Music Comma Paired

Well, gentle reader, it's time for another of my updates on my lates musical fascinations. This time, I've found myself repeatedly listening to two or sometimes three songs from the same album, so I thought I'd frame today's post in pairs.

• "End of Me" by Apocolyptica featuring Gavin Rossdale, and "Broken Pieces" by Apocalyptica featuring Lacey Sturm, both from the 7th Symphony album. You may recognize the featured vocalists as the frontpeople of Bush and Flyleaf respectively. These songs combine classical string instruments with contemporary style and lyrics. Of course I enjoy them.
• "What You Want" and "My Heart is Broken" by Evanescence, both from the band's self-titled album. These two tracks have all the traits of Evanescence pieces I've enjoyed in the past.
• "Immigrant Song" by Karen O, Trent Reznor, and Atticus Ross as well as "An Itch" by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross from the soundtrack to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. "Immigrant Song" is, of course, a cover, but I really enjoy the extra electronic sounds and "noise" layered on to this version. They really give it an unsettled, busy feeling that seems right. This track was used in one of the trailers and over the Bond-like title sequence of the film. "An Itch" has a completely different mood and tempo, but it still feels, as its name suggests, agitated and ill at ease. I like that. I wonder if Mr. Reznor has a second Academy Award in his future.
• "Heavy in Your Arms" and "Dog Days are Over" by Florence + the Machine, both on the Lungs (Deluxe Edition) album. "Dog Days" is very up-tempo, which seems out-of-character for Florence and Company. "Heavy," which is not available on the regular version of the album, is much more sedate, and it's certainly the standout on the Deluxe Edition. I was a little disturbed to learn that it was used in the soundtrack to one of the Twilight movies. Because of (a) that discovery, (b) the fact that I was working my way through the Hunger Games books when I first encountered the song, and (c) that I seem to associate all female-led, young-adult novels with each other, this track has become linked in my mind to Katniss Everdeen and the nation of Panem.

So that's what I've been listening to recently. How about you, gentle reader?

Music Review: The Open Door by Evanescence

It took me a few listens to warm up to Evanescence's newest album, The Open Door, but now I'm enjoying it quite a bit. In particular, I find tracks 2 and 5 ("Call Me When You're Sober" and "Cloud Nine" to be quite entertaining, but tracks 10 and 12 ("The Only One" and "All That I'm Living For" are my favorites. Overall, it's not as consistently enjoyable as Anywhere But Home, but still quite good, so I'll give it 8.0 out of 10.

By the way, Alison's enjoying this CD, but she was disappointed that it didn't contain a studio version of her perhaps-favorite song from Anywhere But Home, "Breathe No More". Meanwhile I'd still like to hear studio versions of "Farther Away" and the band's cover of Korn's "Thoughtless".

More Evanescent than Evanescence

My recent post mentioning Evanescence got me thinking about just how goth the band's lyrics and song titles are. Here are the topics of their songs, roughly in decreasing order of prevalence:

• Death
  
• Dying
• Love gone bad
• Death
• Submission
• Hatred
• Sleep (probably a metaphor for death)
  
• Death

So, with that in mind, I'd like to suggest a little game. Below, I've listed several true Evanescence song titles and several over-the-top names that I've just made up on the spot. Your job is to pick out the real ones. And don't cheat by looking at my last post or poking around online! Ready?

1. Undone
2. Nightmare
3. Tourniquet
4. Love is a Stranger
5. Bleeding Heart
6. My Last Breath
7. Breathe no More
8. Unfortunate
   
9. Haunted
10. Love is Stronger than Death
    
11. Death is Stronger than Love
12. Everybody's Fool
13. Going Under
14. Almost Human
15. Taking Over Me
16. The Burning Circle
17. Thoughtless
18. Whisper
19. Crybaby

Here are the answers. You might need to copy and paste them into an editor to read them: 3, 6, 7, 9, 12, 13, 15, 17, 18

Are you up for the bonus round? If so, please submit your best more-goth-than-the-goths-are song titles via the comment link below. As always, the author my favorite suggestion(s) will win ...well, nothing of any value.

Dissipation

Alison's favorite songs by Evanescence---still not a Christian band, by the way---are "Breathe no More*," "Going Under," and "Taking Over Me." Meanwhile, my favorites are "Haunted," "Farther Away," and the band's cover of Korn's "Thoughtless." I don't know; this could be a deal-breaker.

* You could be excused for thinking that "Breathe no More" and "My Last Breath" are the same song, but they aren't. What they are, is evidence that this band is more than a bit goth.

Reviews Aplenty

I don't anticipate having the time to do full-length reviews for all of the products I've just recently first used or been reminded of. So, here are my conclusions in rapid-fire format.

Music on CD/DVD:

• Anywhere but Home. This volume includes both CD and DVD recordings of an Evanescence concert in Paris. And no, Nick, they aren't a Christian band. 9.0 out of 10.

TV on DVD:

• Arrested Development, entire series. This show is extremely original and creative, not to mention hilarious. I sometimes find it difficult to watch, though, since almost all the characters are jerks or fools or both. It probably has been or will be prematurely canceled by Fox. I give it 8.5 out of 10.
  
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer, entire series. This Joss-Whedon-created fantasy series has hilarious dialog and fascinating characters. Unfortunately, the supernatural elements are handled inconsistently, and there are significant plot holes. If you can pony up the dough for all 7 seasons, do it. 9.0 out of 10.
• Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffon: The Untold Story. Enh. It's not as good as the first 3 seasons. 7.0 out of 10.
• Firefly, entire series. This sci-fi/western/asian dramedy has more of that unique Whedonesque dialog and characterization, and it is one of my favorite series of all time. The premise is a bit silly, but I'm willing to overlook that. Guess what; it was prematurely cancelled by Fox. Go buy it. 9.5 out of 10.
• Neon Genesis Evangelion, series only. The show starts out as a more-or-less generic mecha anime; then it tries (and fails) to become philosophical. 5.0 out of 10.
• Red Dwarf, entire series. No one does sci-fi comedy like the Brits. 8.0 out of 10.
• Wonderfalls, entire series. This hilarious mild-fantasy dramedy was prematurely cancelled by Fox. (Are you noticing a pattern?) You should own this show. 8.5 out of 10.

Movies and Movies on DVD

• Serenity. This is the film adaptation/sequel of/to Firefly, so of course I love it. Buy this one, too. 9.0 out of 10.
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. This film is a pretty faithful adaptation (as far as I can remember) of the C. S. Lewis novel, which was written as a Christian allegory. The realization of the animals on the screen was superb. 7.5 out of 10.

Toys, Hobbies, and Exercise Equipment

• Seven Cycles Axiom. Seven offers very custom 3/2.5 titanium bicycle frames for prices not much higher than mid-line Litespeeds. In absolute terms, Sevens are pricey, but you get what you pay for. 9.0 out of 10.
• Traxxas Revo. This nitromethane- and methanol-powered R/C monster truck has a very innovative and highly tunable suspension system. The model is mostly easy to wrench on, and many hop-up parts are available. Unfortunately, the differentials are prone to leaking and hard to get to. It's only available in RTR form, not as a kit. 8.0 out of 10.

Well, that's all for now. But never fear, gentle reader, I'm sure I'll have more unasked-for opinions soon.