Klatzke
12/01/08, 06:53 AM
From Autumn to Ashes - Live at Looney Tunes
Record Label: Vagrant Records
Release Date: June 17, 2008
Most live albums fail terribly for me. Even bands that I enjoy to watch live's shows somehow have a way of falling flat on recordings. With From Autumn To Ashes' Live At Looney Tunes, however, they've given those of us that didn't have a chance to ever catch their live show the chance to hear it (they announced their hiatus around the time this album was to be released).
While I was never much of a fan of the band before Benjamin Perri left, when Francis Mark moved from drums to lead vocals on Holding A Wolf By The Ears, I quickly changed my mind about them. As someone who prefers the new vocals, it's a special treat to hear their old songs with Mark on vocals. For example, the track that first introduced me to From Autumn To Ashes, "The After Dinner Payback," is even better with Mark on vocals, as well as "Royal Crown vs Blue Duchess." Their song choices were great; they balanced the older stuff well with the new album.
The recording's great. Unlike a lot of live albums, the instrumentation doesn't blur together into just noise. The crowd is loud in certain points, but when the music comes on, they're drowned out by the vocals, which works well. One big problem I've always had is when the instrumentation overpowers the vocals, and this isn't the case with these recordings. The scream vocals easily overpower the music, and only in a few places does it overpower even the clean vocals.
For someone that's never seen them live, it's nice that there's a great recording that will preserve their live act. Unlike most live recordings, it's great quality, and the song choices are spectacular. Live At Looney Tunes is one of the best live albums I've heard, and I for one am very grateful I've got at least one more album from this memorable and continually impressive band.
From Autumn to Ashes; live albums
myspace.com/fromautumntoashes (http://www.myspace.com/fromautumntoashes)
originally posted at highbeamreview.com on July 15, 2008
Record Label: Vagrant Records
Release Date: June 17, 2008
Most live albums fail terribly for me. Even bands that I enjoy to watch live's shows somehow have a way of falling flat on recordings. With From Autumn To Ashes' Live At Looney Tunes, however, they've given those of us that didn't have a chance to ever catch their live show the chance to hear it (they announced their hiatus around the time this album was to be released).
While I was never much of a fan of the band before Benjamin Perri left, when Francis Mark moved from drums to lead vocals on Holding A Wolf By The Ears, I quickly changed my mind about them. As someone who prefers the new vocals, it's a special treat to hear their old songs with Mark on vocals. For example, the track that first introduced me to From Autumn To Ashes, "The After Dinner Payback," is even better with Mark on vocals, as well as "Royal Crown vs Blue Duchess." Their song choices were great; they balanced the older stuff well with the new album.
The recording's great. Unlike a lot of live albums, the instrumentation doesn't blur together into just noise. The crowd is loud in certain points, but when the music comes on, they're drowned out by the vocals, which works well. One big problem I've always had is when the instrumentation overpowers the vocals, and this isn't the case with these recordings. The scream vocals easily overpower the music, and only in a few places does it overpower even the clean vocals.
For someone that's never seen them live, it's nice that there's a great recording that will preserve their live act. Unlike most live recordings, it's great quality, and the song choices are spectacular. Live At Looney Tunes is one of the best live albums I've heard, and I for one am very grateful I've got at least one more album from this memorable and continually impressive band.
From Autumn to Ashes; live albums
myspace.com/fromautumntoashes (http://www.myspace.com/fromautumntoashes)
originally posted at highbeamreview.com on July 15, 2008