Movie Review: Tower Heist

I've been excited about Tower Heist for a while. The cast was just too good and it sounded like a comedic gold mine w as in the making. I can happily say that Tower Heist delivered on all of the promises the trailer made. It's very entertaining, clever, and funny. This is a plot that has clearly been done before, but the wit and excitement of this film make it refreshing to watch. There is not a single dull moment to be had here. The amount of jokes and fun to be had don't even give you a chance to breathe. They laughs just keep coming non-stop and it's just fantastic. The wonderful cast has a lot do with the success of this movie. The ensemble cast is awesome from top to bottom. Everyone adds to the laughs and is clearly having fun with their roles. Even people that I normally don't enjoy (Matthew Broderick) and people that don't normally do comedy (Casey Affleck and Gabourey Sidibe) do a great job here. The real showstealer though is Eddie Murphy. After all the hype, I can now  say this is 100% without a doubt his comeback role. I can't even begin to recall the last time he was this good in a movie. It's really awesome to see him being funny again after such a long dry spell. He completely nails the role of petty crook Slide and I can't imagine anyone else doing a better job. No disrespect to the other talented actors involved in this, but  Eddie Murphy's return to form really made Tower Heist special. Tower Heist completely met my expectations and I had a hell of a time watching this.

4/5 Stars

Album Review: Eluveitie-Helvetios

Eluveitie holds kind of a special place in my heart. They are the band that is responsible for me getting into folk metal with their fantastic 2008 record Slania. Since I got into them, I have seen them live once and they released another great record (2010's Everything Remains (As It Never Was). They have returned once again with their latest blast of folk metal Helvetios.

If you have ever listened to Eluveitie before, Helvetios is nothing new. It's the same brand of folk/melodic death metal they have been playing throughout their career with bursts of more melodic material. Don't get me wrong, Helvetios is still good stuff, it just doesn't reach the highs that their earlier albums did. Helvetios is at it's best when it's at it's heaviest. The title track gets the ball rolling for the album and it kick ass. It's just a straight-up heavy song with some of the best folk parts of the whole album. This is easily the highlight of the whole record, but the other very heavy tracks work almost as well. "Neverland" and "The Siege" are also triumphant, furious tracks that sound like they were made as soundtracks to have sword battles too (I mean that as a compliment, not an insult). Unfortunately the album loses focus on some of the more mid-paced/slower tracks. The album begins to drag and ultimately feels too long. The stretch in the middle of the record from "Home" through "Meet the Enemy" is the perfect example of this. None of these songs bring any thing remotely interesting to the table and it almost seems like Eluveitie was on auto-pilot while they made me these tracks. Thankfully, the album picks up from "Neverland" on with the last actual song (the album actually ends with a spoken word epilogue) "Uxellodonen" being the only misstep for the rest of the album.

Eluveitie doesn't completely strike out with Helvetios (far from it actually), but it is still somewhat of a disappointment. There is some great stuff on here, but there is also quite a bit of filler. If they cut down on the length of the album, I'm sure it would have been just as good as their previous material. Helvetios offers the same folk metal that Eluveitie is known for, it just doesn't work as well this time-around.

3.5/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.Helvetios
2.The Siege
3.Neverland

Movie Review: Abduction (Film Number 50 In My Goal For 2011 Films)

Rising star Taylor Lautner from Twilight finally gets to lead his own film. Thank god he has a long career ahead of him because Abduction is the not way you want to start off your career as a (sole) lead actor. I will say that Abduction is better than expected, but that's not saying much considering how bad the trailers were and how low my expectations were. This is a dumb, dumb action movie that isn't even entertaining or so bad it's good. It just keeps getting more absurd and continues to lose traction by the minute, until it just ends. Taylor Lautner isn't as bad as the critics said he was, but he wasn't anything special. He kind of just went through the motions from the beginning to end. Really the only performance that was horrible was Lily Collins, who plays Lautner's love interest/ person he's on the run with. Abduction doesn't even work as a mindless time-waster. I feel bad for a talented veteran director like John Singelton being involved in this project. It's clear he tried his hardest, but there was nothing he could do to save this stupid movie. Abduction is a ridiculous and incompetent action thriller that can't even provide any cheap thrills or mindless entertainment.

