We have tried not to play the “catching up game” too often this year… but at last, it is necessary from time to time. Here are two 2010 releases by Haudoken! and Massive Attack – I am sure that many readers here may have already heard the albums, but I felt the need to put at least my two cents in. Will keep it brief.
Hadouken!: “For the Masses”
Straight out of the UK with their sophomore album, Hadouken! released “For the Masses” (2 February 2010) earlier this year. I had first heard about Haudoken! when they released their single “That Boy, That Girl” in early 2007 and was just flabbergasted by it. The kicker is that a few of us here at the SDM Blog felt the same way, and we could not believe that this album flew under our radar when first released.
Hadouken!’s “For the Masses” stays true to their new rave style, with cutting edge electronics, indie rock sensibility, and a bit of grindie. In essence, they cross many different genres in their music, and their appeal is broad, but not safe enough to be another splattered cliché on the radio waves.
“Turn the Lights Out”, their lead single off their album, is a song that you just want to get up and just boggy down to. Something about the song just starts to make your blood rush through your veins, and just…well…it’s very hard for me to describe this feeling actually. It’s something like all the pent up anger that one has, and just that little bit comes out and you get the surge of something and you just feel like punching the wall. “Mic Check” is the most fun song on the album hands down! There was even a time when my friends and I were fist pumping in my car driving around at midnight at speeds that are definitely not legal. (One of those random nights.)
By the way, is the title of the album a subtle Depeche Mode reference?
Track Listing:
1. Rebirth
2. Turn the Lights Out
3. M.A.D.
4. Evil
5. House Is Falling
6. Mic Check
7. Ugly
8. Bombshock
9. Play the Night
10. Lost
11. Retaliate, iTunes Bonus Track
Keep up with Haudoken! at their homepage, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter.
Here is Haudoken’s! videos for “Turn the Lights Out” and “Mic Check” from their YouTube Channel: Hadoukentheband.
Massive Attack: “Heligoland”
Massive Attack is one of those bands that have puzzled and hypnotized me at the same time. They have this essence about them that is unique and uncompromising. Anyone who has listened to their music would agree. With their fifth studio album, “Heligoland (9 February 2010), I find myself with the same puzzlement and hypnotism, while having chills up and down my spine.
With their lead single of the album, “Splitting the Atom”, they have created something that reminds me of the Addam’s Family: very dark and eerie, but without any campy element. Yet the song is still intrinsically Massive Attack, with its fine subtleness and sophistication. Furthermore, two thumbs up for releasing a song that would not be considered a stereotypical lead single.
I am usually a sucker for a song with a beautiful female voice singing, and in “Paradise Circus,” it would seem I am still a sucker for one. Vocals by Hope Sandoval, of Mazzy Star fame, have added a great feel to the song. With an R&B feel to the rhythm, Sandoval’s vocals brought the song over the edge. Visceral but relaxing, the vocals are the perfect balance for the song.
Track Listing:
1. Pray for Rain, vocals by Tunde Adebimpe
2. Babel, vocals by Martina Topley-Bird
3. Splitting the Atom, vocals by Grant Marshall, Horace Andy, and Robert Del Naja
4. Gil I Love You, vocals by Horace Andy
5. Psyche, vocals by Martina Topley-Bird
6. Flat on the Blade, vocals by Guy Garvey
7. Parade Circus, vocals by Hope Sandoval
8. Rush Minute, vocals by Robert Del Naja
9. Saturday Come Slow, vocals by Damon Albarn
10. Atlas Air, vocals by Robert Del Naja
Keep up with Massive Attack at their homepage, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter.
Here is Massive Attack’s video for “Splitting the Atom” from their MySpace Video Page.
Massive Attack - Splitting The Atom
Massive Attack | MySpace Music Videos
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