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From RazorMouth.com: Gospel Cola Fan-reviews:Posted by Jeremy spoken on January 22, 2000 at 21:55:57: Hello all, I got the "gospel cola" tape in the mail today. I'm not goingto give my full review song by song yet. I must soak in the ear candy thatthe boys in Atomic Opera have made. But! I will give you the vibe as I'velistened to it 3 times. Very heavy, low end grooves are back! yet it has its soft side whichsounds great. Frank's vocals sound incredible... backing vocals too. I'malso hearing a side of Atomic Opera i haven't heard before.... somethingnew, and what i hear is good, refreshing..... there are some beautiful momentsthat suck you right in. Right off the bat i got kicked in the teeth with"Jesus Junk" nowthat how you start things off!!!! OVERALL, it sounds great!! You will definitely have to go out and buythis the day it comes out! If you crossed "FOR MADMEN ONLY" &"PENGUIN DUST" you'd get GOSPEL COLA! Nice job Frank, Johnny, Kemper, & Ryan. It sounds great! If it suckedi would tell you. I will give a song by song review in about week. Thank you Frank you are very cool Jeremy spoken
Frank, my thoughts on "the side of AO we've never heard before"..
Posted by kev on January 24, 2000 at 00:16:57: KEV: I can't answer for Jeremy, but to me it's all of the instrumentation.Not that there wasn't any before, but on this recording everything justseems to be, dare I say, "perfectly in it's place". There areA LOT of different sounds on here. I fall in love with this recording themore i hear it (up to about 30+ times now) The dual vocals between you andKemper are awesome. There is just so much happening on this tape that Ihear new things every time. Everything seems very well thought out, andit sounds as if you took a lot of time making sure everything was the wayyou wanted it. If you didn't...then DANG! I really hear that Liturgicalinfluence strongly for the first time. I DIG IT!
Drunk on the Gospel Cola...they will know we are Christians by our love...ofJUNK!
Posted by kev on January 22, 2000 at 23:48:00: MAN! you have truly outdone yourself(s) on this one. I have spent allday listening to this tape. Been through the whole thing probably 8 timesor more. First let me say the vocals are incredible. The end of "Winterland" is awesome (as if the rest of it wasn't), "Muse"has to be my favorite as of today, man the vocals just kick my butt, thechorus sends me into a parallel universe, DANG!! and same goes for Love Is As Strong as Death,absolutely moving. Frank, is that you singing "Reiah"?I just can't say enough about this tape guys. The drumming is awesome Johnny!You are very tasteful and do some very sweet stuff. I could sit here anddo a song by song review but I want to get even more familiar with thembefore i start getting down to brass tacks. I'm still trying to figure outthe separation between "Reiah"& "Malediction"!All in all, a great performance by EVERYONE and the songs are the strongest the you've written. thanks Frank, I'm honored, kev
Gospel Cola full-review!
Posted by Jeremy spoken on January 29, 2000 at 11:20:46: when i got "gospel cola" i transferred it from analog(tape)to digital(cd) It sounds great on CD! anyway, down to business. JESUS JUNK- WOW! the openingtrack is a thumping, chugga chugga, of a low end groove! Plus controversiallyrics to go with it. What a combo! OCTOBER- a softer song but it still hard rockin'. Great chorus and backingvocals, harmonica solo. WINTERLAND- starts of slow,then kicks in with a nice heavy groove for the chorus. The chorus hooksyou in and doesn't let go! the ending vocal part is simply beautiful. Youhave to hear this! REIAH DISCERNS THE TIMES- Kempertakes the lead vocals on this one. Its a soft slow song. Sounds good. MALEDICTION- Kemper startsoff on lead, then Frank takes over for the chorus. Great lyrics and backingvocals. Nice groove. Ryan & Johnny kick butt on this song! MY HEAD- nice vibe on thisone. soft guitars but it still rocks. Nice chorus and vocals. Beautifulsong......"I'm going craaaazy" SILENCE- powerful lyrics. ahard rocker. again great backing vocals. MUSE- stinkin' heavy!!!! i almostfell over when i listened to this song! it is flyin!!! But the chorus issoft and slow. Nice combo, cool ending. Johnny you are "da man"on this one!! LOVE IS AS STRONG ASDEATH- .....atmosphere........ haunting...... takes you to another placewhen you listen to this. i can't think of words to describe this song............where am I? CIRCLE IS CLOSED-Kemper takesthe lead on this one. Weird song. For some reason i get an "industrial"feel from this song. Yet there is nothing "industrial" about it!!!Am i going crazy FRANK? It's a great song! heavy groove. i hum this songin my head all day! Ryan & Johnny kick serious butt!!! STOP MY HEART- heavyas stink groove!! (i love low end) Nice backing vocals. Johnny is everywhere!During the solo,the 2 ton groove kicks in. It's my favorite part! DOXOLOGY- FAST! furious! heavy!Then slows down for the versus. Hooky chorus, beautiful vocals,............world without end! Favorites? that's a hard to answer because all of the songs are awesome!but right now my favs are: JESUS JUNK, WINTERLAND,CIRCLE IS CLOSED, & STOP MY HEART. SINGLE / VIDEO? i would go with "STOPMY HEART" have you already chosen a single FRANK? I feel honored having listened to this before most of the world. THANKYOU: Frank, Kemper, Ryan, & Johnny. it is a masterpiece! I pray thatGOD will make this a hit record for you guys, you deserve it! Jeremy spoken
