Review: Our Lady Peace - Burn Burn

Our Lady Peace - Burn Burn
2009, Our Lady Peace

Our Lady Peace sheds the bonds of corporate rock and returns to their roots on Burn Burn, due out July 21, 2009. After feeling as if they'd lost control of their sound over the last two or three albums, Raine Maida and crew went back to their Indie roots, writing, recording and producing all of the material on Burn Burn themselves. The result is Our Lady Peace's most vibrant and enjoyable album since 1994's Naveed.

Burn Burn opens with All You Did Was Save My Life, which happens to be the first single from the album. All You Did Was Save My Life is perfect Pop/Rock Radio or teen movie soundtrack fodder. It's an upbeat Mix Tape candidate; a love song out of the traditional sphere with great pop hooks. All You Did Was Save My Life should drive downloads and album sales, particularly once people find out Burn Burn isn't your typical modern album with one good single. All told there's perhaps one average song on the disc, with the rest of the material here ranging from above average to excellent. Dreamland is a poignant piece of songwriting. The color scale of life becomes greyer as we do; this is a song about longing for our Technicolor days. Our Lady Peace gets a bit bizarre on Monkey Brains, which appears to be two songs (or song threads) tied together. I don't get it, but I love the progressive nature of the song.

Our Lady Peace guarantees themselves at least two big singles to follow All You Did Was Save My Life. The End Is Where We Begin is a wonderfully melodic guitar rock anthem, whereas Never Get Over You might be one of the best power ballads on the past few years. If Never Get Over You doesn't end up as a top-10 single somewhere it will only confirm that commercial radio is as lifeless and bereft of taste as reality television. I got a particular kick out of White Flags, a song that sounds like it's about ready to descend into utter musical chaos every time the chorus comes around but never quite does. Big, can't miss hooks and a distinctive pop feel make White Flags an essential listen. Perhaps the best songwriting on the CD is saved for last. Paper Moon is one of those songs that will stick with you, popping into your mind here and there, now and then and never being unwelcome.

Our Lady Peace is back After a number of years of corporate oppression, Raine Maida are once again in control of their own musical destinies. This good for Our Lady Peace, but even better for long suffering fans who've wondered where the fire and spark that made the band essential in the early 1990's went. It's here on Burn Burn, and the fire is burning bright.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Our Lady Peace at http://www.ourladypeace.net/ or www.myspace.com/ourladypeace. Burn Burn hits the street on July 21, 2009. You can pre-order a copy from the Our Lady Peace web store. You can pre-order a download through iTunes with bonus tracks as well.

Review: The Eastern Gate - Seraphim

The Eastern Gate – Seraphim
2008, The Eastern Gate

Hillsdale, Michigan’s The Eastern Gate is a quintet of college friends who played together throughout their college experience; cutting and releasing an album in January, 2009, Seraphim, as their “final act” together. As fate would have it, the band shot into the Top-200 downloads on Amazon.com within hours and hit #1 on Amazon’s Movers and Shakers chart. Now the band is adding dates in and around their home base, and I would imagine reconsidering whether they really want to give up on The Eastern Gate just yet.

If you enjoy bands like The Tragically Hip, The Psychodots (Bears) or Our Lady Peace then you will find a lot to like here. The album opens with Whirlwind, in the style of Our Lady Peace. It’s a solid rocker with fair commercial presence. Still Sailing On is a key track, it’s a very active, driven tune, although the mix isn’t ideal. Come Along is more orchestral in composition/arrangement. It is a soft and sentimental track that displays some of the expanded range of the band. News is and upbeat blues rocker built around some tremendous violin fills and a great hook. Suspend Me and Rock N Roll Nun are my two favorite tracks on the album. Suspend Me sounds pretty much like The Tragically Hip with a violin player, whereas Rock N Roll Nun is very much in the mid-western style of The Psychodots (The Bears without Adrian Belew).

The Eastern Gate might just be kissed by fate. Their sound isn’t necessarily one that will be embraced by all listeners, but it might have enough appeal to take them a long, long way. Their eclectic, big rock sound with Celtic and Blues elements is unique and interesting and fresh in the music marketplace. Seraphim is very much worth checking out.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about The Eastern Gate at http://www.theeasterngate.net/ or www.myspace.com/theeasterngatemusic. Currently, Seraphim is most accessible in digital formats from outlets such as iTunes, Amazon.com, or Napster. Hard copies are currently available at shows and will soon be available through http://www.amiestreet.com/.