1.5/5 Stars

Album Review: Veil of Maya-Eclipse

Veil of Maya are amongst the wave of bands that are on Sumerian Records pushing the envelope of the deathcore genre. They are in the small percentage of bands that are anything special in the genre that is mostly frowned upon by the metal community. Eclipse advances Veil of Maya's sound even further and hammers home why are they one of the few standout deathcore acts.

Eclipse is a big progression from their last record (id). (id) was a great record that showed off Veil of Maya's technicality and knack for killer progressive riffing. Eclipse offers up similar pleasures, but improves on these elements substantially. The guitarwork has never been better and the music has never been more intricate or progressive. "The Glass Slide" is the biggest (and best) example of the two coming together. The riffing is very technical and catchy and it has this big, amazing synth line that accompanies the guitar perfectly. Lead single "Vicious Circles" also benefits from an extremely catchy synth line paired with some solid progressive riffs. Other songs like "Numerical Scheme" are just bilsteringly fast and heavy. Veil of Maya hasn't strayed completely from it's roots though. Tracks like "Divide Paths" and "Winter is Coming Soon" feature prominent (and very good) breakdowns that don't get old and don't feel forced at all. Besides the major improvement from a songwriting and instrumentation standpoint, the vocals have also improved. Brandon Butler has never sounded close to this good vocally in the past. His highs and lows have a lot more power behind them and he enunciates pretty well throughout the record. It's such a vast improvement that it almost sounds like a completely new vocalist.

Plain and simple, Eclipse kicks ass. It's more diverse, technical, progressive, catchy, and just flat-out stronger than any other of Veil of Maya's releases. I have to give Marc Okuabo and Brandon Butler major props for stepping their game up big time. Their guitarwork and vocalwork respectively has advanced greatly from (id) to now. Really the only problem with the record it's just too damn short (it clocks in at an extremely brief 28 minutes). If this record was longer, who knows what Veil of Maya could have pulled off. In just 28 minutes, they were able to make a memorable record that also happens to best their best yet. If they made an album that was 15-20 minutes longer, they could possibly be contending with their labelmates Born of Osiris for the crown of best deathcore band. Veil of Maya has again outdone themselves and the future is looking very bright for them.

4/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.The Glass Slide
2.Vicious Circles
3.Numerical Scheme

Movie Review: Straw Dogs (Film Number 49 In My Goal For 2011 Films)

I was blissfully unaware of the original Straw Dogs until the remake was released. I had heard a lot of great things about the original, which led me to believe the remake would be at the very least watchable. I was wrong. Straw Dogs misses the mark pretty hard. This is a film that takes a whole lot of time to do absolutely nothing. The first 3/4 of the film is a redneck melodrama and the last 1/4 is a bloody massacre. Everything leading up to the finale is mostly just dead air and feeble attempts at character development. The film only gets worst as it enters the last act. The event that leads to the violent conclusion is extremely stupid. The only thing stupider than the event leading to the conclusion, is the conclusion itself. It's just so dumb and extreme that you can't even fathom how anyone could take it seriously. It's ironic that a film in where one of the main characters is a screenwriter has such a weak script. Really the only thing Straw Dogs has going for it is a bunch of decent performances (with the exception of James Woods, who gives one of the worst stereotypical redneck performances ever.) Straw Dogs is a dull, half-baked, extreme, redneck opus that was not even remotely enjoyable.

1.5/5 Stars

Album Review: Goatwhore-Blood for the Master

Everyone's favorite extreme metal band from the Bayou Goatwhore is back again with Blood for the Master. As usual, Goatwhore's mix of death, black, and thrash metal is a relentlessly aggressive treat for the listener.

