Music Reviews

1. Music Reviews In your W.N., If you were forced to choose a favorite music CD; which one would it be and why. Describe what you like about the songs/album and why.

2. Speaking the Sounds Tips for Writing a Music Review

3. The Goal The goal of the review is to persuade others to be interested in this song, artist, group, or album in general, so language use is critical to the success of the review. Read over your review and make the language more interesting, descriptive, and persuasive. Avoid simply listing the tracks; intrigue and entertain.

4. Questions to Answer: Respond to the following when describing the songs used: --What type of music does this artist or group perform? (e.g., hip-hop, hard rock, etc.) --What words would you use to describe the style of this artist or group? (What emotions does the music conjure up in its listeners? What do you want to do when you listen to the music? What special characteristics does this artist or group possess? What special talents does the artist or group possess, and how are these talents demonstrated?) --In describing the song, discuss how these songs relate back to the style of the artist or group, and the themes of the album as a whole. --How does this music reflect the society in which it was written?

5. BOTTLE ROCKET When most people hear the words Bottle Rocket they think of a firework and not the 1996 film starring Owen and Luke Wilson. Bottle Rocket is a gem of a film that marked the directorial debut of Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums). A film of friendship, loyalty, and of course humor, Bottle Rocket began the companionship between Anderson and composer Mark Mothersbaugh. Mothersbaugh, front man of 80's new wave group Devo, was ambitious to work with first time director Anderson. All that aside let's get to the score. The score opens with a warm, friendly, and airy piece entitled "Voluntary Hospital Escape". The main instruments appearing in the cue are flute, acoustic guitar, keyboards, and a few percussion instruments, and these are all instruments that can be heard throughout a majority of the score. The opening cue sets a nice mood for the film. http://www.scorereviews.com/reviews/review.aspx?id=521

6. INDIANA JONES The score and soundtrack opens with the eight minutes long "Indy's Very First Adventure", which is a rousing adventure cue, based on one of the minor themes in the score for the first Indy film, Raiders of the Lost Ark. It's bouncy, playful and, well, fun. The same goes for the charming "Scherzo for Motorcycle and Orchestra", which features staccato strings and upbeat woodwinds and brass, with appearances of the catchy Nazi motif. It's one of those amazing action pieces, similar in style to many of the action cues written for the first three Star Wars films. http://www.scorereviews.com/reviews/review.aspx?id=419

7. BECK There's an overall kitschy spookiness. On "1000 BPM," Beck stutters tensely over junkyard percussion reminiscent of Tom Waits. "We Dance Alone" begins as a funk-folk throwaway, but breaks down into a pulsating noise jam that could score a David Lynch film. The whole album is loaded with existentialist imagery; he even titles the first single "Nausea." What he's worried about is unclear -- his place in pop history? His family? His thetan level? Regardless, it makes for some compelling ambience. http://www.spin.com/reviews/2006/10/0611_beck/

8. LL Cool J They say money can buy you friends, and it's bought thirty-eight-year-old ll cool j age-defying hit collabos before. But this is just too much: eight of thirteen tracks on todd smith qualify as slow-jam duets (the cavalcade of lame co-stars including ne-yo, 112, ginuwine and jamie foxx), and none of them has a sweat droplet of the appeal of 1987's ll-as-lothario classic "i need love." "My flavor's unreal/smooth but hard/like wood grain on the wheel," he fibs rather fecklessly on "favorite flavor," while mary j. Blige oohs ornamentally over what sounds like a fistful of wet-naps fed into a juicer. The motivation behind team-ups like "it's ll and santana" -- that's juelz, not carlos -- feels equally transparent, leaving one wondering whatever happened to the immortal mc who could carry an album by himself without needing a breath. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/9553551/review/9961250/todd_smith

9. MUSE Muse's fourth album is one of the year's most overblown records, mixing together huge, doomy soundscapes, snarling guitars and space-age sound effects with matthew bellamy's operatic wail and lyrics about stuff like death, injustice and "superstars sucked into the supermassive." This isn't so surprising coming from these sub-radiohead gloomsters; what's surprising is that most of the time, black holes and revelations actually works. There's room for melody on seductive songs like "invincible," an epic with military drums and laser-beam guitar. Sleek, falsetto-laden lead single "supermassive black hole" bangs like prime depeche mode, and "starlight" sets sparkling patter and coldplay-style swoons over an almost power-pop groove. http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/10773425/review/10962862/black_holes_and_revelations