A couple months back, Needtobreathe sent out emails to their fans and told us some news about a new album, ‘Out of Body’. However, at the same time they discussed the heartbreaking news that Bo Rinehart, lead guitar and founding member, was leaving the band. This caused great pause to me as Bo is the creative mind behind the band. He did a lot of the art, the video concepts, he was a songwriter as well and a hell of a musician. He was one of the many reasons, I love this band. I now had worries about the new album and how the band was going to sound.
This only left 3 members of the band…
Bear Rinehart, lead singer, guitar
Josh Lovelace – hammond organ and piano
Seth Bolt – bass and drums (not at the same time)
I still ordered the album the day it went available for pre-order and I even ordered the Vinyl and CD bundle because why not. Artistically, the cover of the album was amazing, the color of the vinyl was stunning and everything about the concept was beautiful and some of the best the band has done. And you can see below, everything looks great…
For the August 29th, 2020 Record Store Day, Collective Soul issued a 12″ EP called Half & Half. It is played at 45 RPMs and consists of 2 new songs and 2 cover songs…thus half and half. The vinyl isn’t an exclusive RSD issue, it is a First Release meaning the band will release this at a later time. I am hoping the fact that his is a clear transparent vinyl will be the exclusive RSD part otherwise the only good about it is that I got to hear it before anyone who gets the regular release.
A few interesting notes on the back cover, the band mentions that their new album ‘Vibrating’ will be coming out soon which probably means this two new songs will be on it, but I hope not the covers then this stays a little special. Also, I find it funny they are all wearing some form of sunglasses and I still get a kick out of Ed Roland now going by E Roland because a) it is must have been hard with such a long name as Ed that E is just easier for his mind and b) he is starting to think he is Prince and we will soon be getting a symbol as a name and he is just prepping us.
The 90’s Post-Grunge band, Bush, bring us their 8th album and first in 3 years. Post-Grunge? What the hell is that anyway. I hate these sub-genre names. Bush is a Rock band, plain and simple. And this album is some heavy-ass Rock!!
Gavin Rossdale, the only original member still in the band, gave us an album with so much guitar, some incredible riffs and there is a little anger in the songs that comes through loud and clear. In what might the bands best album since Razorblade Suitcase, Rossdale shows that he still has life in those bones and still has a lot to say.
If you saw John Wick 3 last year, you heard “Bullet Holes” and you thought, Damn! If the album is anything like this, it was is going to be awesome. And you’d be right! Their next single of the album “Flowers in the Grave” sealed the deal for me, this album had to be heard. Songs like “Flowers…” were so inviting and accessible. What do I mean by that? Yes, what do I mean. The song felt familiar and catchy and stuck with me and I just connected to it. When you have songs that can do that, you have an impactful album.
Then you get the next song, “The Kingdom” and your life is changed. The song is one of the heaviest on the album and maybe that they’ve done. It is an incredible portrait of the state of our world right now. The star is not only Gavin’s vocals, but Chris Traynor on lead guitar. This album is a showcase of his talent. He lays down killer riff after killer riff. The band is hitting on all cylinders with this song and I don’t want to leave out the drum sound on this one either, The newest member, Nik Hughes has an immense sound here.
This album goes from one heavy song to the next and you don’t want to skip anything. “Ghosts in the Machine”, also known as “Slave”, is a favorite with its haunting lyrics and what feels like references to his painful divorce (Apple Music calls it “Ghosts…” and the CD calls it “Slave”). Then it is “Quicksand” which really sounds like early Bush to me. There is so much here that remind you of the best of 90’s Bush that you get this big grin on your face when you are listening to it and finding those moments.
It is one heavy rock song after another until you get to “Undone” which slows things down without losing any of the momentum that has been building. And by this time in the album you need to catch your breath. “Undone” is actually quite beautiful and very melodic and I would think it takes me back to “Glycerine”. And the album ends with “Falling Away” and it leaves you wanting more. The song is not that heavy, but not a ballad either. Somewhere in between and it is so melodic, catchy and there is a tenderness to its sound you can’t help but become engrossed.
I could go on and on, but let’s be honest, I would be repeating myself on how great this album truly is. It has already garnered a listen every single day since its release and will garner more to come. Gavin Rossdale has given us an album that could be a pinnacle in the career of Bush. It is one of the band’s heaviest sounding albums, the production is polished and lays Rossdale’s vocals front and center, it is melodic, accessible, inviting and everything you want in a rock album. It is as close to perfection as you can get. With all that being sad, this is easily a 5.0 out of 5.0 Stars!!
For My Sunday Song #212, we are going to discuss the song “Kinks Shirt” by Matt Nathanson. The song is off his 2013 album, ‘Last of the Great Pretenders’ and in July of that year he released this song as a video and a single. It was one of the fun songs on the album that shows he isn’t all heartbreak and sadness and that sometimes he can be a good mood or at least sound like he is.
The song was actually inspired by an actual girl that was wearing a Kinks Shirt. You know The Kinks, who doesn’t love The Kinks? No one, that is who. While recording the album, Matt and his producer and band mates would visit this diner quite frequently, I mean like every day for lunch. There was a girl that worked there with tattoos and piercings and nothing like someone that Matt would normally be attracted to maybe, but someone he was obsessed with. Not in a crazy stalker way, but more fantasizing way. He was so mesmerized by her that she inspired this song.
