Forum Overview :: No Stairway to Heaven
 
My favorite record of the moment by Alternate789 01/21/2003, 5:21pm PST
Or: I am 733t3r than you
*Note: all song names with stars by them are available for download here.

Let me tell you a story about "schwag", by The Larval Organs. It was the second day after receiving the album in the mail, and because I couldn't possibly hear it enough during the daylight hours, I was laying in bed listening to it. In the middle of *Fire Me Up, and through the beginning of *Devil Come Madness, I had a panic attack. As unpleasant as this was, The Larval Organs provided an appropriate soundtrack, to say the least.

To give you the gist of the music: Fuzzy background guitar and vocals, with a searing lead guitar, and lively bass and drum lines. The vocalist and lead songwriter, Cockroach Bernstein, has a great voice. It ranges from Cobain-like throaty growling (but better) to a clear, wavering voice that reminds me of Vincent Price for some reason. The lyrics can sometimes seem like a goth wet-dream, but the delivery is so honest they work.

The songs have this indescribable quality in which they seem both bleak and optomistic at the same time, making the album much more accessible. This might have something to do with the production, which really treats the bass and drums kindly, giving them both big, clear sounds that perfectly counterbalance the fuzzy guitar and vocals. The stereo separation is very apparent (this might bother some of you. For me, you can't be un-subtle enough with stereo separation), and lets you notice the two vocal tracks on *Israel, or the two guitar tracks on the *Fire Me Up guitar solo. Speaking of guitar solos: I'm not usually a fan. But those on "schwag" are very well done, from the introspective, November Rain-esque kind, to the Velvet Underground-style freakouts.

Oddly enough, their most casual and poppy (for lack of a better word) songs are missing from the mp3.com site. Which, it bears mentioning, features half of the album. The brisk length definitely makes the album better, and again, accessible.

You can order the album from Tuolumne Records, for $10 (including shipping). My apologies for the babbling, but I'm really in love with this CD. And I'd also like to get other people's opinions on it, because I can' quite understand why I like it so much. I mean, if you gave me a choice between any two tracks on this album, and asked me to choose a favorite, I wouldn't be able to tell you. I can't be objective about the album not for any personal reason, but simply because I love it too much.

I was going to give the record a 9/10, but there's a picture on the CD and CD case of a skull with a zombie cock growing out of it's eye socket, which elevates the score to 10/10.

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My favorite record of the moment by Alternate789 01/21/2003, 5:21pm PST NEW
    Umm... are you in this band? (nt) NT by FullofSemen 01/21/2003, 6:06pm PST NEW
 
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