Poppy - ZIG album Review

Poppy is back once again with more new music and this time she drops a brand-new album akin to I Disagree onto our laps. A few songs on here I heard prior to the album's drop as they were released as singles. Zig is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Poppy, released on October 27, 2023, through Sumerian Records.

Church Outfit

Kicks off the album with its synthy bass followed by aggressive vocals from Poppy. Interesting start to the album maybe more synth, bass like instrumentals to follow. Poppy has explored and experimented with many genre's maybe this album will be metal/electronica.

Knockoff

Once again another catchy synthy club bass song. I love the chorus of this and how Poppy sings it and the accompanying vocals "I want to know" is so good. It's such a catchy one, it got stuck in my head and was played on repeat when this dropped as a single.

Hard

The most recent released single from the album, follows the tune of the last few with some more of the industrial, synth instrumental with poppy's soft sing-song voice. Quite a catchy chorus too. Oh, dear lord we get aggressive around the 1:45 mark before calming back down.

What It Becomes

This one starts off with the strong violin and then Poppy sings with silence which echoes and whirs as the instruments swell and build up. Around the 2min mark we get this distorted slowed voice before Poppy comes back with her softly sung lines.

Flicker

This kicks off with sort of electronic drum and bass along with Poppy's soft vocals, and we get some more violins to close it out.

1S + OS

Electronic and synthy as Poppy commands the track with her confident vocals following the chorus I feel. I dig this one.

Zig

The album's title track plays now, and it's quite a synthy electro pop song to kick off. This is damn catchy! Ooof them synthy breakdowns and then we get a chugging riff and some booming kick drums as we build up to the chorus and boom "when you zig, i zag, when you zig, i zag, i zig zag." Oh yeah this feels like something The Matrix films would use in the soundtrack or John Wick films in a club fight scene.

Linger

A slow acoustic stripped back start with this one until 1min mark where we get the electro feel back into this track. It's a nice one.

The Attic

Its soft, but we quickly get caught up in the fast-paced drum and bass. It's a lot to take it in, and I do feel the fast drum bass is a bit much but when the chorus swells and erupts it's a nice addition which ends with a few lovely piano tones.

Motorbike

Alright get on, we got a robotic lady walking us into the track before Poppy swiftly takes over as the robot accompanies as some back up vocals at points. The chorus is so fast and catchy, and it's good. I admit when I first heard this when it dropped as a single I was not into it but now after hearing all of the album to now and hearing this again in my headphones, I am moving and singing along best I can to it haha.

Prove It

Time for the last song on this album, almost distorted vocals and piano keys kick off this track before the vocals get more sharp and distorted as the drum and bass pounds. The chorus and vocals are quite stunning. Around 1:21 in the song we get more distorted and synth and drum and bassy. All before the track slows back down with its chorus and fades out with electronic static, that's it folks.

Although the album clocks in with 11 tracks which only lasts around 30 mins total for the album, she covers a lot of ground with tracks capturing different emotions and feels. Poppy said it best "when you zig, I zag" as she continues to branch out and explore the different musical genre's and styles of instruments to accompany her wonderful voice and creative talents. Poppy is ever evolving and creating, and I love how she does it. The themes of the album are that of love and disconnection and also a sense of empowerment, that's what I am taking away from this album. Although "I Disagree" is still my fave album from Poppy, this one is a nice entry onto her album catalogue and I will always recommend Poppy to people searching for new music because she has something for everyone and I feel she is so overlooked and underrated.

7/10

In Loving Memory Of Steve Evans

Hello everyone, so a close family friend has unfortunately and unexpectedly passed away today....this is raw to me, and I am still in shock, and it's been 6 hours (as of writing) since I had the news broken to me from my best friend James, that his Dad has passed away.

James told me last night his dad was not well and had to go to hospital. 11am James contacted me as he needed someone, so I stayed with James and chilled and chatted and tried to distract him from the uncertainty of what was going on. It was a difficult task because we were both holding out for hope and both scared and uncertain of what to do or say or how things were looking. Steve I did my best to look after and comfort your son and I will always do that for you. Anyway, what makes me so much in shock is like we did not see this coming at all, there were no signs, he was fine and then just gone?! I know not of what I am writing or the goal of this post, it's a vent, it's raw, it's shock, it's emotional and so sad.

