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Tyronne[Album Review] Operator // Soulcrusher
October 3rd 2007 01:56
Operator: Soulcrusher Album Cover
Label: Atlantic Records
Release Date: August 2007
Written: July 2007
Operator is:
Johnny Strong: Vocals
Rikki Lixx: Guitars
Paul Phillips: Guitars
Wade Carpenter: Bass
Paul Phillips, Wade Carpenter, Johnny Strong & Rikki Lixx
I've had Soulcrusher since the end of June now and every time I tried to sit down and write this review, I couldn't seem to find the right words. The right phrases to explain just what comes out of this album. There are so many different emotions and such a diverse experience that happens from start to finish that its hard to find a place to start and finish. This is my best attempt. Hopefully you won't be disappointed.
I consider myself to be a music connoisseur of sorts. I love music. Music is the backbone of my life. I live and breathe to hear good music. I don't go anywhere without my iPod and the only time I don't have music on is if I'm watching television. Yes, I even sleep with music on. That being said, I won't listen to just anything. I will give everything a try once, but I'm very selective about what actually goes into my collection. Now, for some years I haven't actually picked up a rock album. Not because I choose not to listen to it, but more because I didn't find anything that was being put out to be worth listening to. Actually, I found this to be true of most music these days. Recently, the industry seems to be filled with anyone wanting to make it in the business. The pre-requisite of actually haven't talent seemed to have gone by the wayside and substituted for another pretty face. If you looked good, but didn't necessarily have a good sound then by all means, let's give you a deal.
I have to tell you that my anticipation for this album had a bit of confliction. You see, I've been following Johnny and Operator for some time. I know what talent Johnny possesses and how skilled he is as a singer and songwriter. I know what he is capable of. I have the limited edition EP that he put out completely by himself and I absolutely loved that album. I loved how well it was arranged and composed. When Operator became the band that it is now, I was both excited and worried. Excited because I knew what Johnny could do, but worried because I was a bit skeptical that anyone would be able to match up to what I feel is the most talented person in the music industry today.
I was told by a friend that I would need a couple listens, but was assured I would love the album eventually. When the CD arrived, I couldn't wait to hear it. I had hoped that my anticipation wouldn't put a damper on the CD and that I wouldn't be left completely disappointed. I was scared. I wanted to rush home and put it directly in the CD player, but at the same time I was very nervous and on edge. I didn't know what to expect of the band as a whole and I was worried that somewhere something would be missing. I will be the first one to tell you that I was very wrong.
After the first run through of Soulcrusher, I sat here dumbfounded. I didn't know what to say or think. I knew that the first thing I wanted to say was that my friend was a liar. I didn't need more than one listen to love this album. I needed once. At the end of the first play through, I knew this album was gold. I knew that the release of this album is going to be one of those defining moments in rock history. The kind of release that makes everyone stop and pay attention to the music industry once more. Let me take you through this album track by track. Keep in mind, these are just my thoughts on the tracks and not necessarily what they're meant to mean to everyone.
Soulcrusher is the first track on the CD and rightfully so. It's the kind of song that grabs you by the collar and throws you head first into the rushing water demanding your attention. And when you gain your bearings and look around you realize that you -want- to give it the attention it deserves and soon enough you're up to your knees in it. It's about that time that you realize, it's not about hating you or trying to get your attention exactly, but it's more about you waking up and getting off your ass and making the most of your own life. Not letting someone else make the choices for you.
Nothing To Lose is one of those empowerment songs. It's a journey of self discovery. Maybe you're at your worst. You feel like you have nothing left, there's nowhere left to go because you've hit rock bottom. This is when Johnny proclaims, "if you've got nothing to lose …. You've got it all" and you start to do a little retrospective. You can't help but pay attention to the lyrics of this song and wonder how someone can be so insightful into the hard times. Maybe he's lived them, maybe he knows what its like to be at the bottom and how hard it sometimes can be to pick yourself up and claw your way back out. But it can be done. And the more you listen to the lyrics the more you start to believe that anyone could do it if they just try.
Make 'Em Pay is the song that makes you think this is it; this is the one song that screams I will fuck you up if you try to take what is mine. It's about taking care of the things that belong to you and appreciating the things you have. It's not about taking advantage of someone or something. It's about knowing that this is the dynamic that you need in your life and whatever you can do to keep it, you will. Should someone else try and mess that dynamic up for you, then they're going to have hell to pay.
So Little Time is one of those songs that I feel the guitar riffs accentuate the moment perfectly. They're a little harder where there needs to be emphasis and they're a little softer at just the right moment. This song also showcases a portion of Johnny's vocal range. He can hit the notes in just the right places to produce just that little bit extra emphases on a word or phrase. "Got so little time on my hands…" It's the kind of song that makes you realize you need to live each moment to the fullest. Live to your full potential because we've only got so much time to enjoy the life we have.
