Sing the Sorrow

[PiroMunkie]

[color=indigo][size=1]Well, yesterday was the day. AFI's latest album [i]Sing the Sorrow[/i]. Obviously, I bought it as soon as I could with already have listened to two of the tracks that they pre-released.

To begin with, the coverbook was probably the most disappointing thing about this CD. The art inside was okay, but they have had much better in the past. Namely with their previous album [i]The Art of Drowning[/i]. Everything just seemed very uninspired, and sometimes irrelevant. The photos inside are fun to look at, but still seem rather mellow. The lyrics printed inside were not bad. AFI seems to continually do well in this department, and I love the fact that they do put their lyrics inside. Sometimes it is hard to understand what they are saying, and I prefer to know. I noticed a couple trends in certain lyrics throughout their songs. Whether or not that was intentional I do not know, but it kind of made me wonder. One things that definitely had my attention was in the lyrics for their song [i]Death of Seasons[/i]. The only track on the album with swearing in it. That is not really a bad thing at all, but it is just the way it was written. They say the "f-word" in there, but in the lyrics it is written as "scucking". My guess is that the label (Dreamworks) would not let the actual word to be printed. Though, they have never had that problem before. Nitro Records never had anything against that sort of thing. Personally, I would have told Dreamworks to 'shove it'. It is a word. Who the hell cares?

Moving onto the songs. There are twelve, plus a hidden track. Oddly, the name for the hidden track was not printed on the left wall of the CD case like it usually has been, but the lyrics were put inside the coverbook.

[b]1. [i]Miseria Cantare - The Beginning[/i]:[/b] (2:57) This song seems just like an intro, despite its nearly three minute length. There are not many lyrics to it at all. I tend to like introductory songs. They set the general mood for the rest of the CD. Looking at it like that, it does its job, but it is not the greatest song on the album.

[b]2. [i]The Leaving Song Pt. 2[/i]:[/b] (3:31) This is a relatively good song. One of the better songs, in my opinion. At a couple points Davey speaks something in what I am thinking is Latin. Not quite sure what it is, but it is nice. It could be a bit louder though, it is a bit hard to hear when he says it. It has the screaming/yelling vocals in there, so that is good as well. It keeps things interesting.

[b]3. [i]Bleed Black[/i]:[/b] (4:41) This song kind of sounds like something that would be off of [i]The Art of Drowning[/i]. Though, it is somewhat more mellow than that. Oddly, the mellowest part of this song is my favorite part, lol. Overall the song is pretty good. Nothing too outstanding, but worth a listen.

[b]4. [i]Silver and Cold[/i]:[/b] (4:11) A more mellow song than the previous three. Again, worth a listen. Though, it sounds a little unemotional. The lyrics are good, but the way they are conveyed just does not strike me that hard.

[b]5. [i]Dancing Through Sunday[/i]:[/b] (2:26) This one is one of my favorites off of the album. It almost sounds like something that would be the result of crossing their albums [i]Black Sails in the Sunset[/i] and [i]Answer That and Stay Fashionable[/i]. Two very different albums in sound, but they seem to come together. It is a bit short, but that is okay. It still remains one of the songs I consider the best off of the ablum.

[b]6. [i]Girl's Not Grey[/i]:[/b] (3:10) This was the first song I heard of theirs, one of the pre-released ones. It is on the radio, actually. It is probably the worst on the whole CD. The lyrics are kind of good, which keeps me listening to it, but it is just void of any real emotion.

[b]7. [i]Death of Seasons[/i]:[/b] (3:59) Meheh, another one of my favorites. At one point it sounds very techno-y, which was kind of interesting. I do not know, though. I just love the feel of this one. Davey's screaming is heavenly, lol.

[b]8. [i]The Great Disappointment[/i]:[/b] (5:27) This is another pretty good song. It is growing on me. I am not sure how to explain this one really, but it is nice.

[b]9. [i]Paper Airplanes (makeshift wings)[/i]:[/b] (3:57) Probably one of the oddest names for a song I have seen, but I do like this one. One of the better songs, though it seems a bit inconsistent at times. Mainly during the refrain. Other than that it is good.

[b]10. [i]This Celluloid Dream[/i]:[/b] (4:11) The other pre-released song that I listened to. Much better than [i]Girl's Not Grey[/i]. I like the lyrics to this one, they go well with the overall song. It is not one of the best songs on the CD, but it is better than some.

