New Music - 9/26

First off, let me apologize to all the die-hard 311 fans out there:  this one goes out to Joe Zanetti and Scott Cameron Shores especially.  I'm sorry I didn't hear / download "Uplifter" before this week.  It's ridiculously good - easily makes my short list of albums I've heard in memory that blew me away.  It's a great blend of their styles throughout the years, and really highlights both the band's development over nearly 2 decades, as well as their roots.  A quick peak at my favorite tracks, listed in rank order and numbered in track order, just to confuse the drawers off anyone who's unfortunate/bored/stupid/misguided/misinformed/ enough to read this blog:
6.  "Daisy Cutter" - Talk about a fun track!  And they say "beautiful disaster" in the chorus!  Solid win.  And the song has a true "B" section - something my father would be proud to have mentioned here.  Very reminiscent of "All Mixed Up" and similar tracks from the era.
5.  "India Ink" - I don't know what it is about this song, but I can't get it out of my head.  I've been singing "I write your name on my arm in India Ink" over and over and over again...  Again - sounds like an homage to earlier albums, I'm thinking "Freak Out" off Music?  Anyone?  Bueller?
4.  "Golden Sunlight" - This track really shows how much 311 has matured since Music (1991) and 311 (1995).  Full sound, "Beyond the Gray Sky"-esque chorus... I always manage to look at my iPhone right before the two minute mark, when the song finally hits the chorus thinking "Damn this is good!  What is this again?" - even though I know. :-)
2.  "It's Alright" - All right... so it's got a little "Amber" sound in it - but that's ok:  we all liked "Amber"!
9.  "Two Drops In the Ocean" - As long as we're going through the 311 song history, this reminds me of "Flowing" off Transistor - not once it gets going... but the beginning, yes.  There's something about that "wah-wah" flanged, auto-panned guitar sound... I believe my brother would call it frequency-dependent phase modulation or something.  Perhaps he will correct me - though I doubt it. :-)
1.  "Hey You" - (Honorable Mention) - Here's the story:  This was the single off the album, and I heard this a looooong time ago, so some of the magic has worn off.  I'm including here for honorable mention for a couple of reasons, including but not limited to:  A)  That's how you do an opening on an opening track.  Pow.  2)  This chorus still makes we want to jump around and shout and speed and do other questionable (albeit fun) activities.  D)  2:51 - 3:14:  This part of the song rocks sooo hard it's ridiculous:  the drum fills are completely out of control, and it's glorious.

On a totally and wholly unrelated note, I downloaded a few tracks off the new Dream Theater EP "Wither."  Based on the reviews, I elected to only download the original and Piano versions of the title track.  The piano track is nice - stripped down, honest, and clean:  the way you would expect it to be.  It's got a couple nice spots where the strings really come through, but I was looking for a bit more of this.
The full band (album/studio) version of "Wither" is unlawfully good.  For Dream Theater fans, you need to search your soul and ask if you liked "VI. Solitary Shell" off Six Degrees Of Inner Turbulence.  If you can imagine a mix between that track and "VIII. Losing Time - Grand Finale," then you have a grasp on what you're buying, and can decide from there if it's worth your $1.29 or whatever from iTunes.  Personally, I think you should own the entire Six Degrees album, as well as the new EP title track.  They're awesome rock ballads, and well-worth the listen.  (PS - I don't want to spoil it too much, but if you're torn about the piano version, buy the full version.  You'll know before 4 minutes if you made the right decision.  I hope you agree.)

Oddly enough, I have to get some things together here (like some tunes!) and hit the road in about an hour.  Probably another post before the weekend is out - just to get this going.

In the words of Dream Theater: "The world's what you create."