| Author | Message |
|---|---|
 Post subject: Re: Almost...Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 5:45 am 
mr pine wrote: the only part of your review i fell i can comment on is this since the rest is all opinion.
KyleRossP wrote: Room Noises, which sold, what, 75,000 copies? , was viewed as a great success for uknown Eisley, but, to a major label like WB, it was comparatively a huge flop. i believe boyd said that room noises sold way more that the wb had predicted. and even though it wasnt a "commercial" success, nor did it have any radio hits. it still sold more than the wb anticipated and was considered a success in that respect. if record companies only kept bands on their label that sold millions of copies there would only be about 15 or so records being made every year. that is all i had to say about that Room Noises was not a "hit," but was not exactly a flop, either. It was not financially successful, but it did fall in line with expectations as far as I know. But I would probably consider "Combinations" a flop if it only sells 75,000 in the same span. This time the designation would apply because of progression and expectation. With all the hype and the response already so much stronger than to Room Noises, I don't see that happening. Will it meet expectations? We'll just have to see. But I think this album will surpass Room Noises. The label has been talking about "slow burn" from the beginning. I don't expect that will change just yet. The industry is fickle, but not always. Let's see what folds out ... _________________ My photography:www.jamiemphoto.com You can't spell awesome without emo...backwards! -Julie definingawesome (11:44:11 PM): Eisley shivers our timbers |
|
|
Joined: 15 Aug 2003 | Posts: 25184 | Location: East Texas
|
|
     |
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:00 am
Binary Dragon wrote: Admiral79 wrote: I love the album. All the songs are very catchy and memorable. I think the band out did themselves on the bridges especially. All of them are very emotional and capturing.
The only real negative thing I have to say is that the album doesn't have enough tracks. I would have liked to see between 12-14 tracks instead of 10. What's discouraging about that is we know they have quality songs they could have put on the album. Us hardcore fans will download them off itunes, but why not put them on the album and give us more to love? From what I understand, the album was put together a whole entity, as opposed to an amalgam of tracks. The other songs got cut because they didn't fit with the rest as well. That's the excuse a lot of bands use for short albums, but I heard it was because it was someone's belief that Eisley should have only great songs on Combinations and not the standard 2-3 mediocre songs that are any album. I buy that theory, but I don't agree with the overall song selection I guess. They have some other songs that are just as good as the one's on Combinations that could have made it on. |
|
|
Joined: 08 Sep 2004 | Posts: 1335 | Location: COLUMBUS, GA
|
|
 |
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:07 am
Girlylikepixieflamethrow wrote: keithabbott wrote: I really like the album. My wife thinks also that there aren't enough tracks. She likes Eisley but she wouldn't buy the CD because there are only 10 tracks. I'm used to 10 tracks because the Innocence Mission tends to release shorter albums. Heck, their albums are usually only about 30 minutes in length.
The only thing about Combinations that kind of puts a damper on the CD is Invasion and Many Funerals for me. I just think they are a bit much for the album. And Ten Cent Blues, although a very good song, feels like it has an obligatory Texas-country twang ala Golly Sandra..granted I love that song too. I find myself liking the title track Combinations the most. Ever since they posted the behind the scenes video of that song, I felt like I was hooked. Of course I also really like Come Clean, Go Away and Taking Control. Not to doublepost here, but I too felt a bit "shortchanged" by ending up with only 10 tracks. I do realize that the DVD combination has "bonus tracks" but still, it's not the same. I'm not dissatisfied, just doesn't seem as fulfilling as it could/should be. Blah blah blah. That's my 2-cent blues. I hate long CDs. Most people's attention span is way to short to appreciate a cd longer than 45 minutes. Whenever I buy double CDs (or really long single CDs) I get way less bang for my buck, because I almost never get to know the whole album. Even with a short album, how many times do you actually make it to the end while still paying attention to it? I'm all for trimming down CDs and turning possible album tracks into B-sides. |
|
|
Joined: 06 Nov 2002 | Posts: 432 | Location: Indy
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:09 am
Admiral79 wrote: Binary Dragon wrote: Admiral79 wrote: I love the album. All the songs are very catchy and memorable. I think the band out did themselves on the bridges especially. All of them are very emotional and capturing.