[b]11. [i]The Leaving Song[/i]:[/b] (2:44) Just Davey and Jade, the guitarist. Very nice, slow song. Similar to that of [i]Morningstar[/i] from [i]The Art of Drowning[/i]. I like these ones. ^^


Bleh, I am about to be kicked offline for the night. I shall continue this tomorrow. Anyone else who has listened to any of this or has any opinion. Please feel free to comment, etc.[/color][/size]

[wrist cutter]

I have a friend who's been a big fan of AFI for awhile and they are really loving this album... I'm not sure exactly what that means to you but I thought I'd bring it up.

[Semjaza]

Well... Maybe this will get some more replies unlike the other thread heh.

Unlike Piro, I downloaded the leaked copy over a month ago and listened to it all a few times. I plan on getting the limited edition next time I get a chance to go to the store. It comes with a 60 page hardcover book, so maybe some of the good art was saved for it? lol

Anyway, we share many of the same opinions really. Dancing Through Sunday, Death of Seasons and The Leaving Song are my favorite tracks of it. At the same time they add to my disappointment, because I expected most of the album to consist of songs that were at least this strong... and it simply doesn't.

Overall the whole CD really lacks the punch of previous albums. I don't mind mellow songs at all; some of my favorite AFI songs are slow and subdued... But at the same time they have feeling and emotion, something a lot of this CD simply lacks.

There are points when you think it's going to pick up, kick you in the *** and start rocking like you expected... but it just never keeps this up. The lack of emotion is so readily apparent that I have to mention it again... It just doesn't feel like Davey really cares about some of these things he is singing about, and I've never really gotten that impression from any other release of theirs.

It's hardly a bad CD. I'd say it's above average at the least... It was just very disappointing in my opinion. It's a change, and although that necessarily isn't a bad thing, in this case it just didn't work for me.

Despite all that, I still want to buy it and I'm sure I'll be listening to it quite often.

[Guest Sushi]

I streamloaded the two songs that were in the other thread Piro created. I kind of forgot to post in that one. ^_^

I don't think that "Girl's Not Grey" is as bad as you made it sound Piro. Of course I have only heard the two pre-released songs. The only thing that bothers me is his voice. It sounds like he is going through puberty. I do agree that This Celluloid Dream's lyrics are a bit deeper. I don't really understand the lantern (in the chorus) thing though. Either it's mindless talk about lanterns or I am completly missing something. *shrugs*

[Semjaza]

It's amazing that this is their first LP since like 1999. I didn't even realize it until I was looking through my CDs. It doesn't feel like that long... And it's not as if the Days of the Phoenix's 3 songs or 336's two really helped much heh.

If you don't like his voice in those, I doubt you'll like it in general. Davey manages to get some nice octaves out of it though, which isn't really evident in the songs that were streamed.

Edit- I really need to get in gear and join the Despair Faction already.

[PiroMunkie]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Sushi[/i]
[B]I do agree that This Celluloid Dream's lyrics are a bit deeper. I don't really understand the lantern (in the chorus) thing though. Either it's mindless talk about lanterns or I am completly missing something. *shrugs* [/B][/QUOTE][color=indigo][size=1]There is nothing about a lantern in the lyrics, lol. The chorus goes "You land as lightly as the new snow, cinematic, onto the melting boy and melt away. You light as gently, you're so cinematic. Bathed in your radiance, I melt."

Though, now that I think about it, I think you are talking about the pre-chorus where it says "Just like romantic verses, just like a joyous end, just like a memory it twists me." I think "romantic" is was what you took as "lantern". AFI tends to have indistinguishable words sometimes. o-O[/color][/size][quote][i]Originally posted by wrist cutter[/i]
[b]I have a friend who's been a big fan of AFI for awhile and they are really loving this album... I'm not sure exactly what that means to you but I thought I'd bring it up.[/b][/quote][color=indigo][size=1]That is good to hear. It is not really a bad album, it is just not their best and could probably have been done better. Especially with how long they have had to work on it.


I am wanting to get a hold of that limited edition that Semmy spoke of. It was not at the place where I got my normal copy.


To finish up my little review, there is the final song:

[b]12. [i]....But Home Is Nowhere[/i]:[/b] (15:08) The song is not as long as it actually says, lol. The song itself is about four minutes, then there is some downtime. Some eerie dialogue then begins for a while and the 'hidden' track plays right after. The song [i]....But Home Is Nowhere[/i] is pretty good. Probably one of the better ones.

[b](hidden track) [i]This Time Imperfect[/i]:[/b] This one is pretty unemotional.The lyrics are nice and it is better than [i]Girl's Not Grey[/i], but it just lacks the punch.