Song by song review of Gospel Cola
Posted by Tobi on January 29, 2000 at 17:34:42: For some reason the cool AO guys decided to send me a tape of GospelCola and so I feel it's my duty to tell all the world (or at least the mostimportant part of it, i.e. this message board) how great it is: JESUS JUNK - The perfectopener, imo. The lead guitar groove is amazing while the background instrumentationand vocals create an almost mysterious mood. Great drumming, Johnny. Coollyrics, Frank. OCTOBER - This song didn'tstand out for me at first but after some listens I began to love it. Especiallythe harmonica solo in the end makes this a great song. Reminds me of thePenguin Dust songs... WINTERLAND - Johnny, I loveyou drumming!!! I love songs that give me a picture of the lyrics and especiallythe drums in this song create a picture of riding in a sledge through thewinterland of our hearts for me. The chorus is amazing and so are the vocalsin the ending... REIAH DISCERNS THE TIMES - Coolbass groove and almost improvised-sounding guitars. Not a hard one but stillpowerful and greatly played. Quite short. MALEDICTION - I'm in lovewith this one, especially with the hardcore lyrics. The mellow intro (yousaid this is a recorder, didn't you?) is very cool and the song fits itnicely. Once again the drums stand out for me... MY HEAD - Not a very spectacularsong, imo, but still great, especially the bgv's SILENCE - Groovy song. Greatguitars. Reminds me a lot of the Mustard Seeds with its heavy pop feel...not your usually Atomic Opera song but so catchy that you won't get it outof your head again. MUSE - Talk about energy. Johnny,you're the man. Catchy chorus. Superb lyrics... "Too many poets andnot enough answers"... LOVE IS AS STRONG ASDEATH - WOW... I almost cried when I heard this for the first time.VERY mellow. VERY moody. VERY beautiful vocals and instrumentation (I lovecellos). Almost al little celtic sounding. Kind of a confession of faith."We believe our love will never die"... THE CIRCLE IS CLOSED - It'sfunny that Jeremy mentioned the industrial feel he got from this song causethis is exactly what I thought the first time I heard it. I think it's especiallydue to the drum and bass playing and the harmonies. It sounds like the AtomicOpera cover of a Savior Machine song. I really love this one. STOP MY HEART - Johnny,I don't really wanna know how good you would have played if you had playedthe best you can. (: Really heavy song. DOXOLOGY - If Jesus Junk isthe perfect first song this is the perfect last song. Fast, heavy, powerful.The guitar playing reminds me a little of earlier Galactic Cowboys songs.The organ intro is cool. The bass groove keeps the energy through the verses.The ending guitar playing reminds me a little of Queen's version of "Godsave the Queen"... wanna hear more of this, it sounds great! My favorites are probably Winterland,Silence, Loveis as Strong as Death and The Circleis Closed but I really love the whole album. I can't wait to get thisin full quality in summer! Thanks again for this gift. Was a great surprise. I immediately recordedit on Mini Disc and I listened to it all the time in school this week. Tobi (:
Jesus Junk
Posted by Darren on January 30, 2000 at 16:02:19: Note: I wrote this up pretty quickly and didn't bother to read it forgrammar or anything....so my apologies if that bugs. Jesus Junk is an interestingsong. As one would expect from the title, this doesn't seem like a greatsong for Christianphobes on one hand, or CCM on the other [or are thesethe same guys in disguise?] Anyways, on the right foot...those who can approachthe song with a mind that is half-open (or opening and closing in strobefashion} might be able to get something pretty cool out of it The first thing that struck this listener was the guitar work which seemed*slightly* similar to the opening track of LSU's "Dogfish Jones"in that it is somehow both swirling and murky...to use technical phraseology.The effect is quite cool, although I'm not immediately certain how the music"fits" the lyric. Considering the absurdity at the heart of thelyrics I would expect something somewhat cheesier. The sound conveys