OK kids, the summer's over. Fo' relz. But here are a dozen of small CD reviews I wrote on xanga throughout the Summer. Enjoy & comment! (Newest CD reviews will be posted at the top)

CD'S reviewed on Friday, September 1st

Dream Theater Falling into Infinity (Let me kick todays reviews off with a review from arguably the best progressive metal band: Dream Theater. I recently got their popular 1997 album, Falling into infinity, and the band still amazes me. Most of the songs are long and include some long guitar solos, the lyrics were thought out pretty well, and as usual; the keyboards play a big part in the album. My only problem is that I cant seem to listen to this album all the way through without feeling tired.  Heh, that sounds pretty bad, but it wasnt meant to be anything too terrible. Altogether, I probably wont keep this CD in less I find it for around $8, but I will be buying the songs You not me, Peruvian Skies, Hollow years, and the 13 minute track, Trail of Tears fo sho. (Overall rating: 7.9/10)      

Linkin Park Meteora (Hahaha. Much like Fallout Boy; I cant seem to listen to Linkin Park without laughing. The fact that my sister used to listen to them like crazy doesnt help much. Ehhh, most people either think that Linkin Park is pretty much the worlds greatest band; Or they think that theyre terrible metal wannabes. Weeeell, I really wouldnt say that theyre either of those. Also most people dont realize that when Linkin Park started, they had a very unique sound, and for the most part: they still have a unique sound. I have a lot of respect for that alone...However I still say that they pretty much suck.  Yes, theyve had some amazing radio singles such as In the End, Numb, Somewhere I belong, Papercut, etc. However after those songs: most of the other songs on their CDs are some of the worst fillers that Ive heard.  HmIm really not sure how I should rate this CD, so let me just say that Numb has got to be somewhere in my top 100 favorite songs of all time, but 80% of the rest of the CD sucks.  (Overall rating: 6.4/10 But Id give Numb a 9.6/10)

The Black Dahlia Murder Miasma (RAWR. And now for some more death/grind music! Great stuff. Hahaha, about half a year ago, stuff like this was all Id listen to; and this is still possibly my favorite genre besides Black Metal. However The Black Dahlia Murder seems to just be another average American death metal band that wants to be Scandinavian.  On their album, 'Miasma', the screams are pretty powerful, the drums are quick (though they arent anything special), the lyrics are dead cheesy and you could probably the same lyrics for KoRn or Slipknot (which is far from how any death metal band should be), and the guitars areHmI dunno what to say about their guitarist. He has loads of talent, and he has a few decent solos on this CD; the only problem is that the solos rarely fit in with their style of music. Oh well, theyre still better then a dozen other cheesy American death metal bands. So in the end TBDM isnt anything overly special compared to many great Black/Death/Grind bands such as X-Ray of a Graveyard, Napalm Death, Crimson Moonlight, or even metalcore bands such as Between the Buried and Me or Becoming the Archetype; but if youre just looking for another quick metal band to listen to-then by all means check out TBDM. (Overall rating: 6.9/10)

CD's reviewd on Friday, August 25th

Disturbed-Ten thousand fists. (Haha, what Im I coming to? Lately Ive been listening to some Disturbed, Deftones, East-West, and even Linkin Park!  No fears-Im still far from a Nu-Metalhead. But on the other hand; I think Disturbed is now my favorite Nu-metal band-Or at least I think that this is one of the best Nu-Metal CDs Ive heard besides Demon Hunters S/T CD.  So Ill try a little Pros & Cons-ness for this review and we could add it from there.

Pros:

~An amazing opening track/Title Track. It has got to be one of the best songs of 2005.

~Some very well written lyrics. (Although I cant say I agree with most of them)

~Better guitaring than most Nu-Metal

~A decent Drummer

~A fair length. (the albums 14 songs long & around 50 minutes)

~A few other great songs such as Im Alive, Stricken, and Guarded.

Cons:

~Cheesy artwork

~Not a wide vocal range

~Most songs sound alike

~Its still Nu-Metal

So overall Ill give this CD a 8.7/10, and Ill also say that its probably the best Nu-Metal CD Ive heard. 