The only real negative thing I have to say is that the album doesn't have enough tracks. I would have liked to see between 12-14 tracks instead of 10. What's discouraging about that is we know they have quality songs they could have put on the album. Us hardcore fans will download them off itunes, but why not put them on the album and give us more to love? From what I understand, the album was put together a whole entity, as opposed to an amalgam of tracks. The other songs got cut because they didn't fit with the rest as well. That's the excuse a lot of bands use for short albums, but I heard it was because it was someone's belief that Eisley should have only great songs on Combinations and not the standard 2-3 mediocre songs that are any album. I buy that theory, but I don't agree with the overall song selection I guess. They have some other songs that are just as good as the one's on Combinations that could have made it on. You can see deep ties and bonds between all of the songs. The most offset from the bunch would be Invasion and Many Funerals, and they both deal with frightening and difficult situations. The lack of fluff was surely one supporting reason for using only 10 songs, but the evidence that Like The Actors and Marsh King's Daughter are so loved would support them easily being able to make the album 12 tracks. They went into the studio with maybe only 12 or 13 songs to record. They made a firm decision that it would be 10 songs long. (I hope it does not sound like bragging, but I did witness a very small but telling part of this decision.) Look at some older albums. They were rather short, and the songs were not terribly long. Some of it was because of format, but just because you have space does not mean you should use it. Any work to make the album longer would have technically been fluff, no matter how good the songs are. We're not going to care that it was only 10 songs long when (hopefully) we have 2 more albums to listen to. _________________ My photography:www.jamiemphoto.com You can't spell awesome without emo...backwards! -Julie definingawesome (11:44:11 PM): Eisley shivers our timbers |
|
|
Joined: 15 Aug 2003 | Posts: 25184 | Location: East Texas
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:10 am
Combinations was about what I expected. The good parts were amazing; the bad parts were abysmal. Richard Gibbs' involvement was a huge step up from the conga line of producers Room Noises endured. That said, it's not at all formattable like WB wants it to be. "Invasion," "Go Away," and "A Sight To Behold" are the only potential singles I could hear, and since the label didn't do anything with "Telescope Eyes," "I Wasn't Prepared," or "Memories" (let alone "My Lovely," "Marvelous Things," or "Trolley Wood") I'm not expecting a lot of airplay for those three. We shall see, though. _________________ INTELLECT AND ROMANCE OVER BRUTE FORCE AND CYNICISM Smokemonster |
|
|
Joined: 24 Sep 2003 | Posts: 14510 | Location: Alone on an airplane, fallin' asleep against the windowpane...
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:25 am
LOL at KyleRossP's wall-o-text. Anyway, I think I'll end up like this more than Room Noises. I see the album as three parts: Part 1: tracks 1-3. I was really excited by Many Funerals when I first heard it, but it the studio version doesn't do the live version justice. Invasion and Taking Control were about what I expected. The production on these songs felt very Switchfootish (the wall of sound/guitars), which makes sense because the band toured with Switchfoot and heard them play night after night for quite a while. My least favorite part of the album. Part 2: tracks 4-8. Best part of the album by far. I was blown away by Go Away when I first heard it. Fantastic production to really make this melody stick out. ICBTFW will become an Eisley staple like Marvelous Things, Come Clean has some great instrumentation if not a bit repetative. Ten Cent Blues is another stand out on the album, probably this album's equivalent some of Stacy's other brilliance (Golly Sandra, Just Like We Do). A sight to behold is a pretty cool track that we haven't seen since the days of the old EPs. Part 3: 9-10. Another great track for instrumentation (thanks Richard?) Somebody pointed it out before, but the harmony on the chorus sounds just like Wings and Windows (a lovely song in itself). Sherri's voice sounds really good on this track. The bridge is heart melting. If you're wondering: I liked the gamelan, but other than that this track didn't do much for me. Of course, I'll probably listen to this album with the bonus tracks included (and maybe Sunfeet), so that will probably make me like it a whole lot more. I'm normally a fan of long albums, even if there are a few skip tracks. _________________ EisleyForever wrote: you're A-list in my heart! MAKECOLDPLAYHISTORY |
|
|
Joined: 20 Feb 2005 | Posts: 8868 | Location: Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age
|
|
 |
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:26 am
TheAntrider wrote: Admiral79 wrote: Binary Dragon wrote: Admiral79 wrote: I love the album. All the songs are very catchy and memorable. I think the band out did themselves on the bridges especially. All of them are very emotional and capturing.
