This month we have NIN and Deadmau5 – UPDATE and A Fine Frenzy
Nine Inch Nails – Pretty Hate Machine Remastered (industrial)
No this was not the first time I had heard Pretty Hate Machine. I’d been introduced to Nine Inch Nails in middle school and have long singe worn out my cassette copy of PHM. Broken was one of my very first day one purchases (again on cassette) and my fandom of NIN has never really diminished in all of these years.
So when I heard Reznor was remastering Pretty Hate Machine i was interested. Let’s be clear, this is a remaster, not a re-release or anniversary edition. And it sounds like it. From the first moments of Head Like a Hole to the last of Ringfinger the sound quality has just been improved all over. It is as if I had never stopped listening to that cassette tape and only now was hearing the CD edition of Pretty Hate Machine.
(it also has “Get Down Make Love” which I was never a fan of… but it is there.)
If it has been a while, or you never got around to getting PHM on CD, now is the time.
Deadmau5 – 4 X 4 = 12 (techno, electro, trance, whatever you want to call it)
I find a lot of music these days due to Slacker radio. If you haven’t started using it (or Pandora) I suggest you start. Listening to the Trance station on Slacker can be dangerous to my wallet.
I’d not heard of Deadmau5 until last year listening to Slacker. Most of the songs that came up on the station I marked as favorites. Still I floundered on buying an album.
Then I saw 4 X 4 = 12 at the store and went for it. A few seconds into the first song and I was happy with my decision.
I’ll not get into an extended philosophical topic on genre definitions, but as a whole 4 X 4 is heavier than normal trance. Still it is engaging, danceable and, as to be expected, best heard with the volume turned up. Solid through and through, this album will be hanging around my playlists for a while.
side note; if were a dance/trance dj of sorts i’d make it so the last song mixed into the first, so that if your cd player (like mine) just starts over, you get into a loop. I’d call it Möbius. i expect this idea to be stolen ASAP so i can go buy this album. (so get to work!)
UPDATE: A Fine Frenzy – One Cell in the Sea (Pop, uh, i think)
I did not buy this in March, but was listening to it this morning and wanted to put it in here anyway. This album popped up on my “Amazon thinks you’d like this…” list and I’ll admit I clicked on the album and started listening because there was a cute redhead on the cover. What can I say? I like cute redheads.
Well, I am glad I did. I’ve had the album since January and I love it. Lighter piano and guitar pop– that cute redhead has a fantastic voice. All the songs are good, and (much to the dismay of my office mates) I’ll find myself singing along. While “Come on, Come Out” and “Almost Lover” are my favorites, I don’t fast forward through any songs. Often I’ll just hit “Play” again after it is done.
This one I recommend for the Tori, Sarah, Fiona, Dido fans. Check it out, even if redheads aren’t really your thing.
