Dearest Luk/Luke/Lukey/Whatever You Are Calling Yourself These Days,

This is an open letter to you about your latest LP, Awakening Mercury’s Head for the Indies. I cannot, in good conscience, do a regular old review of this release, given the fact that you are a good friend of mine and my opinions are biased. That said, I want to be open, honest, and critical in a letter directly to you that my readers and your listeners can read in order to get a little bit of a feel for you as the artist that you are.

This release is a major step forward from anything you’ve ever done before. The music is more mature, the vocals are solid, and the lyrics are poetry. While your early days with Dreaming Under Mercury were fun and bubbly and your later material with the less pop oriented version of Dreaming Under Mercury is where you started to develop your voice, this release finds you coming into your own as a truly credible and powerful artist.

In earlier days, you wore your musical and vocal influences on your sleeves (or rather on your sleeveless arms) a bit too much. You have always rocked hard, but at times it felt like you were trying to be someone else. Whether it be your previous vocal emulations of Brandon Boyd or your intense musical similarities to Blindside, Chevelle, or (at one point specifically) Further Seems Forever, there always seemed a slight identity crisis in your musical past.

Today, however, those influences may still be evident, but in a much more unique way. Rather than sound like a copycat, you are your own you. Sure, like any great artist, the ghosts of other musical giants haunt your tunes, but never does Head for the Indies feel like music searching for an identity. This is you, all you… and it make me proud, both as a fan and a friend.

I’ve played this album for several friends, just to gauge a reaction. One friend, who listens primarily to arena rock (Creed, Fuel, etc.) found your music enjoyable but ultimately forgettable. This, however, is not the typical target audience for artier rock like this LP. The more appropriate prospective fan, a friend who’s musical tastes lie primarily in the realm of Further Seems Forever, Sensefield, Jimmy Eat World, and The Juliana Theory, found your LP thoroughly enjoyable and has been bugging me about a copy since that time. I guess your sound can hit home, afterall.

I’ve already been verbose, so I guess it’s time to starting wrapping up, especially seeing as I intend to post a full review at some point (by a guest reviewer, of course). I’d like to simply close this letter by saying that no one has ever deserved a chance to “make it” in music more than you. Always busting your ass to write, record, promote, and network, not to mention all the work you’ve done to help out other bands and artists… rock and roll is your lifestyle, but not in the sex and drugs kinda way, but rather in the way that you breathe, sleep, and eat music. One day, your dream will come true, but until that time I have no doubt that you’ll keep plugging along because no one I know loves music as much as you. Keep honing your craft and you’ll hit the big time… then I promise to ride your coattails as far as I can.

Your friend and fan,
Justin “thepaintedman” Harlan

PS. Since it’s Free Music Monday on TPM, I’m gonna let my readers download the opener off Head for the Indies, “In Winter”, for free. Hope that’s okay with you… if not, too bad!

Jeffrey Krause is a cool dude. He writes and performs music, loves Jesus, and is a family man extraordinaire. Not to mention, he is the United States’ foremost metal authority… well, he and Riki Rachtman.

Here you will find that Jeff is also a fantastic writer. In the below review of the newest Norma Jean release, you will find that like most of my guest writers, he’s much better than me. So, enjoy yourself for a change!

Norma Jean has been a longstanding member of the metal community. Dating back to their days with Tooth & Nail metal sub-label Solid State Records under the name Luti-Kriss, they have been a juggernaut of metal goodness. Meridional continues that trend, showing the band to be hitting on all cylinders once again.

Meridional launches right out of the gate with the aggressiveness of a predator on the opening track “Leaderless & Self Enlisted”. What is worthy of noting here is that the album progresses through the track listing with near-perfection, as any good album will do. Some albums these days sound less flowing, and more like a collection of songs thrown together randomly. That’s not the case here, as NJ perfectly molds each track for the listener with the appropriate level of rage and melody, making the album bob and weave through a variety of tempos, technicality, and pace that keep the listener interested and waiting for the next step.

Also obvious here is the broad approach the band took, shining through in tracks like “Deathbed Atheist” and “High Noise Low Output” (perhaps due to their time with Chino Moreno or Helmet’s Page Hamiliton during The Anti-Mother sessions). NJ isn’t afraid to throw some sing-screaming, or even straight singing into the mix, and it works, in a big way. Some may see this as a loss of metal “edge”; to the contrary, I think the thing that makes a metal band stand out in 2010 is their ability to take some risk and stretch themselves. NJ has done so here, and it brings even more continuity and flow to the overall album. What they accomplish through this stretching is what keeps them from being just another metalcore ripoff band.

Musically, NJ is as solid as ever. These guys have been doing this together for a long time, and it shows. Writing songs with multiple members is no small or easy task, but the musical component of NJ is so solid and tight (both here, as well as live on their recent stint with the Mayhem Fest), it sets them apart from the typical metalcore chugfest that seems to pervade metal today. Vocally, Cory Brandan’s range, screaming style, and ability to bring melody into his sing-screaming is amazing, and should be taken note of; many-a-vocalist could stand to take a lesson from Cory’s vocals on Meridional. They are solid, powerful, and in your face.

2008’s The Anti-Mother was thought by some (including myself) to be one of NJ’s best albums up to that point. While I still think it is an amazing release, what I found here was that the band continues to grow, mature, and stretch and challenge themselves to be better without totally reinventing themselves with every release.

