Gogol Bordello "Trans-Continental Hustle"

Gogol Bordello is one hell of a fun band to listen to. I've heard they're pretty amazing live as well, however, i've not had the pleasure to see them. Trans-Continental Hustle tends to lean more toward their folksy gypsy roots than their punk roots, but its no less entertaining. Eugene Huts has one of the most recognizable voices in the industry. These songs are full of bouncy rhythms and fun sing along choruses, and lets face it, you can't sing along in a normal american accent, you've got to put on the Russian voice that everyone has hidden deep in their soul. So if you're looking for some fun folk punk that will get your body moving in all of its vodka soaked glory, this may just be the album for you. Or any of Gogol Bordello's albums so far.

MInus the Bear "Omni"

I'm a bit too close to this band to give an objective review. I love this new album. They've moved forward with their sound in a great way, by incorporating more synthesized sounds and beats, while at the same time moving toward more traditional sounding guitar solos. The guitar tapping is still there, but not quite as much as their earlier albums. The songs however are catchier and very well produced, which some fans have complained about, but if you've listened to them progress as a band, this album only sounds like the logical next step. The lyrics are blatantly sexual in most songs, including "My Time" which is their current "single" if they get played on any station near you. "Into the Mirror" and "Backwards Animal" share the same beat and key part, however, on "Backwards Animal" the beat is reversed and almost gives a "Paul Revere" (beastie boys" feel to the song. This album, to me, seemed to be more about sustaining a mood, or feel throughout the entire album, rather than a certain mood in each song. The subject matter they choose to deal with isn't much different than in previous albums, sex, alcohol, drugs, good times etc. I love the fact that they've stayed true to themselves in that regard, and still been able to progress their sound to where its gotten. This is a really fun album to listen to. Going along with their theme of basically a fun night out, the album sort of peaks and wanes along those lines. The first few songs are upbeat and get you in the mood to go out, the climax would of course be "Into the Mirror", and then the 4 songs afterwards are like the party winding down, they get progressively more sedate and relaxed, which could be a downfall to some fans, but given the proper mood, it could fit in perfectly, if only the album were long enough to last all night.

Deftones "Diamond Eyes"

The Deftones have always been somewhat wrongly pigeonholed as a nu-metal bad, with the likes of Korn, Limp Bizkit, and Godsmack and bands of that ilk. They are, however, a much more artfully and existential band than any of the previous bands mentioned. They've always pushed the genre they were in to new corners and new sonic realms, giving you an equally brutal and beautiful sound that not many, if any, could replicate. With the absence of Chi Cheng, their longtime bassist, one might wonder where their sound would go, since in several interviews, Chi seemed to be the one pushing them to stay heavier, and Chino was the one who wanted to move in an artier direction. The sound however, is very reminiscent of their 2000 album "White Pony", which is probably their most critically acclaimed album. As a fan, i was glad to hear them still pushing themselves, even through the tragedy that befell their longtime bass player. (www.oneloveforchi.com for more info) The album is a bit more focused than their 2006 effort "Saturday Night Wrist", which makes for a much more enjoyable listen. Although possibly a bit too brief. The single, and title track, along with "sextape" were amongst my favorites on the album. Bottom line, this is a solid album from a great band, and most likely won't disappoint longtime fans. But its not necessarily something you haven't heard from these guys before.

Coheed and Cambria "Year of the Black Rainbow"

Coheed and Cambria "finished" their epic, really Claudio Sanchez's, sci fi story with their previous album. So what does this have to do with their new album? Year of the Black Rainbow is the origins story to their massive concept album that spans 5 full lenght albums. This album is deceptive upon first listen. It sounds like a band that may have just phoned in the next album since they finished their long story, who cares about the beginning right? Wrong! Coheed and Cambria have perfected their sound and come up with an album that will both satisfy old fans and could possibly get them an even broader audience. The songs are tightly wound, no more 8 minute epics (aside from the title track which clocks in around 7 minutes). Coheed have figured out how to do what they've been trying to do all along. They've got a full album worth of great songs here instead of a third of an albums worth. On their first two albums, they had maybe 3 or 4 songs you wanted to listen to over and over... the rest you just listened to for the story. Now they've honed their songwriting skills and musicianship to a sharp point. The album sounds almost too simple at first, but thats just because they're very good at what they do, and they make it sound easy. Upon further listening, multiple layers will begin to unveil themselves. If you're a fan of Coheeds previous albums, you'll no doubt like this one... if you've never heard them before... this may be a great place to start.

