Music Reviews
By Ryan Lindow
Millencolin blends rock and punk
By Ryan Lindow
TSC Writer
On their fifth album, Sweden's Millencolin capture the best of their previous efforts in one cohesive package. The end result is Home From Home, 13 tracks worth of catchy melodies and powerful songwriting. Every essential Millencolin element is on this album, the maybe-it-got-lost-in-the-translation lyrics included.
One thing that this quartet has perfected on this album is writing a solid rock song. Erik and Mathias' guitar parts play off of each other perfectly while Nikola and Larzon drive the album start-to-finish. The dynamics of this album are amazing; the contrasts in tempo and volume alone are enough to put it above and beyond the majority of other punk releases. Whereas many punk rock bands nowadays happily replace the rock with pop, Millencolin is doing the opposite. The ska and pop found on earlier albums like Same Old Tunes or For Monkeys has been abandoned and the overall sound has been streamlined.
Lyrically, Nikola has had some of the most honest as well as the most confusing contributions to the songs over the years. Since the beginning it seems like the only rules for lyrics have been to write what you know, write what you feel and do it all tongue-in-cheek. From this we have gotten songs like "The Story of My Life" (a song about food) and "Fox" (a song about the singer's love for his scooter). On Home From Home, however, it is apparent that the lyrical content is progressing along with the music in a way that blends personal reflection and social commentary on songs like "Black Eye" and "Battery Check."
While Pennybridge Pioneers definitely put Millencolin on the worldwide map, Home From Home surpasses it as the quintessential recording by this punk mainstay. It debuted at No. 3 on the Australian charts will likely do the same when it is released to the rest of the world in early March. The world tour in support of the new album stops at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco on March 24.
Despite past success, Nine Inch Nails disappoints with its most recent album release, Still
By Cheryl Noland
TSC Writer
Nine Inch Nails: industrial, hard rock, electronica, whatever the so-called classification, NIN's new CD Still makes it even more difficult to put a label on Trent Reznor's one-man band.
Still, a special nine-song companion disc to NIN's first live CD, And All That Could Have Been, contains previously unreleased live and instrumental tracks, as well as a brand new song, "And All That Could Have Been." It can only be purchased through NIN's official web site, or as part of the deluxe set sold in stores.
In the past, NIN's songs have been known for their unusual and intricate arrangements, but Still uses a simpler, more honest approach. The songs start out slow and dreary and then build up to a dramatic climax. Which after awhile can become a little predictable. One example, "The Fragile," begins with a soft piano melody, leading to Reznor's inevitable exclamation, "I won't let you fall apart."
Vocally, Reznor is often compared to Goth king Marilyn Manson, and even Ozzy Osbourne. But unlike some of the recent material we've heard from Manson, Reznor remains overwhelmingly somber. His reworked version of "Something I Can Never Have" is an intense display of raw emotion, filled with anger and regret.
But whoever said too much rage is a good thing? C+