I agree with everything Semjaza said. It just lacks that kick in the *** that the other albums had. Sometimes it seems like it was a bit overproduced as well. Like they were focusing more on making it "big" (not really in popularity, just making everything polished) than they were on making it good.[/color][/size]

[spike speigel]

I downloaded a few of the mp3s and they're great. Dancing through Sunday and The Leaving Song are great. I love This Celluloid Dream and Miseria Cantare is a bit eerie. All in all, I like what I've heard. Now all I have to do is scrounge up some money for the C.D.

[PiroMunkie]

[quote][i]Originally posted by spike speigel[/i]
[b]Now all I have to do is scrounge up some money for the C.D.[/b][/quote][color=indigo][size=1]It should not take you that long to do that. The CD is anywhere from $5 - $10 depending on where you go. The more generic stores will have it for cheaper. Though, places like Sam Goody will have it for about $12. -__-;


The more I listen to that CD, the more I am liking it. Even [i]Girl's Not Grey[/i] is beginning to grow on me. They put out a teaser video for that song on their site earlier this month, I was just now able to see it with a decent connecton. If you want to see it you can stream it from here:

[url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_low.ram]Real Video LOW[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_high.ram]Real Video HIGH[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_low.asx]Windows Media LOW[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_high.asx]Windows Media HIGH[/url]

It is a full-length video, but they say they have left parts out of it. So I am interested to see what they put in there that we have yet to see.[/color][/size]

[Semjaza]

Okay, now that the 2nd (possibly the 3rd) recent AFI thread Piro has made is dying... where the hell are all you people that claim to be fans of this band every time the band is mentioned elsewhere?

I'll never understand this place lol.

[spike speigel]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by PiroMunkie [/i]
[B][color=indigo][size=1]It should not take you that long to do that. The CD is anywhere from $5 - $10 depending on where you go. The more generic stores will have it for cheaper. Though, places like Sam Goody will have it for about $12. -__-;


color][/size] [/B][/QUOTE]






Well, thanks for the good news. Of course, I'm basically broke now except for 3 dollars, but I should have some money soon.



Anyway, that teaser video for Girl's not Grey is a bit weird with them all being in the shadows, but I liked it anyway.

[Heaven's Cloud]

[color=indigo]The other day I was in FYE getting a couple pieces of anime, when I noticed this album on the shelf. I remebered how so many OB members said that they were fans of AFI and I gave the album a shot.

I really enjoy the instrumentals, they are really solid (especially in Silver and Cold). The lyrics were alright, they didn't really move me, but they were genuine (which seems to be harder and harder to find). The only thing I disliked was the lead singers voice. Although he had great range, I personally thought that he sounded too much like a mix between the lead singer from 3rd eye blind and the guy from Styx...

That aside, I can see why so many of you like them. They are a very solid group with good instrumentals, talented writing, and a singer with a vocal range (although, when I hear him, all I can think of is "come sail away, come sail away, come sail away with me...)[/color]

[PiroMunkie]

[color=indigo][size=1]It is good to hear someone has decided to check out the band. Many props to you, Heaven's Cloud,and thanks for posting here with your comments.

Well, they have the full video for Girl's Not Grey on their site now. I only have a 56k modem here so I cannot see it for what it is worth... at all. From what I [i]have[/i] seen of it, it looks pretty funky. That is al I can really say, lol. I have to see it at full speed.

You can see it here:

[url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/gng_low.ram]Real Video LOW[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/gng_high.ram]Real Video HIGH[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/gng_low.asx]Windows Media LOW[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/gng_high.asx]Windows Media HIGH[/url][/color][/size]

[Guest Fiasco]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by PiroMunkie [/i]
[B][color=indigo][size=1]It should not take you that long to do that. The CD is anywhere from $5 - $10 depending on where you go. The more generic stores will have it for cheaper. Though, places like Sam Goody will have it for about $12. -__-;


The more I listen to that CD, the more I am liking it. Even [i]Girl's Not Grey[/i] is beginning to grow on me. They put out a teaser video for that song on their site earlier this month, I was just now able to see it with a decent connecton. If you want to see it you can stream it from here:

[url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_low.ram]Real Video LOW[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_high.ram]Real Video HIGH[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_low.asx]Windows Media LOW[/url] ± [url=http://www.dreamworksrecords.com/media/afi/singthesorrow/video/girls_prelude_high.asx]Windows Media HIGH[/url]

It is a full-length video, but they say they have left parts out of it. So I am interested to see what they put in there that we have yet to see.[/color][/size] [/B][/QUOTE]

If you go to FYE too, they have it for 10 bucks, I went there to get my copy. :) I really enjoy the cd, Death Of Seasons, Dancing Through Sunday, and The Leaving Song are my favorite songs... Seem quite common that everyone has similiar taste when it comes to AFI. Is anyone here a member of Despair Faction or 5th Column? [b][It has to do with AFI][/b]

[spoiler]Oh yes, I also really liked Untitled more then any other part of The Leaving Song.[/spoiler]

I wasn't too sure if that was a spoiler but hey, its music, so I didn't want to ruin it for anyone.

