Review: Anthony Green–Beautiful Things

released: 17 Januari 2012 (US)
Anthony Green adalah vokalis dari band Circa Survive, dan juga member dari eksperimental rock band The Sound of Animals Fighting. Green juga ex lead vocalist dari Saosin ketika mereka merilis EP dan keluar sebelum Saosin sempat merilis LP. Green dikenal dengan his impressively high vocal range sehingga suaranya menjadi sangat unik, mungkin agak aneh for first listener. Tahun 2008 Green memulai solo karir dengan merilis album Avalon, dan tahun ini Green merilis album solo keduanya, Beautiful Things.
Honesty adalah kata yang tepat untuk menggambarkan Beautiful Things. Tidak seperti lirik-lirik Green di Circa Survive yang penuh metafora, di Beautiful Things, Green menggunakan kata-kata seperti adanya. Berbeda dengan Avalon, lirik-lirik Beautiful Things lebih bright dan tender. Perubahan ini dilatarbelakangi kesembuhan Green dari kecanduan obat-obatan, pernikahannya dan lahirnya James anaknya yang kini berusia satu tahun. Beberapa lagu juga didedikasikan untuk James, seperti Love You No Matter What, James’ Song dan Lullaby. dedikasi Green untuk keluarganya (wanita yang ada di cover album ini adalah istri Green) serta curahan hati Green secara terbuka membuat album ini terasa sangat manis.
Dari segi musikalitas, agak sulit untuk menentukan genre yang diusung Green di album ini. Green pun sebenarnya tidak meng-spesialisasikan dirinya ke satu genre musik. 13 tracks yang termuat dalam album ini mengusung genre yang bervariatif. seperti If I Don’t Sing yang bergenre country, Do It Right yang akapela, folk di How It Goes, Just To Feel Alive yang upbeat, electro-dub When I’m On Pills dan lainnya. Mungkin ketika pertama mendengar Beautiful Things dari awal sampai akhir, akan muncul kesan difficult untuk mencerna dan memahami serta mencari benang merah album for the whole. Tetapi lama-kelamaan akan terasa bagaimana album ini mengalir dengan baik. Variasi genre ternyata tidak lantas memberi kesan album ini terpecah-pecah. Vokal Green yang khas menjadi benang merah antara satu dengan yang lain dan menjadi poin utama di album ini. Kesan awesome datang dari trak upbeat/roaring maupun dari trak yang somber sekalipun.
Dalam proses pembuatan album ini, Green dibantu oleh his backing band sekaligus teman dekatnya Good Old War. Circa bandmate Colin Frangicetto juga muncul di How It Goes. Di Just To Feel Alive, Green dibantu oleh Canadian electro-popper LIGHTS. gitaris Maps And Atlases Dave Davison juga memberi extra licks untuk single pertama Green, Get Yours While You Can. 3 bonus tracks album ini diisi kolaborasi Green dengan beberapa musisi seperti Ida Maria di Can’t Be Satisfied, Chino Moreno dari Deftones di Right Outside, dan Nate Ruess dari fun di Only Love. These all three bonus tracks are just mind-blowing.
Skor 8/10 untuk Anthony Green yang berhasil mengubah kesan odd menjadi awesome untuk first listener yang mendengarkan Beautiful Things (maupun vokal Anthony Green sendiri).

