Despite of the scary amount of compilation discs out in stores today, there
are a couple gems to pick up this week. First, we'll look at Emery, a new
hard rock band on Tooth & Nail, then also tell you a bit about the
much-anticipated U2 cover album from Sparrow Records. Check out these new
discs as well as new reviews on cMusicWeb.com.

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THE WEAK'S END - EMERY (2004)
by Bert Gangl

It's probably safe to say that more than a few budding musicians secretly
hold the notion that the life of the average rock and roll artist is nothing
but first-class travel, legions of adoring fans and an instant and endless
flow of income. Of course, those most familiar with the music business can
tell you that, for every band that hits the big time, there are probably ten
more groups whose day-to-day experience revolves around fast food,
substandard lodging and playing to near-empty houses.

The aforementioned truth, it would seem, is hardly lost on the members of
Emery. After college, the South Carolina six-piece relocated to Seattle,
where it played locally for two years. During this time, the group received
an invitation to tour the west coast with another relatively unknown band.
Quitting their jobs and moving into a motor home fashioned from an old
racecar trailer, the sextet headed out on the road. As it turns out, the
group returned from the tour penniless and unemployed, with only a cramped
trailer with three bunk beds and a small bathroom in which to live.

That said, it would appear that there is, indeed, some truth to the adage
that "those things that don't kill you will make you stronger." To be sure,
the group's major-label debut, The Weak's End, is nothing if not tenacious.
The impressive leadoff cut, "Walls," bursts from its starting gate with a
salvo of frenzied guitars, lumbering bass lines and vocals that shift
seamlessly between sweetly languishing and nearly unhinged. The riff-heavy
"Disguising Mistakes with Goodbyes" is a likewise animated slice of
musicianship destined to foster legions of aspiring air guitarists. And the
best-of-album "Bloodless" functions as a veritable storehouse of blistering
fret board runs, razor-sharp start/stop dynamics and a host of other
guitar-related delights.

In all fairness, portions of the album are a bit musically nondescript. And
the band's fondness for alternately sung and screamed vocals edges them
perilously close to overfamiliar territory. But, unlike the ever-growing
number of artists who ostensibly employ the soft-to-loud aesthetic only for
irony's sake, the members of the Emery collective appear to feel both sides
of the subdued/passionate coin equally and deeply. And while this first
record admittedly falls just shy of groundbreaking, it nonetheless stands as
an admirable and encouraging first step towards greater things. Indeed, with
an imposing musical proficiency, refreshing authenticity and tangible sense
of enthusiasm between them, one can't help but feel that, for the lads of
Emery, The Weak's End is only the beginning.

Read more about Emery at cMusicWeb.com:
http://cMusicWeb.com/hardrock/emery


MORE NEW STUFF ON cMUSICWEB.COM

Interview: Lincoln Brewster
http://cMusicWeb.com/worship/lincolnbrewster/interview.shtml

Review: Tales of the Knife - Lucerin Blue
http://cMusicWeb.com/hardrock/lucerinblue/talesoftheknife.shtml

Review: Then Is The New Now - Denison Marrs
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/denisonmarrs/thenisthenewnow.shtml

Review: Composition - Various
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/dugrecords


AVAILABLE TUESDAY, JANUARY 27 (at cMusicWeb.com or your local music store)

PURCHASE THIS MUSIC AND MORE AT GRASSROOTSMUSIC.COM:
http://www.grassrootsmusic.com/?associateid=249

ABSOLUTE WORSHIP - VARIOUS
Whoa, this week reeks with too many compilation albums! This first one has 2
discs of worship by popular artists such as Big Daddy Weave, Jeremy Camp,
Watermark, Jill Phillips, Darrell Evans and more.

WORSHIP TOGETHER: HERE I AM TO WORSHIP - VARIOUS
Number two on our list of compilations is this in Worship Together's series
of best-of worship double-discs. This disc features songs such as the title
track, "God of Wonders," "In Christ Alone," and "It Is You."

WORSHIP TOGETHER: HERE I AM TO WORSHIP FOR KIDS - VARIOUS
Just for the kiddies, this disc has 10 of the 30 songs on the compilation
listed above, probably sung by a children's chorus to facilitate
sing-alongs.

IN THE NAME OF LOVE: ARTISTS UNITED FOR AFRICA - VARIOUS
Our pick for THE PICK OF THE WEEK, this disc is chock full of U2 covers.
While proceeds from the disc go to support the DATA organization to help the
AIDS crisis in Africa, you get to hear some of today's best Christian
artists do their versions of U2 songs. Most of them are top-notch, including
all-out rock tracks by Pillar and Sanctus Real; quiet, stripped-down songs
with Nichole Nordeman and Jars of Clay, and even versions that border on
plagiarism (such as Chris Tomlin's "With Or Without You").

MAMMOTH CITY MESSENGERS SOUNDTRACK - FOREFRONT RECORDS
Another one just for the kids, you probably have not heard of this Christian
comic book series aimed at the "tweens" (a.k.a. pre-teens). A culturally
diverse group of kids have to save their school (and probably the world)
from being brainwashed by some evil bad-guy, and this disc brings a story in
between pop jams that will only impress the tweens.

THE WEAK'S END - EMERY
See review above for more info on this disc.

WOW GOSPEL 2004 - VARIOUS
The third of our compilation albums for the week, this double-disc set has,
of course, the best Gospel music of 2003. Go figure.


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View all the latest stories on cMusicWeb.com:
http://cMusicWeb.com/


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