Gender: Joined: 12 Mar 2006 Posts: 4367 Status: User Location: Look where my hand was.
Posted: Fri Jan 26, 2007 3:46 am Post subject: A Special Review Thread, Comments Plz
So, I'm reviewing some stuff for the newspaper, and it needs some real kick. I mean, really. The game review (Phoenix Wright) needs to be good enough that it can "unseat" the guy that does game reviews, and it's disheartening to have seen the editors face when she said how good they were, so... I need help. The other is a CD review of the new Clap Your Hands Say Yeah album (I pre-ordered it and got to download it on the 16th). Same rules. First, Phoenix, then Yeah.
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The thunderous clatter of the gavel. The pounding of the desk in defiance. The one word that can turn your case around: OBJECTION!
Yes, everybody's favorite defense attorney, Phoenix Wright, is back in Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice for All, the second import title for the Nintendo DS from the hit Game Boy Advance series in Japan. The goal? Acquit your witness, because their life depends on it.
Now you may say to yourself: "a video game about LAW? BORING!" Fear not, for the story line is as embracing as the first and does what a sequel should: expand on the story and, of course, present new cases. Your first case is relatively easy, and if you haven't played, the game tries to fill you in as best you can within the first few minutes of the trial. In fact, the first trial is already in the bag - you, as an attorney, must discover the lies and inaccuracies in the witness' testimony. For example, when a witness states that the victim was clearly right-handed, but all evidence points to the fact that he was indeed left-handed, you must choose the piece of evidence or profile of a character (the latter is a new feature), and tap "Present" or shout "OBJECTION!" (which is a blast in an empty room). It's a highly engrossing experience and some of it will require some of your deepest logic since your philosophy class.
However, therein lies the problem. Some of the fallacies or inaccuracies are simply speculation or are so minute that simply guessing may serve you better if you didn't pay great attention to details. Again, the first case is easy, but each of the four chapters gets longer as you investigate crime scenes and battle it out in the courtroom. However, one of the nicest features is being able to save at any point during the game and start back right where you left off. Phoenix Wright: Justice for All is a highly engrossing experience, and if you love a good murder mystery, it'll grab and hold onto you until you're done with all four cases.
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We are greeted by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's second album, Some Loud Thunder with one of the most infernal sounds I've ever heard. The first time I listened, I checked the quality of the file or if something had gone wrong or if my speakers were broken. Somehow, the Brooklyn five-piece one-upped their last album's opener and circus-freak accident "Clap Your Hands!" by messing with the sound quality of nearly every instrument in "Some Loud Thunder," and... it's catchy.
Some Loud Thunder... Clap Your Hands Say Yeah... danceable? With their second album and producer Dave Fridmann, the band has moved towards a more atmospheric and darker, mistier sound, which has produced some of their best songs to date, including the mesmerizing "Mama, Won't You Keep Those Castles in the Air & Burning?" and the dancer "Satan Said Dance." The more pop-oriented songs, like the lead single, "Love Song No. 7" are on par with the last album, but most anything by the band can probably never crack the mainstream charts because of Alec Ounsworth's warbling, almost whiny voice. Yet in most songs, he fits seamlessly into the music.
The problem with this album is there are a few missteps along the way, like the rampant interference into the sound, like on "Some Loud Thunder" and "Arm & Hammer," which I can't seem to figure out why they put it on the album. It sounds like a rough demo that can't even be compared to the short instrumentals on the first disc. The closer, "Five Easy Pieces," echoes the vocals a bit too much, which makes the song a bit boring and drawn-out rather than the "good-bye anthem" that it was intended to be, and at 6:47, it's a long long and drawn-out song.
Beyond those issues, however, there's a solid album here, even as Clap Your Hands Say Yeah seems desperate to maintain the "Hardest Band to Like" title. To help ease new listeners into their music, the band has two songs from the album that can be downloaded for free ["Love Song No. 7" and "Underwater (You and Me)"] from their website, http://www.clapyourhandssayyeah.com, and these are easily the most accessible tracks from the album. With time, the band's merit will show itself, and even moreso with this sophomore effort. _________________
Gender: Joined: 13 Mar 2006 Posts: 6077 Status: Moderator
Posted: Sat Jan 27, 2007 7:22 am Post subject:
if you can't say anything nice... _________________ Come into my den let me hear you cluck
You can be my hen and we can f(Bu-GAWK)
A bite to the leg, it's time to play
Baby, let me be your egg that needs to get laid.
- CEO Nwabudike Morgan
"The Chicken of Lust"
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