Cheap Evolver (Music) (311) Price

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Customer Reviews of Evolver

Now that's wat i'm talking about
There were 3 important days this year i couldnt wait for, christmas graduation and july 22nd, the day evolver exploded into my life. i popped i nthe cd adn the first track creatures played. i already heard it on the radio alot and loved every second but i wanted to check out the rest. the next song reconsider everything got me soo pumped up bc i remember hearing at the sprite liquid mix tour at jones beach wen 311 played. Though its not usuall 311 type stuff i still thought it [rocks]. The next song crack the code starts off very mellow, like it should be on transistor which is another album that was alot better than people thought. anyway once it hit the fast rockin part the song made me rock out and made me think, this was SOOOOO WORTH IT. The next song same mistake twice is such a fun bouncy rockin song to listen to with its 6/8 feel and awesome harmonies. The 5th track beyond the gray sky hits close to home, though i havent had a friend lost by suicide i had one that has tried and came close a few times and this song just makes me think if he was gone and its sucha ppowerful message about how the people that r still around would feel. Everything about the song is so good, its one of my favorite and yea...311!!!!, sorry about that. Seems uncertain reminds of strawberry fields by the beatles wen the syth comes in in liek the 3 bar in the beginning. this song is very mellow adn a good easy listing song with a good message. after listenign to half the album i new the rest of the album would just continue to blow my mind which it did. The next song still dreaming is my favorite, its just the hard [rocks] rock song that S.A. just explodes on, which he really hasn't yet on the album till now and its definitly worth it adn also nick coming in the chorus which is just so awesome. Nick and S.A. r one of the best duo's in music, the two different styles adn there harmonies lets them do anything they want which allowes them to make awesome music all the time. Give me a call is next and this is jus tlike a very fun laid back beat which goes back and forth from the mellow verse to the rockin harmoinc chorus. Don't dwell opens up with a weird drum thing o nthe rim then WHAM peanut shows u wat he's got and that my friend it a ill bassline the drive the entire song. this song is a a fun rockin song with again the amazing harmonies of nick and peanut carring the fast fun rockin beat. Other side of things isnt my favorite song, but is still a good song, its just nothing spectacular lik ethe rest fo the albums been. the last song sometimes jacks rule the realm at first weirded me out but then as i listened on it was a really cool song that i never would of thought or heard 311 play. though this album has alot of mellow riffs which they found to be gold with amber but this is nothing like the rest. its a good song to just ist back and enjoy with a lil something at the end so be patient after the song is done, theres alil more. Overall this album was put together VERY WELL. With its transistor, 311, and soundsystem feel, i think tim mahoney creates awesome riffs which helps this album progress and evolve. Chad sexton seems to hold back on this album, which for album make sme a lil sad bc he has soo much skill its rediculous but a mans gotta do wat he's gotta do to make an album like this, Chad gets back during the live shows wen he rocks out of applied science with the amziign drum solo. Yea Chad!! Yea 311!!!

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Evolver review
"Evolver" is a very, well, evolved sound for 311, and it's a great album, but not quite defined yet. However, it is a great basis for what can be an astounding new sound for this terrific band.

1.Creatures (For A While) - 5/5. Great rocker. Many changes, but all are catchy and goes back to 311's roots.
2.Reconsider Everything - 3.5/5. Good song, not one of the best on the cd, but not bad.
3.Crack the Code - 5/5. GREAT song. One of my personal favorite 311 songs. Great lyrics and awesome vocals from S.A., he shines on this one.
4.Same Mistake Twice - 3/5. Although I like it when they play live, it seems really misplaced on this cd, ok song though.
5.Beyond the Gray Sky - 4/5. Nice song, with great lyrics. Very chill and laid back with a nice guitar solo props to Tim.
6.Seems Uncertain - 4.5/5. Very nice, acousic mellow song, although something missing from making it a GREAT song.
7.Still Dreaming - 3/5. Doesn't fit well with the rest of the album, kinda feels like filler, but ok song
8.Give Me A Call - 4.5/5. I like this song a lot, one of the songs i look forward to hearing when listening to the CD.
9.Don't Dwell - 4/5. Good song, not great, but good.
10.Other Side Of Things - 5/5. AWESOME song. Very oldschool 311, but sounds just gets you pumped out, which 311 does perfectly
11.Sometimes Jacks Rule The Realm - 4.5/5. I've never heard a song quite like this from 311, but it works very well, I'd like to hear more songs like this by them.