The only real negative thing I have to say is that the album doesn't have enough tracks. I would have liked to see between 12-14 tracks instead of 10. What's discouraging about that is we know they have quality songs they could have put on the album. Us hardcore fans will download them off itunes, but why not put them on the album and give us more to love? From what I understand, the album was put together a whole entity, as opposed to an amalgam of tracks. The other songs got cut because they didn't fit with the rest as well. That's the excuse a lot of bands use for short albums, but I heard it was because it was someone's belief that Eisley should have only great songs on Combinations and not the standard 2-3 mediocre songs that are any album. I buy that theory, but I don't agree with the overall song selection I guess. They have some other songs that are just as good as the one's on Combinations that could have made it on. You can see deep ties and bonds between all of the songs. The most offset from the bunch would be Invasion and Many Funerals, and they both deal with frightening and difficult situations. The lack of fluff was surely one supporting reason for using only 10 songs, but the evidence that Like The Actors and Marsh King's Daughter are so loved would support them easily being able to make the album 12 tracks. They went into the studio with maybe only 12 or 13 songs to record. They made a firm decision that it would be 10 songs long. (I hope it does not sound like bragging, but I did witness a very small but telling part of this decision.) Look at some older albums. They were rather short, and the songs were not terribly long. Some of it was because of format, but just because you have space does not mean you should use it. Any work to make the album longer would have technically been fluff, no matter how good the songs are. We're not going to care that it was only 10 songs long when (hopefully) we have 2 more albums to listen to. I hear ya, those 2 additonal songs would have been nice though. Its not like they're are any epic 7-8 minute songs on the album. I would have liked the album to be in the high 40-minutes in length. Maybe its because I've grown up in the age of longer albums as opposed to the older, retro, days that Eisley usually tries to emulate. Of course, I guess one could make an argument that it was made short to sell easier on the internet since lots of people buy single tracks now on iTunes; it would be easier/cheaper for them to buy the whole album. However, as you can see already from this post, some people will not buy an album based on a small number of tracks. I think most people figure that of any album you'll like a certain percentage of the songs. With more tracks there's a greater probability that there will be more songs you'll like. And since everyone likes different tracks its hard to say what's fluff and what's not. I really like "Invasion" and think its a great 1st single for them. I also really like "Many Funerals," "Come Clean", "Go Away", "Taking Control", and "I Could Be There For You." However, I haven't really fallen in love with "Ten Cent Blues" yet despite others thinking its the best song on the album. |
|
|
Joined: 08 Sep 2004 | Posts: 1335 | Location: COLUMBUS, GA
Last edited by Admiral79 on Tue Aug 14, 2007 7:04 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:27 am
sorry |
|
|
Joined: 08 Sep 2004 | Posts: 1335 | Location: COLUMBUS, GA
Last edited by Admiral79 on Tue Aug 14, 2007 7:03 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:33 am
Admiral79 wrote: However, I haven't really fallen in love with "10 Cent Blues" yet despite others thinking its the best song on the album. Oh, you mean despite others knowing it's the best song on the album. Your typo is understandable...everyone makes mistakes. I'll review this album later when I feel more like typing and less like playing the songs on it. _________________ If the end of the world has proper noodles I'll probably be okay with it. |
|
|
Joined: 29 Jun 2003 | Posts: 11069 | Location: Prague
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 8:12 am
a friend of mine and i talked about the album last night while listening to it on myspace. i decided its a cd i can listen to when i'm upset and need a drive, or just want to feel a power surge throughout my body. which i couldn't really do with room noises. BUT. we go to a church of christ, and sing a capella with 4 part harmony every week. so the harmony and hymnal-like melodies of room noises drew us both in the world of eisley. i LOVE the new album, but there will always be something about room noises that is closer to my heart....just an opinion though. and Combinations is still a really AWESOME AWESOME album. ps. the chord near the end of A Sight To Behold is one of the most beautiful things i have ever heard. and the beginning of Combinations reminds me of the beginning of The Guggenheim Grotto's "Ozymandias". that's a good thing if u don't know the Guggenheim Grotto |