I will say, that Blood for the Master didn't grab me right off the bat. The first few tracks are pretty good, but they aren't great. Maybe I was just getting greedy after Goatwhore's last record Carving out the Eyes of God which started off with the absolute rager "Apocalyptic Havoc". The ragers that Goatwhore does so well do set in around track four with "In Deathless Tradition". Sammy Duet's trademark distorted thrash meets extreme metal riffs from the swamp finally come out and they are as sick as ever. The greatness of the rest of the album from "In Deathless Tradition" on more than makes up for the good, but not great first third of the album. Goatwhore explores their vast range of influences expertly on the second half. "Embodiment of the Bitter Chaos" provides a melodic black metal-esque vibe where the best riffs of the album surface. "Beyond the Spell of Discontent" provides a blast of old-school death metal that sounds like it was recorded in the late 80's or early 90's. "An End to Nothing" is a full-on thrash assault at under 3 minutes and is a sure pit-starter in a live environment. If only the first part of the record was as good as the second part, Goatwhore would have made their best record so far.

Blood for the Master is another great release from Goatwhore. Although I didn't enjoy it as much as their previous record Carving out the Eyes of God, it's about comparable with the rest of their discography outside of Carving. They are a consistent band that knows what their auidence wants and  they deliver the goods on every record. Blood for the Master is pure Goatwhore and I am excited to finally get to see them live this year (spoiler alert: they are on Summer Slaughter this year).

4/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.Embodiment of the Bitter Chaos
2.In Deathless Tradition
3.An End to Nothing

Movie Review: Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance dropped the ball. There really is no better way to put it. This had all the makings of a corny masterpiece (Nicolas Cage, lame flame puns, and most importantly Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor of Crank fame directing), but instead they just waste all that potential. What we are left with is a movie that is just plain dumb instead of being dumb fun.

Spirit Of Vengeance actually makes the first Ghost Rider look like some kind of groundbreaking masterpiece. This movie just fails in almost every possible way, but at the end of the day, the majority of the blame can be put towards the piss-poor script. It's chalk-full of stupidity and unintentional laughs, but the tone of the film is dead serious. It's kind of hard to enjoy a movie that contains cringe-inducing dialogue, absolutely awful villains, a half-baked story that doesn't really make sense (but attempts to make it seem like it had a deep and engrossing story line) and multiple scenes of Johnny Blaze as Ghost Rider pissing fire with a straight face. The whole time I was left thinking "This would've been great if it had a better script". They really should have just had Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor write this. If they had written it, this would've have been completely amazing. Their scripts don't take themselves seriously and they have really mastered the art of making corny films that are entertaining and fun as all hell.

Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance is an exercise in pure crap without any form of entertainment value. This is an incoherent, terribly acted, movie that is crippled even further by a dogshit script that seems like it was written by an 8-year old. The action scenes don't even serve as a saving grace. I don't mind a corny movie (I actually really enjoy over-the-top movies), but when there is little to no fun to be had, it just becomes a very unpleasant experience. A complete and total missed opportunity to say the least.

1.5/5 Stars

Movie Review: The Rum Diary

In 1998, a little movie based on a Hunter S. Thompson novel starring Johnny Depp called Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was released and soon became a cult classic. Thirteen years later, Depp is starring in The Rum Diary,  another adaptation of a Thompson novel. Though it doesn't have the same levels of brilliant luancy and twisted genius that Fear and Loathing had (though it very well could also become a cult classic), The Rum Diary is still a clever and entertaining dark comedy ride. Much like Fear and Loathing, the two biggest strengths of The Rum Diary are Johnny Depp and the subtle, dark wit of Thompson's source material. Depp just owns the role of drunk journalist Paul Kemp. The whole film, no matter if his character is in a chaotic situation or just having a causal conversation, Depp maintains this calming and cool presence. He just has such a strange yet cool charisma that it makes almost every film he is in a pleasure to watch (with the exception of his frequent collaborations with Tim Burton). On top of Depp's great performance, The script is full of fun. The story is basic, but it's the wit of the script that makes it watchable. Kemp writes for a newspaper in San Juan, Puerto Rico and gets involved with a shady businessman (Aaron Eckhart) and falls in love with his girlfriend (Amber Heard). In the hands of weaker source material, this would have been a booze-soaked, misguided mess, but this is an intelligent, clever and amusing ride of unpredictable chaos for two hours. The Rum Diary isn't the abstract masterpiece that Fear and Loathing was, but it's still completely worth the watch .

