Needtobreathe – ‘La Diferencia E.P.’ – Album Review

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic4 Comments

Needtobreathe is one of my all time favorite bands and one of the few bands I have to everything they do and in that search I came across this beauty. It is the E.P. called La Diferencia. It was only available on the DRIVE ALL NIGHT TOUR 2013. If you went to a show on that tour and you placed a pre-order for their upcoming album ‘Rivers of the Wasteland, you received a pre-order card AND got the BRAND NEW EP called La Diferencia on CD. I actually missed that tour so I didn’t have this and I do now. The EP contains four previously unreleased live tracks and the title is quite misleading because it would make you think their were some Hispanic language songs on here but there are not…which is fine as I don’t speak Spanish anyway. The cover art I am sure was done by band member Bo Rinehart as he has been the artistic brain behind most of their visual side of the band.

The opening track, “Difference Maker” might be the best song the band has ever written. There is such a sadness and longing in the song and lyrically, it is splendid.  For me, it raises question as to why are we here in this world and what is our place in that world.  Is God the answer?  I think that is for each of us to decide as I find faith and religion to be a personal choice.  This song helped me take a longer look at myself and I believed has helped a lot. The song is not quite a demo. They call it a “work tape” so at this point it was a work in process but damn, it is so good.

Continue reading “Needtobreathe – ‘La Diferencia E.P.’ – Album Review” →

Friday New Releases – May 27, 2022

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic27 Comments

Can you believe May is almost over? Another month that has blown by. This weekend is Memorial Day Weekend where we remember all those men and women lost in the many wars we have been in over the many years of this country. I think people think this weekend is vacation and grilling only…a reason to drink and party…but not at all. Take a moment to remember why you can do all those things and what was sacrificed for it to happen. Now, back to the reason for the post. We have a ton of releases for you today with over 40 albums. There is only one I’m a really excited about and another I am intrigued about it. They are marked in Blue. Let me know what you want to hear and what we may have missed! Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!!

  • 81GWsHK-QBL._AC_UL640_FMwebp_QL65_  Def Leppard – Diamond Star Halos – (Bludgeon Riffola Limited / Mercury Records): There have been no new Def Leppard studio albums since I started this blog which is way way too long. I am excited about this one, but truly aren’t expecting a lot if I’m being honest. That didn’t stop me from ordering it…on vinyl exclusive from Target…on cassette and two different Japanese Edition CDs. I think that is every format. Yes, I have a problem…deal with it!!
  • A15cHqIFTTL._AC_UL640_FMwebp_QL65_  Mark Tremonti – Mark Tremonti Sings Frank Sinatra – (JMM / Slow Down Sounds): The guitarist of Creed, Alter Bridge and lead singer of Tremonti goes soft with Frank Sinatra…or does he? I don’t know as I haven’t heard it yet as I want to take it all in at once. Here’s to hoping it is something cool.
Continue reading “Friday New Releases – May 27, 2022” →

Talisman – ‘Humanimal’ (1994) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic96 Comments

1994 has been a real busy year for Jeff Scott Soto as you can see from all the 1994 reviews. His band Slam was pretty much done so all his time was now focused on Talisman. Marcel Jacob and Jeff Scott Soto would end up writing a ton of songs for the next studio album. Talisman was now a full band. They had Jamie Borger on drums and Fredrik Akesson on guitar and with them coming off the last tour, the band was tight and hitting on all cylinders.

The band recorded the album in Sound Trade Studios and when they finished, they had 22 songs in can which coincidentally only took 22 days to record and mix. They wanted to do a double album and each disc would have a separate theme. One would be songs with human characteristics and the second disc with animal characteristics. However, the songs actually would all fit on a single CD, so they decided they wanted to only release a single CD.

So, the band picked their favorite 14 songs for the album and it was released in Europe . It was to be released in Japan, but they wanted a different set of songs so the Japan label picked the songs for their version of the album. The albums came out on May 25, 1994. And then a funny thing happened. The European version was out selling the Japanese version…in Japan. Yes, the import of the European version was way more popular. As a result, they ended up releasing the European version in Japan. And if that wasn’t enough, they released a part 2 version with all the outtakes on October 19, 1994.

Continue reading “Talisman – ‘Humanimal’ (1994) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series)” →

Aerosmith – The Albums Ranked From Worst to First (The Aerosmith Collection Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic64 Comments

Aerosmith…one of the greatest American Rock & Roll Bands. From the early 70’s the band has delivered, solid, good time, bluesy rock & roll. With 15 Studio albums, numerous live albums and compilations, they are a beloved American Icon. From the rough and raw days of the early Boston Bar band to the well-polished Stadium filled rock & roll band, they are as American apple pie.

