Marilyn Manson - The Pale Emperor

Well, I'm a big fan of Marilyn Manson and I have been waiting for this new project a long time now. Marilyn Manson (the person, not the band) and Twiggy Ramirez are the absolute production duo. So this time also, the production is flawless. You can hear their distinctive staccato guitars and electronics, but also their obvious try to be more radio-friendly and less provocative. Well, that's not bad at all. Their effort to record a pure rock album with Tyler Bates' help is, at the end of the day, honest.

On the other hand, Marilyn Manson (the band, not the person) have a little trouble this time in the songwriting process. I don't mean that the songs are bad in general. But I should say that: They should have released an EP with 6-7 songs in it. It might have a better potential, because there are some killer tracks in "The Pale Emperor" and some boring ones, too.

"Deep six" serves as the first single and it works fine, I guess. Apart from the boring video of course. Manson looks tired and bored to death. But if you try to focus on this, you will realize that he is just older. And no heavy make-up can deal with aging, even if people call you "Madonna". Anyhow, to the point again...

It was smart enough to release "Third Day of a Seven Day Binge" as the promotional single before the album release. This track is probably the best in here, indicating the band's turn to simple rock productions without all the glam stuff of the past. "Birds Of Hell Awaiting", "Cupid Carries A Gun" and "Fated, Faithful, Fatal" are also about that genre turn.

Even though "Killing strangers" and "Odds of even" are kind of predictable at some point (pop power ballads with distorted guitars), you can just skip them and focus on the good stuff. "The Mephistopheles Of Los Angeles" and "The Devil Beneath My Feet" are among those worth listening songs and obviously closer to their own industrial rock profile. With a mainstream twist, needless to say.

The sound similarities with The Smashing Pumpkins' early work (or the 90's alternative rock blossom in general) is more than obvious for some reason in here. If the songwriting was better, then "The Pale Emperor" could have been brilliant, even though retro. So I will insist on my earlier statement: They should have released an EP with 6-7 songs in it. It might have a better potential, because there are some killer tracks in here and some boring ones, too.

AnArtCalled... 6,5/10

Lara Eidi Band - "Tell it like it is " EP

When I first checked Lara Eidi a few months ago, I fell in love with her cover on Nina Simone's "Be my husband". Her soft, jazzy, yet powerhouse vocals were the reason I decided to listen to her music and the covers she had made with her guest musicians and friends. I've been waiting for this EP since then and, actually, I think that this is only a small taste of what's to come out in the near future.

Although I strongly believed that these three tracks would have a folk/blues touch, as some other songs and covers she has recorded in the past, I realised that the bluesy guitars and some urban rhythm sections have given their part to piano-based melodies, strings and acoustic guitar chords. That's a nice and tasty turn as far as the production is concerned, while the songwriting remains strong and confident.

As I play the songs on repeat, it's obvious that Lara (the songwriter, not the singer) gets more and more experienced and the chorus parts of the songs are tight. From one to three, it's also obvious that when Lara (the vocalist, not the songwriter) lets herself improvise on the vocal parts, she sounds more secure than ever ("Tiny people").

"Tell it like it is" is a promising sample of the band's music and style, even though the big asset here, her voice, is not fully showcasing its power. Maybe it's because of the songs' more adult/acoustic pop and less jazz /blues orientation, which is a risk to be taken, of course, when it comes to music creation. I like that and I respect that; artistically, you need to support the songs. But when you have a strong band and a strong musical instrument in it -like this voice is-, you have to let it play the high notes like there's no tomorrow. Cause in these moments, when she hits those high notes, that's where the magic happens!

AnArtCalled... 7/10

Links:
www.facebook.com/TheLaraCollective 
www.soundcloud.com/laraeidi 
www.reverbnation.com/laraeidi
http://open.spotify.com/album/6qyxDIsjmvvCsmfusTWhF4

https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/tell-it-like-it-is-single/id898834706

Lara Eidi Band - "Tell it like it is " EP:
1. Forever Young
2. Tiny People
3. Lose my Mind

Credits:
All music and lyrics by Lara Eidi 
Mixed and Mastered by Giotis Paraskevaidis and Michalis Skarakis @On a Jam Studios 
Final Mastering Iraklis Vlachakis
Arranged and Orchestrated by Lara Eidi, Giotis Paraskevaidis 
Piano, Voice, Vocals, Acoustic Guitar: Lara Eidi 
Guitars, Beatbox Loops: Giotis Paraskevaidis 
Cello, Loops: Stavros Parginos