Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger (9.5/10)

Badmotorfinger (1991)
Soundgarden

This is my good eye... The Devil says...

Soundgarden. The name conjures up many images. Most of these, thankfully, are good. Coming from Seattle during the late eighties, the band distinguished itself as one of intensity, anger, and, above all, pure rock. Including metal and more tribal influences, the band achieved commercial success during the 1990s after larger grunge acts like Pearl Jam and Nirvana became more popular. They are hailed as one of the "Big Four" of grunge, along with the two mentioned above and Alice In Chains. Their 1991 release, Badmotorfinger, illustrated not only their technical ability and songwriting prowess, but also helped pave the way for the grunge movement of the 1990s. This band also includes who I consider to be one of the greatest vocalists of all time, Chris Cornell. Regardless of the questionable content of some of his more recent solo work, the fact remains that he is one of the most impressive singers of all time. And this is a time when his voice was fresh. So prepare to be run-over. There's no avoiding this one.

The album kicks off with "Rusty Cage." One thing that immediately strikes the listener is the sheer pace of this band. Almost sacrificing chorus, verse, bridge, etc., the band instead runs through this first song like it was being chased by a runaway train. Moving beyond this opener to the second track, "Outshined," you begin to paint a picture of the voice of this band: the Immortal Chris Cornell. Using his five octave vocal range to outstanding effect, Chris belts out lyrics that illustrate the dark, grungy themes that were mainly the bands subject matter. And then it stops. The listener is instantly thrown into the dark groove of "Slaves and Bulldozers." Rhythm abounds as the band jams on a very slow groove for about seven minutes of sludgy guitars, and clear, crisp vocals. One almost instantly notices the rhythm section in this song: Matt Cameron on drums and Ben Sheppard on bass. Tightly winding the song together with a strong sense of flow, they drive this song forward, while Cornell's vocals soar high above. And then the guitar crunches in and out of the listeners attention with loud feedback and extensive riffing. Whereas Kim Thayil, the lead guitarist for Soundgarden, (rhythm guitar being provided by Chris Cornell) does some amazing solos, his groove with the rhythm section is incredible in this song. Then the listener is thrown into the pounding drums and terrifying feedback of "Jesus Christ Pose" and the band begins to sprint again. Words can't describe the pace of this song... It's wondrous to behold. Matt Cameron proves that he truly is one of the greatest modern drummers. In the interest of the rest of the review, I'll move on. The rest of the songs carry an incredible pace; this album never slows down from "Jesus Christ Pose" on. All fast. All grungy. All pissed. If an album could cause a CD player to throw off sparks, it would be this one.

One thing that keeps this album from being perfect is the originality. While good and creative in it's own right, it does sound very similar to the sound of the other bands of their area and time period. This album is much less creative than their later effort (Superunknown) and has much less variety overall. Not that this has to be a negative point. But comparatively, it just leaves something to be desired.

Overall, I'd say that this is one of Soundgarden's finest works (the other being Superunknown.) If you feel like popping in an album that kicks ass and takes names, you could do a lot worse than this one.

9.5/10

Queens of the Stone Age - Rated R (8.7/10)

Rated R (2000)
Queens of the Stone Age

There's an undeniable truth to this world. Most people don't agree with you. This is understandable. Some people don't like things that you like (or, as my mind would put it, some people don't like good shit). It's a sad truth, in my opinion, that most mainstream bands have sucked in the last decade. This is an era of Nickelback, Slipknot, AFI, and any number of shitty metal bands that have decided to use full sentences as band names (As Blood Runs Black, I'm looking at you). But there have been a few that have really shined.

Queens of the Stone Age, for example, are a band that managed to not suck. Their second album, Rated R, is a shining example of their early sound. The style they developed with former Kyuss member Nick Oliveri that continued on all of their albums afterward was in full force here. The sound relies heavily on repetition (which isn't a bad thing). In fact, many of the songs wouldn't be possible ("Feel Good Hit of the Summer") without that robot rock sound. Many songs have a very dry, coarse sound, which earned them the genre of desert-rock ("Monsters in the Parasol," "Auto Pilot," etc.)

What I Like

Some of the best examples of Josh Homme's voice can be found on here. "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" is one of my personal favorites on here. It also includes good examples of Nick Oliveri's singing/screaming. "Quick and to the Pointless" is one of my favorites including his harsh (yet enjoyable) vocal style. Instrumentally, the band really kicks some ass! The guitars are great. Josh Homme's crunchy, strange, and, above all, loud guitar has been possibly my favorite part of the band's sound since I first heard them. Nick Oliveri's bass is thundering and melodic at many points.

What I Don't Like

The drums fit in very well, and serve their purpose, but aren't the most creative I've ever heard, although that shouldn't be considered much a problem. One of the major problems I have with this album is the incredibly long and odd horn outro on "I Think I Lost My Headache." Every time it starts in to that, I just turn it off. Also, personally, I think that it was a bit too short, although I don't consider it that much of an issue either. I'll let you decide on that one.

Overall, a great album, and certainly one to own by a fantastic modern rock band.

8.7/10

I'd love to hear what other people think. Post your comments, as I always love to hear other opinions.

For another opinion, let's see what the ever-mediocre Rolling Stone has to say!
http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/233746/rated_r