3.5/5 Stars

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's been a slow few days in terms of blogging for me (I haven't seen a movie for listened to a new album in almost a week) so I figured I would wish my followers a Happy Valentine's Day. Anyways in the Valentine's Day spirit, I figured I would share my favorite love song with you all. Enjoy!

Album Review: Van Halen-A Different Kind of Truth

There has been a lot of hoopla about the new Van Halen album. David Lee Roth is back for the first time since 1984, this is Van Halen's first album since the last Sammy Hager disaster in 1998 and they have a huge tour lined up for the next few months. You would think this would be great right? Not so much.

I will say my expectations for this album were very low and they surpassed them, so at least Van Halen succeeded on that front. A lot of Van Halen's peers from that era have made far worse reunion albums than A Different Kind of Truth. Thankfully, there is only a couple tracks that are god awful ( The Hagar-era sounding"Tattoo" and the bluesy disaster "Stay Frosty"). That being said, there just isn't anything remotely special about it. It just seems like they were on auto pilot throughout the album. There is really no redeeming qualities to most of this album. The songs just lack the punch that old, Roth-era Van Halen had. There is a lack of great hooks, riffs, and just overall catchiness. David Lee Roth doesn't really do a bad job (especially considering his age), but let's just say he's seen better days. It's kind of a shame considering the glory days of Van Helm were when Lee Roth was the frontman. It's awesome that he's back, but I just wish this was more of a landmark record to celebrate his comeback. Even Eddie Van Halen can't make this album memorable. Sure Eddie Van Halen is still arguably the best guitar player of all time, but his solos are (for the most part) surprisingly pretty bland here. I will say at least his guitar playing is back where it belongs instead of on the insultingly bad material that was produced when Sammy Hagar was in the band.

A Different Kind of Truth did indeed surpass my expectations, but that doesn't excuse it's mediocrity. This is an album that just doesn't go anywhere for 90% of it's duration. It's mostly inoffensive yet very so-so hard rock. It's good to see David Lee Roth back and Van Halen going back to their roots, I just wish that they had made a better comeback album than A Different Kind of Truth.

2.5/5 Stars
Standout Track
1.China Town (the only track on the album that is actually good!)

Quick Movie Reviews: Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules, Contagion, and A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas

I had a good number of films to write reviews for, so I figured I would just do some brief ones on each to conserve some time.

Diary Of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules (Film Number 47 In My Goal For 2011 Films): An almost completely joyless and unfunny kids movie. The jokes are just so dumb I can't imagine anyone above the age of 8 thinking they are funny. When the funniest thing in the movie is the presence of a Brutal Truth poster in Roderick's room (being a big metalhead, the fact that there was a visible poster from such a legendary grindcore band in a kids movie was hilarious to me and probably no one else.), you know you have a major problem. The cast doesn't really make things better. The characters are mostly just annoying and you just sigh every time they enter a scene. Unless you have kid that is age 8 or under, stay away from this one.

1.5/5 Stars

Contagion (Film Number 48 In My Goal For 2011 Films): A pleasant surprise. Steven Soderbergh turned what could have been a very boring film into a pretty good disease film. What struck me most about this film was the fact that it's incredibly realistic. This could ACTUALLY happen and that is just incredibly scary. The film also makes good use of it's large cast of A-list actors. This is a great ensemble of talented actors and they are pretty much all on the top of their game here ( Jude Law, Matt Damon, and Laurence Fishburne give the standout performances out of this elite cast of actors). The only downside to Contagion is the narrative is a little too scattered and manic. If it had a better structured story, it would have reached it's full potential. Nevertheless, a good and effectively eerie disease movie.

3.5/5 Stars 

A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas*: Irrelevant to the quality of the movie, but it's very strange watching a Christmas movie in February. Anyways, back to the movie itself. As expected, it's hilarious. It's exactly what a Harold and Kumar Christmas promised to be and should be: lots of drug use, sex, vulgarity, stupid humor, lunacy and of course, another amazing cameo from Neil Patrick Harris, and even some holiday cheer and charm for good measure. It's good to have Harold and Kumar back, John Cho and Kal Penn really are a great comedic pair. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first two, but it's still a great comedy.

