And here I am, two years later, trying to pick up what’s left of this blog (I know, everything is exactly as it was two years ago – damn you internet!) and thinking about giving it another shot.

What led me to this? I’m not entirely sure. I was just looking for a blog with a decent layout to start a photography portfolio kind of website, then I came back to wordpress and started reading some of the posts on the blog. Suddenly I was back in time, revisiting some albums I haven’t heard since, and it felt good.. and then I noticed I had an average of 20 daily blog visits over the past few months and it made me smile. Yes, I know people haven’t exactly been googling my blog, but the fact that they stumble upon it when googling for some artist that happens to be here and actually visit the page made me think about “re-opening” this place. And so it is. I have a zillion other blogs that I use mostly for photography and random daily rants, but this one has always been about albums and albums only, so I’ll keep it like that.

Yes, albums!

Let’s restart with an album that I’ve been listening to a lot in the past weeks:

Original Release Date: August 19, 2008

Tracklisting:

1. Travelers
2. Peaceful Warrior
3. Nemesis
4. Riddle Me This
5. Into the Labyrinth
6. Karma
7. Roadside Distraction
8. Harvesting Dance
9. Praise
10. Afterglow

• Aaron Parks – Piano;
• Mike Moreno – Guitar;
• Matt Penman – Bass;
• Eric Harland – Drums;

What first caught my attention on this album was its name, which made me wonder immediately. What is an invisible cinema? Is it a place you can’t actually see (duh), or is it a place where there’s no need for images because the music is so suggestive that it makes you imagine things? I thought about that for a while, and then I decided I would give this album a try.

It is a jazz record, although it sounds very modern (E.S.T. comes to mind) and a lot of different influences can be heard throughout the record. One of my favourite tracks – Peaceful Warrior -  has a very distinct oriental/asian feel to it at the beginning, before progressing to a darker melody and then completely changing its style halfway through the song. Usually guitar-oriented jazz turns me off (I can’t stand it), but the guitar work in this album is noteworthy.

The same can be said about the other members, to be honest. Every instrument seems to fall into place and fit consistently in every song, and even though the piano and the guitar are usually the soloist instruments, the other guys still find places to shine, be it with interesting basslines or more exotic drum rhythms. All in all, what stands out when you first listen to it isn’t a great guitar solo or a weird drum pattern somewhere, but rather an album that works really good as a whole, and that is how I think it should be done.If you’re into modern jazz, do yourself a favour and listen to this one.

Here’s a teaser:

I’m only going to post a video today, the lyrics to this song blow me away everytime.

Original Release Date: 1971

Tracklisting:

1. The Revolution Will Not be Televised
2. Save the Children
3. Lady Day and John Coltrane
4. Home is Where the Hatred Is
5. When You Are Who You Are
6. I Think I’ll Call it  Morning
7. Pieces of a Man
8. A Sign of the Ages
9. Or Down You Fall
10. The Needle’s Eye
11. The Prisoner

Original Release Date: February 27, 2001

Tracklisting:

1. The Leper Affinity
2. Bleak
3. Harvest
4. The Drapery Falls
5. Dirge For November
6. The Funeral Portrait
7. Patterns in the Ivy
8. Blackwater Park

Amazon.com
Electric Six is the most exciting band to come tumbling out of Detroit since Kiss. Sporting grimy leisure suits and hilarious stage names (the guitarists are known only as Surge Joebot and the Rock and Roll Indian), the ragtag group comes up with a deliriously catchy disco trash sound on its smart, hyperactive debut. Studio 54 horns mingle anxiously with AC/DC-influenced garage riffs, while frontman Dick Valentine rants maniacally over jerky, suggestive punk-funk songs like “Gay Bar” and “I’m the Bomb.” Plus, rumor suggests that single “Danger! High Voltage” features the White Stripes‘ Jack White on backing vocals and, less plausibly, Bill Clinton on saxophone. How cool is that? Very. –Aidin Vaziri

Original Release Date: May 20, 2003

Tracklisting:

1. Dance Commander
2. Electric Demons
3. Naked Pictures
4. Danger! High Voltage
5. She’s White
6. I Invented the Night
7. Improper Dancing
8. Gay Bar
9. Nuclear War
10. Getting Into the Jam
11. Vengeance and Fashion
12. I’m the Bomb
13. Synthesizer

Original Release Date: July 11, 2006

Tracklisting:

1. The Eraser
2. Analyse
3. The Clock
4. Black Swan
5. Skip Divided
6. Atoms for Peace
7. And it Rained All Night
8. Harrowdown Hill
9. Cymbal Rush

A friend of mine introduced me this album as “the perfect album for a rainy day”. Then, a few minutes later, he said “nevermind what I said before, this album is perfect everyday”. I agree with him, even though I think it sounds better on sunny days. It’ll bring you to a good mood, definitely.

Original Release Date: August 20, 2007

Tracklisting:

1. Until We Burn in the Sun (The Kids Just Want a Love Song)
2. Walls Fall Down
3. St. Andrews
4. Trinco Dog
5. Hush
6. Bells of ’59
7. Higher Ground
8. 12:59 Lullaby
9. Nico on the Night Train
10. Gunships
11. Jealousy and the Get Free
12. Midnight Rocker
13. Hearts in the Night

Your CD colletion is kinda blue if you don’t own this! :P

Original Release Date: March 2, 1959

Tracklisting:

1. So What
2. Freddie Freeloader
3. Blue in Green
4. All Blues
5. Flamenco Sketches
6. Flamenco Sketches (alternate take)

Mitch Mitchell joined Noel and Jimi in heaven yesterday (RIP), so it’d be appropriate to leave this one here today.

Original Release Date: August 1967

Tracklisting:

1. Purple Haze
2. Manic Depression
3. Hey Joe
4. Love or Confusion
5. May This be Love
6. I Don’t Live Today
7. The Wind Cries Mary
8. Fire
9. Third Stone From the Sun
10. Foxey Lady
11. Are You Experienced?

Following Bob Dylan and Black Sabbath in the classic albums feature, it is now time to feature a classic album from a classic rock band (pun intended).

Calling this a classic album might be an understatement. It is more than that. It’s the type of album that’ll make you sweat rock’n'roll, and make you want to learn how to play guitar.

From the majestic riffage to the mind-blowing drumming, this album is what personifies rock’n'roll for me.

Original Release Date: October 22, 1969

Tracklisting:

1. Whole Lotta Love
2. What is and What Should Never Be
3. The Lemon Song
4. Thank You
5. Heartbreaker
6. Living Loving Maid (She’s Just a Woman)
7. Ramble On
8. Moby Dick
9. Bring it on Home

After posting Bob Dylan’s “Highway 61 Revisited”, I decided to have a “classic albums week”. It might last longer than a week, and during that period I’ll only be posting my favourite classic (as in everyone should know these) albums.

The albums won’t be sorted in any specific order, I’ll just post them as I remember.

Today’s album is Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid”.

Original Release Date: January 1971

Tracklisting:

1. War Pigs
2. Paranoid
3. Planet Caravan
4. Iron Man
5. Electric Funeral
6. Hand of Doom
7. Rat Salad
8. Fairies Wear Boots