My Second Favourite Pearl Jam Album Now In MLPS Format!
932293
Fans of Pearl Jam are in for a real treat here as this mini-lp replica sleeve (mlps) version of their second album ranks among the best mlps releases that I have ever seen.  The sound quality is excellent having been well remastered and the mlps itself has been very well designed and assembled which should satisfy the collectors.  Also included is a 14-page glossy colour booklet with pictures of the lyrics in either hand or typewritten formats as well as another 8-page booklet containing the lyrics in Japanese.

I personally prefer the previous album "Ten" as the overall more consistently strong and balanced album trackwise but that doesn't mean "Vs" is a bad album; far from it as we get the band experimenting with alternate tunings in tracks like "Daughter" as well as using more acoustic guitars for a mellower offering when compared with "Ten".  We still get the "hard core" tracks in "Animal", "Blood" as well as the "softer" "Elderly Woman ... Town" and "Daughter".  There are 3 bonus tracks here which are interesting but not essential: "Hold On (demo), "Cready Stomp (studio outtake)" and "Crazy Mary".

Good content, great mlps design and assembly and excellent sound quality makes this the best version of this album on cd that is currently out there.

Highly recommended!
1691730
After hearing the song "The Mob Goes Wild" on Pro-Rock.com, I was a little insecure about this new album. But I've liked Clutch for several years now, so there wasn't much that could keep me from purchasing 'Blast Tyrant'. What can I say? I love this f**cking album! I'm afraid of over playing it, but I can't take it out of my CD player. The guitar on the opening track, "Mercury" reminds me of Led Zepplin's "Moby Dick". And I find myself playing "Army of Bono" and "Spleen Merchant" over and over. One thing is for sure about this album, the mix is a lot different from previous albums. With more vocal over-dubbing and some synthesizer stuff. But don't let that turn you away, it all fits together something wonderful. These guys have been playing for ever and all they do is tour. That's how they seem to make a living. But with this new album and a music video to boot, I wish Clutch the best with their career. Be Heavy!!!
2469788
Surfin' Strange, the latest album of work by the band Swearin' is an amazing feat of rock and roll.  It's such a fun, yes FUN, album to listen to, over and over and over.
I'm an old man, who grew up on the 1980's and 1990's "alternative" music.  Swearin' reminds me of really good times, and gives me so much hope for the youth of the future.
In my mind, they are part Pixies, (Allison Crutchfields' voice is so similar to Kim Deal, in the best way imaginable-sidenote: I'm almost positive that is without attempt, just her natural beautiful voice) part Swirles, part Superchunk, among others of my favs.
Kyle Gilbride, the other vocalist and guitarist, (Allison also plays guitar) is a solid vocalist and does totally remind me of the Swirlies' Damon Tutunjian.
The songs on this album are easy to remember, get stuck in my head, and make for a good background.  The album out before this, contains even more amazing material.
The songs this band is crafting will easily live with me for the rest of my life.  I hope others find that satisfaction as well.  Keep up the great work Swearin'!
2923055
The 1st track is "Live to Rise" from Soundgarden and it was just brilliant to hear them sing something new after 10 years.  But the other songs (none of which are in the movie!) are a headbangers dream!  From "I'm Alive" by Shinedown to "A New Way to Bleed" by Evanescense - solid angst by way of music!  The emo people on your gift lists are going to love this - as they headbang their way out of the work carpark!  And you'll love it as well!
1580250
I never expected that a remixed version of "Ten" would ever be undertaken.  After all, I was never aware of audible outcry from fans over the past 18 years demanding a re-mix of Pearl Jam's debut album.  After reading an interview with Jeff Ament in which he expressed the same slight "annoyance" with the original mix that I have had all of these years, I was a surprised.  I wasn't sure if anyone else had the same small gripe that I have had, and to find out one of the band members was thinking the same thing all these years was pretty neat.