4/5 Stars

Top 100 Modern Metal Guitarists

This has been something I have been working on for a long time. I've put a lot of effort into analyzing the playing of all the guitarists on this list, even if I didn't enjoy their respective band's music. There was only one rule I had when compiling this list: The band had to be formed from 1990 to the present day (so great players like John Petrucci, Fredrik Thordendal, and Terrence Hobbs are excluded). Another quick note is I listed some players that played or are currently playing in bands that were formed before 1990, but their main band formed within in the eligible time period (which is why Chris Broderick did not make the list and Erik Rutan did). Feel free to comment, I appreciate the feedback.  I hope that clears everything up and without further ado, here is my list of the top 100 guitar players in modern metal.

100.JB Brubaker (August Burns Red)

99.David Sullivan (Red Fang)

98.Robby Baca (The Contortionist)

97.Oli Herbert (All That Remains)

96.Ryan Waste (Municipal Waste)

95.Pete Adams (Baroness)

94.Ryan Butler (Landmine Marathon)

93.Mike Sprietzer (Devildriver)

92.Per Nilison (Scar Symmetry)

91.Mike “Gunface” McKenzie (The Red Chord)

90.John Abernathy (Conducting From The Grave)

89.Joel Grind (Toxic Holocaust)

88.Robb Flynn (Machine Head)

87.Willie Adler (Lamb Of God)

86.Josh Middleton (Sylosis)

85.A.J Harvey (Last Chance To Reason)

84.Peter Wichers (Soilwork)

83.Josh Travis (The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, Glass Cloud)

82.Rob Arnold (ex-Chimaira, Six Feet Under)

81.Bjorn Gallette (In Flames)

80.Matt Pike (High On Fire, ex-Sleep)

79.J.D Cronise (The Sword)

78.Cristaino Trionferia (Fleshgod Apocalypse)

77.Luke Kilpatrick (Parkway Drive)

76.Doc Coyle (God Forbid)

75.Chris Marchteal (Powerglove)

74.Nick Hipa (As I Lay Dying)

73.Mark Morton (Lamb Of God)

72.Matheiau Marcotte (Augury)

71.Charles Elliott (Abysmal Dawn)

70.Greg Burgess (Allegaeon)

69.Joe Haley (Psycroptic)

68.Dan Gapen (Lazarus A.D)

67.John Gallagher (Dying Fetus)

66.Travis Montgomery (Threat Signal)

65.Corey Beaulieu (Trivium)

64.Marc Lambert (Painted In Exile)

63.Fransisco Auerado (All Shall Perish)

62.Sebastian Nilson (Aeon)

61.Branon Bernatowiz (War Of Ages)

60.Arde Oswitari (Burning The Masses)

59.Nergal (Behemoth)

58.Sammy Duet (Goatwhore, ex-Acid Bath, ex-Crowbar)

57.Synyster Gates (Avenged Sevenfold)

56.James Malone (Arsis)

55.Jonathan Donais (Shadows Fall)

54.Brandon Small(Dethklok)

53.Scott Corstairs (Fallujah)

52.Chase Fraser (Son Of Aurelius, Decrepit Birth (touring), ex-Animosity)

51.Muhammed Suicwez (Necrophagist)

50.Shane Clark (3 Inches of Blood)

49.John Laux (Warbringer)

48.Kris Norris (The Kris Norris Project, ex-Darkest Hour)

47.Chris Valenzula (Burning The Masses)

46.Reece Scruggs (Havok)

45.Joe Cochi (Within The Ruins)

44.Christopher Bradley (Beneath The Massacre)

43.Jason Richardson (Chelsea Grin (vomit, hasn't done any studio stuff with them yet), ex-Born Of Osiris, ex-All Shall Perish)

42.Trent Hafdahl (After The Burial)

41.Johan Sodderberg (Amon Amarth)

40.Adam Dutekiwicz (Killswitch Engage, Times Of Grace)

39.Josh Elmore (Cattle Decapitation)

38.Misha “Bulb” Mansoor (Periphery)

37.Vogg (Decapitated)

