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Marianas Trench – Ever After
Marianas Trench – Ever After (2011)
One of my biggest passions in life is discovering music. This is mostly for my own enjoyment, but it typically means I am able to introduce them into the lives of my friends.
I have always prided myself on the ability to choose the appropriate tracks on an album for single release. However, the labels never reach out to ask my opinion and therefore, probably miss out on some successful releases because some old stuffy guy has made a decision based on who they know and the people that have worked on the track.
My favorite find of 2011 is Marianas Trench. They are a Canadian band that creates albums with a story. In other words, there are concepts behind their releases from beginning to end. When was the last time we truly could listen to something from an artist that told a story from song one until the end of the album? In the singles market of iTunes and Amazon MP3, we usually will find albums with a mix of radio-friendly tracks (or so they think) and some album filler.
In 2011, Mariana’s Trench blessed my ears with their latest concept album, EVER AFTER. Now, I realize that my ears may hear things differently than others, but that will not stop me from sharing my opinion on music with people I know (and those on Facebook and here that I do not).
So, EVER AFTER is a blend of genres that tells a story of love. If you listen from the beginning to the end, you feel the determination of the main character to end up with the love that might not necessarily be able to love him. There are hints of punk, rock, country/bluegrass, 80s flare, pop, you name it. It has a very radio-friendly feel (minus the two f-words randomly placed in the album). Some may feel that it sounds slightly affected, I just say you can hear a little Panic at the Disco mixed with 30 Seconds to Mars. So what, just enjoy the music.
If you need to sample a few tracks before committing to the full concept of the album, my recommendations are “Ever After”, “By Now”, “Desperate Measures”, and “Toy Soldiers”. As I go through the track list to find the stand out tracks, I find myself wanting to put them all down on the list.
Tracklist:
- “Ever After”
- “Haven’t Had Enough”
- “By Now”
- “Truth or Dare”
- “Desperate Measures”
- “Porcelain”
- “Fallout”
- “Stutter”
- “Toy Soldiers”
- “B Team”
- “So Soon”
- “No Place Like Home”
If you like my suggestions, check out their albums “Masterpiece Theater” and “Fix Me”. I would love to hear your thoughts on my favorite musical find of 2011, Marianas Trench.
Link to album on iTunes : http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/ever-after-deluxe-version/id479674517
Video for Marianas Trench – Haven’t Had Enough
The Best Thing about the Rapture!
Were you at this concert? I would have loved to be there. Matt Nathanson is awesome, Little Big Town rocks and Sugarland is one of my favorite bands EVER.
Check this out…
JoJo is all grown up…
How bout this one? Is it “Too Little Too Late”? Hopefully she can move beyond all the label issues she has had over the last few years and break out with a little more urban sound.
REPEAT! She faked it every time…
It’s Friday…
It’s friday, friday, gotta get down on friday…
Here we have Glee’s version of this annoying song…
Until next friday
Nicki Minaj – Super Bass
How do you not like Nicki Minaj? I would say that 90% of what she puts out, I enjoy. Check out her latest “Super Bass”. I am embarrassed to say I don’t recall this being on the Pink Friday album.
“You got my heart beat running away, beating like a drum and its coming your way, can’t you hear that…boom ba doom doom…”
On a side note: does she have @ss implants?
Mariah’s Babies…
Okay, so awhile back, I wrote about how Mariah got so hot based on her parents pictures… See here.
Now, we have the new babies of Mariah and Nick to look forward to seeing. Will Morrocan Scott and Monroe Cannon be cute?
Time will tell…
For now, this is what they looked like in her belly.
WHOA!
Bruno Mars – The Lazy Song
This is a perfect follow up to Grenade from the “Doo Wops and Hooligans” album. However, I still think that Marry You would have been released had it not been featured on GLEE. Who needs to release their own single, when a show like GLEE can promote something without even trying.
In any case, Bruno Mars (aka Peter Hernandez), doesn’t take himself very seriously in this one-shot video for The Lazy Song.
Watch and laugh your way through this perfect summer song. In fact, “today I don’t feel like doing anything…” either.
The Lighter Exchange – Beneath the Endlessness
The following is a reply given to a friend after she asked me to give a listen to the release: “Beneath the Endlessness” by The Lighter Exchange
So first off, I really love the CD. I think there is a lot of promise if they can swim through the muck on the radio right now. The politics and whatnot are not the most desirable, but I’m sure you have some local connections at least for local play.
I also saw that Long Way Down and Lady Luck are in an independent film in the Florida Film Festival. There are many songs on this album that could have a chance with TV and movie placement.
I have listened to the CD a bazillion times since it was given to me since I wanted to be as helpful as possible. As I listened, thoughts continued to change based on pieces of different songs.
My favorites are:
- Hello My Friend (3:34)
- Stuck in My Head (3:37)
- Morning Comes (3:24)
- Paper Planes (5:35)
Those selections are based on what I think might click on a fan basis. Hello My Friend is upbeat enough to catch attention and the lead singer starts almost immediately (could be hard for radio since there is no room to talk over). Then, I love Stuck in My Head. It has a mid tempo/ballad feel. Those types, I feel, are a nice follow up to a catchy pop/rock track. Morning Comes brings more of the up tempo rock feel as a ballad follow up. However the 27 second introduction might be too long for internet plays, but okay for radio since they can talk over it.
Then I love Paper Planes which is totally sentimental and enjoyable. Not sure how that falls into anything, but I really think its a nice ending to the album. Probably way too long for radio play though. The others seem to fit in the mold.
I saw some clips on Youtube from the HOB show. The studio versions are a bit better of some of the tracks, but I think the more they are played, the stronger the vocals get.
Those are my 52 cents. Check it out.
www.myspace.com/thelighterexchange
http://www.thelighterexchange.com (not updated yet)
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