[Mitch]

[color=black][size=1][font=rockwell] I bought the CD last night. I haven't had enough of a listen, though. Once I listen to it more I'll find if I like them or not.[/color][/font][/size]

[Red]

[b][size=1]Well, I'm going to go on the massive search to find Sing the Sorrow this weekend, so I haven't got the CD quite yet.

However, I have downloaded a lot of tracks from the album, and I must say I'm impressed (to the point where I spent most of the night getting a heck of a lot more AFI tracks, lol).

[i]The Great Disappointment[/i] would have to be my overall favourite. I love the introduction, something that doesn't give away what the rest of the track sounds like. (I wonder if I'm making sense. O_o)

[i]This Celluloid Dream[/i] and [i]The Leaving Song[/i] would have to be my two next favourites from what I've heard so far, although I think [i]The Leaving Song[/i] is a little too short.[/b][/size]

[PiroMunkie]

[size=1]*waves fingers and ressurects this topic*[/size][QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Solitaire[/i]
If you go to FYE too, they have it for 10 bucks, I went there to get my copy. :) I really enjoy the cd, Death Of Seasons, Dancing Through Sunday, and The Leaving Song are my favorite songs... Seem quite common that everyone has similiar taste when it comes to AFI. Is anyone here a member of Despair Faction or 5th Column? [b][It has to do with AFI][/b]

[spoiler]Oh yes, I also really liked Untitled more then any other part of The Leaving Song.[/spoiler][/QUOTE][size=1]I am a member of the Despair Faction. I have not really checked out 5th Column as of yet.

At first I was wondering what the hell you meant by "Untitled", but think I know what you mean. [spoiler]The dialogue between [i]....But Home is Nowhere[/i] and [i]This Time Imperfect[/i]?[/spoiler]. If so, I must agree that I enjoy listening to it very much. I really like the progressiveness of it. How it starts with a little boy and ends with an old man.[/size]

[Juu]

[color=ff00cc] [size=1]I've only heard two songs from the album, and I absolutely love them!! Girl's Not Grey, and Death of Seasons are the only ones I've heard so far, and my friend said he'll burn me the rest on Monday.

Favorites from AFI:

1) Girl's Not Grey
2) He Who Laughs Last
3) Death of Seasons[/color] [/size]

[PiroMunkie]

[size=1]I am not letting this thread die.. ^__^

AFI just keeps putting out more stuff for me to talk about, and I am really going to have to jump on this now being a member of [i]The 5th Column[/i].

So here are some recent AFI updates for you all:

[b][i]Clandestine[/i][/b] - In late April, AFI released their first DVD featuring five tracks; four from the album, and one unrecorded. All of which have the option for listening is surround sound. Along with the tracks, there is also a short, silent film. The only sound you here is that of the soundtrack. You have a choice of two different soundtracks. One that Jade (AFI's guitarist) put together, and the other is one that Hunter (AFI's bassist) put together. The film is entitled [i]Clandestine[/i] and despite its short length proves to be rather interesting. It is very obscure, and leaves the viewer with one of two emotions. Either they will be disappointed at how the film pretty much just cuts out, or they will be left in suspense and curiosity. You will have to find the film, or buy it, in order to get the juicyness of it.

[b][i]New Music Video[/i][/b] - This last week AFI has been shooting for their next music video for their next single off of [i]Sing the Sorrow[/i], [i]The Leaving Song Pt. 2[/i]. While no teaser or anything has been put out or anything, there are some photos available to be seen at [url=http://www.afireinside.net]afireinside.net[/url] and just find the mention of the video in the recent news. You can view all of the photos by signing up for their mailing list. I have formed no real opinion on the video yet, because the photos do not really seem to give me much of an idea. Though, Davey looks good in a suit... >.>


Well, that is all I have time for right now. Enjoy, and I hope to see you all later. ^_^[/size]

[Semjaza]

Oh hey, since we're on this again. I finally saw the limited edition set at the store the other day for like $22.

The reason I couldn't find it was because they don't keep it by the CDs. It's in the Music DVDs section for some reason.

The 60 page hardcover book is apparently the casing. That's what was wrapped up on the shelf at least. I'll be picking it up in the next few days, yay. I'm under the impression it doesn't have the CD in a jewel case though, which means I'll have to buy the normal disc as well.... eh.

[amibasuki]

[FONT=arial]I bought the CD for about 10 dollars at Media Play a couple of weeks ago, and I have to say I really like it. it took me a while to get used to the singer's voice, but once I did, I enjoyed it a lot more. my favorite song is definitely Death of Seasons. once I get some money this summer, I plan on buying one or two of their previous albums, since y'all (yes, y'all :p) are saying that they're supposed to be even better than they were on this one.[/FONT]

[vegeta rocker]

*glares at those who ignored previous afi thread*
The singer always reminds me of the singer from a perfect circle...
I like the video girls not grey, looks like Rei Ayanami. I have only heard a few tracks but i like what i hear. I must say i liked their previous songs a bit better.

[amibasuki]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by vegeta rocker [/i]
[B]*glares at those who ignored previous afi thread* [/B][/QUOTE]
[FONT=arial]*looks around innocently*

meh, your thread was centered on that anime chick off of the Girls Not Grey music video. I haven't seen it yet :p. it made more sense to wait for this one to come back up before posting anything.[/FONT]

[PiroMunkie]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i]
[B]The 60 page hardcover book is apparently the casing. That's what was wrapped up on the shelf at least. I'll be picking it up in the next few days, yay. I'm under the impression it doesn't have the CD in a jewel case though, which means I'll have to buy the normal disc as well.... eh.[/B][/QUOTE][size=1]Yes, the book is the casing. There is a little slip in the inside cover that the CD fits into. The CD is in a plastic envelope as well. The DVD is the same situation except that it is on the inside of the back cover.

Spoiler for what is inside the book in case anyone care to know:
[spoiler]The inside of the book is only somewhat different from what is inside the actual CD cover. The style concept is similar to that of the CD cover in that there are more photos than art. I, personally, liked the book purely because [b](a)[/b] it is an AFI thing, [b](b)[/b] it has instructions on how to make a paper airplane (a bit different from the conventional way), [b](c)[/b] it is an actual book, so I can carry it around if need be and not have to worry about much damage to it. The lyrics to the songs are in there as well, and in [i]Death of Seasons[/i] they took out the "f" word instead of changing it to scucking. So I liked that. So yeah, that is the book for you in a nutshell.[/spoiler][/size][quote][i]Originally posted by amibasuki[/i]
[b]once I get some money this summer, I plan on buying one or two of their previous albums, since y'all (yes, y'all :p) are saying that they're supposed to be even better than they were on this one.[/b][/quote][size=1]You really have to look at how we would define "better" though. [i]Sing the Sorrow[/i] was better in terms of everything being nice and crisp, and polished. Though, I think this may have added to the fact that there was a lot less power to it. It does not hit hard enough. With how smooth they made it, it took away the raw energy their previous albums had. It would be like putting on a dress and then trying to mosh. o_O

However, their previous albums tend to be a lot more in your face. Back in the day of [i]Answer That and Stay Fashionable[/i] and [i]Very Proud of Ya[/i], they were more punk than anything. After that they started developing more of a hardcore sound. Yet every album I say always seems to have a different sound from the previous. They are very good at keep you on your toes. I first heard AFI when they released [i]The Art of Drowning[/i], their last album before this one. Not long after I bought [i]Answer That and Stay Fashionable[/i]. It was a total change in sound (well not [i]total[/i], it is not pop or anything, but it is a significant difference).

But yeah...[/size][quote][i]Originally posted from vegeta rocker[/i]
[b]*glares at those who ignored previous afi thread*[/b][/quote][size=1]... You made an AFI thread...??? *shrugs* I do not remember it.

I guess mine is just cooler, lol. ;)[/size][quote][b]The singer always reminds me of the singer from a perfect circle...[/b][/quote][size=1]I am not quite sure where you get that from... but okay... o_O[/size]

[Dan Rugh]

In "The Leaving Song Part II", it is not Latin in which Davey is speaking, but actually Spanish. I've taken Spanish for 6 years now and here's a little translation of what he is saying:

Yo he estado aqui muchas veces antes y regreso
(I have been here many times before and I return)

Y regreso aqui otra vez y comienzo
(And I return here again and I begin)

So there you have it.

[Semjaza]

A Perfect Circle? heh

That's Maynard James Keenan from Tool. He just wears a wig when he's singing in A Perfect Circle. I don't really think that he or Davey really sound or look anything alike, although they both have a slightly higher tone than many current vocalists. APC has more of a style simliar to Opeth than most anything else, I'd say.

I still have yet to pick up the DVD. I probably should, as I doubt it will be around all that long compared to the normal CD. I'll wait on the CD though, as it still randomly goes on sale. I just have to decide between the red or silver covers haha.