a certainseriousness that might not fit particularly well with the lyric. One wouldat least hope that the band does not take this stuff TOO tremendously seriously.If the listener thinks that they do, then the song takes on a bit of anoverly pious undertone which probably is not intended. The lyrics for the most part are somewhere between quite nice and darngood. While no lyric sheet was provided, Frank Hart's vocals are usuallyclear enough for the listener to catch the majority of what is being sung.I will resist the desire to pull a full lyrical critique until I have alyrics sheet in my hand. Until then I will only comment on the lyrics asa whole. As a writer I appreciate Frank's ability to avoid cliche rhymes.As a listener, I am quite amused by some of the images that Frank has managedto come up with [ega. "a Virgin Mary night lamp" =-}] The line"they will know we are Christians by our love....of junk" is oneheck of a lyrical hook. Up through the midpoint the song is cool, if a little weird. I thinkthe song, unfortunately, gets weaker towards the end, however. Musicallyit is incredibly well done. Lyrically, however, it leaves me underwhelmed.he message is appropriate, but it lacks the creativity of the rest of thelyrics. The refrain "Give me a piece of the true cross...I long forsomething holy...this subculture ain't real" doesn't do much for me.Combined with the music of the song it also adds to the song's aforementioned"over seriousness". A tad bit of self-flagellation might havebeen wiser. Instead, the listener is left with what I believe is a faultyimpression of the songwriter. On a positive note, the music IS cool. The lead guitar bridge soars,but the real highlight for me is when it gives way into a brief vocal duet.The vocals at this point are simply amazing; both dark and powerful. Unfortunately,it is a little more difficult at this point to make out exactly what isbeing sung, but the listener is able to get the gist of it. Hopefully lyricswill be included with the final release.
My Review
Posted by DocSam on January 31, 2000 at 08:27:17: JESUS JUNK---a well deservedrebuke to the merchandising of Christianity good steady and heavy grind-it-outsong. The Bass rules here. This one would make a fantastic, powerful video. OCTOBER---"Is there lifebefore death?" this is a stirring new millennium lament of the fallof mankind with great vocals and harmonies, and even a harmonica solo. WINTERLAND---Again the bestof vocals and harmonies while nailing the deadness of our culture with allof it's contradictions strange! This one is very smooth and has somewhatof "pop" ending. REIAH DISCERNS THE TIMES---AnArkangel-ish serious reminder of the signs of the times apocalypse is nowthis has a very "layered" feel to it but it is, alas, much tooshort! MALEDICTION---Possiblythe best overall selection this one really sticks to your ribs I wake upsinging the melody a strong Kemper vocal with a very intense "prophetic"message. Nice acoustic beginning that breaks into driving heavy industrialbeat. MY HEAD---Probably the mostinteresting mix of the collection, at least vocally, with lots of melodyand strong lyrics. SILENCE---Sweet guitar andvocals work here too just cross John Lennon with Kerry Livgren and you'llget the idea for this one. MUSE---Well titled with an almostsurprisingly gentle chorus, given the heavy beginning Very Nice! Includesoutstanding lyrics and a somewhat "medieval" ending. This onestays with you too. LOVE IS AS STRONG ASDEATH---A very moving ballad (with cello!) reminiscent of the slow partof "Stairway to Heaven." This will probably find its way intosome weddings this summer. Very Beautiful!! THE CIRCLE IS CLOSED---Kemperreally comes through here with strong and haunting vocal. It has a kindof "middle-eastern" feel to it with lots of cool sounds you hearsomething different every time. Contains some very "dangerous"drumming very cool Johnny!! Another "rib sticker" STOP MY HEART---Frankshines vocally here-the passion hits you in the face. Delicious guitar andsome more interesting drum work, and WOW, what an ending!! DOXOLOGY---at first I thinkI'm at the Crystal Cathedral, but then I'm jerked back to reality once theorgan goes askew. There's a little bit of everything here as far as stylenice fit lyrically to the title and collection. It ends with a rockin' versionof "Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow" (Old 100th) AMEN!! Favorites: Malediction,Muse, and TheCircle is Closed Over all this collection has the feel of a "White Album" withit's intense creativity, freedom, and passion. Atomic Opera has a greatchallenge ahead of them to top this one but I'm sure they're up to it! BTW, if your sound system allows it, listen to it through headphonesand your speakers simultaneously it's a great experience. Thanks Kev for letting me borrow your tape.
