Practice
Sarah Cripps
8-out-of-10
I'm wandering outside of my comfort zone and into the realm of "pop" music today. It's not a genre I necessarily enjoy, but a genre I find necessary to check up on from time to time. When I first took over writing reviews, Calvin Daniels handed me a stack of CD's he hadn't gotten to yet and said, "have fun." Sarah Cripps' album Practice was in said stack and I finally decided to unwrap it and give it a chance.
The album case is nice, simple, and unassuming. Not to mention Ms. Cripps is quite the looker. Practice is Sarah's first release, so the title is fitting.
At the ringing of the first distorted chord I was going to brush this album off as what I like to call "fluff", but then the powerful vocals of Cripps punched me in the face. This girl can sing. Her voice helped bury the fact that I really don't like this kind of music. That being said and set aside, this album rocks. From a quick visit to her website, I understand Cripps worked with a couple award winning producers to write and record this album in world class studios around North America, which obviously bumps up the quality and tenacity of the release. Very impressive, Ms. Cripps.
At five songs, it's a good length for an introduction into the mainstream music world. The backing instruments were played by very talented musicians and really take the record to a new level. Production, of course, is of professional quality and sprays a layer of gleaming lacquer onto the tracks.
To be blunt, I probably wouldn't put this album on my iPod, but if I ever had to entertain a pop loving friend this would be the first album in my arsenal. It's punchy, crisp, well packaged, and produced. Not to mention that voice, gee whiz.
-SEAN CRAIB-PETKAU
Greg Wood III
Greg Wood
5-out-of-10
Well... It's music. It's heavy-ish. It's every mainstream post-grunge nu-metal rock band since 2001 condensed into eleven songs. It's Greg Wood III.
If it were not for the Gothic-esque cover photo with cheesy font that piqued my interest, I would have not looked at Greg Wood III. If it were not for the barely dressed women on every page of the booklet, I would have not listened to Greg Wood III. I just had to find out what could be waiting on this disk.
Hailing from Bonnyville, Alberta, Mr. Wood has taken cue from fellow Alberta brethren, Nickleback, only with a few more chord changes and imagination (the latin drums on "Cocaine Lover" for instance). Besides a really bad album title, Greg Wood III offers more of the same in terms of what modern rock has become. I guess that's a good thing? A sturdy standby is always comforting, for instance: "My Theory of A Dead Man/Creed/Evanescence mixed CD is broken, but at least I have Greg Wood III." Let the good times to continue to roll, brother.
The backing tracks remind me of the CD that came with my "Metal Lead Guitar Volume 2" book I studied when I was 13. It got boring really fast, and took me back to the days when I was acne prone and kinda pudgy. Themes of the album range from jaded love, pain and sadness to drugs, naughty girls and sadness. Which, in the words of the great Canadian sweetheart, Shania Twain, "that don't impress me much".
However, I do understand the motives behind creating such an album. It's fun, easy, and user friendly (but I wouldn't suggest taking it to youth group). The world will always need more of Greg Wood III and albums adjacent to it, and for providing this ever expanding market with another album with a unique twist (see latin drums on "Cocaine Lover") I applaud you Mr. Wood.
-SEAN CRAIB-PETKAU