Alice Cooper-Dragontown (More Alice Cooper! HehWhat an interesting concept album. Heck, what an interesting guy in general.  Once again, this most defiantly isnt his best CD ever, but its still a fun one. Musically; well whenever I listen to the opening track Triggerman, I cant decided if I should be laughing at the cheesy guitars & lyrics; or if I should be yelling along HES SICK! HES SICK! HES REALLY, REALLY SICK!So Ill pick the second option. The next three songs follow the whole Dragontown feel. But by track 5, they go back to Alices traditional sound for a few songs. Huzah! Also this CD includes one of Alice Coopers better ballads-Every Women has a Name. Anyways, my favorite songs on this album were Triggerman, Its much too Late, Sister Sara, and The Sentinel. (Overall rating: 7.9/10)

Plumb-Chaotic Resolve (So I got this CD wondering how little Id like it. Sorry, but I thought all of her songs that get played on the radio kept getting worse and worse (I cant do this, Better, Bittersweet). No, none of those songs are overly terrible-But:

1. They all sound exactly like Evanescence
2. They all get played on Radio U far too much.

However I put on the CD and was glad to hear that those three songs are probably my least favorite songs on the CD. Apart from those three songs; she actually has her own sound. I think my favorite songs on this CD were actually her love ballads; Blush(Only you) and Real life Fairytales; although the song Cut is right up there, and her cover of Michael W. Smiths Pray for me gets a close 4^th.  So overall this is a pretty nice CD-Especially when she isnt sounding just like Evanescence.  (Overall rating; 8/10)

CD'S reviewed on Friday, August 18th:

Hank Williams American Music Legends II (Ahh, you have to understand something about me. I really dont care for most country music besides a few exceptions. Hank Williams has had a few songs that Ive loved, but not enough to buy one of his full CDs. But this CD is different. I love all 10 songs on this greatest hits CD! Not only are all the songs great, but theyve cleaned up the sound, thus making songs such as Honky Tonk Blues and Im so Lonesome I could cry even better.  Mmmmm. This has got to be one of the best Country CDs besides almost anything by Johnny Cash or The Carter Family) Overall rating: 9.2/10

Deftones S/T. (Ehhh, I really tried to get into this CD, but its hard for me to get into. It was nice hearing some unique Alternative Metal, but it isnt for me. The vocals remind me of a mix between MeWithoutYou, As Cities Burn, and the Deftones own little sound. One problem with their S/T album is that they try to hard to make a few ballad tracks, which the vocals dont sound right on. The three songs off this CD that have stuck with me have been the first two tracks, Hexagram and Needles ands Pins & the second to last ballad, Anniversary of an Uninteresting Event) Overall rating: 7.8/10 

Bob Dylan Love & Theft (Great lyrics, but Dylan really cant sing like he used to. Oh well, at least he doesnt sound as bad as The Rolling Stones do nowAnd he doesnt look as bad as the Rolling Stones do.  I pretty much got tired of this CD on only the second listen, although the songs Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum and Sugar Baby have still been songs that I dont mind playing over and over again) Overall rating: 6.4/10. (Although Id give the song Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum an 8.9/10)

Fallout Boy From Under the Cork Tree. (Ahahahha. Dangit, I dont even know how I should be reviewing this CD.  I cant decided if I want to start making fun of the band Or actually point out the positive points on it.  Lol, let me start out by saying this then: Fallout Boy has got to either be the most Underrated or Overrated band ever. Most people either dont give the band enough credit for playing some semi-unique pop-rock; or they think that FOB IZ THEE WOLRDZ GREATESTEST BAND EVA!!!1. This band is neither of those. So heres a slightly longer than short review for From Under the Cork Tree:

Let me start with the Track names. Hah, I have to admit that I had a smile when I saw that the track listing included songs named I Slept with someone in Fallout Boy and all I got was this Stupid song written about me & Champagne for my real friends, Real pain for my sham friends The only problem is that theyre pop-rock Not Alternative like Sufjan Stevens, who can go by with giving his songs ridiculously long names. Haha, I can just imagine the 12 year old girls going to a FOB concert and yelling out PLAY OUR LAWYER MADE US CHANGE THE NAME OF THIS SONG SO WE WOULDNT GET SUED!!!! Hahaha. Good thing Im not planning on seeing them live any year soon.

But now for the actual music. Haha, WHAT SHOULD I SAY?! If I hear the song Sugar were going down one more time, I swear Im going to kill my radio by smashing it with a hammer. But apart from a few crappy songs, this album is actually pretty good. Thats right, I said it.  Fallout Boys worth listening to. They have around 6 songs just on FUTCT that Im actually going to be putting on a playlist. However they are still FAR from being a favorite of mine, and after seeing a dozen of cheesy videos of them live; Id have to say that Id rather stick to The All-American Rejects & Panic! At the Disco for my pop-rock.