October
Posted by Darren on January 31, 2000 at 21:53:27: This song's a bit of a let down in some ways from "Jesus Junk" On the positive side, the guitar hook at the beginning reels in the listenerpretty quickly. It has me almost expecting a sort of pop song, althoughit is obviously a lot darker. The music throughout is "catchy"....Itcan get stuck in the head, but thankfully it is interesting enough thatit does not make one immediately feel like slamming a sledgehammer intohis or her ear. The music seems more "appropriate" for the song,as the guitar is aggressive and driving but not in an off-putting way. Themelody also is "happy" enough that it avoids getting overly teenagerangstyas a song with this sort of lyric might become in lesser hands. The vocalharmonies on the chorus especially help in this area. The song sort of hasa James Taylor like quality...where the song is quite infectious and hummablebut only so far as that serves to soften the blow of the lyric and makeit a little more easily swallowed. Lyrically...I like the thinking. I also really like the bridge. The "canyou kiss me and make me feel" play on the cliche is a nice move. Unfortunately,the imagery tends to be a little more substandard. It would have been awise move, in the mind of this listener, for them to switch the verses thatproceed the first chorus with the third and fourth verses. If they had donethat the song would have been stronger, in my opinion. I still would nothave been particularly enamored with it, but I would not be as botheredby it. As it is...the first thing that hits the listener is the referenceto Pascal's famous metaphor that was not [1]...having heard it about a billiontimes it takes my mind to the same lovely place where my mind runs whena pastor starts talking about Joan Osborne or Y2K [back to listening tothe carnival music inside my head and observing that strange 12-string guitarplaying by Mr. Costello & his little hands of concrete.] Generally,when the image is familiar the writer has to do something particularly spectacularto make it work well. I didn't feel like that much had been done with thisimage. Despite this...boy the music is nice on this song. I LOVE the harmonicasolo at the end! Really!!! MORE!!! DO THAT MORE!!! Forget the guitars....Let'sjust get an album with hammered dulcimer, cello, harmonica, recorder, andJohnny on the drums!!! THAT would excite me. Darren [1] John Fischer based his classic book "Saint Ben" [go buythis NOW] on this metaphor. This excerpt was taken from the "author'snote" section. "Although the quotation...'There is a God-shaped vacuum in everyhuman heart,' has been attributed to Blaise Pascal, hours of research, evenconsultations with experts on Pascal, have failed to turn up the originalsource. The following words from Pascal's "Pensees" come as closeas anything I have found thus far. 'What else does this craving, and this helplessness, proclaim but that there was once in man a true happiness, of which allthat now remains is the empty print and trace? This he tries in vain tofill with everything around him, seeking in things that are not there thehelp he cannot find in those that are, though none can help, since thisinfinite abyss can be filled only with an infinite and immutable object--in other words,by God Himself.' Perhaps this "God-shaped vacuum" we are so familiar with isnothing more than a modern summary--an evangelistic caricature, if you will--ofwhat was obviously a far more complete and eloquent statement."
Gospel Cola is a good stiff drink!
Posted by DocSam on February 01, 2000 at 08:03:27: In Reply to: No offense taken...but posted by Darren on February 01,2000 at 01:16:34: "...it might not be at every second as brilliant as some of thetrue luminaries of rock were at the pinnacle of their careers..."
Actually I think it's better. If this album gets a fair shake in distributionand play time, it could be really big, as far as influence and legacy, inboth CCM and secular worlds. This work is quality, PERIOD. It is so farabove what is called CCM (lyrically and musically) that it isn't even funny.It's message and "poetic" timber also dwarfs anything secular!
My Review..since the lyrics have been put though the ringer enough,let talk about music!