Review: Snow Patrol–Fallen Empires

released: 11 November 2011. 10 Januari 2012 (North America)
Snow Patrol is not dead (yet). apparently they’re not gonna dead easily after making such massive hits like Signal Fire, Just Say Yes, Run and of course Chasing Cars. Walaupun memang setelah terakhir tahun 2008 mereka merilis A Hundred Million Suns, mereka belum merilis album baru lagi. Akhir tahun 2011 kemarin akhirnya Snow Patrol merilis album baru Fallen Empires. Gary Lightbody mengalami beberapa kali writer’s block dalam proses pembuatan album ini.
Di album baru ini Snow Patrol mencoba bereksperimen dengan memasukkan unsur elektronik. Maybe they’re trying to square up to current world where Guetta and Skrillex rule most radio stations. Unsur elektronik sangat terlihat di I’ll Never Let Go, Called Out In The Dark, Fallen Empires dan The Symphony. Review-review dari beberapa media cukup sinis dengan hasil eksperimen ini. Tetapi in fact kebanyakan hasilnya awesome. Called Out In The Dark berhasil menjadi highlight album ini. Gary Lightbody’s swooningly cold-atmosphered voice mixed with dancey-themed song became such weird yet awesome thing.
Trak-trak lainnya adalah lagu-lagu genre comfort zone mereka. Seperti This Isn’t Everything You Are, Lifening, In The End dan New York. Its like they’re trying to push their musical boundaries but still maintaining their former signature. Trak-trak ini semua terasa seperti ballroom-dance-scene-soundtracks, dengan iringan choir dan orkestra sehingga terkesan megah.
Hal yang mengganggu adalah folk-pop singer Lissie yang tiba-tiba muncul begitu saja di beberapa lagu. Jika maksudnya adalah untuk ‘memperbaiki’ atau ‘memperindah’ trak-trak tersebut, sepertinya tujuan ini tidak tercapai. Kemunculan yang tiba-tiba ini menjadi semakin mengganggu jika trak tersebut bertempo upbeat.
skor 7/10 untuk Snow Patrol yang mencoba hal baru dan cukup berhasil, serta untuk ‘ketakutan’ mereka sehingga tetap muncul lagu-lagu berjenis sama seperti album-album sebelumnya, but of course as usual they nailed it.
nail it: Called Out In The Dark, In The End.
blunder: I’ll Never Let Go and other tracks where Lissie pops up.

2012

its kind of late isn’t it to babble about resolution of new year. its almost in the middle of January. but I have to write something you know, cause its one of my target in this year, and I don’t come up with better idea, so here it is!

2011 was quite great year. I’m not going to babbling here about my achievement in that year. cause its too personal isn’t. I got full record of it though in my personal journal. needless to say, 2011 gave me some amazing awakening. okay its too much to use word ‘awakening’. but the fact is, I’m so blessed to realize that certain things.

its just, you know, how I realize that its so important to have full record of our financial life. cash in and cash out, according to a friend’s term. with this record, I’m able to monitor ‘the healthiness’ of my financial life. its in ill condition of course if your cash out > cash in, and its healthy condition of course if your cash in > cash out. simple, right. in cash in section, I’m able to know where all my income came from. I got fixed income, but somehow I got addition income too (and I love it so much). from it, sometimes you’ll realize how suck is your accumulate wages is (when it’s too low of course), then you’ll plan to have second job. sometimes you’ll feel grateful too if your accumulate wages is so high. in cash out section, you’ll able to monitor where all your spending goes for. is it largely go for production cost (or consumption to a friend’s term)? or is it largely go for stepping up? its healthy in my opinion, if its largely go for stepping up. production cost (or consumption) in mine consists of lodge rent, meal, transportation, internet and phone bill. while stepping up section consists of all costs in sake to pursuing whatever you dream is. every month I tried to minimize production cost for maximizing stepping up section.

I remember in the late of 2011, after months analyzing these record, I found several ‘jammed’ spending. its kind of spending that I didn’t want to spend. so I felt so being forced, then I want to get rid of it. I swear to my self (another too much wording) that I want to get rid of it before 2012. from three jammed spending, now i‘m able to get rid two of it. while in cash in section, I had target too. how to maximize it. though if I could eradicate jammed spending, it means I’ll have more money too. in fact, ‘the low hanging fruit’ that previously I thought was easy to get, till today I don’t get it yet. so yeah, hope more to come.

gee, that’s long talk! ha! another awakening is, that now EVERYDAY I write in journal. about how the day is going. its abundant isn’t. though I’m still doing it. I don’t know I just want the day isn’t being forgotten. day by day evaluation is important. before we fall asleep its recommended that we take a look at what we already doing for the day. what the mistakes being done. what the achievement. I’m trying to do it, but somehow not went perfectly.

okay, enough for 2011 being share in here! now talk about 2012.unlikely 2011, in beginning of 2012 I’m not writing bunch full of targets. I’m trying to focus myself. one goal by one at a time. though I got fuck load of wish-lists in my head. but going to narrow it down one by one. I have to prioritize because the resources (money) is limited. beside it I still got targets that could be done without money. like exercising English and producing “tulisan” monthly.  there are daily targets too. good behavior that I want it to turn become habit.

okay. done done.