One of the challenges of writing a music review is finding ways to describe music. How do you let an audience know what an album sounds like? Yes, you could use musical terminology. However, many audience members would be unfamiliar with such vocabulary. Professional writers use fun, poetic phrases to describe the music. You can help you students write better reviews by trying a few of the activities listed below.
Note: This mini-lesson should take place after students have a rough draft. After they understand the concept, they can create their own descriptive phrases and plug them into their review.
1. Look at model reviews and underline the descriptive phrases. Read them aloud to hear the full effect. For examples, look at the highlighted words in Adam's review.
2. Drag out your poetry lesson plans and review (or teach) poetic devices such as figurative language, similes, metaphors, alliteration, assonance, consonance, etc. Many descriptive phrases found in music reviews are quite poetic.
2. Pick a CD and find a model review. Underline the descriptive phrases and listen to the CD to see the connection between music and written description.
3. Play a CD and have groups write descriptive phrases. Share with the class.
4. Play a CD and have individuals create their own phrases.
5. Students write 3 or more phrases to describe each songs they discuss in their review. As they revise, they can incorporate some of those phrases into the review.
They're back! And, God help us, they have evolved! Slipknot has obtained new masks, better equipment, and a new found insane aggression for their hit follow up to their debut album 870621345. Trust me on this one, folks, "it's a scream!"Just like their previous CD, Iowa is profusely profane, but not to the point where all of the songs are like "Surfacing." However, they still wear their parental advisory label with pride as if it were a victory flag. Don't be too paranoid, though. There are actually five curse-free tracks . . . for the most part. Well, five out of fourteen isn't too bad is it, considering one of those in as intro track of nothing but a solid minute of tortured screams of "death!"
But the "dirty words" are but one of the lyrical aspects I shall share with your. The songs vary from the ultimate anti-social theme "People = ####" to the slightly narcissistic declaration of the band's originality in "I am Hated," to singer Cory's twisted view of love as portrayed in the title track "Iowa." The CD is laden with morbidity, self-pity, and pure, undiluted anger. Slipknot has really taken a step forward with their writing. Even those who, impossible as it may seem, are unfamiliar with Slipknot, will notice some of the elaborate and descriptive language. With lyrics such as "megalomaniacal tab on my tongue" and "to see you thalidomide robot face" it is easy to see time and effort went into this sweet sequel, right down to even the ever controversial "Heretic Anthem."
Lyrics aside, let us take a dive into the raging torrent of the music itself. Think of the hardest, loudest, and fasted band you have ever heard. Multiply it a hundred-fold. NOw your have a general idea of the essence of Slipknot. On top of, under, and on all sides of Cory's nonstop painful screaming are the three drummers, two guitarists, bassist, DJ, and media sampler. Yes, you read right. NIne members including Cory. Throughout the ceaseless, ultra-rapid drum loops are threaded searingly quick guitar riffs. When they hit, THEY HIT! Anyway, I'm not sure if the bassist is a finger player or uses a pick, but he also burns up the strings at light speed. The DJ and media samples are also nice touches to the crunch.
The whole CD is not completely fast-paced if that is what your are wondering about. There's such a cutting speed contrast with slow songs such as: Gently," "Skin Ticket," and "Iowa." These few are at a much slower tempo mostly, but that doesn't mean that they aren't still teeth grinding compositions.
These guys really live up to what they say in "I am Hated." NO one can compare to this masked nontet from Iowa, U.S.A. The drop-tuned heavy artillery of Slipknot beats out, by far, "all the mediocre sacred cows [they] spawned."