Now the band has had issues, but for a majority of the career it has been Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Brad Whitford, Tom Hamilton and Joey Kramer. Yes, some members went away for awhile, but the magic was always these five original guys. Alone, they are not the same…together they are magic. To celebrate this band, I went through all the albums in my collection (which was around 28 posts) and now we are going to rank their studio albums from Worst to First. So sit back, relax and get ready to be rocked like only Aerosmith can do it.

THE WORST – ‘MUSIC FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION (2012):

This album is so bloated with 16 tracks and at around 68 minutes and that is before the 3 bonus tracks on the 2nd disc which we will get to soon.  First off, yes, the packaging is better than the album.  The album does nothing for me but reinforce how tired I am of anything of Aerosmith’s past ‘Done With Mirrors’.  This series has reenforced that for me…big time.  Although I could pull out ‘Honkin’ on Bobo’.  The album is too much of everything and not enough of Aerosmith if that makes sense.  If this ends up being the last studio album, it is a shame. My Overall Score is 2.0 out of 5.0 Stars.  I didn’t enjoy this one and it didn’t get better with each listen. Sorry.

Continue reading “Aerosmith – The Albums Ranked From Worst to First (The Aerosmith Collection Series)” →

Poison – “Nothin’ But A Good Time” – 7″ Single

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic18 Comments

While out at a new Record Store I found called Mad Jack’s, I picked up this sweet single from Poison’ album ‘Open Up and Say…Ahh!’. This is their first single off the album and it was called “Nothin’ But a Good Time”. It was released on April 6, 1988 and the song went all the way to #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it was all over MTV. My version of the single is the standard U.S. version with “Look But You Can’t Touch” as the B-Side. It was in pristine condition considering it is over 30 years old. The B-Side for the single is also off the ‘Open Up and Say…Ahh!’ album and is called “Look But You Can’t Touch”.

The song was written back in their early days when they were living in a warehouse and they had no money. They would talk women in to buying them food and doing all sorts of things for them. I have also read it was about not needing to be depressed working a 9 to 5 job and just live in the moment and live it up. It is a very hedonistic lifestyle and that comes across in the song. They were rock stars living the dream, what more could you want.

Continue reading “Poison – “Nothin’ But A Good Time” – 7″ Single” →

Cheap Trick – ‘The Epic Archive, Vol. 3 (1984-1992) (2015) – Album Review (The Cheap Trick Collection Series)

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic25 Comments

Back on November 27, 2015, Cheap Trick released a 3 Volume set called The Epic Archives, yet they were only released digitally. There was no physical product at the time. That has since been corrected as they eventually did release these on vinyl for Record Store Day on three separate occasions. I was lucky enough to get all 3. And since we been through ‘The Epic Archive, Vol. 1 (1975-1979) and ‘The Epic Archive, Vol. 2 (1980-1983), it is now time to review ‘The Epic Archive, Vol. 3 (1984-1992) and did they save the best for last? We will see.

My copy is the 2019 Record Store Day Release on April 13, 2019 and let me tell you it is yet another quite stellar release. As the sticker below says, it is a 2-LP Gatefold Set that is limited to 2,000 copies and both LP’s are on a beautiful flame red vinyl. And Bun E. Carlos might not be in the band anymore, but he was involved as the liner notes on the inside of the Gatefold are track-by-track commentary by Mr. Carlos as well as Rick Nielsen and this time around Robin Zander as you can see below. This Volume didn’t have the “Golden Ticket” like the Vol. 1 where you received a band picture autographed by all four original members. Nope, nothing like that in here.

Continue reading “Cheap Trick – ‘The Epic Archive, Vol. 3 (1984-1992) (2015) – Album Review (The Cheap Trick Collection Series)” →

My Sunday Song – “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming” by Judas Priest

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic29 Comments

For My Sunday Song #300…wow…300, I bring you my favorite song by Judas Priest, “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming”. The song is off my favorite Priest album 1982’s ‘Screaming for Vengeance’. It was written by Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing and was released as a single to their surprise. And it took off. I saw it on MTV constantly and I was immediately drawn to it. It started to catch on around the country and the next thin you know, the band had a massive hit on their hands. Well, not too massive as it only reached #67 on the Billboard Charts, but it brought people to the shows and that is all this band needed to deliver them the goods.

The song was a last minute add to the album. They were very pleased with what they had, but they just felt one more song was needed and then came this song. It was out of the blue and came to them quickly and easily. It is actually a song of hope and resilience. It is about rising above the noise and facing any issues or troubles that come your way head on and attacking them. It is quite inspiring.

