Formerly known as FFXFan

OK, I've decided that this'll be next, mainly cos I've listened to it for ages (not today, I've been on Burnout Revenge, but I've had a few tracks downloaded for ages now. Anyways, this means that You Could Have It So Much Better by Franz Ferdinand shall be reviewed tomorrow evening.

And now, the review:

1. Cell #1
This is just a pretty short intro to the album, which leads into track 2. There's three of these, and I don't quite know why they're seperate tracks, but there you go.

2. Switchback
Now, I'm going to say that Switchback is the proper start to the album, and what a start. This is one of my favourite songs on the album. I don't quite know how to describe how industrial music sounds, but it has guitars and drums in, and the beat is pretty good

3. Stay With Me (Unlikely)
This is the first Celldweller song I'd heard, as it's on Flash Flash Revolution, and for some reason I've always liked it. Due to me first hearing it the best part of two years ago now, the appeal has worn off, but it's a pretty good song regardless.

4. The Last Firstborn
This song's on FFR as well, but it's a newer addition as far as I'm aware. Clocking in at about 6 minutes, this track has everything. It's the kinda song that would fit a mosh pit and a club, and could probably turn one into the other (that'd be a club into a mosh pit), as it has some hard rock bits, then a clubby bit. Switchback has the same structure, though it's not as varied as this track. Another of my fav's, and one you should look at downloading if you was to pick one.

5. Under My Feet
I love this song. That's LOVE. This is the track of the album. If unsigned industrial bands make power-ballady songs, Under My Feet is that song, on this album anyway. Starts off slowly and then builds into a loud finish, then a quiet ending. This ranks alongside The Last Firstborn in the "Must Download" catagory.

6. I Believe You
Whilst it's still a good song, this is one of the weaker tracks on the album. It's not musically brilliant, and it just feels like a filler song to tide you over until the next killer track rolls along...

7. Frozen
...Which is this one. I suppose if you're unsigned you're allowed to be more open with your songs, as this one is about..well..I dunno really. Sex is mentioned (That's hardly questionable when the chorus starts with Inside this fantasy, It seems so real to me, Synthetic ecstacy, When her legs are open), though it's got a bit of a virtual vibe to it. The other longest track on the album at 7 minutes, but it is good. There are better songs though if you're just looking for one or two tracks to download.

8. Symbiont
I like this song as well (I like most of the album). It's the most recent song I've listened to, because it took me ages to find for download. It's got a very electronic feel to it to start with it, then the guitars take over, with some DJ scratching over the top, before the electronica feel comes back. The verses have a kinda vocoder feel to it as well (it's similar to what BT sometimes uses). Overall, a rather good track.

9. Afraid This Time
Another one of the softer songs, starting with a nice little acoustic guitar, then moving into the verse, which uses bits of piano, drums and bits of acoustic guitar dotted around. Again, the verses are vocoded, and the backing vocals seem to lay on top of them, which is awkward, but it works anyway. The choruses start off heavier with a synthesized lead, then towards the end an electric guitar is added.

10. Fadeaway
Hmm, I didn't originally like this song, but I reckon I'd probably downloaded a demo version. The album version is a lot better. It's got an electronic feel throughout most of it with guitars added in as well, but the song is primarily electronic in nature. So, this song is better than the demo version I'd heard, but I still think this goes in the same "weak, but good" catagory as I Believe You.

11. Cell #2
The second intro track. This one doesn't directly lead into track 12, but is instead a monologue that makes fuck all sense. It's also vocoded, as if to make things even weirder. Just like Cell #1, this doesn't deserve to have it's own seperate track, but there we go.

12. So Sorry To Say
This track's different to the one I downloaded as well, and as with Fadeaway, the album version is loads better. Unlike Fadeaway, I liked the song to begin with, so this just adds more strengths to the song. Song 3 in the "Must Download" list, though you more than likely won't get the album version. Still, it's good.

13. Own Little World
This is a good song. It's back to the rock genre with this song, with a bit of vocoding here and there, and electronic verses, with guitars coming in on the buildups to the choruses. Nice catchy chorus at that. Easy to sing along to

14. Unlikely (Stay With Me)
Fancy that, a remix to a song that's already on the album (3 points to the first person who guesses which song). It's shorter than it's unmixed counterpart, and also seems to have been flipped the other way around vocally, with the backing vocals being on top, and the lead vocals being the new backing vocals. The music's different as well, which would be expected from remixes. Also, I prefer this one over the original. Weird to see a remix and it's original on the same album (with the remix not being a bonus track), but Celldweller aren't exactly stereotypical in any fashion.

15. One Good Reason
Probably the heaviest album, with Klayton (he's Celldweller...yeah, a one-man band thing, just like VAST) shouting, and the music is also rather loud compared to the rest of the album. This is my second favourite song, behind Under My Feet, as it's a song I can sing along to properly (Who can't, you just need to be able to shout in time with the actual lyrics ), and it's really good.

16. The Stars of Orion
It takes about 1:20 for this song to really kick in, but by then the damage was done. This song is officially the worst on the album, other than the three Cell intro's. They're just weird. But yeah, this is purely a musical piece with a female vocal repeated a few times, and a male vocal saying "Discontinue". Yes, discontinue. Discontinue this song and get rid of it

17. Cell #3
The final Cell intro, this one leads into the last track. Again, a weird vocoded female vocal, just like last time. Forgettable.

18. Welcome To The End
The last track on the album, which oddly starts with what sounds like dolphins. Might be dolphins, might just be some synthesized noises, anyways, this is the mellowest track on the album, and borrows a line from Symbiont (I wish I didn't need you now), but other than that, it's a nice way to finish the album. Nice and softly. The complete opposite to how the album started.

Overall
If you're looking for new music, and you're looking past the mainstream, Celldweller is something you want to consider. With two albums out currently (Celldweller and a 2CD demo collection called The Beta Cessions), and a second studio album out early next year, then you can't really go wrong. As far as this album goes, Klayton once tried to emulate Nine Inch Nails and failed miserably. However, this is his comeback effort (with a different band/studio name, depending how you look at it), and it's brilliant. 9/10