Review - Led Zeppelin II Remastered (Vinyl)

Hello!

The other day I purchased these gem of a reissued vinyl, so I thought it was too good not to review! This album, was Led Zeppelin II Remastered. I have recently got into vinyl since early 2014 and getting a beautiful vinyl player for my 21st fuelled this ever growing love for vinyl's. 

This album was released on the 2nd June 2014 along with Led Zeppelin I and III on CD and Vinyl. These reissues were packed with bonus' as well as the legendary songs from the band such as "Whole Lotta Love" and "Ramble On" on this album. These bonus' are rough copies of the songs, so if you're a massive fan, then you're going to want to hear these. 

The rough copies of the vocals with the band are heaven for the ears, at first, I thought they were going to be the odd note or lyric in difference, but some of the sections are completely different to the versions we all know and love. The photos I took are just examples of what to expect with the artwork inside for all you lovely lot. 

One song that stands out from the crowd is obviously "Whole Lotta Love". You try sing along to the version you know and you can see how much they have changed from this rough copy. The vocals are not as strong and rushed slightly, there are no "whole lotta loves" from the backing vocals as it only comes from the guitar. Robert Plant clearly hasn't figured all the lyrics out as he repeats in the second verse "baby you need love" 4 times. 




The bridge/psychedelic section is shorter with not much scratching from Jimmy's guitar and Robert hangs back on his vocals slightly. Though there is some nice cross-sticking on the drums which I think should have been kept for the final cut. It all sounds very spaced and not as psychedelic as the final version.  Coming out of that section there is no guitar solo either. 






All of this is just an example from one song from the 8 rough cuts available. You can see how much has actually changed for the final cut of the song and is actually a lot of fun spotting the difference. Its great to see how musically talent these four were to see what needed adding and what could stay because it sounded good already. 

Another track which is amazing to listen to on the rough cut is "Moby Dick". Its quite a sneaky tactic to how they made this awesome track.  They obviously told Bonham to just go nuts and see what we can create for his drum solo part and then cut it back to the original song when ever he stopped. You hear them stop for Bonham's part later, Bonham counts back in and does his 16th note fill to then go on and finish the song (you all know how it goes). Very sneaky, but clever too.

Beautiful detail to look like the original vinyl's

I really enjoyed listening to this album and all the little gems you can hear from the rough cuts. I think this was great move for Led Zeppelin. They're such an iconic British band and this could really spark a new love for them. I find that music in the charts today is at a very low standard to what was made back in the 50's - 70's (judge me all you like about that statement). 

Its great to see some brilliant music being brought into the new age of music with some extras so fans like myself can just love their music all over again. I'll leave a link for where you can get them from on Amazon. 


Thanks for reading and until next time!

Lewis :)











Link: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_6?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=led%20zeppelin%20vinyl&sprefix=led+ze%2Caps%2C1318

My Favourite Artists - Beth Hart

Hello!

Apologies for being away for so long, my music uni has bombarded me with too many assignments! Although now they're all done, I can finally focus on this blog, which is a great thought so watch out for some more posts being uploaded!

Onto chapter 2 of the 'My Favourite Artists' series:

Today I'm going to be talking about a woman called Beth Hart, a blues/soul singer from Los  Angeles California. This girl knows how to belt a note out, but with such style and grace, its beautiful to watch. I have been lucky enough to see her twice live, once at The Roundhouse in Camden. This was definitely one of my favourite gigs to look back on and there are reasons which I will get to later on so stick around!

Firstly, I'd like to tell you a little bit about her back story as it is definitely one hell of a rollercoaster. Beth Hart had a promising career ahead of her in 1999 with a major label signing, a number 1 hit in New Zealand and a new album out called 'Screamin' For My Supper'. Thing were really looking up for her career, fame and fortune were only a hairs-breath away. 

Unfortunately, this ever increasing fame got to her mind and she started to turn heavily to drink and drugs. These habits were getting worse by the day due to the amount of stress she was put under by her label and the demand from her. In the end Atlanta kicked her off the label and she was barely left with anything to her name. Her tour manager Scott Guetzkow took her to five hospitals (not including rehabs) to try get her back into a fit state. 


