AllMusic Concert Review
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
The conscious observation three concerts into Fall 2010 is that the performers have been focused, concentrated, and free-wheeling. With that we mean that the performers don't have time these days to think too much into what they play or plan in advance, they just have to go with what their focus area is with their Fall 2010 music goals and ideas. Gone are the days where material gets "overplayed" or concerts "get old" and the performers "need a break"---there is only one concert per week now, and that means that it is up to the performers to design each playlist with much more detail and decision-making. With that weekly science, there have been some surprises that have come out of it, most notably songs like the stunner "Autumns Monologue" by From Autumn to Ashes. The maturity and autumn tone seethe through the song, and it's a testament to the work Andy had done in the time leading up to the concert. Another song that was received positively upon first-time listen was the ballyhooed "Holiday" by The Birthday Massacre. Discussed in the Concert Forum before the day the song was played in the concert, Andy promised a good song, and it delivered, with a 98 score by the observer. The chorus is building and deep, with the song's bridge taking on a whole different life with a fuzz pedal straight out of the mid-90's playbook. This is a superior song that coincidentally did well upon first-listen in a concert.
Gary just can't let go his undenying love for the works of one Ken Andrews (Failure and Ken Andrews). "Golden" has an impressive drum line, but doesn't offer much steam in the vocal department, while "Something" has the biggest piece of rock you've ever heard in the chorus, but again, fails to offer anything else. One crucial ingredient that might be missing from Failure is a talent for writing hooks, which they've neither cared to "get good" at, nor have they ever been acclaimed to be. Gary claims it's the ability for this band's sonic rock sound and imagery that does something that turns on his imagination, and get him into a mindset where he feels creative and comfortable. But it's hard for pedestrian listeners to find a comfort zone in songs like the ender "Small Crimes", a bitter field of slushy, sludgy chords and zoned-out vocals. We worry of where Gary's mind could be at when he plays songs like this, but the consolation is, again, that neutral comfort level of the band's music and sonic imagery. Perhaps it is nice to hear songs this neutrally emotionless after such surreal times in most of 2010.
written on August 28, 2010