Thousand Foot Krutch - Live At The Masquerade CD/DVD

Thousand Foot Krutch's long awaited debut project Live At The Masquerade is a live 2-disc CD/DVD release (presented in sort of a cheap, cardboard trifold case, sans any kind of CD jacket or bonus materials on the DVD. Labelmate Manafest includes both on his same-day release). The audio for this live recording is crisp and packs a solid punch. Everything about it is clean and clear, making the live sound vibrant, capturing the crowd when it matters and fading them out just as appropriately when the music kicks in. Trevor McNevan's vocals are spot-on and the production captures the high energy rock vibe well. The DVD is presented in widescreen format and features the whole concert with the option to jump to any particular song or just play the whole thing in one shot. There are cams positioned all over the audience and stage giving a pretty immersive view of the live concert experience from various perspectives. It's energetic without being too dizzying and there are lots of quick cuts but it's not quite as exhausting as some other really busy live recordings. For TFK fans, this live recording should be an answer to prayers and the song selection acts quite nicely as a hits collection in the process, offering a very strong lineup of fan favorites. Live At The Masquerade is among the better live projects you can grab today.

Style: Rock / Alternative
Street Date: June 7, 2011.

Track List:
01. Welcome To The Masquerade (6:02)
02. Bring Me To Life (3:39)
03. Move (3:09)
04. Absolute (3:22)
05. The Flame In All Of Us (3:25)
06. Trevor Talks To Crowd (1:24)
07. E For Extinction (4:09)
08. Scream (3:30)
09. What Do We Know (3:24)
10. Falls Apart (3:37)
11. Rawkfist (2:52)
12. Fire It Up (3:38)
13. Already Home (4:26)
14. Puppet (5:22)

Relient K - K Is For Karaoke EP

As a longtime fan of Relient K, I was initially disappointed to hear that Relient K’s first project in nearly two years was a covers EP leading up to a full-length covers album. Even after spinning it once or twice, I still wasn’t that impressed with all the songs that Relient K offered on the K Is For Karaoke EP since their original material is far better than the songs they chose to cover. However, after listening to it more, the EP began to gain traction with me (Except for “Baby” by Justin Bieber. I’m sorry, but not even Relient K could save those pathetic lyrics). The cover of “Girls Just Want To Have Fan” starts off the album excellently while the catchy chorus sends “Surf Wax America” to a roaring finish. “Doctor Worm” showcases Matthew Thiessen’s skill in mimicking the singer’s voice in a ridiculous song that could have been written by Relient K. The band’s version of Tears For Fears' (you know, Relient K’s favorite band in “In Love With The 80’s") “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” is infectious and brilliant. The K Is For Karaoke EP is nicely paced and features a diverse selection of songs that is a solid lead-in to the Relient K’s full-length covers album due out in October.

Style: Rock / Pop-Punk / Alternative
Street Date: June 28, 2011.

Track List:
01. Girls Just Want To Have Fun [Cyndi Lauper]
02. Here Comes My Girl [Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers]
03. Baby [Justin Bieber]
04. Doctor Worm [They Might Be Giants]
05. Crazy [Gnarls Barkley]
06. Everybody Wants To Rule The World [Tears For Fears]
07. Surf Wax America [Weezer]

Falling Up - Your Sparkling Death Cometh

Falling Up is back with their fifth project, Your Sparkling Death Cometh. Fangs was rather hit-and-miss with loyal fans and alternative fans alike, thanks to the fact that Falling Up’s musical experiments went down too many rabbit trails. But while Sparkling Death has a similar vibe to Fangs, it leans on more organic instruments than the electric guitar-driven Fangs. The album opens with “Circadian,” which manages to be the most dramatic and epic first track in Falling Up’s career as it utilizes the cello and the bass to their peak compacity. Although the tempo isn’t as rocky as Crashings or Dawn Escapes, “Wonder,” “Blue Ghosts” and “Light Beam Rider” are catchier alternative tracks which stand apart from each other. Both “Diamnds” and “Oceans” have a unique, inspirational sound for Falling Up as they act as the antithesis to Falling Up’s dark and brooding tunes. Although the project is beautifully crafted throughout, after the sixth song, the listener must focus more energy to enjoy the music. And, though the album is over fifty minutes long, some of the length can be attributed to the instrumental outros found in nearly every song. The science fiction/fantasy story of Fangs is utterly replaced by individual songs themes. Although Falling Up still retains their belovedly vague lyrics, there are vivid spiritual metaphors among the other spiritual ambiguity. The singer claims to want all who God is on “Diamnds” and one could almost see “Oceans” landing on a worship compilation (“If your heart's an ocean/then I will drown”). As far as comebacks go, Your Sparkling Death Cometh is one of the very best. It’s both intriguing and addicting and will almost certainly be heralded as one of Falling Up’s finest albums, if not their finest. Fans of Captiva who were alienated by Fangs should give their ear to Falling Up’s resurrection.

Style: Experimental Rock

Street Date: June 28, 2011.

Track List:

01. Circadian (7:21)

02. The Wonder (4:56)

03. Blue Ghost (5:07)

04. Diamnds (4:18)

05. The Light Beam Rider (4:34)

06. Oceans (5:58)

07. Mscron (6:49)

08. Vates (5:22)

09. Forms And Shapes (5:31)

10. Slow Waves (6:41)

Link: mediafire