30 Seconds To Mars "This Is War"

James Cameron must have produced this album for 30 Seconds to Mars because it sounds like the musical equivilent to Avatar. Every song sounds incomprehensibly huge! With all the child group choruses and tribal drumming going on, it even sounds similar to some of the music in Avatar. 30STM was shooting for the stars on this album because they just pulled out all the stops. Its like they decided, "Okay, this album is going to make us bigger than U2 and the Beatles combined". They just went all out and the result is a massive sounding album that is hard to critique because of the sheer size of it. Size in sound not in depth or time mind you. Most of the music is fairly simple, but it has been double or quadruple tracked to give it a full powerful sound. This style of production is quite effective. Its very moving sounding music. Lyrically, its somewhat mundane, life is war type imagery, not too creative of course. But you can't fault Leto and crew for doing something they really wanted to do. Their last album was on the top 200 charts for more than 2 years so naturally they needed to up the ante. Its a bold record and the sheer girth of its sound almost puts it in a class of its own. If the production quality was a little more rough around the edges, you'd be able to see all the faults the music has... it can be somewhat boring at times. But the way in which it was recorded more than makes up for its faults. 30STM has brought back "arena" rock, whether it was gone or not... it sounds as if the whole world was brought in to play little pieces on this album.. Check it out, but don't be shocked if in a month or two you really just couldn't care less about this album.

Clash of the Titans(2010)

Clash of the Titans originally was a quirky epic done quite impressively with live action and stop motion animation. Yes it looks funny by todays standards of what special effects should be, but in the eighty's it was top notch. Today's version of Clash of the Titans updates the special effects by leaps and bounds to please todays movie goer. However, thats about all they've updated. The story is basically the same, the action is all basically the same. Its definitely an enjoyable movie, however, all the creatures you see in the movie are revealed in the preview, which kind of takes away from drawn out "reveal" scenes for each monster. You already know whats coming, so throw any suspense out the window. This movie is no better and no worse than its predecessor. Its simply a re-do with different effects and different actors. There's no new story really, except for the addition of Hades, who is evil incarnate and travels around much like the "evil incarnate" un-Locke(smoke monster) from Lost. Apparently we've discovered how evil travels, black pillars of smoke. But I digress. The 3D in this movie was most definitely disappointing. I didn't really notice it at all. I came out of the theater feeling cheated on the 3D aspects of the movie. All in all this is a fun action packed adventure thats worth a look if you're a fan of the original. If you've never seen the original, you may enjoy this version even more, but i wouldn't shell out the extra 4 or 5 dollars for the 3D showtimes, its just not worth it.

Precious: Based on the novel "Push" by Sapphire

I've finally seen Precious: Based on the novel "Push" by Sapphire or Precious: BOTNPBS as a friend and i call it. Coming off of awards season, and hearing so much about this movie (and so many people saying the full utterly obnoxious title), i was a bit reluctant to see it, just to spite everyone. However, having a lack of entertainment last night drove me to break my previous boycott. I have to say, i'm glad i broke down and finally saw this movie. ITs as uplifting as it is heartbreaking. Gabouray Sidibay and Monique did fantastic jobs in each of their roles. This is a movie that definitely can and most likely will move you to tears at least a few times. Depending on your mood, you may take away a sense of joy from this movie, or severe depression. Just about everything horrible you can think of, short of being murdered, happens to Precious in this film. Somehow she gets through it all with a huge lovable smile on her face. This is powerful filmmaking and it most definitely deserved all the hype. If you haven't seen this yet, you should make it a point to rent it. Its the type of film that could change you.