The 69 Eyes
AngelsReview
Rating: 6/10Angels: First thing I notice is Jyrki's voice sounds slightly different to what I'm/we're used to, nevertheless, quite a good opener. Music is nice and heavy, sounds very good turned up, some of the lyrics are a bit dodgy but then again it is the Eyes so I guess we've come to expect that. Very good sequel song to
Devils. Drums sound fantastic too.
Never Say Die: Intro to the song sounds very promising, also Jyrki's voice seems to have gone back to
normal, or maybe I've just got used to whatever effect has been used on it. Lyrics are quite good, obviously there's the usual childish rhymes, "night/light" "dreaming/meaning" but again, we expect it. Chorus sounds great this is a very good song.
Rocker: Another heavy guitar driven intro... hopefully this won't get too samey.
Rocker is an ok song until the
awful chorus kicks in, "I'm a rocker/A goddamn rocker." Maybe Jyrki was stuck for ideas but surely anyone can think up something a tad better than that. It's a shame they chose this song to follow
Never Say Die. Would've been nice to stick a slower one as this track to add a bit of variety, distorted guitar is good, but something's need to be taken in moderation. It's also a shame that a throwaway track like this follows what could be the album's highlight.
Ghost: Intro sounds wonderful, very moody, but then those guitars come back, just as I thought we were about to get a nice moody synth/piano track. The verse sounds good and the chorus is wonderfully melodic, nice strings and the backing vocalists really compliment the song. This is a very good song, I'm glad they put this after
Rocker because it has definitely saved the first half of the album. The strings outro sounds great.
Perfect Skin: Must admit the lyrics to this song are awful. "Perfect skin/Devil's grin"...
I guess any hopes of having a varied guitar style on this album are gone, the heavy/distorted ones are hear to stay by the looks of it. This song is perfect for the US market. The song can be plugged as a
gothic because of lyrics such as "devil/sin/burn" (but it's timidness will avoid any attention from the censorship groups) and Jyrki also lists celebrities! Perfect for all the g0ff kids and radio.
Wings & Hearts: Another great intro from the Eyes, this album has many. Lyrics are simple but quite effective, this is a good goth/pop song. Unfortunately the chorus fails to deliver, the beginning of the song gradually builds up, but then the chorus seems to go backwards instead of rocketing away. Then we're back to square one with "Hey, hey baby." The strings sound very nice and the guitar solo is fantastic despite being a bit short. Outro is quite moody and pounding, nice way to finish the first half of the album.
Star Of Fate: The 69 Eyes have some excellent melodically melancholic slow numbers. Unfortunately this is not one of them. Sounds like a Disney song to me. The song picks up around the 1:40min mark. The bass sounds really nice and the change in guitar is very welcome. The song has slightly redeemed itself, but the lyrics are so awful that this song really does nothing for me despite the nice instrumental.
Los Angeles: Hopefully the Eyes have picked a proper good song to follow the snorer that was
Star of Fate. Well, it's certainly a fast one, so the contrast between slow and fast is welcome but expected. Not really sure what to make of this song, it is good but it sounds like the tempo could be a tad slower, sounds like the band just want to get through it as quickly as possible. Again, like most of the songs it has a catchy chorus but it's almost impossible to decipher what Jyrki is saying, there could actually be some lyrical gems in here but because of the speed we won't know until the lyrics are published... although I doubt it.
In My Name: Nice to have a medium paced song after
LA. This song is sounding quite good, the piano is nice, it's a shame they didn't bring it more to the front. The "whoa's" are fun
.
Shadow Of Your Love: "Whoa" appears to be one of Jyrki's favourite words, two songs in a row?...
Another
good rock song, bass sounds great and Jyrki seems to be experimenting with his vocals. Could've stuck this in the place of
Rocker and put
Rocker somewhere else... e.g. not on the CD.
Frankenhooker: Some bands try to leave a lasting impression and go all out on the album closer but the Eyes continue with the heavy guitars, the "woah's" and the EXTREMELY dodgy lyrics. Is Jyrki saying "Hairy ass/got no cash"
I hope I'm wrong! The use of "You suck!" is extremely childish. I know the Eyes aren't the most serious of bands but this is stupid, it's not WWF
I think this is a very mediocre album from The 69 Eyes. There are some good songs on it but unfortunately that's all they are, good. Who knows, maybe this is a grower? But it's a real shame seeing as Devils grabbed me instantly with such great tracks like
Sister of Charity and
Hevioso.
It seems Jyrki was a bit stuck for ideas what with the overuse of "whoa" and the awful "You suck!" lyrics. Perhaps the band were a bit stuck too what with the same old "medium paced strings into heavy guitars" intros.
Hopefully this isn't a sign of things to come...