Posted by kev on February 02, 2000 at 22:20:38: Jesus Junk: Thicker and Chunkierthan Campbells soup! This song sets the (mental) tone for the whole CD.Love the "guitar (or is it a mandolin?)through a leslie/wah sound behindall the chunky guitars. It reminds me of John Lennons guitar parts in "Fame"by David Bowie.The vocal really carries the verse as the instruments arevery syncopated. The vocal melody glues this song together. As Frank haspreviously stated, most of the stuff mentioned in the song are real products,so I won't pick apart the lyrics except to say this: I love the "Theywill know we're Christians by our love of junk" line and the part aboutJesus turning wine into water, which really sums it all up, if you get it,that is. The line about only listening to Christian Rock is SOOOO true!man, you have materialized my thoughts on that one Frank. The solo is tastywith a capital FRANK! and segues into the middle vocal section. KILLER firsttrack. October: I really like guitar intro's that are off time and you struggleat first to find the timing, then the drums kick in and there you are, thisis one of those! I totally dig the lyrics and personally the hook of thechorus is something I find myself singing in Wal-Mart. Christianity is notabout being pretty, I dig this tune. The Harmonica solo at the end is acool surprise and fits! Winterland: I gathered thatthis song was about Faith, the struggles of believing and not doubting.I may be totally off. All in all a good listenable tune, i like the drumsthe best (nice hi-hat work Johnny!) and the vocals at the end are the highlight. Reiah: This is where AO starts stepping out. A new sound. I like howthe percussion is in the right speaker and Kemper's vocal more to the left.The lead guitar is playing the vocal line to Malediction which is AWESOME!!it segues into... Malediction: The beginningof this song keeps the same aura of Reiah but then kicks in nicely.Obviouslya song about abortion. Franks vocal reminds me heavily of Todd Rundgren(of whom I am a big fan), although Todd would probably never sing a songfrom this point of view! The end finds Johnny just slappin up the drum kitlike a red headed step child as it fades into the acoustic guitar and recorder. My Head: Ok, by this pointI'm still waiting for something as heavy as "Justice" or even"I Know Better" from FMO. This song really starts hitting me bythe time you get to the line "You still believe there is a house ofprayer" and the rest of the way out. The mandolin stuff throughoutthe song is very cool. The end is cool with the 15/8 beat and vocals goingover top. Silence: This one hits me alot like "My Head". At first, listenable but once you get to thesolo my attention is captured. Out of the solo into the "answering"vocal part is cool. MUSE: And then my prayers areanswered!!!! This song is worth the price of the CD (when it comes out,that is!) The wild thing about this song is that the chorus is lighter thanthe verse, but fits so freakin' well! Once again, Johnny's drumming is dareI say..."perfection". The chorus soars with good harmonies, mandolinand a very singable vocal hook. My favorite part is where you come out ofthe last verse real heavy and then go into the chorus with just vocals!!!MAN!!! Then Johnny comes in with a very cool percussive thing going andthe rest of the band follows. i can't say enough about this song, so I'llstop by saying this..INSPIRING! Love Is As Strong AsDeath: Haunting. Just plain Haunting. Beautiful melody but dark. I wantthis played at my funeral...heck how about my wedding!! The thing that hitme as "odd" was the dissonant high harmony when you sing "death",eerie dude! The vocals are really superb throughout, though. I just aboutpiss my pants when you go into the outro music. Strange beautiful music. The Circle Is Closed: Anotherstrong performance by Kemper vocally. I really dig the up tempo in thisone. Johnny once again doing stuff in the background, ...the off time cymbalhits in the background in the last verse are sweet! Stop My Heart: One thingthat Frank will never be accused of is "over playing". I lovethis song yet it seems so simple (aside from the jungle drums!) The songis just very well put together. I like the way it changes in the middlefor the solo, which is again Tasty with a capital FRANK. I'm sure if I'dhave played the solo on this song, it wouldn't have sounded the same. Andthen we're in for a treat called..... DOXOLOGY: Alright, maybe I findmyself wishing there were "a couple more" songs like this on thisrecording but I'm NOT complaining!:) It makes me appreciate this one farmore. A perfect ending song, maybe because you say "perfect" alot in it! lol I like the guitar, and drums especially in this song. Thencomes the outro! Praise God through whom all blessings flow, like you'venever heard before!!! Summary: Overall probably the strongest effort by AO. Lyrically Frankand Kemper go into places I dream of going as a songwriter. Musically verystrong with lots of different instrumentation. This isn't your average Metalband, this is thinking mans music. I do wish that someday Frank will revisitthe heaviness of FMO, if only for a few tunes. There is no reason for thisrecording to be overlooked. It does have commercial potential (is that agood thing??) and keep in mind that by that, i mean it's still beyond anythingcommercial. let the fun begin....