When Beth finally came around and saw what she had lost, she was ready for redemption and fight back for her love of music. She started this off with marrying Scott in Vegas and she went on to release a new album in 2003. Her reputation in the business has sky rocketed since her rehabilitation and because she got into the situation of being at the very rock bottom. She never wants to go back there, so she always put 110% into every gig she does and she is ever so thankful for everyone giving her a second chance. 

Her voice is a very beautiful blend of a calm peaceful tone, to the very scratchy and bellowing highs which make her voice very...very unique. In her voice you can hear and tell there is heartbreak, torture and sorrow, but she uses this to her advantage to come out with one of the best voices I know today. Along with her incredibly talented band, this makes up one of the best shows around. 

She has collaborated with a lot of musicians from Joe Bonamassa  to Jeff Buckley and Buddy Guy. Her career has seen her become more popular than ever before with the blues scene creeping its way back into the more popular side of the business. I believe if it wasn't for Joe Bonamassa making an album with her, she wouldn't be where she is today. 

The album 'Don't Explain' is the perfect selection of songs to really understand the connection that both Hart and Bonamassa have. This album really looks at the limits that Hart can take her voice to. Sometimes its indescribable how she even manages to create the notes she does.The songs on this album that really shine for Hart are 'I'd Rather Go Blind', 'For My Friend", "I'll Take Care You Of You" and "Your Heart Is as Black as Night".

Another album they released recently was called "Seesaw". Another fantastic soul album by the two of them that has become an instant classic. With the likes of "Miss Lady", "Them There Eyes" and "Strange Fruit". 

Beth live is a very captivating and intense musician. She will let you know what she is feeling before a song, tell you a story, let you all into a secret about her life. She is very open about her feelings towards a song, she wants everyone to know why she wrote the song so you can understand her feelings. Her piano talent is outstanding, I never knew until I saw her at The Roundhouse how good she was on keys. She managed to play us a solo piece by herself with her singing a song about her sister. A lot of her songs are very moving, very personal that everyone in the room connects to.

The other musicians that are currently on tour with her are:

Jon Nichols - Guitar
PJ Barth - Guitar
Bob Marinelli - Bass
Bill Ransom - Drums

The drummer had been changed from the first time I saw Beth live in 2012 in London. Bill Ransom is a very different drummer to the last one I saw. He has a very powerful hand to himself, but is one hell of an entertainer. I really love watching drummers that have a lot to give and show it off. He even did a trick where he stopped the music halfway through, bounced his stick from his snare up high into the air and caught it to restart the music. That, was one of the coolest things ive seen live done by a drummer.

Her live shows are definitely one to see, energetic, entertaining and you always go away with a smile! I would urge all of you to at least check out her latest album 'Bang Bang Boom Boom'. I believe Beth Hart should be further in her career than where she is, but she is currently having the time of her life with all the touring she is doing. As well as Scott always being there for her for each and every gig because he's the tour manager still.

I hope this has shed some light on what you can expect from this beautifully brilliant blues/soul singer. She is one to watch for the future even at her young age of 42, she is still out there fighting for a place up with the big time. She always will be fighting to repay what she had failed to do in her earlier career.

Thanks for reading and until next time

Lewis :)

Website: http://bethhart.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialbethhart
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BethHart

My Favourite Artists: Frank Turner

Hello!

This is the first blog in the series called 'My Favourite Artist'. These blogs will be looking at people who I really enjoy listening to, the advantages and disadvantages of the artist and the best tracks they have to offer. Also a little warning too... there is some use of offensive language in this blog. This will be a very long (and I mean it) blog, but I hope you'll all stay till the end as I'll put up some videos for you to go listen to some of his best work.

So, what better way to start this series off than looking at this artist who is easily in my top 3. Mr Frank Turner. 

