LOVE AND DEATH AS WELL AS THE PRETTY RECKLESS DROP NEW ALBUMS TODAY

Love And Death – Perfectly Preserved

One of the reasons why I love doing my weekly new releases post is that it helps bring music to people’s attention. I realize that I don’t get the traffic that the big sites get. But it annoys me that some of those bigger sites just mail their reviews in.

Brian “Head” Welsch is best known for being the guitarist of Korn. As much as I like Korn without him, you could tell by his previous solo album and the debut Love And Death album that he was the missing ingredient the band needed. This was immediately demonstrated when he rejoined Korn.

His work outside of the band has never been 100% Korn in sound. It is like saying that Fieldy’s SillWell project sounds like Korn It just doesn’t, and anyone that writes that is just being lazy.

So when I read a review when prepping for my own post, that is full of inaccuracies, like that this is just a Nu-Metal revival album, or that Justin Bieber appears on the album, it royally pisses me off.

Let’s get this straight, the album features a cover of the Justin Bieber song “Let me Love You”. But Bieber does not lend his vocals to the track. It’s former Flyleaf lead singer Lacy Sturm who is actually featured on the cover.

Also, this album shows growth by the band experimenting both musically and vocally. It isn’t just a paint by numbers Nu-Metal album. Does it have ingredients that Head is known for? Sure, but it isn’t that simple, and one dimensional. In other words, it is the only thing you find on the album.

Just saying it is is kind of weak, you can’t slobber over an Alter Bridge release, yet this album is probably closer to what Tremonti and company do, or Breaking Benjamin than an actual Korn album.

Speaking of Breaking Benjamin, the band also features Jasen Rauch, on bass. Although he’s also produced and helped write quite a bit of the Love And Death’s material. He’s also one of Breaking Benjamin’s guitarists.

This album is full of modern rock overtones, much like what bands like the aforementioned Alter Bridge and Breaking Benjamin have to offer, with Head’s style layered on top. Is this album for everyone? No, but if you appreciate what Welch has done throughout his career, this may be worth your wild.

Check out the video for “Down” off of Love And Death’s Perfectly Preserved:

The Pretty Reckless – Death By Rock And Roll

I love seeing albums like this get a ton of coverage from NME, and other sites that normally don’t cover anything remotely hard rock or metal. They tend to avoid hard rock and metal unless it’s to point out how crappy an album is.

But this time around, you have The Pretty Reckless, you know the band that features former actress Taylor Momsen.  They must cover it as it will bring them attention. They play nice during a video interview, all the while lambasting the band for their lyrics, and their lack of direction in their review.

I never understood why PR people or labels serve artists up to publications that historically crap all over anything that remotely sounds like hard rock or metal. I get that these sites and magazines are huge, but why try to win someone over that’s just wants to hate you. When there are plenty of people out there that accept an artist with open arms.

This album isn’t groundbreaking by any stretch of the imagination. But it, much like the Love And Death release show that the band has grown, and is evolving on many fronts.

Obviously, Taylor is the focal point of the band. She is the first thing you will notice visually. With this album, you’ll now notice that she’s upped her game as a vocalist. A lot has been said about Chris Cornell being an influence. The Pretty Reckless opened for Soundgarden during their last tour. I can’t help but think that seeing Cornell night after night rubbed off on her. Especially given her vocal performance on Death By Rock And Roll.

This is a modern radio rock album. It isn’t geared towards people in their 40s or 50s. This is why I get a kick out of old curmudgeon purists poo-pooing this album because of the lyrics. Or even complaining that it sounds too polished. If that’s your opinion, this album probably wasn’t written for you.

Also, I wouldn’t take the lyrics to task when some of the biggest songs of all time don’t exactly stand the test of time as being the most coherent. At the end of the day, sometimes you just have to sit back and let yourself be entertained.

Here’s The Pretty Reckless with “And So It Went” featuring Tom Morello:

HERE ARE SOME OTHER ALBUMS THAT MAY INTEREST YOU

Durbin – The Beast Awakens

Sirenia – Riddles, Ruins & Revelations

Inglorious – We Will Rise

Joel Hoekstra’s 13 – Running Games

Crystal Viper – The Cult

God Is An Astronaut – Ghost Tapes #10

Arc Of Life – Arc Of Life

Human Fortress – Epic Tales & Untold Stories

Wizard – Metal In My Head

Holy Mother – Face This Burn

The Mercy Kills – New Rules

3.2 – Third Impression

Simulacrum – Genesis

Kreek –Kreek

The Nova Hawks – Redemption

Tragedy In Hope – Sleep Paralysis

Crawl Below – 9 Mile Square

REISSUES

Black Sabbath – Vol. 4 Super Deluxe Box Set

Dio – Evil Or Divine: Live In New York City

Dio – Holy Diver Live

Rammstein – Herzeleid XXV Anniversary Edition

Sacred Reich – The American Way

Sacred Reich – Ignorance

Sacred Reich – Surf Nicaragua

Check out previous New Releases posts here

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