My gripe is best is best exemplified during track #3 "Alive" at  min  sec.

At this point it is clear just how much reverb is on the mix.  Reverb helps smooth and blend instruments and vocals together.  This is not a bad thing in and of itself, but the overuse of reverb smoothed out the grit and edge of these songs in my opinion.

Now que up  track # 3 "Alive" on the remixed version of the album at  min  sec.  WOW!!  I was blown away!!  I never looked forward to this point of the song knowing that the revealing of this reverb was taking serious edge off of all of the songs on the CD.  This was terribly apparent with the release of "VS" which has much more grit and edge to the sound.  I had always wished "Ten" had the same grit and edge because the playing on the album clearly demonstrated that everyone was playing with intensity, but the edge was subdued.  NO LONGER!!  Now you can enjoy "Ten" the way I wish it had initially been released.

Now, I cannot fault Brendan O'Brian or anyone else for the original 1991 mix, after all we were coming out of the 80's which produced some serious overuse of effects, EQing, etc in order to make recordings sound "contemporary" at the time.  Nowadays, many of these recordings sound very dated.  Listen to Sinatra from the 40s, 50s or 60s and while the music may be cemented in a specific genre which 50 years later may sound "dated" to some (not so to me though because I love Sinatra), the recordings sound natural, no artificial flavors added!!  I am so pleased to have this unexpected version of "Ten" which reveals the edge, grit and guts that the guys played with and which launched them to international stardom.

I send a hearty "Thank You" to Brendan O'Brian and the members of Pearl Jam for revisiting "Ten"!!  Crank the volume up the "Ten" and ROCK HARD!!

PS: Yes, the compression for loudness-sake is unfortunate but to be expected in this day and age.  I look forward to getting the LP version as well.
PPS: The DVD of the MTV Unplugged session is great to have!!
2290003
This album is 100% hardcore listening to please the pickiest listener. It is just as good as their fist album "Hybrid Theory." I loved this album! It was loud, but it expressed feelings and issues that i can relate to. I first bought Linkin Park's first album in January and listened to that CD for 3 months straight! Honestly, I didn't have anything else in my discman. I then invested in both "Reanimation" and "Meteora" and they havn't failed to disappoint me. This album is extremely good and I can really relate to the message put out by each song. For example, the last song on the album, "Numb" goes "tired of being what you want me to be, feeling so faithless, lost under the surface.." As a teen, I've felt like this countless times but listening to any of their CD's picks me right up. My friends are mostly teenyboppers whose idea of punk rock is "Hero" by Chad Kroeger, so naturally they all think Im on the brink of insanity. I BEG you, buy this album and you will LOVE it as much as I do.
284958
Unfortunately due to work committments I could not attend any LIVE concerts of Pearl Jam when they toured Down-Under. However this double CD pack is the entire concert at Perth on the 23/02/2003. This was to be PJ's 10th and final concert on their Australian leg of the tour and this was one of their best.

Disc 1 is loaded with 15 tracks taken from all their popular albums with hits like 'God's Dice', 'Corduroy', 'Even Flow', 'Jeremy' and 'I am Mine'.

Disc 2 is 14 tracks long and has some oldies and rarities but still fine ones to listen to like 'You Are', 'Go', 'Do The Evolution' and 'Alive'.