|
|
Joined: 11 Jul 2007 | Posts: 9 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 8:48 am
"yesterday" clocks in at 2 minutes, 5 seconds. few people complain its not a good song. I think the track length of only 10 songs is fine as long as they're good ones - and they are. I got ripped off one time buying a trust company cd. They only had one good song on it. I went to a supertarget and they didn't have it. frickin poo. anyway i don't get the idea of having to make invasion sound a certain way for it to be a hit on radio. Maybe it is time for a paradigm shift? Oh and wall of sound now sounds really creepy given that whole investigation into that phil spektor guy. Eisley should work with him (and stay on his good side). He lives in a castle - very eisleyesque. |
|
|
Joined: 08 Jul 2007 | Posts: 671 | Location: Laughing City
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 8:52 am
A couple people now have compared Ten Cent Blues to Golly Sandra, and I just don't hear that comparison (really). For one thing, Golly Sandra is childish and Ten Cent Blues is more in line with their actual ages (young adults, other than Garron). No long review from me. I'll just say I popped it in my car CD player as I pulled out of my driveway and was finishing it up as I pulled into the parking garage at work, and I didn't skip past any of the songs (despite having heard them all several times now on Myspace). This album doesn't have a sure hit on it, but it is a good listen start to finish. The first 2 songs are my least favorite, and Ten Cent Blues my favorite song. I'd give it a B+ (where Room Noises was a solid B to a B-). They have grown much as singers/song writers/performers from the EPs to Room Noises and now to Combinations. And yes, Room Noises sold okay (not a flop, not a success). It was comoparable to how R.E.M. did with Murmur right out of the block, from what I've heard (though obviously Murmur has sold many millions of copies since then). |
|
|
Joined: 17 Dec 2005 | Posts: 7525 | Location: Wisconsin
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 9:09 am
The album is overwhelmingly different (less magical, enchanting and whimsical Eisley, and more rock-driven, garage grunge Eisley) but wonderful nonetheless. I'm a *smidge* disappointed because I quite like magical/enchanting Eisley. Garage/Grunge Eisley is good, but I like the feel of the old music better. I feel that this album is significantly more "polished" feeling than the last one. It's all smooth, resonating and clean. I love the lush instrumentation on every track. It's awesome. Period. The track Combinations is just GOLD. I don't think I like any Eisley song quite as much as I like Marsh King's Daughter. Invasion and A Sight To Behold are good too. I don't like how they toned down Weston's beat in I Could Be There For You. The loud and bumpin' live version is better. There's a lot of repetition in lyrics this time around. Not really a fan of that. Go Away and Come Clean, my goodness, they're so repetitive! They're good songs, no doubt, but I wish they could have mixed it up a little, lyrics wise. Eisley has so many charming things to say; they can do better than one-liners. I say a 7.5/10 only because I feel that this CD didn't reach its potential. |
|
|
Joined: 23 Jun 2007 | Posts: 185 | Location: Los Angeles, California
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 9:12 am
Jessica wrote: There's a lot of repetition in lyrics this time around. Not really a fan of that. Yeah. I noticed that crazy and insane were thrown around a lot. And one song had that right at the end, followed by the next starting off with it. That was 1 little thing, though. Not too distracting. |
|
|
Joined: 17 Dec 2005 | Posts: 7525 | Location: Wisconsin
|
|
|
|
|
|
Post subject: Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2007 9:19 am
I described it as this to my friend: Eisley's new album > awesome. I'm always at a loss for words when it comes to their music. Fav tracks right now are Many Funerals and Combinations. I really like the mandolin and drums on Combinations- it reminds me of something from Cirque Du Soleil. |
|
|
Joined: 15 Apr 2004 | Posts: 263 | Location: SF
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum |
|
|
All times are GMT - 12 Hours
|
|
