NMC#55 (JANE'S ADDICTION and MASTODON)

THIS time around, I don't think, or I know, none of these two albums, will be in my top-10 list, in a couple of weeks. But it's not exactly BAD albums, but for me, it's kind of those albums, that you never want to listen to again, once you're "done" after 3-5 listens. There are SO much good music out there, especially old music, so why waste valuable time. I don't really regret buying them, but once again I HOPE, I can be more careful in the new year, and not waste too much money on music, I don't like THAT much. For me, they are both :THUMBS SIDEWAYS. How about you?

JANE'S ADDICTION - THE GREAT ESCAPE ARTIST

1. Underground
2. Irresistible Force
3. I'll Hit You Back
4. Ultimate reason
5. Words Right Out Of My Mouth

From Allmusic.com:

Taking their sweet time to bounce back from the indifferent reception to their 2003 reunion Strays, Jane's Addiction reemerges eight years later with The Great Escape Artist, an album that draws a direct connection to the group's murkier, dramatic moments. Part of this return to the mystic could be due to TV on the Radio's Dave Sitek manning bass for the majority of the album, but his artful spaciness is grounded by numerous songwriting collaborations with Guns N' Roses Duff McKagan, thereby offering a tidy encapsulation of Jane's Addiction's yin and yang: whenever they threaten to float too far off into space, they're pulled back to earth by a heavy dose of Sunset Strip sleaze. This tension had urgency in the '80s, now it’s delivered with finesse, enough so that the whole of The Great Escape Artist appears to favor spaciness even when guitars are grinding out metallic grease. Frankly, the shift toward the ethereal is a welcome relief after the clean lines and bright L.A. sun of Strays, an album that emphasized rock over art. Here, the preference is reversed and the group reaps some benefits, often touching upon the dark, boundless exotica of Nothing's Shocking yet managing to avoid desperation; instead of re-creating sounds, they've recaptured the vibe, which is enough to keep The Great Escape Artist absorbing even when it begins to drift.

MASTODON - THE HUNTER

1. Black Tongue
2. Stargasm
3. Octopus Has No Friends
4. All The Heavy Lifting
5. The Hunter

From Allmusic.com:

On 2011’s The Hunter, Mastodon abandoned the proggy, conceptual route taken on previous outings, choosing instead to mine the trailblazing, riff-heavy abandon of their 2004 masterpiece, Leviathan. Mastodon's increasingly accessible sound may not land them a hit anytime soon, but cuts like “Black Tongue,” “Curl of the Burl,” and “Balsteroid,” all of which arrive in sequence at the front of the set, show a willingness to write within the parameters of 21st century pop music’s dark side. That’s not to say that the band has pulled its head out of the vastness of space, as there are more than enough tracks here to satisfy fans who prefer the sludgy, drop-D epics of yore to the more organized roar of The Hunter's front end. Fueled by Brãnn Dailor's jazzy, machine-gun drumming, songs like “Octopus Has No Friends,” “All the Heavy Lifting,” and “Bedazzled Fingernails,” despite coming in at under five minutes, are epically arranged, and the surprisingly hummable, bass melody-led swamp monster anthem “Creature Lives” sounds like a Sabbathy, Lovecraftian take on Jane’s Addiction's “Summertime Rolls.” The closest Hunter comes to reaching an apex is on the breathless “Spectrelight,” a relentless three-minute slab of pure unadulterated fury that will probably clock in at around a minute and half live, but it’s an album that doesn’t really need to peak, as it never promises a thing it can’t back up, boldly and loudly.

You can listen to the music here:

http://www.podsnack.com/playlists/030c5a5644894bb0e8b106aca1257043

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by RJhog (Admin) on October 30, 2011 at 10:31am

Jane's Addiction (Thumbs somewhat down)

It's not terrible. The first two songs are decent. But it really drops from there for me. I thought about buying this, but thanks to Niels, I'll save a few bucks.

Mastodon (Thumbs Up)

I can say that I didn't like this on the first listen. I was driving home from Atlanta and it just wasn't working for me. But I've listened since and it has greatly improved. The thing I really like about it is that the songs aren't real long. I think there are 13 total tracks, with only two of those being over 5 minutes, and nothing over 6 minutes. The music is really, really good. The vocals aren't great, but I have come to accept that not all bands have great vocalists, and it's easier for me to take it for what it is these days.

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Permalink Reply by Jon on October 31, 2011 at 5:59pm

This is gonna be shocking.....

Jane's Addiction--Thumbs Up

From the video of the song Niel's posted a while back to the 4 different songs here, I really like this. And I don't like Jane's Addiction. Who woulds thunk?

Mastodon--Thumbs Up

I'm just going on the few songs I heard, but it's Mastodon and I dig Mastodon.

Great picks this week!

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Permalink Reply by Scott on October 31, 2011 at 7:01pm

JANES ADDICTION ... Thumbs up

As usual Jons right and RJ is wrong. Wait... is that backwards? oh well... This release is like a parking ticket - Its got "fine" written all over it! OK, I stole that from that cheesy Denny's commercial but it works well in this case. Too bad you didnt post Broken People thats the best track on the CD!

MASTODON ... Thumbs Down

A massive, elephant like mammal of the genus Mammut (Mastodon), that flourished worldwide from the Miocene through the Pleistocene epochs and, in North America, into recent times, having long, curved upper tusks and, in the male, short lower tusks. (Couldnt think of anything nice to say, so I pasted the defintion of Mastodon here to make it more interesting)

OH Yeah... I'm back!