So there you have it 45.5/55 (82.7%). A good 311, but not a great one. It is worth your money if you're a fan, go buy!

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One year and still no gold; A hit in our hearts, nonetheless
It has been one year (effective July 22nd) since 311 have released the 41-minute masterpiece "Evolver" in the United States. Officially, Nielsen Soundscan (tm) reports the album resides in the collections of just over 310 000 souls (a figure that squawks to the record companies the relative success of a record), still failing to score yet another Gold record for a band that currently owns six for its audio recordings.

However, as fans will point out, after a year in the happy clutches of dreamers, thinkers, and the like, Evolver continues to deliver a hit for the soul.

Opening the set are the addictive hooks and shifting time signitures of "Creatures (For A While)," a song that soared and faded fast in the hot August sun last year. I still get pumped to that song when biking to work; it is a arm-pumping shot of funk/rock-rap adrenaline that leaves you asking for an encore. The following track, "Reconsider Everything" is lead singer Nick Hexum's face-value, Orwell-recalling assessment of the demolition of a free-thought society. "Crack The Code" promptly shifts the aura to funk-reggae and exhibits SA Martinez's vocal versatility well in his trademark, spacey lyrical style. The bashing, pre-chorus guitars and effortless [drummer Chad] Sexton rolloffs are perfect summer jam material. The Beatlesque "na-nahs" on "Same Mistake Twice" bridge near-staccato riffs (a la "Flowing" from Soundsystem, for those who know what I mean) of the chorus and a bouncing guitar-wall. Notably, the second single "Beyond The Gray Sky," (which did poorly on the charts) with its soulful dub and exploding solos, remind one of the sun bursting through a wall of cumulonimbi. This is undoubtedly the album's climax.

Next, the acoustic guitars and mellotrons of the "Seems Uncertain" are as beautiful as the track's message of human unity and tolerance, and provide a fine "after-the-rain" melody. "Still Dreaming" opens with some interesting electronic elements before erupting into Hexum's appeals to the audience and a cascade of SA's imagery into a finely-intonated chorus. "Give Me A Call" is meant to be an ironic wordplay on the silly nature of most relationships, but mostly comes off as a fun little light reggae track that, surprisingly, exhibits the only hint of SA's turntabling prowess (why?!). "Don't Dwell" is an uplifting march into the "Evolved" state of mind with a Latin feel to it, and its partner "Other Side Of Things" has "final single" written all over it with its curiously-catchy, Offspring-like chorus and well-played lyrics. Closing the set is the biggest surprise on the album: "Sometimes Jacks Rule The Realm." Although the lyrical focus of this track is somewhat skewed, one is too lost in the folk-rock feel to notice. An added bonus "Coda" completes the song and reaffirms bassist P-Nut his place with an intimate sequence beyond description.

To offer such a detailed portrait without concessions or criticism is not fair, and the very nature thereof serves to further the musical development or "Evolution" of the music. With a work of art such as "Evolver" (both in the album and the cover/lyric book!), I must simply ask the listener to remain open and willing to give it a close listen. My biggest criticism is its length (once again, just over 41 minutes) and the reduced volume level of the recording. Yes, the recorded volume level is a bit lower than that of other albums I have. This is undoubtedly the work of producer Ron St. Germain and his love of analog techniques, meaning you will have to adjust your stereo a little for full effect.

Perhaps after the success of their Greatest Hits album released in June, new fans will spring for "Evolver" and give it the certification it deserves as a creative and commercial success for the band 311.