Dirtbag Republic – ‘Bad Decisions’ |
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Cast of the Bad Decisions:
Sandy Hazard – Vocals
Mick Wood – Guitars (lead guitar on all tracks. Except, “Wait A Minute” where he plays the first half of the solo)
Mike Federici – Guitar (lead guitar solo on the second on half of “Wait A Minute”)
Ed Nijjer – Drums (“Don’t ask me I’m just the drummer!!”)
Todd Stefanson – Bass
Roger Saloum - Piano
TRACK FRAGMENTS:
1.)”I Don’t Care” –Outside of a few notes this intro consisted of two rhythm guitar riffs. After the opening measure Todd and Ed kick the bass and drum rhythm in. For me, the hook of the intro and verse came from the bass and drums. The two lock-in to a nice pocket giving the song a sweet hook. The verse kick-in consisted of Sandy singing a little vocal accent. From right off of the the short intro arrangement an you can hear the amazing hook this song will have!!!! Mick and Mike changed the rhythm guitar arrangement of the verse just enough to give the verse’s music arrangement a different sound but keep the same feel. In between every two lyric lines of the verse Sandy sings the song title. There was a very short bass drum and snare drum note change connecting the verse with the pre-chorus. There was a very small rhythm guitar arrangement change for the pre-chorus. Ed played a snare fill connecting the pre-chorus and chorus (“Is this thing on? Do I need it? Better shout louder don’t need to repeat it!”) - Just lyrically epic! I loved it!! Mick and Mike also change the rhythm guitar arrangements for the chorus. The lyric and music arrangement of the choruses consisted of a completely mind blowing hook!! (I’ve been a huge fan of Dirtbag Republic since their last release titled, ‘Tear Down Your Idols’. This as to be one of the best songs the guys have written!) Little would I know that this will not be the best song on the release. There was a little guitar effect and minor guitar solo connecting the chorus with the second verse. The second verse is basically a repeat of the first, as well as the second chorus. After the second chorus there was a breakdown section that leads to Mick played a second lead guitar solo. This solo is the main lead guitar solo. After the second solo Sandy basically repeats the titled of the song over the outro.
2.) “Wait A Minute” – This intro consisted of a minor lead guitar solo over the top of the musical intro. This solo was played by Mick. The major solo in between the second chorus and third chorus was performed by Mike. It is songs like these that really turned me into a fan of Dirtbag Republic’s. The guys just know how to write great lyrics with great music arrangements.
3.) “Bipolar Rollercoaster” – Every band will release an album that album will always have that one track that makes the release worth recording. For me this was that song!!!!It was just EPIC!!! Every time I put it on, I rotate it at least ten times!
4.) “I Fought Them All” – This intro opened with Ed playing a (1+2+3+4+ etc…) at first I thought Ed was just counting in. However, he continues this hi-hat rhythm throughout the intro adding cymbal crashes at the end of each measure. Over the top of the cymbal crashes are guitar and bass notes. After eight bars of music the main musical intro kicks-in. There was a small snare drum fill kicking in the main musical intro section. The musical intro consisted of a lead guitar arrangement over the top of a different rhythm guitar arrangement. This is just another thing on the list that shows the talent the band has. There was a rhythm guitar change for the musical verse. At this point both Mick and Mike play the same rhythm guitar arrangement. The pre-chorus consisted of a rhythm guitar change. The chorus also consisted of a rhythm guitar change. The lyric arrangement of the chorus consisted of a very catchy hook. After the third chorus there was a lead guitar solo. This solo ran underneath the fourth chorus and through the outro section.
5.) “Here I Am” –Ed kicked the song in with a snare drum note. That kicked in the musical arrangement. Over the top of the main musical intro Mick played a minor lead guitar solo. In between the rhythm guitar, bass and drums the band got Roger Saloum to play piano on this song. Mike kind of laid back and letting the piano become the main rhythm. This intro alone having such a phenomenal hook to it. Then you can just imagine the huge hook that is coming up for the choruses. The guys changed the rhythm arrangement for the verse. One of the first things I noticed was how different Sandy sounded vocally. If I didn’t know I would have thought one of the other members was singing it. When I first listened to this song I thought to myself the musical verse sounds empty. However, after the first lyric line Mike filled the song in with lead guitar runs. He continued this choruses also. Doing this not only gave the song a more depth and filled-in that emptiness. This also gave the song a more delightful hook. The first ½ of the first and second lyric lines consisted of backing vocals. Then they added backing vocals on the rest of the lyric lines of the choruses. I would say 90% of all drummers play a hi-hat opening/closing hi-hat pattern when using the ride cymbal. This is to add a rhythmic groove (if you will a pulse) to the song. Ed’s microphone picked up the tambourine that was attached to his hi-hat. Very seldom can you hear this. However, you can on this track so you really get a feel of just how important opening/closing the hi-hat will playing the ride is so important. The verse and chorus was repeated before the rhythm change for the solo section. Instead of a guitar solo the guys opted for a piano solo instead. After the piano solo there was two repeated choruses to connect the two choruses together there was a lead guitar pick slide effect. I did notice until the last play through that on the second verse Sandy completely changed his vocal style. Because of the songs subject matter Sandy doing this makes the song’s essence more important. (Or it does to me anyway) The coda consisted of the last chorus. The guys wrote and arranged this semi-ballad to where in many ways it had almost a seventies rock feel. Now, if Ed or Sandy had told me this before I heard it, I would have probably said, “ohhh, you guys are full of shit”.
