Baroness

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Post by MOG »

I have had a difficult time trying to figure out whether or not I like this band for awhile.  Baroness are a highly respected band, a band that I see on best of lists time and again.  Every time I have checked them out, something would start to really catch my interest and then the next song I would check out would be a complete turn off.  Part of the problem is that most of what I have heard is off the new album, which while solid (at least the few songs I have heard), doesn't really appeal to me.  The "Blue" album is typically hailed as their masterpiece, and again, while there have been some interesting things there musically, just not enough to really pull me in.

 

Then I discovered the Red Album.  Now I get what many of you see in this band.  Experimental, heavy, dense, at times catchy, but overall intensely musical.  I bought the Red Album and it is a spectacular.  I am not sure if Yellow and Green will ever work for me.  I am sure there are no doubt some of the more progressive elements in the Red Album album present on Y&G, but it is a little too straight forward rock and roll.  That isn't a bad thing, just not really my thing.
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Post by hellboy »

I don't mind Baroness, they were disappointing live though.  That said it was a festival show.

On record I find their work to be ok, but nothing particularly inspiring.  Seemed to be plenty of boners for their last album in various top 10 lists of 2012, but personally I though Yellow & Green were pretty average.  I put it down to a pity vote after their bus crash.
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Post by MOG »

hellboy1975 said
I don't mind Baroness, they were disappointing live though.  That said it was a festival show.

On record I find their work to be ok, but nothing particularly inspiring.  Seemed to be plenty of boners for their last album in various top 10 lists of 2012, but personally I though Yellow & Green were pretty average.  I put it down to a pity vote after their bus crash.


Part of the problem I run into is my refusal to listen to entire albums before I purchase them.  And honestly, I can usually tell after two songs whether or not a particular band's sound is going to work for me. 

Baroness has never been like that for me though.  I have listened to a few songs off the Blue album and parts are fantastic and others don't work for me at all.  Very little of what I have heard from Yellow & Green interests me at all.  But fuck is the Red Album good.  Not as much going on vocally (which is a good thing as I am not crazy about them from a vocal standpoint), more instrumental, a bit heavier, more progressive.  Outstanding album.
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Post by hellboy »

mogeffingmog said
Not as much going on vocally (which is a good thing as I am not crazy about them from a vocal standpoint), more instrumental, a bit heavier, more progressive. 
Baroness to me mine the same vein as Intronaut.  Musically I think they are quite good, but vocally I can't really get behind them, and for me at least I find it hard to really be inspired by a band with weak vocals.
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Post by MOG »

Interesting how that works.  I love Intronaut's vocals, even their clean stuff.  Vocals are not terribly important to me unless I really don't like the singer's voice.  I am still picky about vocals , clean or growling/screaming, although at this point I am drawn to more Instrumental music with sparse vocals, or growling vocals that function more like another instrument.  At the moment I can only think of a handful of clean vocalists out there in rock/metal, post or otherwise, that I enjoy enough where I don't mind if they are sort of out in front of the music.  Steven Wilson comes to mind.  Maynard at times with Tool.  Most of the time I would rather the vocals serve to better highlight the music and sit back in the mix.
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Post by Busty McCracken »

Completely agree with ya Mog on the Red album. Everyone raves about the blue album, which I dig, but for mine the Red is where it's at. Especially impressive seeing as growl vocals like that tend to do nothing for me in my old age, but these guys are a total exception. 

 

Blue albums still great, but a little patchy compared to Red.

 

Yellow & Green took a few listens but these days I love it. Saying that, I skip the first 3 songs on every listen. For me the album starts on track 4 , with 'Little things' & remains fairly consistent from there on in. Definitely not as in ya face & alot safer than red, but still a great listen, once you get used to it. 

 
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Post by The Boss »

"Rays on Pinion" is one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard - no exaggeration.

Just fucking golden.
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Post by joeypants »

Loooove Baroness. Still haven't totally gotten into the Red album, but Blue hooked me after a few listens. Yellow & Green is fucking amazing to my ears. Can't wait to see them live.
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Post by MOG »


joeypants said
Loooove Baroness. Still haven't totally gotten into the Red album, but Blue hooked me after a few listens. Yellow & Green is fucking amazing to my ears. Can't wait to see them live.


^ Dude is so interesting how different albums appeal to different people.  I have always respected Baroness, but Yellow & Green did nothing for me at all.  Blue was hit or miss, but Red, for me, is exceptional.

 

@Crow - Rays on Pinion is fucking awesome.  That is what got me.  Everything else had been hit or miss, but Rays is what made me take a look at the Red album, and fuck am I happy I did.
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Post by The Boss »

mogeffingmog said

joeypants said
Loooove Baroness. Still haven't totally gotten into the Red album, but Blue hooked me after a few listens. Yellow & Green is fucking amazing to my ears. Can't wait to see them live.


