NewYearsDayProject | a song a day blog

Twenty-one years ago,  Linkin Park  released their sophomore record,  Meteora .    Throughout the band's career, their sound would shift to various styles of rock music, but  Meteora  is not much of a departure from the band's debut  Hybrid Theory .  The album did, however, embrace Asian musical instruments on several tracks. At the time of its release,  Meteora  not only debuted at number 1 on  Billboard's 200 Album charts  but also set the record for the most units sold in a week beating  Celine Dion 's  One Heart .  In 2003, Nu Metal was the ruling dynasty and Linkin Park was the king of the music. I CAN'T FEEL THE WAY I DID BEFORE.  Speaking of deluxe editions, you can stream Linkin Park's 20th anniversary edition of  Meteora-- 95 tracks of live performances, B-sides, and demos; some of which have been released like their  Live in Texas   record and some remastered tracks which had never left the vault. Personally, I don't have fond memories of this reco

  In recent years, Skillet has become an apologetics band under the leadership of lead singer John Cooper . But before you could catch him on Fox News , Skillet was the band whose CD you had to hide from your conservative parents, whether it was the fetish-wear-inspired pastiche of Invincible or the snake on the angel mannequin on the cover of Collide . Skillet’s early music was influenced by Industrial bands like Nine Inch Nails and Korn , bands known for their anti-Christian messages.  But Skillet’s early music varied greatly, each album seeming to take a completely different set of inspirations. Their 1996 debut self-titled album and its follow-up Hey You, I Love Your Soul pulled from grunge, while the band’s next two albums delved into a dark Marylin Manson sound. I’M EVERYTHING YOU WANTED. When speaking with Shane Told of the Lead Singer Syndrome podcast, John Cooper talked about how he was disappointed that youth groups were choosing secular songs for church skits rather

I talked about my history with  Red  in 2021 when I talked about their single " Breathe Into Me ." The band's debut album,  End of Silence,  starts strong before getting monotonous. Somewhere after the album's hooky hit songs "Breathe Into Me," " Let Go ," and " Already Over ," the mysterious " Lost ," and the worshipful " Pieces ," the album suffers a sameness that makes it a little hard listen to in its entirety. Today, we'll look at what went wrong on this album.   1. " Intro " (End of Silence). In terms of albums with introductions,  The End of Silence  does well at establishing the mood of the album. It's not a skippable track. The unintelligible voices are probably studio conversations dubbed mysteriously, though Spotify has lyrics posted. A melancholy piano plays and strings are added to the short piece. The song leads into "Breathe Into Me." 3. "Let Go" ups the hard rock so

Six years after releasing their eponymous sixth album, Spoken released Illusion on E1 Records, a New York-based independent record label. The band began work on their 2013 album back in 2009, recording with Jasen Rauch . By their seventh album, Spoken had become a veteran band, having formed in 1996. The band’s rough recordings on Christian pop star Crystal Lewis ’ label Metro One produced several hits for Christian hard rock radio such as RadioU . Of these recordings, only their 2000 record, Echos of the Spirit Still Dwell is available on Spotify and Apple Music. In 2003, the band signed with Tooth & Nail Records . I SAW THE STORM, FELT THE WINDS BEGIN TO CHANGE.  With the partnership between Spoken and Tooth & Nail Records, the band developed their sound with bigger production budgets. The development of Spoken’s sound over the course of the three Tooth & Nail albums impacted the band until their most recent singles in 2020. Starting with the droll, mid-western roc

I talked about my history with Red back in 2021 when I talked about their single " Breathe Into Me ." The band's debut album, End of Silence, starts strong before getting monotonous. Somewhere after the album's hooky hit songs "Breathe Into Me," " Let Go ," and " Already Over ," the mysterious " Lost ," and the worshipful " Pieces ," the album suffers a sameness that makes it a little hard listen to in its entirety. Today, we'll look at what went wrong on this album. 1. " Intro " (End of Silence). In terms of albums with introductions, The End of Silence does well at establishing the mood of the album. It's not a skippable track. The unintelligible voices are probably studio conversations dubbed mysteriously, though Spotify has lyrics posted. A melancholy piano plays and strings are added to the short piece. The song leads into "Breathe Into Me." 2. "Breathe Into Me" was the lead

  Twenty years ago, Linkin Park released their sophomore record, Meteora . Throughout the band's career, their sound would shift to various styles of rock music, but Meteora is not much of a departure from the band's debut Hybrid Theory . The album did, however, embrace Asian musical instruments on several tracks. At the time of its release, Meteora not only debuted at number 1 on Billboard's 200 Album charts but also set the record for the most units sold in a week beating Celine Dion 's One Heart . In 2003, Nu Metal was the ruling dynasty and Linkin Park was the king of the music. I CAN'T FEEL THE WAY I DID BEFORE.  Speaking of deluxe editions, you can stream Linkin Park's 20th anniversary edition of Meteora-- 95 tracks of live performances, B-sides, and demos; some of which have been released like their Live in Texas record and some remastered tracks which had never left the vault. Personally, I don't have fond memories of this record. I thought of it

Red 's debut album, End of Silence , comes in the middle of a maximalist orchestral rock era on the alternative/active rock stations. The lead single, " Breathe Into Me " is a heavily produced single that involves screaming, a Middle-eastern sounding guitar solo, and a string section that sounds like it's being tuned in on an FM radio. As novel as that sounds, a DJ today might be able to recreate that sound if he picked up a hundred other active rock records from 2003-2009. The sound effects and heavy guitars could be found on any Linkin Park record, the strings on an Evanescence record, the screaming on almost any other record. But in 2006, Red's End of Silence was a fun, aggressive radio-rock record, and I had every hope that they would go on to have a career of unique heavy music. FALLING FASTER . Released the summer after I graduated from high school, I didn't really start listening to Red's debut record until the Fall, when I was driving to morning

In 2006, Family Force 5 debuted with their brand of 'crunk,' rap-rock punk that was comical, dancey, awkward, and overall unique. You'd be hard-pressed to find much Christian Rock on  Business Up Front/Party in the Back . Most of the songs are about dancing in the club and falling in love. While pretty innocent, it was one of the first times a Christian Rock band invited its listeners to the club. Known for their outrageous live shows and touring with the likes of Cobra Starship , 30h!3 , Cash Cash , Breathe Carolina , and The Secret Handshake , the band took a stylistic left turn when they released their sophomore record on Tooth & Nail Records in 2008. Dance or Die has much less crunk, more singing, and fewer joke songs. The band started taking themselves seriously on this record, but looking back, I wonder who it was for? THEY TRY TO TAKE OUR LIVES, BUT WE WILL SURVIVE . Family Force 5 is a rock band, but in their live shows they functioned as a boyband. In 2006-