36.Erik Nelson (Vektor)

35.Emil Wrestler (Chimaira (hasn't recorded any studio stuff with them yet), Daath)

34.Devin Townsend (Devin Townsend Project, Solo, ex-Strapping Young Lad)

33.Nate Garnette (Skeletonwitch)

32.Kurt Ballou (Converge)

31.Luke Hoskin (Protest The Hero)

30.Matt Sotelo (Decrepit Birth)

29.Adam Jones (Tool)

28.Buz McGrath (Unearth)

27.Gus G (Firewind, Ozzy Osbourne)

26.Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal, ex-Morbid Angel)

25.Ivan Bornson(Enslaved)

24.Scott Hull (Pig Destroyer, Agoraphobic Nosebleed)

23.Chimp Spanner (Solo)

22.Christopher Amott (Arch Enemy)

21.Christopher Arp (Psyopus)

20.Ben Weinman (The Dillinger Escape Plan)

19.Ol' Drake (Evile)

18.Alexi Laiho (Children Of Bodom)

17.Mikael Aferdelt (Opeth)

16.Michael Keene (The Faceless)

15.A.J Minette (The Human Abstract)

14.Chris Lectford (Scale The Summit)

13.John 5 (Rob Zombie, Solo,ex-Marilyn Manson)

12.Phil Demmel (Machine Head)

11.Paul Ryan (Origin)

10.Ryan Knight (The Black Dahlia Murder, ex-Arsis)

9.Michael Amott (Arch Enemy)

8.Karl Sanders (Nile)

7.Christian Munzer (Obscura, Spawn Of Possession, ex-Necrophagist)

6.Brent Hinds (Mastodon)

5.Jeff Loomis (ex-Nevermore, Solo)

4.Colin Marston (Behold...The Arctopus, Kralice, A lot of other projects)

3.Paul Waggoner (Between The Buried and Me)
2.David Davidson (Revocation)

1.Tosin Abasi (Animals As Leaders)

Concert Review: Machine Head, Worcester, MA, Februrary 4th, 2012

Sorry it took me a couple days to post this. My internet was down yesterday and the Super Bowl also interfered with me writing this. Now that everything is back up and running, I can finally do my write-up on this great show.

My friend and I got there around 6:30 and managed to secure a very good spot right above the floor. I was surprised that there was so few people there at that point in time, which was very unfortunate for this show. After about 30 minutes, Darkest Hour hit the stage. They were great as usual. John Henry never fails to impress with his stage presence. He just commands the stage and gets the crowd amped even if they aren't huge fans of the band. On top of his great stage presence, he sounded spot-on vocally. The set was pretty similar to what it was at Summer Slaughter, which was fine because they still played great (Although I wish they would break out a couple more from Deliver Us and Undoing Ruin). They were even better than the first time I saw them and I hope I get to see them again soon.

Suicide Silence was up next. Thankfully the crowd started to get bigger and remained large for the rest of the night. What else can I say their live shows? This marked my sixth(!) time seeing them and I'm just getting really damn bored of seeing them live. I don't really have anything horribly against them, they just don't do anything for me. They are like the herpes of metal for me, they will go away for about six months and then they just pop up and I end up seeing them again (I have never gone to a show to see them specifically, they are just kind of there every time). They played for 45 minutes, which is way too long for them to remain interesting. Mitch Lucker gets on my nerves more and more each time. His stage presence is obnoxious. He just yells out stupid shit like "smoke fucking weed" and "Bounce!" (I don't know why he kept asking the crowd to do this, this isn't a fucking mainstream rap concert) the whole time and it gets really annoying really fast. Also adding to the annoying sections of their performance was the frequent use of the airhorn that appears in every bad rap song of the past couple of years. That was absolutely nothing short of puzzling and I honestly couldn't believe what was I hearing. On the plus side, they did play "Smoke", which is the only song in their discography that I really like. Not completely repulsive, but not enjoyable either. I really hope I don't have to see them again for at least the rest of this year.

