Arrows Of Desire Stream

[Outtahere]

Tips, for guitar/bass amplification, there are two pieces of equipment that go into it - the head (or amplifier) where your volume and tone shaping controls are, and the speaker. You can get combo amps that combine these two elements into one package.

 

Here is a picture of a Fender Tonemaster head/speaker set up (Matt sold one of these to user Finboy!)

 

 

And here's an image of a combination bass amp:

 

 

Ahh thanks for the... tip ;-)

 

I've been playing guitar for almost 20 odd years and I couldn't understand how he could change a head as in where the string are tied! lol

 

All the (very few) amps I've had (I'm not a professionnal) have been a one piece like the second example you gave me.

Edited September 17, 2013 by Tips

[Computer]

I think this is my favourite album since Hospital Music. Every song has incredible depth that seems effortless compared to LOES and Vancouver which, while great albums almost seem too forced to me in their musical approach. I can't wait for my Vinyl to get here.

[Guest Bimbly]

this is an accessible album, and plays to Matt's strengths as a (Good forgive me) catchy rock writer, but it's not a total "comeback" of that style. seems to me that since the dissolution of MGB, Matt oscillates between an "experimental"/quiet LP to a more MGB-esque release. those are broader designators than the albums deserve, but lets see if i can briefly qualify my thoughts.

 

avalanche - experimental in sound, sometimes structurally. matt broadens his palette. weapon is a great designator.

white light - the narrative was, as i remember, "straight to tape rock". there are obvious exceptions.

hospital music - experimental. fuckin thing starts with a 9 minute song. *drops mic*

vancouver - long song form, but melodically and, in my opinion, production wise reminiscent of the MGB. empty's theme park, structure aside, could be on beautiful midnight.

lights - presented, and written with extensive orchestration in mind.

arrows - yes, much more concise in presentation, but melodically not so far removed from vancouver.

[foats]

I was younger when Beautiful Midnight came out maybe 16 or so? (1999 right) and didn't get it til I was 18 and oddly enough only became a Matt Good fan because he was feuding with one of my favorite bands Our Lady Peace. I instantly fell in love with MGB and my father even went to Canada to buy me Matt's book and Audio Of Being. I just could't and still can't believe how these albums weren't bigger in the US. I lived 5 hrs from Canada and people still weren't familiar with Matt's work. I would later purchase Underdogs at a Media Play for $30 as an import. It's funny though because everytime I play a Matt Good or MGB song people ask "who is that" or say "this is great". I strongly feel if given the air play this album could get Matt noticed here in the states. I just worry that Matt has given up on trying to break out in the states. Either way this is an amazing piece of work and for those lucky enough to hear these songs live I am envious. thank you Matt.

[finboy]

What really stands out to me (aside from the drum sound which REALLY reminds me of avalanche and wlrrr) is how much this album sounds like a late 80's or early 90's indie album, Matt NAILED the feeling of the whole thing and you cand definitely hear the influences, but in his own unique style.

 

Good job matt, you have once again shown your flexibility moving from LOES to this, even if it isn't a big seller it is the kind of album people will seek out for "that sound"

 

As per amps, Matt still has a tone-master (he had 2), and used it to record up to vancouver (usually bass tracks) so I am curious to hear if it was used this time around.

[Curtster]

Amazing album. Just listened to it front to back in one shot, it's hard to say for sure until some time goes by, but this may become my personal favourite Matt Good album. The standouts for me are Via Dolorosa, Mutineering, Hey Hell Heaven and Letters in Wartime.

 

I can't claim to be an audio expert, but to me this album just sounds beautiful. Love the how the drums sound, as well as Pat's drumming.

 

As others have mentioned, one of my favourite things about Matt's career is how each album has a different sound than the last, yet each one still has his unmistakable signature on it. I loved Hospital Music, Vancouver and LOES, but deep down I've been wanting to hear a heavier album for a while now. Arrows delivers on that wish big time.