Winterland
Posted by Darren on February 02, 2000 at 22:31:12: Sorry I didn't get anything done yesterday with this...but my schedulehas me in class pretty much straight from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. --------------------------------------------------- I hate to disappoint, but I don't really have any complaints about thissong...[and I tried! I mean...it's got y'all rallying around the band againstme! Maybe I've even boosted sales or something...] Anyways... I love the drum intro to this song! The guitar effect is interestingtoo, although I cannot quite explain it verbally...definitely NOT hard rock.Nice and subtle, it gives a bit of a mysterious feeling to the song, I guess...Thepre-chorus vocals also do a good job of emulating this mood. The switchfrom the gentler music of the verses and the pre-chorus to the chorus isjarring...but quite fitting given the lyrical direction, I think. I reallylike how the second verse is subtly more tense musically. The second versestill isn't particularly loud, but some cool instrumental effects add adifferent quality to the overall sound....quite interesting. I like thebrief guitar solo on this song a lot better than the one on the first song...itreally is pretty cool. The vocals at the end are really cool and do a goodjob of building an unsettled atmosphere which among other things managesto interest the listener in the next song which is quite a good thing. Iwish I had a better capacity to verbally explain the music in this song...allI can say is that the rest of this board who haven't been able to hear thisalbum yet should be quite excited about this one. Lyrically...not bad. Nothing particularly annoys me...Nothing makes medrop my jaw in surprise, either....but I think it is a rather respectableeffort. I hate to disappoint those of you who were waiting for some strangetangent into the lyrical meaning of one of the lines...but I cannot thinkof much to offer. Again I have to mention that I like Johnny's drums on this song. Quitecool. Somebody slap him upside the head for complaining about his playing.
Reiah Discerns the Times
Posted by Darren on February 04, 2000 at 14:21:39: As I babble about the musical qualities in this song, you will quicklyrealize why I prefer to focus on critiquing the lyrics...at least I haveSOME competence in that area I love the separation between the bass and the drums. The hook is quiteeffective and has a sort of enchanting quality to it. The lead guitar onthis song is really cool as the music manages to convey quite a bit of imageryaside from the lyrics. Kemper's more laid back vocals fit the song nicelyand provide a nice contrast to the lead guitar. The contrast between thelead guitar and the rest of the music is interesting as it isn't exactlya pairing of opposites, but the bass and drums sort of provide a nice springboardfor the lead guitar Without that lead guitar line the song would be an entirelydifferent demon. I like how the song ends with a sort of unsettled feeling that propelsthe listener into the next song. Lyrically.I'm not sure if I'm crazy about the chorus or the theologyof the song that it seems to contain [apocalypse is not the present tense,apocalypse is now"sounds a bit like a promo reel for a bad movie =-}but the song does a good job of communicating its point through the briefstory. The wording is effective. There really isn't all that much to commenton other than that. The "red/unsaid" rhyme seems a bit forcedbut that's balanced out by the more effective "day/gaze" in thefirst verse. All considered, quite good for a former song intro!!! A lot of thoughtand music packed into a pretty short period of time. The music's fascinatingtonight that I'm competent enough to verbally explain that.but does "neato"work for you? Or shall I just look at Kev and say "ditto" ["butwhen you say"]? BTW: What's the first line? A "---" asked? I can't quite makethat word out.
More on Reiah lyrics...
Posted by DocSam on February 04, 2000 at 16:10:37: In Reply to: Reiah Discerns the Times posted by Darren on February 04,2000 at 14:21:39: : Lyrically.I'm not sure if I'm crazy about the chorus or the theologyof the song that it seems to contain [apocalypse is not the present tense,apocalypse is now".... SAM: it's "apocalypse isn't future tense, apocalypse is now. Apocalypsein the present tense, apocalypse is now." So how come you're not crazyabout the theology of this idea? (Just wondering.) I think it's a foreshadowingof the idea presented in the next song, Malediction and abortion, and howmuch worse can it get than killing our own young. Society cannot sink muchlower than killing it's young and old and the immorality we see today.
