It's Been One Week - #002

The Starting Line - Direction


Opening Track: Direction [3.75mb]

This is another band that i have liked since the first record that have just put out their third full length. But I wasn't to excited for this record. However, i was pleasantly surprised. I like this much better than their last effort. While there were some songs that i do enjoy, i was never really able to get into "Based On A True Story". Maybe i was swayed by some popular opinion on the internet or maybe i loved "Say It Like You Mean it" too much. But as Kenny Vasoli sings on the new record "If S-I-L-Y-M-I is all you want/Then I'm not sure how much in common we've got"

While this is a bold claim to all the old fans, there is a deep focus through out the lyrics about Vasoli's musical self. He seems to be reflecting a lot that. Which gets a little old after a while when you are looking into it. To me, it comes of as slightly egocentric but i know it is just him refecting on the last six years of his life. However, these lyrical bumps are paired with great music, so all can be forgiven as long as i don't pay attention too closely in certain parts.

Stars - Do You Trust Your Friends?


Opening Track: Your Ex-Lover Is Dead (Final Fanasy) [4.64mb]


I really like stars. I'm really pissed that no stores around me have the new record in stock.

That being said, i can move on to the album i am supposed to be talking about. "Do You Trust Your Friends?" is a special type of album. The members of Stars handed over the songs off their album "Set Yourself On Fire" to a bunch of their musician friends and had them do some remixes on the tracks. If you don't like stars already, there is no real need to get this album and this should in no way be the first one you buy. I don't know, i find the whole thing interesting. Having a whole album of redone songs is a really neat concept, but when you listen to all 14 tracks ("What I Am Trying To Say" was broken up into two separate songs) in a row, it doesn't work as well as the original. But in moderation, they can shine like they were meant to. So when they come up on my shuffle, i don't think i'll be switching to the next track...unless two magically show up back to back.