The dark side
09/19/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"If your anything like me, you're thinking "Revolver came out with a couple of comp. cds?" Well yes, they did, I was shocked to hear about this since I haven't picked up an issue since last October...And what a compilation. Since I'm not a big fan of metal (gasp) I chose to get this cd instead of THE FUTURE IS METAL, and I'm very glad I did. This is the perfect album for your post-hardcore (screamo) fans. I bought this cd about 2 days ago and I've had it on loop since then. From the intro of "The Latest Plague" all the way to the end of "Black No. 1" it's pretty clear that most of your emo/goth/hardcore kids should be eating this album up.
Track Review:
1. The Latest Plague-From First To Last
(3/5) Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE at my school loves these guys so much. I only give this song 3 out of 5 because it's sad that I can walk down the halls and find the punkers talking about how good Heroine is then turn around the corner and hear a bunch of preppy girls talking about how hot Sonny is. In all reality this song probably deserves 4/5 but I'm not particularly a big fan of FFTL.
2. You Broke Like Glass-Eighteen Visions
(2/5) I've only heard one other song by this band (the one they used for a WWE pay-per-veiw) and I really liked that better. This just has way to much screaming in it to be any better than 2 out of 5, maybe if they had more singing to balance it out it would be better.
3. Personal Jesus-Marilyn Manson
(4/5) I am a HUGE Manson fan and I have to say, this is not his best song. I think if they are going to use a song for this cd it should have been one of his instead of a cover song. After all, the true genious of his songs are the lyrics he writes.
4. Unholy Confessions-Avenged Sevenfold
(4/5) This is one of my favorite A7X songs off of their second (and best) album WAKING THE FALLEN. It doesn't sound like it would be the best for a "spooky" compilation, but it blends in perfectly with all of the other screaming songs on here, and hearing Synyster and Zacky start off the song right after the end of "Personal Jesus" sounds like a perfect way to get you in the mood for a heavier song.
5. Ex's and Oh's-Atreyu
(3/5) The single off of Atreyu's new cd A DEATH-GRIP ON YESTERDAY. If you really want some good Atreyu I would suggest looking for it on one of their older cd's (SUICIDE NOTES AND BUTTERFLY KISSES comes to mind for no particular reason) but this IS a good song, even if the whole "screamo" scene is getting old.
6. Living Dead Girl-Rob Zombie
(5/5) I am not personally a big Rob Zombie fan but I do respect his work. I had heard a lot about this song from my girlfreind, but I never had the chance to hear it until now. Despite the fact that I can hardly understand what he's saying during the chorus I still give this song 5 out of 5 for the great beats and verses.
7. Wicked Game-H.I.M.
(3/5) Another cover song, this time of Chris Isaaks' "Wicked Game" I think "Killing Loneliness" should have been used on this cd instead of this song (which there appearently trying to milk to death) and, just in case you were wondering, they used the version off of RAZORBLADE ROMANCE instead of the one from GREATEST LOVESONGS VOL. 666
8. The Last Sunrise-Aiden
(3/5) More screamo/emo music. Aiden (for those of you who don't know) are Victory records answer *cough*carbon copied*cough* to My Chemical Romance. If you like bands like MCR, and I Am Ghost(also on this compilation) then you'll love this song.
9. Heaven's A Lie-Lacuna Coil
(5/5) Wow. I had heard a lot of very good things about this band but I never really believed it until I listened to this song. Usually I don't like girl vocalist, but Scabbia blew me away with her singing on this track, I would say if you've never heard of Lacuna Coil buy this cd so you can get a taste of them and a few other good partially unknown artist.
10. Blood Hunger Doctrine-Dimmu Borgir
(3/5) I can't really say much about this song because 1. I can't understand the vocals and 2. I can't prenounce the name of the band. Anyways, musically this song deserves at least 4/5 but the vocals ruin it.
11. Pretty People Never Lie-Vampires Really Never Die-I Am Ghost
(4/5) I Am Ghost sounds like a very good band and even better than MCR and their clones Aiden. The vocalists both have beautiful voices and their duets make the song sound just absolutely...ghostly (excuse the pun) but, there are two things that keep the song from being perfect 1. Why does the male singer keep whispering? and 2. They need to be shot for using the band name in the chorus of the song...oh wait I just thought of a third one, well it's really more of a question, but Does anyone know if the cd is out already? I went to my record store here in town and they said "WE ARE ALWAYS SEARCHING comes out Oct. 24th" but then according to Amazon.com and a few other sites it's been out since late '05...what's going on here?
12. Die Die My Darling-The Misfits
(3/5) Ahh who doesn't love the Misfits? Danzig's band sounds great on this cd and this was probably one of the best choices they could have made to put on a cd like this since (in my honest oppinion) The Misfits created "spooky-core" music.
13. The Great Satan-Ministry
(4/5) This song is very loud. But then again, Ministry is a very loud band. Okay this song is I'm guessing a new one since it's not on there older (before RANTOLOGY which I can't seem to find here in town) cds. I would suggest buying everything you can by Ministry (and really pretty much every artist on this cd) this makes the whole cd worth while, even though I think it's kinda lame to title your song "The Great Satan" when your band isn't really THAT satanic.
14. Kill To Beleive-Bleeding Through
(5/5) This is another great song that blew me away. I had never heard any of Bleeding Through's music before this, and now, I have to say I might have a new favorite to add to my list. The singing in the chorus of this song is beautiful, even if the screaming in the verses is a little overdone.
15. Black No. 1-Type O Negative
(4/5) I had never heard a Type O Negative song that I could actually enjoy until I heard this one. Needless to say it's a great song and a great way to end a great album, even if Mr. Steele is trying to sound like Dracula.
So, I would say if you are a goth/emo/hardcore/etc fan you should try out this cd. Even if you have almost all the songs on the cd, it's great to have them all on one disc for a small amount of money. This cd however only gets 3.5 stars because of the fact that besides the Ministry track there's no new material on here, and also after about 7 or 8 listens it wears off. Really it's a good cd though and it's worth getting if your a fan of a couple of the bands or just want to try something new. It's worth buying alone just for Rob Zombie, Lacuna Coil, Ministry, I Am Ghost, and Bleeding Through"
Track Listings (15) - Disc #1