8-Album Mind: Maturity and Innocence

Today's list is actually kinda cool. A little expected from me, but not really:

The Offspring - Splinter ♠♠♠♠♠
The Offspring - Why Don't You Get a Job? ♠♠♠
The Offspring - Defy You ♠♠♠
The Offspring - Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace ♠♠♠♠
Omegalord - Omegalord ♠ GONE!
Opeth - Ghost Reveries ♠♠♠♠♠
Orgy - Candyass ♠ SOLD!
Otep - Jihad EP ♠♠♠
Orgy - Vapor Tansmission ♠♠♠♠♠
Otep - Sevas Tra ♠♠♠♠

Let's deal with the duds first. I originally bought Orgy's "Candyass" used online a year ago for a dollar. Mainly got it because I loved "Vapor Transmission", but this album simply shows them trying and failing. The first track normally sets the tone for an album, and "Social Enemies" shows that they are not going to kick your ass or make an interesting album. That was fixed in the follow-up, but that's later on. Omegalord is a local band here in Philly and after nostalgically holding onto the disc since I met them in 2003, I decided to sell it since... eh, not for me.

The Offspring did something few thought they could do; grow up. After releasing the pure-punk furocity on previous albums, they reached maturity and started to write heavier and lyrically incredible albums like "Splinter". Although only in retrospect is this album being praised, it was basically a big step forward for The Offspring. It's always cool to have your bands grow up with you... well, not always, but still. Basically, the entire album is gold, save "Worst Hangover Ever". "Rise and Fall" rocks incredibly hard with a mix of just about everything The Offspring have done.

Meanwhile, Opeth kicked ass with Ghost Reveries, showing that, yes, 10-minute+ long progressive metal songs CAN be interesting and not boring. Meanwhile, on the other end of the spectrum in metal, Otep shows that she and her band began as a more rap and alt-metal outfit, infusing her incredible poetry and writing with fierce vocals and even harsher riffs.

8-Album Mind: The Kids Aren't Alright

Another day, another haul! Today's actually is going to include one other days worth of CD's, but it's only the first three.

Nuclear Assault- Third World Genocide ♠ SOLD! CRAP!
Obituary - Slowly We Rot ♠♠♠
Obituary - Cause of Death ♠♠♠
Obituary - Frozen in Time ♠♠♠♠
The Offspring - The Offspring ♠♠♠
The Offspring - Ignition ♠♠♠♠
The Offspring - Smash ♠♠♠♠♠
The Offspring - Ixnay on the Hombre ♠♠♠♠
The Offspring - Americana ♠♠♠♠♠
The Offspring - Conspiracy of One ♠♠♠♠♠
Opeth - Deliverance ♠♠♠♠
VANS - Off The Wall Vol 5 ♠♠

The Nuclear Assault album, "Third World Genocide", was just a god-awful abomination. Generic riff's, terrible vocals... CRAP! Obituary's early offerings may had been groundbreaking at the time, but they now come off as OK discs. "Frozen in Time" showed they could actually surpass it.

Thee Offspring is one of my favorite groups, and getting to listen to so many albums in one day was a welcomed treat! I held off on the last two albums and singles until tomorrow so I had some more punk later on. Choice cuts; "The Kids Aren't Alright", "Americana", "Pay the Man", "Jennifer Lost the War", "Session", "L.A.P.D.", "Bad Habit", "Cool to Hate", and "Gone Away".

Opeth "Deliverance" was today's surprise; I had contemplated selling my Opeth albums since they never clicked but today this one did. Simply a great album! Only 6 songs, but clocking in at a little over a hour long... this is something you listen to when you want to listen to something a little heady.

The VANS Punk Comp, "Off The Wall Vol 5", is simply "meh". I've been tempted to sell it more times than I can count, but it's stayed simply because of 2 or 3 songs. In fact, I got into The Distillers becuase of it. Might sell, might not... a day or two will tell.