Machine Head was finally on next. I had seen Machine Head twice before, but it was in support slots on Mayhem Fest, so my excitement level was through the roof to see them headline. As expected, they completely crushed. For almost two hours, Machine Head mightily impressed with their great stage presence and stunning musicianship. Their style of metal is made for mid-sized venues like The Palladium. They just blew the roof off of the place. Even weak songs from their nu-metal days like "Bulldozer" and "The Blood, The Sweat, The Tears" were immense in a live setting. Robb Flynn sounded amazing all night. How is he able to scream and sing that well for that long of a set at his age is extremely impressive. The band was tight as all hell too. Phil Demmel hit every solo perfectly, Dave McClain was a beast on the drums and Adam Duce was great when you could hear the bass. I can also say that without  fail, "Halo" remains one of the most epic live songs ever. It just hits so hard every time and it becomes even more grand in a live setting than on disc (which is very impressive considering how perfect that song is on disc). The only thing preventing me from giving Machine Head a 10 was the fucking lame vocal effects Robb Flynn used on the intro to "I Am Hell" and a couple more times during the set. It was really corny and lame and took away from how awesome Machine Head's performance was. Still, even that small complaint wasn't enough to take much away from the amazing show that Machine Head put on. It was an absolute pleasure to finally see them headline and I hope it won't be another four and a half years before their next headlining tour.

Scores
Darkest Hour 8.5/10
Suicide Silence 4.5/10
Machine Head 9.5/10

Setlists:
Darkest Hour:
The World Engulfed in Flames
No God
Savor the Kill
With a Thousand Words to Say but One
Violent By Nature
Your Everyday Disaster
Doomsayer (The Beginning of the End)

Suicide Silence:
You Only Live Once
Wake Up
Unanswered
O.C.D
Bludgeoned to Death
Slaves to Substance
Lifted
Smoke
Disengage
Fuck Everything
No Pity For a Coward

Machine Head:
I Am Hell (Sonata In C#)
Be Still and Know
Imperium
Beautiful Mourning
The Blood, The Sweat, The Tears
Locust
This is the End
Aesthetics of Hate
Old
Darkness Within
Bulldozer
Ten Ton Hammer
Who We Are

Encore:
Halo
Davidian

Album Review: iwrestledabearonce-Ruining It for Everybody

I can't believe I am even writing this review right now. If you had told me a couple of months ago that I was going to write a positive review for an iwrestledabearonce album, I would have told you were out of your god damn mind. Well I'll have to eat crow on this one because it's happening, Ruining It for Everybody is a quality release.

Ruining It for Everybody doesn't really do anything vastly different than their previous material, it just works this time around. Where their past material was disjointed and sloppy, this album prevails with a sense of organization to the chaos. Everything just flows a lot smoother and you can tell they took their time to craft their unique brand of lunacy this time around. It's not just the flow of their music has improved, it's everything about it. They took a lot more risks with their experimentation and it pays off. Their music has always been abstract and strange, but now it's weirder than ever. From the use of a gospel choir on "Dedorant Can't Fix Ugly"to the piano-driven "This Head Music Makes My Eyes Rain" to their usual video game-style bleeps and bloops, iwrestledabearonce makes sure there is not a single moment where chaos isn't ensuing. Vocalist Krysta Cameron also steps her game up. Her screams are very much improved from the first album. That being said, her real strength as a vocalist is her clean vocals. She truly has an amazing singing voice and range. She can go from one extreme to the other at the drop of a hat and that really impressed me.

Ruining It for Everybody is a surprisingly good record. iwrestledabearonce has found their groove when it comes to making weird, spastic metal. They kind remind me of if Dillinger Escape Plan and Converge became obsessed with video games and had a dumb, oddball sense of humor. This is some unpredictable, catchy stuff that just flat-out works for whatever reason. Kuds to iwrestledbearonce for converting me into a fan and getting a hold of their abstract niche.