^ Dude is so interesting how different albums appeal to different people.  I have always respected Baroness, but Yellow & Green did nothing for me at all.  Blue was hit or miss, but Red, for me, is exceptional.

 

@Crow - Rays on Pinion is fucking awesome.  That is what got me.  Everything else had been hit or miss, but Rays is what made me take a look at the Red album, and fuck am I happy I did.


I'm undoubtedly going to listen to this again right now. I've had some bad things happen today.

"Rays on Pinion" is that sweet spot between sweet-brutal and lovely harmony. I love it.

Only TOOL do it better. There, I said it.
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Post by joeypants »

My love of Yellow & Green may have to do with being a fan of them before it came out. Depending on your tastes, that wouldn't be the album to come in on perhaps as the frame of reference for it is different if you're used to their heavier stuff. I love the softer, more prog side of things though so Yellow & Green is overall my favorite of theirs with Blue not far behind.
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Post by The Boss »

joeypants said
My love of Yellow & Green may have to do with being a fan of them before it came out. Depending on your tastes, that wouldn't be the album to come in on perhaps as the frame of reference for it is different if you're used to their heavier stuff. I love the softer, more prog side of things though so Yellow & Green is overall my favorite of theirs with Blue not far behind.


Hey man, I'm a HUGE BARONESS fan. But I'm still getting into "Y&G".

Both the first full lengths (not to mention the EPs - have you run 'em?) hit the sweet spot with me - nice sludgy, thick, quasi-proggy bullshit with ABSOLUTELY UNREAL vocals. I used "Rays on Pinion" as an example.

"Y&G" just hasn't hit that ground yet with me. Yeah, it's got great musicianship - but where is the throw-away, carefree, love of making songs? They concentrated too hard, and that's why it's been a bit hit-or-miss with the hardcore fans.

Either way you look at it, BARONESS are one of the best bands in recent memory. Their next outing should be one to watch . . .

 
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Post by Kittaan »

I'll throw my $.02 in on this.  Posted about it on the old forum as I recall, but saw them open for Clutch and loved it.  Like Busty, I usually don't dig the cookie monster vocal thing, but Baroness, Isis and Opeth (seen them all live) I can live with because there are so many other positives offered, and also because depending upon the song, the vocals often act as another instrument rather than traditional vocals/lyrics.  This is really driven home in a live context where the venue and sound system add to the vocals as instrument thing.  

 

Anyway, I haven't spent a ton of time with any of the recorded Baroness, but it has been hit or miss for me to date.  Time to revisit and see how it hits me now.

 

BTW - Spoke briefly with some of the Baroness dudes after their set, at the merch booth, and they were really cool.  High On Fire was on before Baroness and Clutch, and was just horrendous.  I would never see them again.
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Post by The Boss »

HIGH ON FIRE were horrendous? Oh, please, tell me you ain't true . . .

I get your love for OPETH, though. I've come across a bunch of people who, no matter where they sit with vocals or whatever, LOVE OPETH. They're fucking unreal. That's all to be said.

I've yet to come across a band that makes fans of ANY genre stand up and dig them. I've met straight up girls who like their shit.

 

(You get what I'm saying. Everyone gets one night, right.)
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Post by joeypants »

Saw Opeth open for Mastodon last year and was bored to fucking tears. Sorry! Saw High On Fire also and liked it OK, but can't really get into them that much. I don't leap for the volume knob if I hear them or anything, just doesn't hit my sweet spot.

 

See, I love Rays On Pinion, but it just sounds like a warm up to me for what's to come in the Blue album and Y&G (to a lesser extent).
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Post by Ravenpig »

Opeth's Blackwater Park is my favorite new (to me) album of the year so far.  Excellent stuff.  Looking forward to listening to the rest of their catalog.  I'm definitely on the "not a fan of the cookie monster vocals" club but these guys use them perfectly.

 

As for Baroness, I've only heard the Blue album and I dig it.  Gonna listen to Red based on the rave reviews its gotten in this thread.
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Post by The Boss »

Ravenpig said
Opeth's Blackwater Park is my favorite new (to me) album of the year so far.  Excellent stuff.  Looking forward to listening to the rest of their catalog.  I'm definitely on the "not a fan of the cookie monster vocals" club but these guys use them perfectly.

 

As for Baroness, I've only heard the Blue album and I dig it.  Gonna listen to Red based on the rave reviews its gotten in this thread.


May I just quietly step in here:

Yes "BLACKWATER PARK" is their "crowning" achievement. There are quote marks there for a reason: "MOURNINGRISE" and "MY ARMS, YOUR HEARSE" are FAR beyond what should've been expected from a band at their time. I swear by "BP", but even, fuck, "STILL LIFE", makes "BP", look and sound like the "BLACK ALBUM".