When “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming” kicks in there is something absolutely special about it. Instantly you hear a guitar sound like none other. The song feels important, groundbreaking and like nothing I’d ever heard before. I don’t know how to describe the ecstasy of joy I feel for this song. It is heavy, yet melodic and it has an energy to it that is infectious and the one song I can never tire of from the band. It’s driving beat feels like you are in your car, top down, going 100 mphs with no cares in the world and loving every minute of it. It is a massive rush of adrenaline. I am trying to think of other ways to describe how great I think this song is, but at a loss for words now.

Continue reading “My Sunday Song – “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming” by Judas Priest” →

Matt Nathanson – ‘Plus E.P.’ – Album Review

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic3 Comments

In my quest for Matt Nathanson music I don’t have, I found another E.P. in my hunts. This one is called ‘Plus’ and was a promotional CD and released on October 14, 2003 which is the same date as his 2003 album ‘Beneath the Fireworks’. That album is the one I feel where Matt was finding his voice as both a singer and a songwriter. It is from this point on that his writing develop and went to another level. The stories were so much better and his vocals were hitting on another level. This is also around the time I started to discover his music and it would suck me in.

There were 3 songs on this album and all were recorded live and done acoustically. Two of the songs were off the album ‘Beneath the Fireworks’ and was from his debut album ‘Please’ from 1993 which was a collection of songs he wrote in high school and college. Lets go through the songs, shall we.

The first song is “Lucky Boy” which was off the album ‘Beneath the Fireworks’ but originally was off his 1999 album ‘Still Waiting for Spring’. It was recorded live on August 20, 2003 at Ned’s Studio. Now I don’t know who Ned is but apparently he has a studio. The song was written by Matt Nathanson and Mark Weinberg and is done acoustically like I mentioned earlier. It features Matt Fish on Cello which is a really cool acoustic element to add. The song is about a friendship where the boy wanted more and was always there for her to comfort her at every turn. She treated him like a rug and walked all over him. He feels it is a cruel world, but he was still lucky to be with her and in her presence despite it never going anywhere he wanted it to go.

Continue reading “Matt Nathanson – ‘Plus E.P.’ – Album Review” →

Cassettes! Snow & Tell on tonight’s LeBrain Train!

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic7 Comments

Yes, I copied from Mike Ladano’s page because I’m too lazy to write my own…but he sums it up nicely! Come catch the show tonight at 7pm!!

The LeBrain Train: 2000 Words or More with Mike & John

Episode 109 – Cassettes “Snow & Tell”

It is true when I say that 95% of my cassettes went into a Thunder Bay landfill.  Then I misguidedly dumped more when I did some downsizing in 2019.  Only recently have I realized that there are diehard collectors (cough cough Tim Durling) out there who want albums on every format, including cassette.  They don’t necessarily play them, they just show them off.  There are a bunch of tapes I wish I kept for that reason.  Helix – Wild in the Streets with glow in the dark cassette.  Sammy Hagar self-titled with a weird cover that wrapped around the outside of the tape case.  Dozens that I recorded myself, with my own artwork on them.  All gone, forever.

Tonight, join John Snow from 2Loud2OldMusic as we gather what remains of our tapes for a truly magnetic “Snow & Tell” show!  What we have left is what you will see tonight.  A lot of mix tapes, and I hope you enjoy.  I know it’ll be fun to dig through these old cassettes.  My oldest tapes go back to about 1984.  My newest are from 2022.  John has small selection to show off as well, so join us tonight for some tapes!

Friday May 20, 7:00 PM E.S.T.  on YouTube, Facebook and also Facebook!

Friday New Releases – May 20, 2022

Published on by 2loud2oldmusic28 Comments

Things are heating up here in Charlotte and so are the new releases. This week there is one that is highly anticipated from a lot of people and it is up first and I am interested in it as well as his prior two were great. I have a couple others I want to hear this week and all are marked in Blue. Let me know what you want to hear and if I missed anything, let us know so everyone can learn about it. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

  • 61ur3nQ+-mL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_  Harry Styles – Harry’s House – (Columbia Records): I have to admit, I really like his prior two releases. I didn’t have a choice of listening to them as my girls think he’s dreamy. But little did I know I would enjoy them almost as much. Can’t wait to hear what he has in store for us with this release.
  • 81wHtI5jxtL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_  Gavin DeGraw – Face the River – (RCA Records / Sony): Gavin DeGraw has such a great voice and can write a killer pop song. They tell great stories and are catchy as hell. He can write a melody and a great chorus. Here is hoping for more of the same.
Continue reading “Friday New Releases – May 20, 2022” →