Welcome to Da Swamp Match
This week for Chomp On or Swamp On, we are doing something new since there are SO many new releases out there. We are going to have Swamp Matches. Two CDs in the same genre go into the Swamp and only one emerges.
Southern Fried Match Up
There are three solid Southern Rock releases this week, so we are going to send all three in and kick out one loser.
Lynyrd Skynrd "God and Guns" vs Blackberry Smoke "Little Piece of Country" vs SwampDaWamp "Rock This Country"
Uh-oh....the legendary unbeaten Lynyrd Skynyrd are back. The undisputed Kings of Southern Rock. The problem is, this really isn't Skynyrd. The Vant Zant boys - Johnny and Donnie - are pretty much a corporation these days. They have different brands in Van Zant, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and .38 Special.
Yeah, they have help in each band, but they are the principle members. I think they have the wrong label on this product. I think this was suppossed to be a Van Zant CD. It's more Nashville country, than Alabama Southern Rock. There is a killer rock tune buzzing on FM radio now called "Still Unbroken" which rocks hard and is a solid uppercut for Skynyrd in this match. "Floyd" is a wicked southern rocker, with Rob Zombie heading south to help on vocals.
They get tired after that...."Simple Life" should be a Van Zant country tune recalling family values. "Little Thing Called You" and "Bang Bang" sounds like 80's .38 Special. "Skynyrd Nation," "That Ain't My America," and "God And Guns" are so cheesy they should come from Wisconsin instead of the South. It's almost like the Van Zant marketing department looked at the demographics and decided to write the songs to fit the south's stereotypes. This really causes the CD to stray from the old Skynyrd values......yes....Skynyrd was always from the South. BUT they never praised guns, in fact... Ronnie talked in "Saturday Night Special" about throwing all guns to the bottom of the sea. A right wing CD of family values and guns...nuthin' wrong with that....BUT IT AIN"T Ronnie's Skynyrd.
Skynyrd is feeling a little weak as the new guys enter the Swamp. Now "Floyd" and "Still Unbroken" are so badass that Skynyrd still has a formidable one-two combination to be feared.
SwampDaWamp’s “Rock This Country” comes into the Swamp with a southern swagger. The new guys from Charlotte have just released their third album. It’s good and gritty — the way a Southern rock CD should be. These guys can party. “Stoned” is a cool, gruff tune that proposes what would happen in great moments in history if people were stoned. A lil’ bit of country to it, but it’s got grit…. It’s not slick and polished like it just came out of Nashville.
SwampDaWamp’s consistent jabs put Skynyrd’s back up against a broken stump. But the power of “Floyd” with Rob Zombie on vocals send Skynyrd roaring back.
Now, Blackberry Smoke’s “Little Piece Of Dixie” comes into the ring. It’s the third release for Blackberry Smoke. “Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime,” their first CD was overpowering— combining Southern Rock with AC/DC riffs for a blistering sound. This CD is different than that…it’s got a little more country and a lot less power. So…
But it is SO DAMN SOUTHERN, the Swamp is on fire. With solid tracks like “A Good One Comin’ On,” “Sanctified Woman,” and “Up In Smoke,” the whole Swamp breaks out into one big party. “Little Piece of Dixie” definitely does not have the power of their debut disc, but this CD is so southern fried, Colonel Sanders would be proud. This is a heck of a Southern Rock disc.
Lynyrd Skynyrd will always be the kings of southern rock, but it will be because of their dozens of classic songs, and not because of their new material. Meanwhile, the South may just rise again with help from Blackberry Smoke and SwampDaWamp.
Modern Metal
Breaking Benjamin “Dear Agony” vs Three Days Grace “Life Starts Now”
Ol’ AJ kind of figured these two modern rockers would kind of sloth around in the Swamp until AJ himself had to go into the Swamp and body slam them both...Give ‘em a good ol’ fashion swamp down, but they both came out rocking. They both squared off with solid singles, for Three Days Grace it was the angst beginning, then exploding into an arena rocker of “Break.” A commercial driven, but still potent right hook. For Breaking Benjamin, it is the angst beginning then exploding into arena rocker “I Will Not Bow”, appropriately titled for a Swamp Match.
“Fade Away” is a soaring start for Breaking Benjamin’s (BB) cd. Three Days Grace (TDG) gets a soaring start from “Bitter Taste”. TDG comes back with heartfelt lyrics for “World So Cold”, another commercial driven tune. BB counters with heartfelt lyrics for “Give Me A Sign.”
So I drank a few Crocweisers and watched these two slug it out, until I realized that this was gonna take awhile, and I only had a case of beer. So I drank the case and called it a tie. Both are pretty solid modern rock releases. They both have high and low moments, but overall I gave both the CHOMP ON sign. And then I rocked out to “Hopeless” by BB, and then to TDG’s “The Good Life” - a pulsating good time song, a change for angst rockers.
The Grunge Match
The grunge boys came in and dirtied up the Swamp a lil’. Pearl Jam brought in “Backspacer,” and immediately thundered off to an impressive start with “Gonna See My Friend”, proving Eddie Vedder has still got it. Pearl Jam came out swinging, resisting the grunge tag with a scrappy upbeat record that showcases songs like the single - “The Fixer.” Featuring arena rock jams like “Amongst The Waves” and “Unthought Known”, Pearl Jam for once, appears to be having fun. Recklessly rocking, Pearl Jam is impressive. Maybe not as strong as the heyday, but they prove they still have it.
Alice In Chains approaches with “Black Becomes Blue.” Pearl Jam is confident it can take AIC. AIC would appear to be rusty since they are delivering their first CD in fourteen years and the first since the passing of Layne Staley. William DuVall and Jerry Cantrell pay tribute to Layne Staley with tortured zombie-like performances. The crunch of the guitars is still there. Pearl Jam is pure reckless rock n roll joy, but no match for the sheer volume and pure metal of Alice In Chains.
The ballads are dead on as well, giving a touch of something not present on “Backspacer.” Plus, Elton John appears on a piano mix of the title cut. Pearl Jam was impressive, but just not loud enough to top Alice In Chains, who quickly blew out all cobwebs. Alice In Chains rocks their way to current “Grunge Champ,” although Pearl Jam sheds the grunge tag with a fun and rollicking performance.