3.5/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.I'm Gonna Shoot
2.Deodorant Can't Fix Ugly
3.Button It Up

Movie Review: Drive

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Warning for anyone who sees the film: the trailers are extremely misleading. This is not the Fast and the Furious type action movie the trailers make it out  to be. That being said, Drive is a great film if you're willing to take a chance on it. It's definitely not a film for all audiences, but for those who are patient, it's very rewarding. Drive is a combination of two films in one. The first half is a romantic drama and the second half is a brutal crime/revenge film. What unifies the film though is it's unique style throughout. Director Nicolas Winding Refn's style is abstract, but undeniably cool. The film is able to blend a layered romantic story with brief sequences of incredibly graphic violence effortlessly. His choice of shots is remarkable and it's easily the most impressive camerawork I've seen in a long time (the elevator scene is nothing short of mesmerising from a technical standpoint). There is a very art-driven approach to the whole production, but it's not pretentious or douchey in any way. On top being very well made, Drive is full of top-notch acting. Ryan Gosling's work as the lead is amazing. His performance is subtle yet very bold. His character doesn't say much, but his actions speak louder than his words. The second half of the film his character shows that beneath his calm demeanor is a beast that can destroy anything or anyone that is put in his path. Just as good is Albert Brooks's performance as the film's antagonist. Brooks is playing really off-type, but it might be the strongest performance of his career. His character is a ruthless mobster that strikes fear into everyone around him. Brooks isn't on screen for very long, but when he is, he is absolutely electric. Drive is an ambitious film that succeeds on almost every level. It's definitely not for everyone. It's slow, there are sequences with no dialogue, and there is no action for the first 45 minutes or so. But that doesn't take away from how great this film is. Drive is the most brutal romantic film ever made and it's kind of a shame it didn't get more attention from the Academy Awards this year.

4/5 Stars

February In Film

February is the transitional period from the smaller releases of January to the semi-large releases of March. Some of the films are on a larger scale and others are carrying over the low-aim fare from January. Here are my thoughts on all of the February films.

Films I Want to See
2.Wanderlust(2/24)-Even though the film was delayed for months, I still really want to see it. David Wain and his writing team that was behind the great Role Models are behind this film. Throw that on top of a great cast including Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston, Justin Theroux, Joe Lo Trugilo, and Alan Alda you have the potential for the first great comedy of 2012.

1.Safe House(2/10)- Denzel Washington looks to be a sinister villain and it looks to be filled with suspense and twists. I am very excited to see this and I hope it's the thrill ride that the trailer makes it out to be

Film I Am Not Sure About
Chronicle (2/3)-I am really on the fence about this one. The early reviews have been great and the concept is interesting, but it's done in the damn found-footage format which I can't stand. Hopefully it can restore my faith in the found-footage format and not continue the trend of god awful films.

Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance(2/17)-The first installment was very average, but I am holding out hope for this one. The trailer looks to be better than the original and the presence of the warped minds of Brian Taylor and Mark Neveldine (Crank, Gamer) in the director's chairs make me think this film will embrace a manic, crazy tone which is exactly what a film like this needs.

Act of Valor (2/24)-The concept definitely intrigues me. Having Active Duty U.S Navy Seals make an action movie is going to add a lot of realism and could make for a great action film. My only issue is the trailer makes it look like they could have wasted the potential plus you have no idea how well these guys can act because they are soldiers (not that really matters because this is an action film, but if the acting is really bad it will definitely drag the film down).

Gone(2/24)-Looks like a better female-driven version of Abduction, which isn't exactly praise or  criticism.

Film I Have No Interest In
Big Miracle(2/3)-Look way too standard plus I don't really animal-based movie (I don't really hate animals, but I'm not really an animal love either).

The Woman in Black(2/3)-I really don't like horror films like this. The haunted-house genre has never really appealed to me and this does not look like it's going to change my mind.

Journey 2 The Mysterious Island(2/10)-I actually kind of liked the original, but this looks like all the fun is gone and just become a really dumb adventure film.

The Vow(2/10)-The obligatory sappy romantic drama tearjerker of the Valentine's Day season. Anyone who reads my blog on a regular basis should not be surprised that I have absolutely no desire to see this.

This Means War(2/14)-The obligatory romantic comedy of the Valentine's Day season. This film does have a strong cast with Tom Hardy and Chris Pine in the two lead roles, but the idiotic looking trailer does do it any favors.

Good Deeds(2/24)-This may be the best looking Tyler Perry film ever, but it's still a Tyler Perry film.