I have known James and his family for like 20 odd years, So I have been treated pretty much like family by my best friend James and his family. Steven Evans was like a second Dad to me, I was always treated with utmost respect and love and care by him. Steve always made everyone smile and laugh. He had killer Ozzy & Borat impressions that always made me laugh and smile. Steve would always be found at his beloved Chepstow Racing Course or in the Cardiff City Stadium watching his precious Blue Birds go at it in any home game of footie. When Steve was not at his beloved places he would be at home or on the farm or out and about with James or their dogs Leo and Sam. Sam unfortunately passed a few years back now but wow what a dog he was.

Whenever I gamed with James at night, Steve would always come into James room and greet him with some banter nicknames which always tickled us all, from calling James "sadness" or "child" it would always result in a "wtf haha" moment. James would often complain of Steve walking in his room at random points just to let a ripper off (a fart). Life doesn't make sense sometimes how good people can just be taken away with no signs, no indication that something isn't right. Never thought Steve would leave us, let alone this early in life, 60 is still too young.

The last interaction I had was Steve was upon leaving James house Thursday night/Early Hours Friday morning after Steve picked me and James up from seeing Electric Callboy in Bristol. I thanked him for taking me and giving me a lift home and said take care, and I'll see you soon. He said the same to me. I always made sure to thank him and treat him with the most utmost respect and politeness, he was a man that deserved the best and nothing else. On any car journey or trip James and Steve would play Yellow Car and also a game they made up where you make a sentence up from the last 3 letters of a car's reg plate and now that game always provided such laughs. If I was ever a bother or burden or annoying, please know, I am so sorry Steve.

This is the last photo I have of Steve.

I have no idea when the weight of this will sink in for myself, let alone James and his family. I keep expecting to hear someone say that it's some sort of prank or lie, but It does not seem to be happening, like James said to me, "this feels like some sort of sick dream I am waiting to be woken up from" and same here James....same here....

Furthermore, I wish I could have hugged and thanked Steve and told him, I loved him and how much he means to me, before he left this mortal plane. I hope he knew. I hope James and his family will be as OK as they can and that Steve can look out for them from beyond this world too. I am so sorry James. Please know I will give as much space as possible to the family and do whatever I can to help out, whenever I can. I am so sorry for your loss and I will love and miss him forever and always cherish the memories that I have of the legendary, Steven Evans.

Braindead (1992) FILM REVIEW

Peter Jackson, Zombies, Gore, Ridiculousness and comedy, this is what today's Horror Movie Review contains in 1992's Braindead. Oh, and yes it is THE Peter Jackson of LOTR fame.

Overprotective mother Vera Cosgrove (Elizabeth Moody), spying on her grown son, Lionel (Timothy Balme), as he visits the zoo with the lovely Paquita (Diana Peñalver), is accidentally bitten by the fearsome Sumatran rat-monkey. When the bite turns his beloved mother into a zombie, Lionel tries to keep her locked safely in the basement, but her repeated escapes turn most of the neighbors into the walking dead, who then crash a high-society party thrown by Lionel's boorish Uncle Les (Ian Watkin).

Ridiculously gory and funny. I did feel it dragged in parts. Crazy and creative practical zombie designs. A super sized lawnmowers. The final act has everything covered in thick blood and it reminds me of someone throwing a full blown McDonald's strawberry milkshake all over the place haha. The zombie baby was annoying but funny. The thicc zombie at the end was just the most ridiculous thing and trust me this film gets more and more over the top as you go through it, it's almost as if Peter Jackson kept pushing the roof of ridiculousness haha. 

The fact it tries to bring you a serious deep story revelation at the end was out of place for me and the fact the thicc zombie could talk and think like a human compared to the mindless zombies was something else too. See what I mean by it keeps getting ridiculous. It's not a film to take seriously by any means and my god is it entertaining haha. I've just been laughing and saying "what the fuck" for a large majority of this classic cult horror film haha.

