Post your own Contraband review here

[Top-Hatted One]

Excellent reviews!!

[Booker Floyd]

where are long songs these days? I was hoping for atleast a 7 or 8min song on Contraband. Hmmm i guess that cant be too radio friendly.

You think they were trying to make all 13 songs radio singles...?

They arent into making long songs right now, and since only 3 or 4 of the songs on the album will see radio-play, being "radio-friendly" doesnt seem to be the reason.  "LTA" and "YGNR" are close to 6 minutes, which I think is a decent length.  In Snakepit and STP, not many of the songs were especially long (over 6 minutes).

[kujo722]

I went into my first listening of Contraband with no preconceived notions. I dont give a shit if it does or doesnt sound like anything from any of the members previous groups. After the first listening nothing really stood out. If anything it would be "Set Me Free" or "Slither" only because I had heard them before. Basically my first impression was "Eh". Alright but not great.

After a second listen a few have already started growing on me "You Got No Right", "Falling To Peices" and "Loving the Alien". I also focused on Slash's playing this time around and while he is still head and shoulders (and top hat) above nearly everyone else (IMO) it is not exactly anything we haven't really heard before. Yet its still very good.

I think this will be a CD that after a few listens will be one of my favorites for a long time. Hopefully the band will grow and develop their sound as they get to spend more time together on the writing. However for a first effort this is pretty good.

Anybody else catch the irony in "Loving the Alien" where Scott, who by the way sounds very good through out Contraband,  is singing about "I'm moving on..." and Slash is in the background playing a solo that sounds suspiciosly familiar to "Sweet Child...."?

[Chrill]

You can?t review a CD if you only have listned to it once. That's just foolish! I thought the CD sucked the first time I spinned it. But spin the CD a few times and then you discover the best fucking rock album in years.
The only songs that doesn?t make me go "woh!" is Spectacle and Dirty Little Thing. So I think I?ll give this CD a 9 out of 10. I mean, Slither, Set Me Free, Loving the Alien and You Got No Right are freaking awesome!

[kujo722]

You can?t review a CD if you only have listned to it once. That's just foolish! I thought the CD sucked the first time I spinned it. But spin the CD a few times and then you discover the best fucking rock album in years.
The only songs that doesn?t make me go "woh!" is Spectacle and Dirty Little Thing. So I think I?ll give this CD a 9 out of 10. I mean, Slither, Set Me Free, Loving the Alien and You Got No Right are freaking awesome!

What if I said I loved it the first time I listened to it. Would you have a problem with that? You obviously really enjoy it thats fine, but I feel pretty safe to say that I wont label this album as "the best fucking rock album in years."

[Chrill]

What makes you think I would have a problem with that, kujo? My post was directed to thoose who judged the album after just one spin. And as far as "the best fucking album in years!" Well, yeah. I think it is. But ofcourse we all have diffrent opinions about things. Though I would like to know what rock album is better than Contraband from the past 5 years.

[Booker Floyd]

I think this will be a CD that after a few listens will be one of my favorites for a long time.

Thats what I expected as well, and I was exactly right.  Ive been listening to it non-stop.

Hopefully the band will grow and develop their sound as they get to spend more time together on the writing. However for a first effort this is pretty good.

My main hope is just that Slash does longer solos.  

Anybody else catch the irony in "Loving the Alien" where Scott, who by the way sounds very good through out Contraband,  is singing about "I'm moving on..." and Slash is in the background playing a solo that sounds suspiciosly familiar to "Sweet Child...."?

I cant tell if the beeping in the background is a guitar or keyboard...I assumed guitar.  Anybody have any guesses?

Im guessing thats what youre talking about, because the actual solo is more "Estranged"-style than "SCOM"...The beeping does slightly recall "SCOM".

[Chrill]

Booker Floyd: It's a guitar. It does sound like the beginning of the sweet child of mine riff. I like it though. Maybe the best song the album has to offer.

[D]

i think u cant set down and say

im gonna write an 8 minutes song

i think those songs just happen and are so inspired it takes that much time to get all u are tryin to say in

i dont think axl sit down with estranged and said "ok time to write a song longer than 8 minutes"

i dont think time has anything to do with alot of songs

its like on that "amadeus" movie about mozart where the emperor tells him to cut out some notes and it will be perfect cause it has to man ynotes

mozart says "it has the exact amount of notes required neither more or less"

same way with this a song is a song and maybe people intend to write long songs but i think they just naturally evolve into long songs

[the dirt]

I cant tell if the beeping in the background is a guitar or keyboard...I assumed guitar.  Anybody have any guesses?

Yeah Booker, it's a guitar, i'm almost positive

[loretian]

Just to append my comments on LTA:

It's finally taken hold on me, after about 15+ listens.  It rocks!

The only songs I don't really like at this point are Spectacle and Dirty Little Thing.

I still think Fall to Pieces is the best song on the album, though.  You Got No Right is good, but ... it doesn't quite click so perfectly, like FTP does.

I have to say - anyone who thinks the rock songs on this album are generic, just keep listening.  Eventually the grungy production clears itself up and you can hear how cool each song really is.

[noizzynofuture]

you people are fucked up if you think this album is any good.

what a poor effort by some great musicians and a good vocalist.

what happened to melodies or decent guitar solos.

i've listened to the album twice and slither by far is the best song and i find it to be slightly above average.

Poorly produced - the music is just blending together like allot of the crappy nu metal bands we have today

I think the hype was strong with slither but unless you're a diehard fan of these guys from previous bands you'd have a tough  time convincing anyone that it's half decent.