He is a folk/punk singer-songwriter from Hampshire, UK and his lyric writing is a talent that most songwriters would die to have. I am a massive fan of speaking from the heart and writing down lyrics that really mean something to you. Every one of his songs have been from past experiences or tell a very true tale in life. I'd like to start off with some example of his lyrics just so you understand where I'm coming from before I start rambling. 

"I Knew Prufrock Before He Became Famous": 

"Well life is about love, lost minutes and lost evenings, 
About fire in our bellies and about furtive little feelings, 
And the aching amplitudes that set our needles all a-flickering, 
And they help us with remembering that the only thing that’s left to do is live..."

"Love Ire & Song": (My personal favourite song)

"Well it was bad enough the feeling, the first time it hit, 
When you realised your parents had let the world all go to shit, 
And that the values and ideals for which many had fought and died,
Had been killed off in the committees and left to die by the wayside,
But it was worse when we turned to the kids on the left, 
And got let down again by some poor excuse for protest, 
Yeah by idiot fucking hippies in 50 different factions, 
Who are locked inside some kind of 60's battle re-enactment..."

"Redemption":

Well I tried so hard to not turn into my father, 
But if I only ever skip out his choices will I ever choose better? 
Oh the sad truth is the grass, it will always seem greener, 
So I left you alone in a restaurant in London in winter, 
You deserved better..."

"Peggy Sang The Blues":

"It doesn't matter where you come from, 
It matters where you go, 
No one gets remembered, 
For the things they didn't do..."

"Substitute":

"And if music was the food of love
Then I'd be a fat romantic slob
Well music, it's my substitute for love"

Hopefully you get my point now why I believe he is such a fantastic writer. Apologies for the large amounts of examples, its hard to get all the best lyrics into a small section. Believe me it was more difficult than I imagined!

So, above are some examples of his lyrics. I spoke to one of my BIMM tutors about him as he is a massive Bob Dylan fan and he believes that Frank Turner is the young generation version of him. Let me explain what he told me. Bob Dylan wasn't afraid to speak his mind, write down how he felt and this shocked a lot of people. Which inevitably got him to be one of the most successful and popular singer-songwriters to date. Although some of his songs were on the borderline, including one about a famous murder and the details of what happened, this type of writing hasn't been apart of songs since. 

Well, not since I discovered Frank Turner. Some of his writing has shocked me personally and its a good feeling. One song he wrote called "Glory Hallelujah" , he was basically saying that there is no God, go and be free everyone. The chorus of that song goes;

"There is no God

So clap your hands together

There is no God

So ring that victory bell"

When I first heard the song I thought 'woah.. woah... woah, he can't sing this, its offensive'! Then when my tutor at BIMM told me about how Bob Dylan's song writing was much worse to the point people wanted to kill him, it made me see how spiritually free Frank Turner is. The fact he doesn't give a shit about flipping the finger to Christianity is a bold and brave move. I'm surprised his record label Xtra Mile gave him permission to put that on his record!

Not only is his songwriting to a high standard, he also put together a band that can produce some beautiful music. The band are called 'The Sleeping Souls' and they're a four piece band that know how to put on a show! Along with Frank Turner's energetic stage presence, these four add to the energy and will make you dance your socks off!

All four members are extremely talented with a feeling of brotherhood between them and Frank. The cliché roll of a singer/songwriter is to get a band together and it be very much I'm the singer, you're the band and that's it. With these guys its completely different, its Frank Turner and The Sleeping Souls, although separate names, they are all very close. 

Now... to be a good musician, half of it is talent and half of it is to be a performer. Now this guy is definitely  a performer! If you search into Youtube and look up any performance he has done, he makes everybody dance in the venue, even if you're up the top he knows if you're dancing or not! Its incredible to watch! I hope one day I can be part of this massive party. Yes I haven't seen him before, but this won't be for long!!!

I think the one thing that I can think off the top of my head that is a criticism, although this was only when I first heard him. His voice can sometimes be a bit off key and when I first heard his voice I wasn't at all convinced. Now though, I love his natural voice, no tampering, no auto-tune and he really does stretch his voice to the very limit at times! 