All in all this album is worth your money and will keep you entertained with a backdrop of an enthusiastic crowd.
3120728
I'm so sick and tired of hearing people trash this album. This is, simply put, THE best Manowar album to date. If you think THIS album sucks, listen to all that crap MTV plays! Who would you rather listen to, Manowar or Gay, er Good Charlotte? I rest my case. Now with that said, I will now get into the album. This is actually the first Manowar album I bought. I first heard of Manowar two years ago when I bought the Metal Blade Records 20th Anniversary Box Set, whhich had the song "Manowar" on disc 8, and "Warriors of the World (United)" and "House of Death" on disc 9. They became my favorite band since and I've been looking up their albums on the internet listening to samples to see which one I liked best. I decided to choose this as my first Manowar album. For a while, I've told myself to get it the enxt time I go to best buy or order from Amazon, but I kept on forgetting. Until one day, I finally got my copy of this album. I can't stop listening to this album! At the time I am writing this review, I am even listening to it right now! The band is very talented. Eric Adams is one of metal's (no, NOT just Power Metal) best singers. Joey DeMaio has got to be THE most underrated bassist of all time, right up there with Danny Lilker! He has some of the best bass-lines I've heard! Guitarist Karl Logan also has soem sweet solos here. He is always bashed for "not being as good as Ross 'The Boss' Funicello". Damn what they say, I think Karl can be JUST as good as Ross. And of course we have THE Scott Columbus pounding the skins. Or should I say TINS (pun intended)! He is so wild a drummer he has to use a drum kit with parts of metal instead of wood and skin! This is possibly my favorite album right now. In my collection of over 350 CDs, this is possibly my favorite one of all. The album starts with Call to Arms, it's vintage Manowar! The next song is "The Fight For Freedom", a touching tribute to the victums and those who have been affected by 9/11/01. The lyrics are amazing, seriously how does Joey DeMaio manage to write so much good music since Manowar was formed in 1979? The next song, "Nessun Dorma" is a song sung in Italian that is dedicated to Eric's mother Lillian, who passed away while the album was in progress. My favorite song here is "Warriros of the World (United)", making it my ALL-TIME favorite song! This is my theme song; words can't do it justice, you must hear it to truly appreciate it! "Hand of Doom" is my second favorite song, it's also the heaviest song on the album. "House of Death" is like a HOD pt 2, but it's not as heavy for good, but it still rules. I love all the songs here, but the above mentioned tracks are my favorites. This is a good introduction to Manowar. I reccomend starting a Manowar collection with this album. You might not agree with it being their best album, but you'll might agree with one thing: It's an exeelent album. Warriors of the World showcases Manowar's ability to show their old fans they still got it, and they will never disappoint.

Ratings:

1. Call to Arms 5/5

2. Fight for Freedom 5/5

3. Nessun Dorma 5/5

4. Valhalla 5/5

5. Swords in the Wind 5/5

6. American Trilogy 5/5

7. March 5/5

8. Warriors of the World (United) infinite/5

9. Hand of Doom 5/5

10. House of Death 5/5

11. Fight Until We Die 5/5
1875036
This "Collector's Edition" is such a great way to revisit Pearl Jam's monumental debut "Ten". Arguably the best album to rise from the "Grunge" era, let alone one of the most important albums in music, the "Ten" album deserves this treatment. The Unplugged DVD(finally released) is a great view of an energetic band gripping the music scene with the Seattle sound. The Redux version of "Ten" is flawless at minimizing the flaws of the original(drowning reverb, later dissaproved by the band themselves) and bringing out the instumental contribution of each band member more clearly. And the memorabilia speaks for itself...WOW!!