Delicate is one I am very fond of. I knew Johnny had changed it, but I didn't know how. It was on the first EP and I was rather fond of it and I remember telling a friend I was a little disappointed that he changed it, until I heard it. Johnny has cleverly combined two songs from the first EP (Delciate and Here We Go Again) into one amazingly brilliant song. The drums accent this song so well and the guitar riffs seem to flow right into the drums and vocals. It's an amazing balance and Johnny backs off at just the right times. It's simply amazing. The significance of the delicate balance between love, life and trust is very prevalent in this song. "The closer we are we get so far away…"
What You Get is the ambivalent fight of being the person you are. Not what everyone expects you to be. It's about giving your all and making people see that you're not going to live up to -their- expectation, but your own instead. It starts out with the preface of conformity "I'll be your God, I'll be your strength, I'll be the one you blame it on when it goes away, I'll be your light in the darkest hour…" and bursts into the independence stance of being I am what I am and the sooner you accept that the better off we'll all be. "Tell me what you expect, what you see is what you get."
The Only One starts out with a brilliant bass line then kicks into substantial guitar riffs that threaten to overthrow the vocals, but amazingly the moment Johnny starts to sing, they all blend so beautifully that it seems like they were meant to be together. The drums come in and they all form a perfect flow that means giving up just enough to let Johnny take the lead when it's his time and Johnny backs down in just enough time to let his band come to the forefront and explode in your face.
Burn Up The Road is another one of my favorites. It is right up there on my tops list. This is the struggle. This is where your choices may take you away from the person that you wanted to be and you may end up losing things along the way, but its also about the discovery of always coming back to the things that mean the most to you. It's the journey of life and lessons learned. It's dealing with the choices you've made and knowing that certain elements of your life will always make you come back.
Black Cloud for me, in the purest form, is self discovery. It's the need to pretend that you don't see things wrong, that you don't need changes. And it's the discovery that sometimes you can't find the right path on your own, but that all you need is someone else to make you find your way. Not necessarily to guide you but to give you that push in the right direction. This song has a beautiful guitar riff about a third of the way through and Johnny's direct delivery of certain lines put the perfect emphasis on those words. It's about finding the place that you belong and making the most of it; pulling yourself together, dusting off and pushing on in the right direction.
Good Enough is one of the songs that I am very fond of. For me, I can relate to specific parts of this song because I've struggled to let people close to me. It's about being content with the way things were, but deciding that that isn't enough and wanting to find true happiness. "Sever off the strings…" Find a way to let go and live. "The walls you hold around ya keep on falling down… everything is good enough like it was" Good things are worth breaking down the walls and letting people into your life. Learn to live and embrace those close to you.
Live Your Way is the powerhouse. It is the song that makes you crank up your stereo and drive a little faster. It's the one that you turn up so loud your lungs feel like they're going to rupture when you sing along, but you do it anyways. Why? Because you won't conform. You won't be a slave. This is your anthem. This is the one that makes you stand your ground. "I won't live your way, won't do what you say…" I'm going to be me. I'm going to do things my way and I won't conform to being the person that you want me to be. I won't go against being the person that I am. "..I won't fade away cause I ain't lost like you." I know exactly where I stand and who I want to be. And when the song breaks down from the powerhouse into the slow ballad of Johnny and a piano you feel like you've been given a reprieve. A moment to catch your breath and reflect on life's choices before you move forward once again.
Overall, the message of the album is clear, it's your life, only you are the one that can determine its outcome. Only you can let yourself be kicked down and broken. It's about learning through life's experiences and picking yourself up off the ground, dusting yourself off and pushing forward. Its about self discovery and the courage to change the things you can and learn to carry the things you can't. It's a self empowerment album that proclaims we are good, we are strong, we're survivors and you can bet your ass we're here to stay so you better get use to it. The album is a versatile mix of in your face rock music with just enough recovery time with a soft slower ballan thrown in to give you that moment of realization. That one that sinks in and you know in your heart that the entirety of this band posses so much talent that they are definitely going to be the influence in which rock music makes its comeback. They are here to stay so get on board and fasten your seatbelts. This band is ready to take you for one hell of a ride.
As a long time fan of Johnny's, my fears were put to rest. I knew from seeing them live that the band could definitely deliver, but I was still worried about the CD itself. A live performance is much different than being able to pull someone in based on an album. I knew I would be fond of Johnny's vocals because I know how talented he is, but now I have no fears. Paul, DP, Rikki and Wade back up Johnny beautifully and they are definitely on par with his vocal talents. All of them know when to give and take, when to push forward and when to retreat. They quickly lived up to any expectations I might've had and put all of my fears at ease. This is a band that is a force to be reckoned with and they are here to prove they are not just a group of pretty faces. Soulcrusher is the first attempt to prove that they may indeed be a good looking group of guys, but their talent is far superior to the way they look and who they are compared to. A lot of comparison's have been made to the old days of Soundgarden and there are a lot worse things they could be compared to, but Operator has their own unique style of in your face positivity that is sure to make you just as much of a believer as I am.
My favorite: Live Your Way. It took a lot for me to pick one song as my favorite and I still struggle with this because I have never had one album be so incredibly brilliant to the point that I loved every single song. I have albums where I can listen to it more than once straight through, but I could also live without hearing three or four of the songs if I had to. This album grabs you from the start and carries you all through it, leaving you wanting more. I listen to it non-stop and there isn't one song that I ever want to skip. I am both anxious and excited to see what Operator will deliver to us in the future.
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Comment by jon
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Do you have any pics? Perhaps the album cover and a few of the band?
Comment by Angela 3
I modified the post to include the album cover and their first promotional shot that doesn't include the drummer, Dorman.
Comment by Emilia Sala
Emilia
Comment by Emilia Sala
Emilia Sala
Comment by jon
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