Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Promised EP from Mr. Scogin, December 30, 2005
When I first heard about The Chariot I was ecstatic. Josh Scogin was coming back to the scene for more Christian hardcore action, and it was promised that his new band dubbed "The Chariot" would be a lot like old Norma Jean. (something that I have missed since he left that band) I missed that raw sound found on CD's like "Bless The Martyr" and "Throwing Myself" that Josh had headed. Don't get me wrong, the newer Norma Jean songs are great, but they still aren't the same. I'm sure fans everywhere felt very similiar to myslef at that time.
However, the LP brought much controversy. The quality was even lower than that of BTMAKTC. They didn't even use sound gates for the guitars, which IMO is kind of cool but for the most part, it annoyed people. There was m0re feedback than actuall music and while the concept was really neat, even I have to admit it did take away from the experience just a bit. To summarize, the fans were kind of pissed...
That's when The Unsung EP comes in...to make right what was wrong with "Everything is Alive". The band promised 4 of our favorites from the LP re-recorded (with better quality obviously) and 2 all new tracks, plus a live show.
Judging from what I've heard and seen so far, this EP delivered. The first song on the EP, "Yanni Depp" (and yeah they are all named after celebrity's with slight consonant changes) is a kicker. While it follows Chariot tradition in shortness, coming in at a mere 2 minutes and 40 seconds, it makes up for that with the raw power you'd come to expect from them. In case you didn't know, The Chariot only has one guitarist now. Harbin does a good job of compensating however. He also has a great voice which complements Josh even better on the EP I think. There's also the presence of a new, younger drummer. He seems more in touch with the scene though, and less with his set. While he has a nice style, I still don't think he can match the chaos of the old guy.
The new songs are done quite well. The level of production is about on par with what I expected, and some parts have been mixed up from the previous. EX:the banjo in the middle of Vinn Affleck. Nice...
The only downer is the new song, "Play The Piano Like A Disease". I don't really know why, but that song just didn't do it for me. It's just not all that great IMO.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wow, December 9, 2005
You wouldn't think 6 songs in 16 minutes would be worth 9.99 at Best Buy would you?
Well it is!
I got this today and immediatly popped it into my car stereo. Yanni Depp blasted through my speakers. What a great sound! I liked the raw rock sound in their debut album, but wow! This is some awesome production and makes The Chariot sound really awesome. Even though there's a new drummer and they are minus a guitarist, I think it still has a punch you in the gut sound still. The drummer hasn't disappointed me. In fact I never knew there was a new drummer until I read the other reviews.
The new recordings are excellent. I have no complaints. No feedback in any of the songs, but you know thats a plus sometimes. Haha.
I recommend you get this if you're a hardcore Chariot fan. If you don't have any of thier material, I recommend you get their first one first to get a taste of thier old sound and then compare it to their new. Which in my opinion is great.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Don't Call it a Comeback, December 6, 2005
Well the Chariot are back kiddies! This time with studio quality songs, 4 re-worked versions from their debut LP "Everything Is Alive, Everything Is Breathing, Nothing is Dead, Nothing is Bleeding", and 2 new songs, Yanni Depp and Kenny Gibler.
Upon first listen, its evident that the departure of former drummer Jeff Carter (now of Deus Invictus) really hurt the bands aggressive sound, as his drumming style was unique, frantic and dynamic. Their new drummer is noticeably a lot more tame on the set and as a result comes up as rather lame, especially in comparison to his predecessor. Not to say that the new drummer is bad, he is a pretty average drummer who manages to keep the songs together and the flow going.
The re-worked versions of the older songs are a big different also due to the fact that there is only one guitarist now instead of two, so the extra influence is gone. This proves to be both a blessing and a curse as part of th reason of the Chariot's great crushing sound was Tony "Taco" Medina's guitar attack, but Keller's solo influence allowed him to make the amazing steller and powerful song "Kenny Gibler", a song which I wish the Chariot would make more songs that sound like (which is the only reason this EP gets 4 stars instead of 3, that song absolutely kills).
Yanni Depp, on the other hand, sounded like they purposely mocked Norma Jean's new sound (just listen to "O' God, The Aftermath" and you'll see what I mean) with a little influence from Fear Before the March of Flames).
All in all, its a solid effort from Georgia's rowdiest Christian hardcore band, a good amount of diversity in these 6 tracks. I have to admit, upon first listen i wasnt too impressed, but it is starting to grow on me for sure. And its a lot better than that steaming pile of C.RAP that Norma Jean put out last year (see above).
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