If you haven’t picked up Meridional yet, do yourself a favor and get it. If you don’t you could be missing out on one of the best metal albums of 2010.

The ReverseRemixThis! contest with The Prids has had a lot of interest, some press, and yet, I have very few entries… my thoughts are simple on this: Like me, most of you have had a busy Summer.

So, TPM and VBM have decided to extend the contest dates… so, here is your REVISED mission!

1. Listen to and/or download the song “I’ll Wait” by The Prids.

2. Absorb the feel, tone, and atmosphere that is The Prids.

3. Download the instrumental version.

4. Get out your pad and start cracking on your new lyrics.

5. Record your new version of the track.

6. Send it to justincharlesharlan@gmail.com with the subject “Prids Contest” by the end of the day on September 10th.

7. Wait for Jeff Cloud, myself, and the band to make our selections, to be revealed on the return of the TPM Monthly Mixtape on September 15th.

Now there are no excuses. Singers, songwriters, rappers, poets, whoever you are… GET ON THIS!

gilli moon

the stillness

thepaintedman rates this:

gilli moon is an Aussie singer/songwriter with a big, beautiful voice and a penchant for pop hooks and easily consumed melodies. Inspiring lyrics and great musicianship make this release a pop album that stands out from the uninspired and mediocre pop riddling the radios these days. Comparisons to Alanis Morisette and Lily Allen would not be off the mark in describing the emotion, cleverness, and soul of the stillness. Called “a female Elton John” by Billboard, gilli’s use of great piano work makes this reviewer quite happy (note that Ben Folds and Billy Joel both creep into my top artists list). A solid album cover to cover, but if the first several tracks, notably the trio of “Be”, “I Am”, and “Outside In”, don’t reel you in wanting more, you are probably deaf.

Strong Waves Kill Weak Swimmers

Questions Are Like the Knocks of a Beggar Man

thepaintedman rates this:

By the name of the band and the EP, you could guess (and be quite accurate) that SWKWS is an eclectic indie band. Another example of great musicianship, the band tinkers with layered string arrangements in “Wolves”, jams upbeat synthesizers on “There’s Something in the Sea”, and strums acoustic on “Nothing to Write Home About”. Overall, they sound like a band without a true identity, but a band that is willing to play what they want to play. This EP shows promise and talent… even if they are from Pittsburgh. Another EP or 2 and some maturing and this could be a band to watch out for.

the85bears featuring Alex Exile

Tone & Volume

thepaintedman rates this:

My bias on this one if going to be evident, seeing as a TPM contest is what hooked these artists up together. A few new tracks from the85bears and a few remixes of older bears tracks by the extraordinary Alex Exile (formerly known as Second Reality). There’s also a bonus remix track from Alexander Lowery of The Zero Four. What I like most about the release (besides the fact that it’s FREE), is the variety. Great indie rock coupled with some dance tracks, all the while feeling like a project with continuity and vision. I’d rave more about this, but my bias is already too evident! Check out “Certain Death” and the remixes of “Belly Down” and “Meshac”. Killer stuff.

Little Lords

(s)kills

thepaintedman rates this:

Fourth and final on this edition of Shorties, another Signorelli project that I’ve mentioned a few times before. On this one, Mike gets down and dirty with crazy drumming, screamcore vocals, and a just enough DC hardcore influence. (s)kills is four tracks for fans of the glory days of Victory Records. Brutal in all the right ways, Little Lords will tear you face off and you’ll like it.

The Doctor of Blues that is… Free Music Monday hits y’all off today with “Going Down to Louisiana” by Marshall Lawrence. Bluesy roots rock for the soul… click on the pic below for a free MP3!

Another idea for a rainy day like today…

Saw this on Decapolis and figured some of my readers may be interested… need a drum set?

So I feel silly and presumptuous suggesting that someone would want to buy my drums just because I was in a barely-known band on Tooth & Nail almost a decade ago. But I need to sell my old drums before I move to Seattle, and I thought someone on Decapolis might be interested.

It’s a 4-piece vintage Pearl kit from the mid 70s. I believe the shells are a wood/fiberglass mixture, and they are wrapped in a wood paneling-like covering (so totally 70s). I started to re-cover them, so the smallest tom no longer has the wrap on it. 12″, 13″, and 16″ toms and a 18″ x 22″ bass drum. Pretty standard sizes.

I used these drums to record “Sibling Rivalry,” “Enter the Danger Brigade,” and “From the Secret Files of the Danger Brigade.” I also toured with them for a few years during the same time. I don’t really want to get rid of them, but I don’t need 2 drum sets and don’t have enough room to ship/store them. I’ll include some hardware (a couple cymbal/hi-hat stands, maybe some other goodies), too. I may be able to include a snare drum….maybe.

I’m looking to get $300 and send them to a good home. They’re old and beat up, but they were my dad’s kit and my first kit and they’ll be a good first kit for somebody else.

I’ll ship them to you if you like (which will likely add to the cost quite a bit), or you can pick them up in Mechanicsburg, PA. I need to have these out of my possession by 8/30/10

Email me at iam.christopher.thomas@gmail.com if you’re interested. Thanks!

Love,
Christopher!