 

I see no reason why several tracks off this couldn't be very successful on rock radio. It's an album that's great for radio in my opinion, and it deserves some play.

 

Congrats Matt on putting out yet another awesome album. Can't wait to hear these songs live, I may even end up at more than one date on this tour!

[mackie1023]

I'm really digging this album. I recall being blown away by LOES driving alone on a 6 hour road trip. I didn't listen to any snippets or demos or anything really before it came out. I went the opposite route this time and it was just as exciting. I think that after LOES, this is really refreshing for me. I still love We're Long Gone as much as when I first heard it, a lot of these songs have an energy to them that I was missing from the older stuff. While there's a slight familiarity to some of it, like in Had It Coming and Hey Hell Heaven, it's combined with a punchiness I haven't heard in the solo stuff. And then there's Garden of Knives, Mutineering and Letters in Wartime. Probably my favorites.

 

I'm rambling here. Pretty much, good work Matt!

[RileyLewis]

Mutineering is quickly becoming my favourite.

[Guest girl]

I absolutely love Guns of Carolina. It's my new favorite song. The lyrics video really complements it as well. Kudos to the label. Great job. The same goes for the Hey Hell Heaven and Had It Coming lyrics videos. They were amusing and interesting to watch. I haven't listened to the entire album yet, but from what I hear here I have a feeling this album will top all of Matt's other albums to date. I'm excited to hear the rest of the songs on CBC's stream. I'm listening to it now. Thanks for the link joeposh.

[mackie1023]

Yes, I love the Hey Hell Heaven lyrics video. It just went along with the feel of the song and gave a slight nod to MGB with the monkey masks.

[Manchalivin]

Oh how people are getting me pretty anxious to hear this album, but I've waited this long to listen and hope to be able to purchase the CD as close to release date as possible. Will be great to pop in a Matthew Good CD mostly unheard not knowing what to expect again.

[raygunner]

This is a really stellar album. After a few listens I think it's my favourite since WLRRR. The raw guitar sound brings it back to basics making it a true rock record. This one will play out well live and I imagine Matt will have fun with it much like he did on the WLRRR Tour (by far the most energetic on stage since the MGB days).

 

Glad to see Matt relying less on drum machine parts. IMO the same intro-leading-into-a-steady-drum-beat thing really bothered me about the last few albums. It all just seemed like it could have used a real drummers' finesse vs. something created in Garage band then recorded by a session drummer in the studio.

[RileyLewis]

The only thing this album is missing is a longer experimental-style track like Non Populus or Near Fantastica, etc. Letters in Wartime is close in terms of length, but doesn't have quite the same build to it as the aforementioned songs. The omission is easy enough to forgive however for the fact that all 10 tracks are so strong.

[Young Grasshopper]

The only thing this album is missing is a longer experimental-style track like Non Populus or Near Fantastica, etc. Letters in Wartime is close in terms of length, but doesn't have quite the same build to it as the aforementioned songs. The omission is easy enough to forgive however for the fact that all 10 tracks are so strong.

 

Agreed... was hoping for a Champions of nothing type effort for one track, but it doesn't take away from the overall project which is full of great listenable songs with tons of layers and textures.

 

The oddest part of that chart projection is that this is easily your most radio friendly album since Avalanche, and perhaps even the MGB era. I think "Had It Coming" set the tone nicely for the album, and spoke to the influences that inspired you to make this record, but is probably the least accessible song for a general audience. If "Arrows of Desire" gets a fair shake at radio, I could see it really turning some heads and getting the album some sales traction.

 

Then again, maybe all of this just speaks to how far rock radio has fallen in the past 5 years. In the US it's hard to even find a station that consistently plays rock music, let alone breaks new songs. I'd imagine it's a similar state of affairs up north.

 

Agreed... best complete album since Avalanche. Regarding radio reaction... I can see Garden of knives taking off down the same path "Weapon" took, and if we are living in a sane world, than "Mutineering" should see lots of air time as well.