The song is an uptempo pop song, plain and simple. It is so catchy, fun and you can’t help but get caught up in the beat and dance around a little. Lyrically, Matt paints a vivid picture of this girl wearing The Kinks shirt and you can picture every little detail about her and how she makes him feel. Who hasn’t had a girl at one time you were mentally in love with, but never approached her to see what could’ve been.
Are you kidding me? How is September already. This year is now flying by. The only thing slowing it down is there are so many damn political ads on TV and the web that it is making me physically ill. Ughh!! At least it is Friday and there are new music releases to help me make it through the day. It is not a huge week, but for me a very solid week of releases. I have 2 I want to hear and they are highlighted in Blue. Let me know what interests you and what I may have missed that came out as I know there are always a bunch. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Stryper – Even The Devil Believes – (Frontiers Music): Michael Sweet is a machine. Between solo albums, Stryper albums, Sweet & Lynch, the man is non-stop. He and the boys from Stryper have been putting out some of their best music in their 4 decade long career and now going in to their 5th decade (I think that is right…80’s, 90’s. 00’s, 10’s and 20’s…yep that is right). I am really looking forward to cranking this bad boy up.
John 5 & the Creatures – Live Invasion – (60 Cycle Hum Records): John 5 is one of the premiere guitarist in the industry and is so sought after for his writing as well as his playing. When not by Rob Zombie’s side, he has his solo gig and they recorded their last live tour for the album ‘Invasion’ so expect some riff-tastick guitar playing and some super talented musicians.
The second Kiss solo album in the review series is none other than the Demon himself, Gene Simmons. Gene’s album was released on the same day as all the other band members on September 18, 1978. And Gene had the distinction of being the highest ranked album on the Billboard charts at #22, however, that doesn’t mean it was the best of the bunch.
Gene approached his album a little different than the other members. Gene wanted as many people as he could possibly get to appear on his album. And he delivered a smorgasbord of guest including Joe Perry from Aerosmith, his current girlfriend Cher, Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen, Bob Seger, Helen Reddy, Donna Summer, Michael Des Barres and an unknown artist at the time Katy Sagal (you know her as Peg Bundy from Married with Children). And an interesting note on the album is that Gene did not play bass on it at all, that was handled by Neil Jason.
On Record Store Day, August 29, 2020, I was able to pick up a few albums and one of the ones on my list this time around was a Def Leppard release of the live performance of their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction ceremony on March 29, 2019. For a band that once said, live albums were for bands that couldn’t come up with anything else, they have now put out a bunch of live material since those words years ago. I’m not complaining, just saying.
As you know if you follow this site, I buy anything and everything Def Leppard and I figured this is a nice piece for the collection as it is a special moment in the band’s history. This band that I like so much was voted in to the 2019 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame!! That means…well…it really means nothing, but still a cool honor for the guys. A little more validation that they are a great band so screw you haters out there that think differently!!! I will unfriend you and delete you because that is how Facecrack works right!!
In my crate digging back in June, I found this beauty. It is a Gen X 12″ single of the song “Dancing with Myself”. This was off the band’s third album called “Kiss Me Deadly” and was a little before the song became famous by the Gen X singer, Billy Idol, on his first solo outing. Since I have all the band’s stuff (with minor exceptions), I look for the Singles and oddball items now and this fit the bill nicely.
For me it is both a Single and an oddball, because what is the deal with the frightening little girl on the cover. She’s scary, right? The album is still wrapped in the original plastic wrap which has seen better days, but this has kept the album in pretty dang good shape.
“Dancing with Myself” failed to chart upon its release and didn’t really do much. It wasn’t until Billy released it as one of his solo songs, but that is for another discussion. The song was inspired by what the band saw while on tour in Tokyo. They noticed that at the dance clubs, the people were dancing more with their own reflections in the mirrored walls than they were with other people. That somehow inspired the song.
The song has has always been one of my favorite songs by the band and Billy’s solo work. The song is pure New Wave dance music with a slight punk edge…classic Billy Idol solo. It is so melodic, catchy and so much energy you can’t help but move. The guitars are a little louder on this version and the bass toned down ever so slightly, but other than that it is the song you know. Being the 12″ Single, it is extended out to just over 4 minutes which is about 20 seconds longer than the album version and 20 more seconds to be on the dance floor.
The prize on this is not just “Dancing With Myself” as I have several versions on other releases, but it is the B-Sides. Okay, I have the other two songs as well, but only digitally, not physically. Now that has changed. The two tracks are called “Loopy Dub” and “Ugly Dub” and honestly, they aren’t that great. So the prize really is “Dancing With Myself”.
“Loopy Dub” doesn’t really go fast enough for a dance track. It is kinda slow and drags on with no real purpose. I would’ve liked something more upbeat that you could dance too because this just depresses me. “Ugly Dub” isn’t any better. There is a strong case to be made why these didn’t end up on the album. Honestly, not sure there was ever any reason to release them period.
And there you have it. Another nugget in the world of Billy Idol. The collection is coming along nicely and I love adding new stuff especially when it comes to the Gen X era of his career.
Now, if you want to check out the full reviews and the entire Billy Idol Series, click on any and all of the links below…
2 Loud 2 Old Music 