Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Ministry of Melodic Mayhem

I don't write many music reviews, so bear with me on this one. With any luck I'll eventually refine my technique, but for now this is what you get.

Today the Chuckman was kind enough to bring in a copy the latest CD by Ministry of Melodic Mayhem for me to listen to. My first impression was that that was too many M's for one band name. That aside, I decided to listen to Flame In The Distance anyway.

The band features a lot of minor key, single note, acoustic guitar riffs which I found reminiscent of Days of the New and Tantric. Thrown into the mix are a couple of violins which I found to give the music a Celtic/Irish feel. The vocals I would describe as balladesque, and on more than one occasion reminded me of Billy Joel, not in terms of the sound of the voice, but more in terms of cadence and general flow, and in particular I kept having flashes of the song The Downeaster Alexa. It's kind of an odd mixture but it seems to work. It is kind of a new age/soft rock mix. If you're looking for some mellow music that you might hear on an adult contemporary station, then this is for you.

The web site is listed as under construction, but check back later for updates. The album art I had initially thought was a picture of Atlas holding up the Death Star, but upon closer inspection was disappointed to find that it is just a stylistic planet earth with some zodiac references drawn on. I could have given this a much higher review if it was the Death Star.

3 comments:

The Chuckman said...

Wow, this The Chuckman sounds like a pretty awesome guy. And yes, everything is always better with a Deathstar, or the phrase "like a monkey" on the end of it. :)

Unknown said...

I'll tell you what, that guy can play guitar like a monkey.

CodeMonkeySteve said...

I'm ecstatic that, not only has someone listened to this album, but actually reviewed it. I don't even mind that you neglected to mention the mind-blowing drum parts, but this ...

"It is kind of a new age/soft rock mix."

You, sir, have insulted my honor. Did you not listen to "Manic" or "Breathe"? Either of those songs has enough double-kick to maim a small horse.

I've always been concerned that my drum parts might come across as "over-playing". But if you're going to start using words like "mellow", I may have to kick it up a notch. Don't say I didn't warn you ...