If you are a fan of Pearl Jam or music in general, you CANNOT go wrong with this set...5 STARS!
696180
Let me start by saying that I think this is the best album Bonnie has ever made! It absolutely harkens back to some of the 70s style work with of course all of the style she has forged on through out her career. I am glad she still does a good amount of covers because she can interpret another artist's song like nobody's business, (right up there with Sinatra almost). A great take on INXS's Need You Tonight and a tasty cover of Los Lobos Shakin' Shakin' Shakes help to add some nice punch to the album, but even the more ballad style songs still have a nice upbeat feel to them. The album flows really nice and just incredible slide guitar from Bonnie as well as some incredible playing from her entire band make this one hell of a listen, which brings me to the vinyl version. WOW! Did they do a nice job with this one! It comes as a 2-LP set recorded at 45rpm, yes 45rpm, and that really helps to let the music open up and breathe more! Being recorded at 45rpm allows the cartridge to read the grooves at a faster rate, thus delivering some amazing sound quality! The cover is really nice with the inner sleeves containing all of the lyrics. My only issue is that there should have been separate sleeves for the vinyl made of rice paper for better protection, but I had some so easy fix. My wife and I love vinyl and thanks to my son who bought this from Amazon as a gift for us and made sure we had it on street date. Way to go Bonnie, just a wonderful album!
2705638
The name is Ten, but I can only give it 5 Stars.. In 1991, the world was given it's first taste of a band that has influenced music of the 90's more than any other band.  Pearl jam's debut album is jam-packed with some of the most recognizable song's in the pearl jam library.  This album is first sample the amazing, lyric-filled brain of Ed Vedder that has given all pearl jam albums a reputation for greatness that will surely stand the test of time.  Songs like Jeremy and Black are well known all over the world and are still favorites of even the die-hard pearl jam fans like myself.  I've always thought that you're not a true pearl jam fan unless you know the song Once, word for word. This was one of the first cd's I ever bought, and it should definatley be a part of everyones cd library even if you're not a die-hard pearl jam fan.  Get this CD, and ya never know, maybe you'll become the next die-hard fan :)
1475429
I still remember many years ago as a tween when I first heard "New Life" off their debut album on my radio on the BBC Top of the Pops program late at night and it just blew my mind! For a kid just getting interested in pop music and who was fortunate enough to begin his long and fruitful journey into music appreciation at the beginning of the New Wave aka Second British Invasion it was simply a very exciting time to be a pop music fan. Despite the genre itself being fairly short lived my love for many of the bands from that period certainly wasn't and has endured to this day. While many early 80s albums fail to stand the test of time and age well thankfully Depeche Mode's early work i.e. "Violater" and earlier for me still have me raving after all these years. I first had this their sixth album on cassette all those years ago and I wore that sucker out. The whole album has a very nice flow to it as well.

Imagine my joy when finally after so many years we now have this great album in mini-lp replica sleeve (mlps) format which while is not among the best mlps releases that I've seen is still pretty good by collector standards and includes a 16-page booklet containing all the lyrics as well as an essay on the album in Japanese and another glossy colour 16-page booklet containing the same (essay by Daniel Miller) in English.

While the original recording was pretty well mastered they decided to do a remaster here which sounds to me like just some upward compression which leads to bass that sounds just about to get muddy but thankfully not too much so. When will this stupid loudness wars end? Overall the volume levels are louder but the sound quality in general is no significant improvement over the original cassette and cd that I had years ago. Still for fans and mlps collectors this release is still worth the wait.

Recommended!
1003147
This is an album that, in my opinion, is well balanced and refined. Dream Theater has given me everything I want. Frankly, the worst part of the whole album was that there wasn't more! But, that's why I bought the 3-CD version!

Quick song-by-song review:

1. A Nightmare To Remember
-This is an amazing journey, with plenty of heavy parts and melodic parts. It tells an amazing story and really is an excellent track. This is based on an experience from Petrucci's childhood (from the commentary I've heard).

2. A Rite Of Passage
-I liked this when I first heard the single, but I like it much more after hearing it several times. I love the vocals and background vocals (especially in the chorus), the theme of the song, and the heavyness.

3. Wither
-I wasn't sure about this one at first, since it has the "ballad style" chorus, but again, after listening to it several times there are portions of the song that still give me goosebumps. The bridge portion of the song is really when I feel it. If you're not sure what John Petrucci is actually referring to in the song, it's epicness makes more sense after learning why he wrote it.

4. The Shattered Fortress
-The shattered fortress was very fun, containing parts from the other AA songs, which are all typically great. I especially liked the newer lyrics in the song toward the end of the track, which could inspire anyone who listens to it. It sure inspired me!

