Brand New - The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me
I am very glad that I have waited this long to write a review of this CD, because it has taken me about a month to come up with a definitive outlook on it.
Upon first listen, I immediatley rejected this album as total nonsense, but several listens have slightly altered my view. Here are different points/responses to previous reviews about this album.
1) You have to pay a dollar to get lyrics to the songs, shame on you Brand New
2) There is no need for 3 guitars. I will defend them against chris’s argument for layering. I don’t believe layering is always effective because if one person adds 2 different guitar parts, it isn’t truly 2 ideas. Irrelevant to my beliefs, Brand New simply can’t pull off 3 guitars. At most times, the guitars just sound muddy. At other times, it sounds as if theres only really 2 decent lines, and the 3rd guitar line really serves no purpose. I do truly believe that the reason for bringing in a 3rd guitarist is simply to have a 3rd guitarist.
3) Is it just me or is “Sowing Season” and “Degausser” basically the same exact song
4) I would have to say that “Not The Sun” is the strongest song on the album. It has many common Brand New elements, but adds some new ideas that are foreign to BN. It is a bit of a new direction, but it doesn’t try to do to much.
With all this being said, I have ultimatley been trying to best describe my thoughts on this album. I think the best word to describe it is FORGETTABLE. It simply is just a forgettable album. Brand New are trying to do things that they are simply not talented enough to do. Songs like “Limousine,” and “Luca,” and “You Won’t Know” fall flat on their face. Other songs like “Jesus Christ,” are interesting, but when it comes down to it, they are just mediocre.
I rate this album a very forgettable 4. (Please note that if i reviewed the album after 1 listen, it would of received something between a 0 and 1)
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January 2nd, 2007 at 9:35 pm
My layering comment was actually directed toward the assertion that Brand New could now do more on this album by having three guitarists. The only way that would be true is if this third guitarist had a very different style from the other people in the band, as opposed to the mere fact that he added another guitar to the band, because with layering, you could add another guitar part anyway. Also, I don’t really believe in having three guitarists for studio recordings anyway.
I agree with a lot of what you say. Some of the songs are too ambitious for their own good. The simplistic drumming in Limousine bothers me to no end, to the point where the song is unlistenable.
January 3rd, 2007 at 1:43 am
i def agree, in this case, layering would of worked just fine, because the 3rd guitar player really doesn’t add anyting special, and I too am against 3 guitarists, but i still feel it is better than layering