HORRIBLE FUCKING MESS - and i was hoping for something that would make a difference and this doesn't even come close

[younggunner]

you people are fucked up if you think this album is any good.

what a poor effort by some great musicians and a good vocalist.

what happened to melodies or decent guitar solos.

i've listened to the album twice and slither by far is the best song and i find it to be slightly above average.

Poorly produced - the music is just blending together like allot of the crappy nu metal bands we have today

I think the hype was strong with slither but unless you're a diehard fan of these guys from previous bands you'd have a tough  time convincing anyone that it's half decent.

HORRIBLE FUCKING MESS - and i was hoping for something that would make a difference and this doesn't even come close

after about 20 listens they say it grows on you....

na but its not that bad. Its ok. Its just rock. Put the volume up and let it fly. Nothing more nothing less....

[Doc Emmett Brown]

Poorly produced - the music is just blending together

I admit this was my very first reaction.  But I recall that I didnt like Illusions when I first heard it back in '91.  It took time for me to appreciate all of it.

But after listening to Contraband several times, I now feel that there are many great songs on the album.

For instance, I was initially completely put off by STB - the music is great, but Weiland was irritating me.  I wanted to say STFU Scott!   But I like his vocals in the slower songs, and I can honestly say I have a newfound appreciation for Mr. Scott Weiland.  

Give it a chance, man!  

[TK1]

I agree that this album gets better each time you hear it.  I'll admit at first, I thought it was a solid but not spectacular album.  After finally hearing the album at CD quality, it's really growing on me.  I'm not saying it's going down as one of the greatest albums of all time, but it has some really good songs.  Some say the production isn't great, but I think they wanted it to have the raw, straight ahead rock sound.  Scott takes a lot of criticism too, but I like him and think he has a lot of flexibility in his voice.  They have a lot of potential and this album was a great start...

[metallex78]

you people are fucked up if you think this album is any good.

what a poor effort by some great musicians and a good vocalist.

what happened to melodies or decent guitar solos.

i've listened to the album twice and slither by far is the best song and i find it to be slightly above average.

Poorly produced - the music is just blending together like allot of the crappy nu metal bands we have today

I think the hype was strong with slither but unless you're a diehard fan of these guys from previous bands you'd have a tough  time convincing anyone that it's half decent.

HORRIBLE FUCKING MESS - and i was hoping for something that would make a difference and this doesn't even come close

While I don't agree with YoungGunner's theory of listening to the album 20 times until it sounds good, Contraband does take a few spins to fully appreciate.

I thought it was a little bland at first with only a couple of standout tracks, but now I don't think there are any weak songs.

After repeated listens the vocal harmonies and melodies start to work their way into your head and you do realise how good the album really is.

I see no problem with the production either, it rocks.

[killingvector]

The thing is, the more you listen to something, the more likely you will begin to like it. I remember i forced myself to listen to every song on STP's Plush every time I went running. By the end of the semester, I loved it all even Creep. It was essentially a familiarity reaction in my brain which taught it to accept it as quality when my initial reaction was negative. today when i stick plush in the player after years away, i find my initial reaction persists.

I think alot of you are forcing yourselves to like it, pure speculation on my part but I read alot of reviews that change as you bombard your brains with the disk. I think your initial reaction is actually the best one to go with, because it is unadulterated and devoid of the familiarity factor.

albums can grow on you, sure, but the true test of that is time. If anyone here is still playing this a year or two from now, I may concede the point.

[Top-Hatted One]

there's no such thing as forcing yourself to like something...trust me.

Unless you're forcing yourself to like Silkworms, my world...that it's possible

[metallex78]

The thing is, the more you listen to something, the more likely you will begin to like it. I remember i forced myself to listen to every song on STP's Plush every time I went running. By the end of the semester, I loved it all even Creep. It was essentially a familiarity reaction in my brain which taught it to accept it as quality when my initial reaction was negative. today when i stick plush in the player after years away, i find my initial reaction persists.

I think alot of you are forcing yourselves to like it, pure speculation on my part but I read alot of reviews that change as you bombard your brains with the disk. I think your initial reaction is actually the best one to go with, because it is unadulterated and devoid of the familiarity factor.

albums can grow on you, sure, but the true test of that is time. If anyone here is still playing this a year or two from now, I may concede the point.

I still don't agree with your "forcing yourself to like it" stance.
I've had the album on and off since I bought it and the songs have a way of working their way into your head and it made me pay attention and want to listen more out of growing interest in the songs.
But many great albums I own have been growers. The ones I usually like instantly end up boring me pretty quickly.

And I happened to like STP's Creep after first listen, so does that detract from the quality of the song?
And the fact that you forced yourself to listen to STP's album and you still like it years later, does that not make it a great album?

The one point I do agree with is the longevity of Contraband.
I guess we'll come back to this board in a year and see if we're all still listening.

[kujo722]

What makes you think I would have a problem with that, kujo? My post was directed to thoose who judged the album after just one spin. And as far as "the best fucking album in years!" Well, yeah. I think it is. But ofcourse we all have diffrent opinions about things. Though I would like to know what rock album is better than Contraband from the past 5 years.

Chrill, I thought that was directed at me. I apologise.   As far as Best fucking album, and this is purely my opinion alone.....

Alice Cooper - Brutal Planet
Anthrax - Weve Come For You All
The Darkness - Permission To Land
A Perfect Circle - 13th Step
Probot - Probot

I guess I dont have a particular favorite