Close Harmony - Chordettes

Advantages: Outstanding production and lyrical heart
Disadvantages: A few weaker joints

...Bone Thugs & Harmony have always been a unique group. With their triple cadence lyricism, harmonic flows, and R&B-ish twists, they developed a small cult following in the urban areas of Cleveland, Ohio. After their demo tape Faces of Death landed in the hands of N.W.A. founder and record executive Eazy E, he sought them out and immediately signed. The first thing they put out was their incredible EP, known as Creepin on ah Come Up. With two hit-singles, even the low-amount of songs on it were enough to push tons of sales. At last, they released their debut hit album E. 1999 Eternal. Even the death of Eazy-E didnt slow down the momentum of the group as it became the most successful. Track List & Rating 1. Da Introduction (****) 2. East 1999 (*****) 3. Eternal (****) 4. Crept And We Came (*****) 5. Down '71 (The Getaway... Read review

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Advantages: catchy, beautiful songs with loveable rogueish characters
Disadvantages: a little too mainstream considering who it's by

...Closing Time was the very first album from Tom Waits, one of the most noted and acclaimed songwriters in American history. Since its release, Waits has spent more than thirty years making some of the most innovative and original music in the world today. However, when Closing Time came out in 1971, Waits was a practically destitute piano player, living out of cheap motels and spending his last few dollars on cheap whiskey. This is an atmosphere that pervades throughout this album. This first batch of Waits' songs is inflected with the same sense of wistful melancholy that would become more and more pronounced over all of his albums up to the mid eighties. Waits became so good at the lovelorn loser role that he was frequently nicknamed "Skid Romeo" in the music press. One noticable difference between this and Waits' later work... Read review

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Advantages: A good mix of hardcore and Indie with a good kick!
Disadvantages: maybe a little too "indie" for fans of "A Song to Ruin"

..., that much. This track tells it like it is, Fowler screaming "Everything is getting worse" over fast-paced guitars and discondent feedback loops. "To Whom it may concern", as I've already hinted, already has hints of the Smiths and bucket-loads of Morrissey pain and lyricism (Tonight will be the last night/of my record-breakingly successful run/in the lead role of the greatest play of the century), and I defy you not to sing along to the closing Polyphonic Spree-esque epic cries of "I'm only working here 'cause I need the fucking money". This then cuts into "Living the Dream", a song that could honestly have been written by me were I in a band - it just seems to ooze relevance to my life - "I always have a song inside my head" screams Turner over wails of powerful guitar. After 7 songs and about 30 minutes of ear-bleeding, track 8 and 9... Read review

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