 

For my money: "STILL LIFE". "BLACKWATER PARK" is where you go for fun. Otherwise . . .
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Post by Ravenpig »

crow011 said

Ravenpig said
Opeth's Blackwater Park is my favorite new (to me) album of the year so far.  Excellent stuff.  Looking forward to listening to the rest of their catalog.  I'm definitely on the "not a fan of the cookie monster vocals" club but these guys use them perfectly.

 

As for Baroness, I've only heard the Blue album and I dig it.  Gonna listen to Red based on the rave reviews its gotten in this thread.


May I just quietly step in here:

Yes "BLACKWATER PARK" is their "crowning" achievement. There are quote marks there for a reason: "MOURNINGRISE" and "MY ARMS, YOUR HEARSE" are FAR beyond what should've been expected from a band at their time. I swear by "BP", but even, fuck, "STILL LIFE", makes "BP", look and sound like the "BLACK ALBUM".

 

For my money: "STILL LIFE". "BLACKWATER PARK" is where you go for fun. Otherwise . . .


 

I've only heard Blackwater Park and Still Life so far from them.  I only started listening to them a couple of months ago, so I look forward to agreeing or disagreeing with your assessments.
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Post by MOG »

Blackwater Park is Opeth's best album.  No doubt about it.  Remarkable piece of music.  Watershed is also high up on my list.
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Post by The Boss »

mogeffingmog said
Blackwater Park is Opeth's best album.  No doubt about it.  Remarkable piece of music.  Watershed is also high up on my list.


The double album that is but isn't is also the money-shot.

It's all good, seriously. Even "HERITAGE" is good, (fuck you Tyson).

 
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Post by Kittaan »

crow011 said

mogeffingmog said
Blackwater Park is Opeth's best album.  No doubt about it.  Remarkable piece of music.  Watershed is also high up on my list.


1) Even "HERITAGE" is good.

2) Fuck you, Tyson.


1) I agree to a point - it's got some great moments, but it was disappointing in many ways.  And if Joey's only live Opeth show was for this tour, I can sort of understand why he might have been underwhelmed.  I saw the previous tour and they killed live.

2) We are in agreement on this for sure.    
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Post by gamebounty »

I love baroness. Love the vocals, music and lyrics. Swollen and Halo is one of my favorite songs, and I used to listen to Steel That Sleeps The Eye constantly. Not so much anymore, but it's still great. I was pretty excited for Yellow and Green when I heard Take My Bones Away for the first time. Eula was great too, but then I listened to the albums and was pretty disappointed. Usually I don't mind a shift in sound, even when it's more melodic, but Y&G didn't do much for me. They are growing on me though, and I'm going back and finding more and more songs that I like.
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Post by petemasterpete »

Red Album>Blue Album>Y&G with the EP's probably sitting between Red and Blue for the most part.

 

yellow & green are yet to do anything for me, unless yawning a few times while listening to it counts
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Post by Busty McCracken »

This is kinda shitty news. Sounds like the show will go on, but still sad to hear.

 

http://loudwire.com/baroness-part-ways- ... bus-crash/

 

Nothing can truly prepare you for a brush with death. The event is unique one, singular to the observer. Trust me, you don’t want to invite the experience. Our bus accident left indelible marks, external and internal, physical and mental, you name it. Each of the nine of us went through and continues to go through an entirely different, yet common experience. We are tied to each other by a trauma, which, despite its damage, has been made individually easier through our shared ordeal. While I would never wish the incident on anyone, I cannot imagine going through that wreck alone.

Thankfully, injury was not dealt out evenly; unfortunately it was dealt in great supply. Each of the nine of us now finds our self in a drastically different circumstance, and we each move forward accordingly. There are two important things to note. First, we are all healthy. We are recovering at different rates, and we’ll all be fine in the end. Second, Baroness has made a commitment to pick up where we left off, and get back out on tour, where we belong. In fact, I am personally staking my recovery on this principle; it gives me direction and something to look forward to (finally).

However, for some of us, the accident necessitated a change that would prevent them from performing music or touring. It is with sadness that we must announce that Matt Maggioni and Allen Blickle will not continue touring with Baroness. The details of their departure are not sensational; they do not come with hard feelings. Nor are the details going to be public; suffice it to say we’d like to keep to ourselves the finer points of this situation, to respect the privacy of all involved. While the nine of us must respect the significance of the bus accident in Bath, we must also move away from it and get back to our lives. Simply put, some of the effects and injuries were severe enough to prohibit further activity in Baroness. While we would never have asked them to leave; we have the utmost sympathy for this situation, and in earnest, we wish Matt and Allen the best in the future. In their stead, we have found two musicians who can approach our music with passion and vitality and help get us back out on tour to finish what was seemingly cut short last August.

‘til the wheels fall off,

John Baizley & Baroness
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Post by UndKeineZwEier »

I wonder who's replacing them, I doubt I would know who they are, but it seems like that would've been something they would've announced as well.
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