 

If I rate the tunes to my tastes, I've got...

 

1. (tie) Mutineering / Garden of Knives

3. Hey Hell Heaven

4. Arrows of desire

5. Guns of Carolina

6. (tie) Had it Coming / Via Delorosa

8. Letters in Wartime

9. Were Long Gone

10. So Close

 

Shows the quality of this album release if you consider that my last 2 are very listenable. Love it's commercial rebound potential after LOES (even though I loved a lot of that album myself). The funny thing about Mutineering is... I'm waiting for Matt to bust out "the baby Jesus loves the company" and "where has my head gone"...lol, of course I like Mutineering better than that one.

Edited September 18, 2013 by Young Grasshopper

[joeposh]

Mutineering has definite Audio of Being vibes, especially in regards to Matt's vocal style. I had the same "Tripoli" flashbacks at points.

[RileyLewis]

I get the same vibe with that vocal style, and I love it!

 

If I HAD to rate them now (and surely this will change over time):

 

1. Mutineering/Garden of Knives

2. We're Long Gone/Letters in Wartime/Arrows of Desire

3. Hey Hell Heaven/Via Dolorsa

4. So Close

5. Guns of Carolina

6. Had It Coming

 

Something like that. I envy those of you who haven't heard the songs yet and will be able to go through them all at once for the first time!

Edited September 18, 2013 by RileyLewis

[Outtahere]

Lyrics! Lyrics! Lyrics! Lyrics! Lyrics! Lyrics! Lyrics! Lyrics! :tp:

I wish that thing said "lyrics" instead of "Off Topic". I had a protest chant in mind... anyway :lol:

[Crusader]

http://bc.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1006251&binId=1.1184756&playlistPageNum=1

 

MG played Guns of Carolina on CTV.

[uglyredhonda]

He also played "Guns of Carolina" on something called The Rush (apparently on a Shaw Cable cable access channel). For some reason, the clip includes Lance setting up and Matt's soundcheck, including a run-through of "Guns" (so he performs it twice in the clip).

 

http://new.livestrea...videos/30349380

Edited September 19, 2013 by uglyredhonda

[AnOceanPearl]

I think the Rush is a Shaw TV show. The only reason I can think of why you'd see Lance and Matt playing the song twice is that the livestream was just covering Matt, while people watching the show on TV would be presented with other segments while Matt was getting ready.

[SS53]

Really enjoying this album. A lot. Very few albums feel so great to me upon first listen. It's a wonderful surprise. Not that I expected it to be bad, mind you, but for some reason I really couldn't get into "Lights..." as well as I did, say, "Vancouver" which I thought was a downright brilliant record. (Though I think a possible reason I didn't quite dig on LOES was the fact that I was following along with the M+ demo releases, and felt there were some absolute fucking gems there that weren't represented on the final album. Mind you, that's not my call to make. Obviously Matt wasn't confident in them, or downright didn't like them, and that's fine. I'm just bummed they seem to have disappeared from the internet, hahaha).

 

"Arrows..."; Definitely reminds me of the MGB style of catchy tunes, with loud guitars, and fantastic chord changes. Love the sound of the bass, too, which sounds like it carries right over from "Vancouver". The riffs, tones, melodies, and vocals are some of the best Matt's done, if you ask me. I can't really comment, lyrically. I've never been much of the poetic type. He could literally sing the phone book, and if the melody is good, I'll like it. I'm very much about "sounds", and not necessarily words. Not that I have anything against them. I like singing along to songs as much as the next person.

 

Not to sidetrack too much, but on the topic of whether or not it can make a dent on charts, who knows? Lord knows it's good enough, but just go to YouTube and watch Matt's Rant on Tit's and Ass, and that absolutely still rings true, now, perhaps, more than ever. Christ, in Newfoundland we don't even have a single radio station that plays Modern/Alternative rock. Perhaps a show or two on the University radio, but otherwise, it's 2 Top 40 stations, 1 classic rock station that plays the occasional MGB tune, maybe, and a soft rock/easy listening station. No wonder Matt's not doing a show here on this tour. Sucks for me, and a lot of other Newfies, but I'm not sure I can blame him, honestly. Last time he was in St. John's he was stuck playing the shitty campus bar (which was awesome, by the way - too cool to see a show like that in such an intimate venue), while Bill Cosby was playing the stadium.

