Love
In This Club Madonna feat. Justin Timberlake (FD)
Love
Song Sara Bareilles (CU)
It’s
Not My Time 3 Doors Down (NE)
With
You Chris Brown (FD)
CU (coming
up); NM (non-mover); FD (falling down); NE (new entry)
3
Doors Down returns with another shot of arena-ready rock in the
form of their self-titled album. The melodic
Mississippi/Nashville-based quintet first thundered into the
rock scene at the top of the decade, redefining the music
landscape with their smash hit Kryptonite. Their 6
million selling 2000 debut album The Better Life
epitomized their signature sound, establishing the band as
top-notch songwriters and a roaring live outfit. On this
self-titled fourth album, 3 Doors Down offer the strongest
collection of their career, and fortunately separate themselves
a bit from the mainstream rock crowd. The band maintains its
fiery mix of southern hard rock and mid-tempo ballads with
pulsating energy. The album spans the entire spectrum of the 3
Doors Down sound. Opening with Train, the song is an
anthem of exploration and seeing what's hidden. Mistakes will be
made but chances have to be taken. The band knows how to rock
out as seen in similar tracks Pages and Give It To Me.
The latter is a softer rock tune layered on a minor vocal key
giving the listener a chance to hear the passion behind the
music. 3 Doors Down hits a grand slam with the lead single It’s
Not My Time, already a hit, loaded with catchy riffs and
crowd-pleasing chorus. Disc closer moody tale She Don’t
Want The World sees the band exploring new territory, backed
by minimal guitar and slick overdubs.
The
first album of original material in six years, Songs From
The Sparkle Lounge sees Sheffield rock giants Def Leppard
largely eschew the power ballads that defined 2002's X
album in favour of their signature crunching pop-metal.
Closing in on 30 years as arena rock staples, Def Leppard
deserves credit for keeping it fresh and somewhat
surprising on this album. Hallucinate is much more in the
classic Def Leppard 80s vein, with a Photograph-like riff
that would make this track equally at home on the classic
Pyromania album way back in 1983. Def Leppard is also
evolving and including new styles to stay fresh. The song
following Go is their current single in rotation that
features country sensation Tim McGraw. McGraw lent his
hand at writing for them on the hit track Nine Lives.
"Nine lives, nine times to die" begins the
chorus of survival and having chances over and over not
being afraid. Love is a mix of subtly and rock. Placing
the vocals along an acoustic finger picking style, you
hear the pain of a hurting love with no remorse from the
other person. "Love, love why do I keep searching
high and low/ You take me in your arms then let me
go." There’s a distinctly harder edge heard on this
album over the band’s last couple of efforts, with
Collen and Campbell dominating on tracks such as Come
Undone, the moody Cruise Control, the 60’s tinged Only
The Good Die Young and Gotta Let It Go. Welcome back Rock
dads!
Following
his Definitive Greatest Hits collection from last year,
legendary '70s soul singer Al Green continues the revival of his
classic soul sound with Lay It Down, his third release.
The production team, Roots' Ahmir ‘Guestlove’ Thompson and
James Poyser, manage to evoke the supple groove of Green’s
early-70’s collaborations with producer Willie Mitchell more
precisely than Mitchell himself did on 2003’s I Can't Stop
and 2005’s Everything’s OK. Lay It Down is
Green’s perfectly realised tribute to his own past, with all
the trademarks — the slinking guitar, the soft organ, the
pulsing drumbeat, the snappy horns — positioned impeccably in
all the right places. Green still sounds best when he’s on his
own. The open-throated midtempo ballad No One Like You,
with gorgeous backing vocals by Jaguar Wright and Mercedes
Martinez, and the closer, an Otis Redding-esque up-tempo track
titled Standing In The Rain, are cases in point. Neo-soul
lover man John Legend shares the microphone on Stay With Me
(By The Sea), a lilting soul stirrer gently propelled by a
nimble bassline and lush backing vocals. Take Your Time
and Too Much are pure waltz, graced with mellow piano,
sweet strings and gently swelling horns. What More Do You
Want From Me is a slow groover of a soul record- its
dynamics and textures shift delicately to keep Green's voice at
the center of its sound.
After
listening to this compilation, it is obvious that lounge
music has come a long way since its birth in the 50s.
Originating as a reaction to euphoria and the advent of
hi-fi, lounge music was the accompaniment to a novelty
recreation: entertaining at home. Branching from
latter-day swing and big band, lounge music has come to
occupy a unique place in the music spectrum. Best of
Buddha Lounge is a compilation spin-off from
the successful Buddha Lounge series. As the earlier tracks
suggest, the concept of the compilation succeeds in
showing that this is the new-age lounge reinvented with
cutting-edge electronic enhancements and club-friendly
programmed beats. Aloguina by Kimikumana opens the
album. Technically, this is a flawless track and perhaps
that is why it can potentially leave you cold. Ratnabali
delivers some of the most impressive tracks, including Rama,
Cosmic Dance, Breeze, Guru, Liberation
and Spiritual Trance. Marcel Gallo’s Secrets
and The Old Man Memory are hauntingly beautiful and
the perfect tools for conjuring the magical ambience. The
arrangement is delicate, retaining the essence of music
while coating it with an electronic varnish. This is a
superb compilation and there is nothing understated about
it. Put down the wine, sit up, pay attention, and you’ll
be blown away.