5. The Best Of Times
-Everyone was saying how amazing this song was, but I didn't get it until later. I definitely get the Rush feel as the song picks up (which sounds great BTW). Overall, I love the story and think this is a touching song.

6. The Count Of Tuscany
-This wowed me from the very beginning. At first, I had finished the song saying to myself "Wow, that's chilling, just chilling". After another listen, I said "Wait a minute...", and later I found myself saying "Whoa, I didn't expect that!". This is a 20-minute song that I find myself wishing was longer still. Everything is marvelous, and the story is one that I want to know more about. This song is amazing, listen to it now.

This album overall just may be my favorite DT album of all time. I've heard everything they have to offer, but this album is technically amazing and just very well balanced. It almost seems to me that DT worked super hard to refine this album and polish it to a high-quality gold.

-James LaBrie's vocals are great throughout, and he fits perfectly. Count of Tuscany is perfect for him, just perfect.

-John Petrucci can make anyone cry with his amazing guitar skills, or thrash them with the heavy stuff. (I still don't get how it looks like he plays in slow motion, yet what I hear is so fast?)

-John Myung is amazing, talented, and contributes a lot in this album. He deserves a lot of praise for being the workhorse that he is.

-Jordan Rudess is someone I find myself liking more and more. He does a lot in this album, and some of his solos are my favorite parts. I'm looking into checking out his solo albums too.

-Mike Portnoy - just listen to the first track, "A Nightmare to Remember", and you'll realize how amazing this guy is. What a show he puts on... DT wouldn't be DT without him.

Final say: Buy this album, whether you like Dream Theater or not. I found myself realizing how lame most music is compared to this. There's a deep story in every track, and everything is meaningful. It has something for everyone yet is deep enough and epic enough to please the hardcore DT fans. One of their best albums if not the best!
2587887
I listened today this fantastic album of this new band. I'm a fan of Jack White work. He is a man who dedicates his life to revive the best 60 & 70 hard & acoustic rock. The best example is this past project: White Stripes. I like most of the white stripes albums. I don't listen the work of Brendan Benson ... but I imagine were is the objective of his life. Revive the best Beatles rock. I like both objectives & I hear this two objectives in this debut album. Sounds very familiar, but sounds very mordern in the same time. There are a good mix of styles: Rock in the same style of Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti, acoustic songs in the style of The Beatles White Album & grounge record process.

This album is ideal for rock & indie rock fans, grounge rock fans & lovers of the 70 rock bands.

Good luck The Raconteurs. ;)
2074384
I ama huge fan of Linkin Park, although I really did not like there first album it was to hard and Mike S sounded really bad and to over the top. Minutes To Midnight and A Thousand Suns are EPIC and I mean it. I am totally into the fact that they have slowed way down and Mike S sounds so much more relaxed and I love what he raps about today. Chester has an amazing voice on this album and I am glad to see they use his vocals more than Mike. This album I give 5 stars because it's crafted so well and let me tell you this is an album made for SubWoofers out there the bass is so smooth and it hit's home with me. I just went to Target and this couple asked me who I was playing and I said Linkin Parks new album A Thousand Suns immediately they reacted and said "that's Linkin Park"? They loved it, so please go pick this one up I know when it comes out on vinyl in September I am there to purchase it 180 grams of pure bliss!
4105502
Great Album!  Binaural is probably in the top 3 greatest Pearl Jam albums, along with Ten and Vs.

One reason is its one of the best musically technical records for Pearl Jam. Matt Cameron's drumming also drives the band into another world of rythme and makes them sound heavier than ever.

The finer songs of the album are the hard rocking "Insignificance", "Grievance", "Breakerfall" and "God's Dice".

The softer yet graceful tunes are "Light Years", "Thin Air", and "Parting Ways". "Soon Forget" is a well written little uke solo.

And of course, there's the melancholic yet beautiful "Nothing As It Seems".
3383337
I love every track on this album, but full disclosure, I was a fan of both the album and band before buying this ;)