[OriginalSpecies]

Really enjoying this one--it's definitely surpassing my expectations! The notion of a "back to basics"-type record after the brilliant LoES... I dunno, I just thought he knocked that one so far out of the park that to continue down any other path would be a disservice to what, IMO, that record achieved :dg:

 

Of course then I actually listened to the latest record, and, as usual w/ Matthew Good, it surprised me in familiar ways--I've noticed that, w/ Good's solo outings at least, there's always some apprehension, as a fan, of where Good is going musically.

 

 

"What?? No more Matthew Good Band?? Going solo?! Just go and "hug it out, bitch" w/ the guitar player so I won't be disappointed with whatever you're puttin' out..."

Of course, Avalanche comes out, and I think it's one of the greatest things I've ever heard.

 

 

"What?? An ACOUSTIC album?! But that's not your thing--you're a rock guy. Just pick up the electric guitar so I won't be bored to tears. Pretty pleeeaaaaase??"

And then I listen to Hospital Music, and it's just one of those records that I'll always remember--you know the ones that come out at just the right time, and you can sorta shape the melodies around what you're going through (even moreso than with most of your favorite songs); it's easily one of my favorite records.

 

 

"C'mon, Matt, don't go there--there's a lot to be said for just crafting a strong melody! The music will just be way too cerebral and completely lacking in the visceral. I lost Radiohead earlier this year; I swear I won't be able to take it if I lose you, too!"

And of course Lights of Endangered Species turns out to be, IMO, the closest thing Matthew Good has come to crafting the perfect album.

 

 

"Alright, alright, so you're just gonna drop the brilliantly beautiful experimentation you achieved w/ LoES and instead focus your musical prowess on crafting... a rock album, one that is deliberately stripped of innovation and made to sound like a relic from the early '90s." And, obviously, I'm lovin' the hell out of Arrows of Desire (for the time being, I've changed my homepage to one of the sites streaming the record).

 

But my reaction is still a bit different this time--there seems to've been a kind of pattern with Good's records in the past, where I'll be just absolutely floored by one album, and then have a somewhat tepid response to the followup (these 2 being "WLR&RR" and "Vancouver"). So while I enjoyed "Had it Coming" and "We're Long Gone" when I first head 'em, they didn't do much for me. But after hearing the album as a whole, they're clearly integral to the overall feel of the record (though, to be fair, most of Good's albums have a cohesive thread to them). I'm really kind of shocked, honestly, by how much I'm enjoying this somewhat brief collection of songs, and perhaps even more impressed that, by the time "Letters in Wartime" comes to an end, a simple imitation of this period of music that had a tremendous influence on Good could evoke such an enthusiastic appreciation for that music from me.

 

 

oh and also here are my song rankings XD

 

 

10. So Close

 

09. We're Long Gone

 

08. Had It Coming

 

07. Guns of Carolina

 

06. Hey Hell Heaven

 

05. Arrows of Desire

 

04. Mutineering

 

03. Letters in Wartime

 

02. Via Dolorosa

 

01. Garden of Knives

[Young Grasshopper]

I'm definitely appreciating "Letters in Wartime" more lately and it has passed "Guns of Carolina" on my list. Not sure if it was on purpose or if Matt even considers them an influence, but I'm hearing a lot of Tragically Hip there.

[RileyLewis]

I just can't believe how much Mutineering could fit on Audio of Being. And I'm not saying that's either a good or bad thing (though the album was great). But wow it would fit on there.

 

Can't get enough of the song though.

[Young Grasshopper]

"Wait till I get my cross on straight" ...awesome!