God damn early years of Peter Jackson was fucking nuts! Defo has to have been somewhat influenced by Evil Dead. Easily the most ridiculous horror film I've ever seen. I can't believe this film just ends though haha I wanted to see or gain clarity that it was the end of the outbreak haha.

8/10

Electric Callboy LIVE in Bristol 02 Academy - 26/10/23 REVIEW

Myself and my best mate James attended the ELECTRIFYIN' Electric Callboy gig in Bristol which was sold out but if you ask me, they went way past sold out capacity! I have attended many gigs in Bristol 02, and they have all been sold out BUT this one was just busier than I have ever seen it. First time at a gig I did not purchase any drinks or merch because of how busy it was!

Opening the show was Monuments a band whom I had never heard of before BUT I was thoroughly blown away, and I was captivated by their high energy crisp sound of metal. New fan right here and if you like In Flames I think you will like this band too. Monuments setlist was as follows; A.W.O.L, I the Creator, Leviathan, Cardinal Red, False Providence, Makeshift Harmony, Degenerate.

Next up was As Everything Unfolds, yet again another band I knew nothing about, but they were great and had again a lot of energy and good sound. They are basically a metal version of Paramore is how I would describe their sound. To me, they were alright and should have opened. AEU setlist was as follows; Ultraviolet, Slow Down, Hiding From Myself, Flip Side, Twilight, All I've Ever Known, Felt Like Home, On the Inside.

While we waited for Callboy the crowd was treated to BANGERS! Yes awesome songs everyone knows and loves and sings along to, a security guard on the stairs and the crowd were singing to each other, sort of like a serenade at points due to the gestures' haha, but it's all good fun and shows how high our energy levels were. 

FINALLY time to get HYPA as Electric Callboy enter the stage with some crowd testing issue from our Tekkno Train conductor on the screens. We are hyped and we are ready to board! Chug chug chug along with the fun german tekkno metal rave! Full of outfits, confetti, cannons, laughs, German, metal, rave, blast beats, catchy choruses and just all round fun as they bring a lot of energy and feed off the high energy sold out crowd in attendance. Electric Callboy were phenomenal and performed 18 songs in a stacked setlist - Tekkno Train, C Thunder II (Dancing Like a Ninja), Spaceman, Hate/Love, Everytime We Touch (Cascada cover), The Scene, Castrop X Spandau, Arrow of Love, Drum Solo - Darude Sandstorm, Hypa Hypa, Parasite, Let It Go / I Want It That Way, Hurrikan, Fuckboi ft Charlie Rolfe of As Everything Unfolds, MC Thunder. Encore: Pump It, Mindreader, We Got the Moves.

All in all an EPIC NIGHT of music and the crowd atmosphere was incredible! I need to see Electric Callboy in an arena next! Also need to keep an eye on Monuments.

Thanks for stopping by and reading this, for videos go to my YouTube channel @1STMETALGOD.

Stay Shiny!

The Boogeyman - FILM REVIEW

Today's Horror film review comes from The Boogeyman. I missed out on this in the cinema and I watched this on DISNEY+ and I enjoyed it, it's very good.

High school student Sadie Harper and her younger sister, Sawyer, are still reeling from the recent death of their mother. They're not getting much support from their father, Will, a therapist who's dealing with his own intense pain. When a desperate patient unexpectedly shows up at their house seeking help, he leaves behind a terrifying supernatural entity that preys on families and feeds on the suffering of its victims.

Bro the shots of the monster in the dark legit unsettled me. I jumped and said "BRUH" a lot I won't lie haha. That motherfucker Boogeyman scared me I can't lie. Jesus Christ like, maybe watching this before sleep wasn't a good idea, this film has me watching it between my fingers at points haha. The so called "friends" Sadie has I would have happily hit and run over repeatedly and would have happily ate a bag of popcorn watching them get killed one by one instead of this nice innocent family.

7/10