Anyway...I feel like I've rambled on enough! This guy is definitely one to check out! His lyrics are bar none the best I've heard for a very long time! 


Thank you so much for reading till now, I apologise for the length but don't say I didn't warn you!

Until next time! 

Lewis :)

Some examples and links for you lovely people:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/frankturnermusic

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FrankTurner

Website: http://frank-turner.com/

fiN "Life Is Wasted On The Living"

Welcome to my first blog!! :)

Introduction:
I will review an album which is dear to my heart by an unsigned band that I cannot stress enough about called fiN. These 4 lads from London are certainly talent to look out for. Luke (vocals), Jonny (guitar), Kerry (bass) and Simon (drums) are all incredibly talented and it shows in their studio and live productions.They are a DIY band with their own label 'Artisan Records', they have done everything for this album from producing, marketing, sales. I give this guys a massive credit for the amount of work they put into this band.
So fiN, this indie/rock band have created a debut album that is definitely one to look out for.

Review:
Their album 'Life Is Wasted On the Living' is a collection of all the singles into one album with 5 new tracks and 2 acoustic versions of their best known songs. One of the newer songs called "The Truth Lies in Honesty" is one of their best, its catchy, simple, yet one that you could hum along to for hours. As soon as those drums come in, its an instant head bopper. Its also a song I believe could easily be in the top 40 if these guys were more well known. 

Another new track 'Where Are You Now' is a beautiful track that puts all the mayhem and rock to the side and gets everyone to sit down and listen to how talented these guys really are. Its the same with '5am', although this track has a darker meaning to it than the other songs. Luke's rough edge to his voice gives the song a real unpolished grit to it which makes it so powerful!

The one criticism I have about the album is that all the singles they've released previously are in this album. Personally I bought all the singles on vinyl and I was a little disappointed that there weren't as many new songs as I would've hoped for. None the less the new songs are brilliant.

Top Three Tracks:

3. "The Artisan", first off, its a fully instrumental track. No lyrics, just pure unadulterated brilliance. The song slowly builds up during the course of it adding parts in one by one. Starting off with the side sticking from Simon on the drums, to piano, bass, guitar, backing vocals, percussion, you name it! They even did an acoustic version for the album which I was very happy about and its just as good as the original. One of the best instrumental tracks I've heard from a 4 piece band.

2. "Life Is Wasted On the Living", one of the best openings to a song. Enough said. 8 seconds of build up and BOOM there's your song. Having it cranked up sounds like an explosion coming in. Its exactly what everyone wants is to be hit with. The lyrics are very clever and true to many life stories. "Life is wasted on the living, life is wasted on the fools that walk away", I'm sure everyone reading this has a story from those lyrics. After the first listen I thought 'let me listen to that again', it therefore earns my 2nd spot.

1. "Twenty Three" The top dog song at number 1. I was introduced to fiN with this song and boy was I sold from the moment it started. Its a good ol' indie/rock song with everything you want to have a good head bang, dance, whatever floats your boat! Cracking guitar licks again with the band trying to say "Hey! You! We're fiN, come rock out with us". That's exactly what it does with an ending that leaves you squinting your eyes with the torture of the guitar tone. Wanting more. Epic.

Conclusion:
I have been gifted to see these guys live a few times and they have to be one of the best live acts I've seen because you can tell they put 110% into every gig they do. I had a blast at a gig last year in Camden to support their new album, they performed the album live from top to bottom and it couldn't of been a better show.

I have put some photos on this blog from the gig in Camden as a perspective of the emotion and performance they put into there gigs! Including one with Luke standing on the PA system which was a cracking shot.

Please go check out their album 'Life Is Wasted On the Living' on Spotify, Itunes and Youtube. Let me know what you thought of them. Until next time, thank you for reading and I hoped you enjoyed it!

Lewis :)

Website:
http://lifeiswastedontheliving.com/ 
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/fiNuk
Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBNbi8lzANN651dfzMUQMbQ?sub_confirmation=1
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/finUK

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated since this is my first blog and I want to try make this the best it can be. Thanks!