Malediction
Posted by Darren on February 04, 2000 at 14:43:25: I like the intro. Sounds like a sad Kemper. [Wait that sounds wrong.I don't like Kemper being sad.But the music is cool.] The intro then givesway to the harder rocking side of the band. DEFINITELY cool. Sensory overload!!!Sensory overload!!! Sensory overload!!!. Uh.this is what I meant by "itpicks up steam" Somebody needs to apologize to Johnny's drum kit. Onedrawback is that it's a LITTLE [as in slightly] more difficult to make outwhat is being sung[you certainly get the gist, but this is the first songI wasn't able to fully transcribe] Musically its probably my favorite AO song so far. ReallyI like it. Ilike the vocals. I like the guitar. I like the drums. Lyrically it's great for what it is. Probably {I want to say easily,but I'll restrain} the best song I've heard on the topic. I'd love to seesomebody take on abortion from a utilitarian point of view but I can't blamethe song for not going that route [it does seem to be a better positionto argue against abortion from, however.] I'd really like to see a set oflyrics for the song since I was unCERTAIN about a good bit of it. Somebody should go and apologize to Johnny's drums and maybe the ampstoo.now! OK? Darren BTW: I still think Male Diction would be an interesting songI don't thinkanybody's ever written about the troubles that some pro-wrestlers have speakingwhile not washing the camera lens.
It is finished!!
Posted by JJ on February 08, 2000 at 18:53:05:
Gospel Cola: This record goes to 11 !!!!
As a side note before I go on, I am not THAT musically inclined to pickout all the little stuff like some of the other guys, so I don't go intoall the small musical details. Unless I pick them out.
Jesus Junk: Great openingtune. Awesome crunching guitars and vocals. It seems to be a sarcastic lookat how everything has to be Christian. We can only listen to Christian music(most of which sucks by the way), must eat Christian mints, Christian soda,gum with scripture on the wrapper. I hate that stuff in Christian bookstores.Like we have to be totally emersed in that stuff to be saved or something.It will certainly raise a few eyebrows. And of course the harmonies aregreat. They are great throughout the entire album, so I won't mention thateverytime.
October: Another great, reallydriving song. Great harmonica solo! My guess is the next record will havea song named "September". Just a guess. :)
WinterLand: One of my favorites.I love the chorus! I can't get this song out of my head. Once again greatvocals.
Reiah Discerns The Times: Greatvocals Kemper! Great groove on this one too. Carries wonderfully into.....
Malediction:Great acoustic on the intro and I love how it kicks in with the heavy groove.Great job mixing it up with Kemper and Frank on vocals.
My Head: I love this one! Thevocals at the end gave me chills.
Silence: Absolutely amazing!Reminds me of many prayers I have prayed over the years. Powerful stuff.
Muse: Loaded with powerful messages.Unbelievable vocals. Some of the best on the record. Musically it rocks.How'd you do that Johnny?
Love is as Strong asDeath: Absolutely unbelievable! To steal from some of the other guys,this song is haunting and beautiful. You guys go into unchartered territoryhere. Wonderful acoustic guitar. Definitely a wedding song.
The Circle is Closed: Kemperdoes a great job on this one too. Vocals are once again outstanding. I can'tsay I heard the "industrial" vibe the other guys heard, but itcertainly is a great transition from the slow, haunting sound of "Loveis as..." to this. Love the Middle East sound at the end.
Stop My Heart: ClassicAtomic Opera sound. Very heavy, great vocals...heck, great all around.
Doxology: Great closing song!Great way to end a great album. Strong music and vocals. When I hear thissong, I think huge stadium with tens of thousands of people standing upcheering. Excellent!
I must say, I am impressed. This is one of the best CDs I've heard inyears. A great range musically. Johnny, what can I say? You are the DrumMaster. Can I get lessons? Vocally the whole album is great. The harmonieshave always been one of the things I've loved the most about Atomic Opera,and this album is no exception. From beginning to end, it is a joy to listen to. This will be in heavyrotation for sure (once I get a CD), but until then, it is one with my tapeplayer. Thank you guys for blessing me with this. May God bless you withmuch success with this record. It's unbelievable! Favorite songs: Winterland,Silence, Loveis as Strong as Death, StopMy Heart, and Doxology. Theyare all great, but these stand out as my favorites. Buy this one the secondit is available! |