But now its time for the final question: Should you buy it? Hm...Defiantly DO NOT pay the full $12 for it, but Id conceder going to a used records store and buying it for around $5, then I'd hurry up, buy it, stick it in your pocket and walk out making sure no one just saw you buying Fallout Boys CD.  Overall rating: 7.6/10

CD'S reviewed on Thursday, August 10th:

Weezer Make Believe. (Remember back when Jimmy Eat World & Weezer were both dark Second-Wave Emo bands? Eh...Well times have changed I guess.  While Weezers old music was some decent dark second-wave emo; their new CD Make believe has defiantly shown me how much theyve changedFor the badAnd good? Hah,while Make Believes a little bit of a waste of money, it does have a few songs that are worth a listen or four, Mainly Beverly Hills & Were all on Drugs. But this isnt as good as their old  music at all; However its still one of my favorite Rock albums that has come out within the past 5 years or so) (Overall rating: 7.2/10)

Dropkick Murphys Blackout. (The first time I listened to this CD all I could think of was How the crap can a pop-punk band, with some light Celtic influences, become one of the most popular Celtic Punk/Rock bands, when great bands like Flatfoot 56 and Bad Haggis are hardly even known? Hah, well like most Celtic Punk; this CD has grown on me like crazy. It went from being a disappointment To being one of my favorite CDs Ive heard all year.  Very good CD, although The Dropkick Murphys sucks at doing Ballads, and I still like Flatfoot better ) (Overall rating: 9/10)

Dogwood Matt Argon. (RAWRZ! Good Ole Dogwood! One of the best punk bands Ive heard. Ahh, the underratedness...Matt Aragon has got to be my favorite CD Dogwood has ever put out Yesh, its even better than their greatest hits CD. Plus none of the songs on this CD are worth skippingNot yet anyway, give me a few more listens to say that for sure. This CD is amazing - from the energetic first track all the way to the ending Ballad. Beautiful. SoWhere did Dogwood go anyway?) (Overall rating: 9.2/10)

CD's reviewed on Sunday, August 6th:

Megadeth The System has failed. (Holy crapit, this CD gets better after each listen! Dude, I can actually listen to this CD from back to back without getting bored, which is rare for any CD. Man. This CD was put together really well. Every songs a little different, yet they all fit together perfectly. The only negative track is the 40 second track, I know Jack. But this could very well be one of my favorite metal albums of all time. And last of all: New Megadeth CD in late October!) Rating: EhAbout a 9.3/10. Im not sure yet though.

Christafari Valley of Decision (Ehh, its a good CD no doubt, however in the end it just ends up being another Reggae CD. Aka: It starts off amazingly with the first two Tracks (Valley of Decision and Cant Stop), but after those two songs it just starts getting a little boring. Oh well, I only rented it so I didnt waste much. Im probably going to get the first two songs off Itunes, but not much else) Rating: 4.8/10

The Myriad You cant trust a Ladder (This is actually a really good album. It isnt anything mind-blowing, and I can tell that The Myriad will probably never be one of my favorite bands; but theyre fun to listen to. Every track is at least above average, so I can listen to it from start to finish with only skipping one or two tacks easily. The first three songs and the last three songs are my favorites on it) Rating: 7.9/10 

Hilary Duff The Lizzie McGuire movie soundtrack. (Hahahahahaha. Why the heck did I even check this out? Haha, well it shows how little Disney pop music has improved. Every song makes me want to throw something at my wall, and then go jump off my roof. So I guess this isnt the healthiest CD for me.  The mixed version of her song Why not is the only song that I dont mind listening to on this CD. Gaaah. Listening to Jump 5, Aly & AJ, and Kelly Clarkson almost seems healthy after I just heard Hilary Duff ) Overall rating: 1.9/10 (The song Why not saved it from getting an even lower rating)

Disturbed Ten Thousand Fists in the air (Well, first of all I only got to listen to the first 5 songs so far, so this wont be my only review. But so far Ive actually liked this CD a little more than I thought I would. The title track, 10,000 Fists, is actually a really good song. Although so far the other four tracks have simply been sucky Nu-Metal. Oh well, this still may be my second favorite Nu-Metal CD, right next to Demon Hunters S/T album. Oh yeah. The artwork for this CD sucks. ) Overall rating so far: 7.5/10

The cheesy rap Radio (ITS CLOSE ENOUGH TO A CD). LOL. Wow, first of all let me say that Radio Rap, Radio Country, and most Radio Pop almost all suck. Yeah, what gets played on the radio I usually cant stand, and Radio Rap is among my least favorite genres. Hah, at least some of these songs were laughable. OH. And I heard this one song where 90f the lyrics went like thisWAYZ TEH B GANGSTA! WAYZ TEH B GANGSTA, BROTHA! YEEEA! WAYZ TEH B GANGSTA! *PROFANITY!* Hahahaha. I need a dew rag. Anyway at least they played some Eminem and Grits. At least those two actually have some talented) Radio Rap Rating: 2/10 (If it werent for Eminem, Jay-Z, and Grits; than I wouldve given it a much lower rating. Now go listen to J-Remy or The Crossmovement and enjoy some rap without crazy profanity and that actually has some talent) 

CD's reviewed on Sunday, July 30th: