Blue October have once again unleashed an epic emotional powerhouse package of tunes that is nothing short of brilliant! Their new cd Approaching Normal is exactly what you expect from this fantastic band but with a couple welcomed surprises thrown in!
Band: Blue October
Album: Approaching Normal
Year: 2009 (In Stores Now)
Genre: Alternative Rock/Emo/Indie
Rating:
You would think that because Justin Furstenfeld is now a proud father he may have lightened up a bit but man can he still explode with gut wrenching passion which is evident in the very powerful opening track "Weight of the World". It's slow build up sets a mood then out of nowhere Furstenfeld & the guitars explode with passion & distortion and you can't help but smile because this is what Blue October does best!
Their first single from the new album is "Dirt Room" which was an excellent choice and though it's not as deep vocally as "Weight of the World" it holds as much weight lyrically as it's wrought with emotion. At track 5 is "My Never" which is a nice change of pace as it's slow, heart tugging & beautiful both lyrically & vocally, you are given a chance to hear Furstenfeld really sing with out his usually deep raspy bellowing he is famous for!
"Blue Does" is another song that is worthy of mentioning because it's written about his new daughter named "Blue" and it gives you a chance to see a window of happiness and peace that Furstenfeld has experienced which is a massive change from the anger & chaos usually brewing in his head that ends up as the lyrics for his dark songs. It's a stunningly beautiful song in fact I would go as far to say it's the most beautiful song he has ever written! You even get a chance to hear Blue at the end of the song and I'm sure it will put a smile on you're face!
If there is one standout track on the album that I never expected to hear it has to be "Jump Rope", this is totally opposite of what you expect to hear from Blue October because it's fun, happy, positive, danceable & very youthful even with children chanting along and it works beautifully so much so that it's probably my favourite song on the album!
The rest of the songs on Approaching Normal are all excellent and round out an amazing album filled with both very emotional lows and happy positive highs and I am happy to point out there is zero filler tossed in just to fill out an album, every track more than holds it's own! Some people say Justin Furstenfeld is too whiny COUGH *Rolling Stone's pathetic review* COUGH but in my eyes or I should say ears he is one of the most honest & powerful song writers & vocalists in the industry today and he proves it once again on this incredible album and the band as always is just incredible especially the amazing violins from Ryan Delahoussaye!
Official Site - http://www.blueoctoberfan.com/
Track List
- Weight of the World
- Say It
- Dirt Room
- Been Down
- My Never
- Should Be Loved
- Kangaroo Cry
- Picking Up Pieces
- Jump Rope
- Blue Skies
- Blue Does
- The End
Posts
8 comments on "Blue October - Approaching Normal (Review)"
Oh, my god!
It is the most amazing thing I heard since their last album!
The writing is just perfect! Their writing is always just perfect!
Wonderful, music and writing and everything! Wonderful!
Blue October’s new stuff is so good! I hear they will be featured on 90210 tomorrow night too. Has anyone heard any of the new songs on the radio yet?
Thx for the comments yeah they are amazing! I don't listen to the radio but I have seen their new video for "Dirt Room" on Much Music and LOVE IT!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCPY-zD6e-I
yea it's a great video! still have to say their oh so popular "hate me" video remains my favorite though.
on the track listing you forgot to add Graceful Dancing
Hmmm I don't have that track "Graceful Dancing" on my cd nor is it listed on Amazon? http://www.amazon.ca/Approaching-Normal-Blue-October/dp/B001RTCOXY
"Graceful Dancing" is not found on the explicit CD. It replaces "The End" for those who purchase the non-explicit album. It to is an outstanding song! Thanks for the review. I love hearing from fellow Blue October fans.
I wouldn't call this emo. Or atleast wouldn't take that to mean "emo". This is of the Alternative/Indie movements, of the Rock sound, as for genre, maybe 'Post-Grunge/Indie-Rock'
Either way, the album sounds great. Whenever I'm listening to something and constantly fiddling with the stars ratings for each song tring to figure out which ones I prefer more or which ones sound better than the others, and I have to think about it, then I know it's very good. The album's eventually got a 4 and a half rating.
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