Muse: Madness (Review)

Muse's new album, The 2nd Law is due to drop on October 2nd this year, but three songs have already been released/teased off the new album. "Survival" was the official song of the London 2012 Olympic Games, "Unsustainable," a brilliant dub-step like song created through traditional drum, bass, and guitar is visible and audible all over the web, and "Maddness," the album's latest single is now available through iTunes as part of the new album's pre-order. Like nearly everything that Muse does, it will perennially be compared to whatever Radiohead does, but at this point Muse is light years ahead of Radiohead sonically.

The Darkness: Hot Cakes (Review)

Several months since The Darkness won the Superbowl, we finally get their new album, and it's a good one. Is it Permission to Land? No. Is it just as good a rock album as Permission to Land? Yes. That's the thing that many people forget about The Darkness. They are some of the best note for note and riff for riff no frills straight up '70s inspired hard rocker song writers. Front man Justin Hawkins' Freddie Mercury meets Johnny Rotten voice, coupled with his brother Dan's guitar, Frankie Poullain's base and Ed Graham's drumming make for the best '70s arena rock that was never played in the '70s. Their more than that though. These cheeky English bastards have the best sense of humor in rock next to Dave Grohl's. Hot Cakes doesn't skimp on the humor, or the riffs.

Flea: Helen Burns (Review)

Red Hot Chili Peppers founding member and bassist, Flea, has put out an EP of music intended to help raise money for his Silverlake Conservatory of Music. At the Conservatory's website, Flea makes it very clear that the music contained herein is very much NOT like anything that the RHCP would make and release. He's definitely right on that account...in part. Helen Burns sounds like a mashup of progressive and, in some cases regressive, music that a music theory major would indulge in. (Flea attended music theory classes as USC over the past few years.) It's interesting, but nothing that you'll replay over and over like most RHCP songs.