6.) “Bad Decisions” – “Bad Decisions” along with: “I Don’t Care”, Bipolar Disorder” and “I fought the Law” were the first songs Dirtbag released for this album. Though I liked all four this one just may be of my most favorite of the four. Especially lyrically!
7.) “Streetlight Paradise” –Ed opened this track with a snare crack. The main musical intro consisted of a minor lead guitar solo over the top of a fairly simple rhythm guitar riff. There was a rhythm arrangement change for the musical verse. For this rhythm arrangement change both Mike and Mick switch to where both guitarists are playing the same guitar rhythm. Underneath the rhythm guitar arrangements of the verse Ed and Todd lock into a driving rhythm section. Though this song consisted of both a pre-verse and verse the band used the same musical arrangement for both of them. It is either that or the verse consisted of eight lyric lines. Which, I don’t believe I have ever came across. For the last measure before the chorus the band in a way changed the time of the song. There was a rhythm guitar change for the musical chorus. The way Sandy arranged the lyric lines of the chorus gave it a very simple hook. Connecting the third lyric line with the fourth lyric line of the chorus Mick played a couple lead guitar notes. These notes ran underneath the fourth lyric line. Which the fourth lyric line just repeated the song title. After the second chorus there was a lead guitar solo. The coda consisted of a third chorus.
8.) “Hard In the City” – This track opens with the full band playing a triplet before kicking in the main musical intro. Over the top of the musical intro Mick played a minor lead guitar solo. To me, Mick’s minor guitar solo of the intro section had a very seventies Rock style to it. Not only was there a rhythm guitar change for the musical verse. Sandy sang a single lyric. This lyric ran over the top of the musical arrangement and under the first lyric of the opening lyric line. They engineered this in such away to where the two lyrics will stop at the same time. Sandy did the same thing lyrically with the second lyric line. The first underling lyric was “hard” and the second was “washing away yea” If the piano arrangement continued throughout the verse then it got swallowed within the music. In between each lyric line of the pre-chorus there were a few lead guitar notes. The third and fourth lyric line of the pre-chorus consisted of backing vocals. There was a rhythm guitar change for the musical chorus. The musical chorus consisted of a lead guitar arrangement over the top of a rhythm guitar arrangement. Mick played a single rhythm riff connecting the second verse with the second chorus. For the musical chorus there was a rhythm guitar change along with a minor lead guitar solo. After the third chorus there was a major lead guitar solo. After the guitar solo there was a fourth chorus for the coda. There was a short rest then drum fill ending the song.
9.) “Smotherin’ Me” – HOLY SHIT!!!! I had no clue my friends had this song in them!!!!
10.) “Cocaine Heart” – Over the top of this musical intro there was a minor lead guitar solo. The guitar arrangements of the verse consisted of both acoustic and electric guitar arrangements. There was a build-up musical bridge connecting the verse with the chorus. Underneath the musical pre-chorus there was a lead guitar arrangement over the top of the rhythm guitar. For the second verse the band not only had the acoustic and electric guitar rhythm but also incorporated a lead guitar rhythm. There was a musical arrangement build up connecting the second chorus. There was a short musical bridge connecting the second chorus with the lead guitar solo. After guitar solo there was a thirds chorus. This chorus led to the coda. Over the top of the coda there were several repeats of the song title. There was a few amazing bass notes played on the musical coda. This is the only real time where Todd lets his hair down music wise.
11.) “Light Your Fuse” – This was just a classic seventies Punk song. A few of the highlights musically was the lead guitar solo work and the two different rhythm guitar arrangements.
Steven Tyler (Aerosmith) famously once said, “An artist is much like a painter. You are only as good as your last painting, or in this case release”.
First off, I apologize for this taking so long I’ve had a few medical issues, and every time I’ve tried to write this I absolutely just could quit listening to it!
However, now that bands have the power of the world at that their finger tips. Along with the power of DWA’s (Digital Audio Workstations) like; Avid Pro Tools, Apple Logic Pro X, etc…
However, this is a whole new world. Where band members can record their arrangements via software and submit their arrangements. Unless you are in a band, you really do not realize how much easier this is. (Using me as an example: Being in a rented studio made me a little uncomfortable. I just never could copy the drum patterns in the same way as in our rehearsal room). The reason I’m bring this up is because I feel it is the same way for the members of Dirtbag Republic.