Martin Grech
Unholy

Hmm. Saw the album launch at Neighbourhood (formerly Subterrania) and was disappointed because, despite his current live band being the best yet in terms of sound and proficiency, there was no sense of danger whatsoever. When Martin wailed it never felt like there was any genuine catharsis, but merely a stage act from someone who's got an incredible voice and incredible control. How can I say... you were never in any doubt as to what would happen next. He needs a proper band, too, rather than writing everything and using hired hands, other wise it becomes like the lefter field areas of early-mid era Jane's Addiction without the songs or the fire. Much like Chris Martin, I think he's a naturally quiet and reasoned person trying to appear angry, when he blatantly isn't.

I love watching martin grech live, its such an amazing experience. saw him in sheffield a few weeks ago, was cool to see keith from vex red (RIP) playing with him this time round too.

Not sure I agree, as I have experienced both types of live performances by Martin, and each are so very different. I suppose though, I do find his acoustic performances more compelling. Without question, his voice is amazing. And, live in whatever form, his performance is always something special.

i personally don't feel it's that much of a progression from Open Heart Zoo, when it's clear just how much potential he has.. in retrospect, maybe 3 may have been more suitable, but i still thought it was disappointing on the whole.

I saw Grech at the Joiners last week and was totally blown away. I'd never seen him before and I thought the band were stunning also. I think it's hard for him to appear 'angry' and 'otherworldly' when he seems to be such a naturally nice guy. I wouldn't say this is a bad thing as the atmosphere the music created was immense.

not at all! i can see why it might read like that (hell, i'm no professional writer, i'll be the first to admit!) and i'd absolutely agree that challenging music is important and essential and makes for a more engaging listen, but the reason why i didn't enjoy 'unholy' was listening to it whilst being well aware of what martin grech is capable of.. it just doesnt feel like a big progression from 'open heart zoo' and is possibly a step down.

oh and you saying its not a progression, i would have to again disagree,

i am a big fan (not the biggest) and i know that he has progressed here, some of the songs outshadow 50% of open heart zoo imho,

some of the albums you give 4-5 i am sure would contradict your above point of not progessing much.

umm, my my chemical romance admiration stops after they left eyeball record to release a pretty poor album

you listen to the debut and tell me it isn't ace,

and its a pretty cheap blow, i bet you listened to shit music when you were younger, but even if i knew i wouldn;t throw it in your face.

but as a review it sucks,

admittedly that comment was meant to be nothing more than throwaway so apologies to idris either way. like i've said, 3 is probably a more realistic rating but to me rating should be a secondary concern to the review itself. thanks for the compliments.

glad youre holding your own! criticsm's healthy. DiS should do more of it. just hope they dont shun away from it because everytime they do fans come pounding down on the reviewer like this..

I don’t usually have a go at reviewers on DIS but I feel compelled on this one. I’ll add my two cents and join the line that’s telling you you’re way off here.
When I read a review, I take the negative points and I say to myself ‘would these be negatives for me?’ It seems one of your major negatives of this album is ‘sadly, 'Unholy' remains a mostly challenging and difficult listen.’
When I hear this, I grab my wallet and head to HMV. I don’t want to listen to easy music. Sure, every so often I need something simple to wash over me but most of the time I want depth, subtlety, ie I want a challenge.
Your second problem is that it’s not much of a step forward from Open Heart Zoo. Sorry? Have you listened to OHZ in the past 2 years? The song Open Heart Zoo is a work of genius and there are a couple of other good songs on the album but there’s also the feeling that this is a damn fine musician trying a bit too hard to sound like his favourite artists. This was an album that showed a lot of promise, after all, he was only 19 when he made OHZ. I get the feeling when I listen to it that he was held back and was leant on to write a few nice pop songs along the way, not that that’s a bad thing as such, it’s just not what Mr Grech is about.

Unholy on the other hand is a beast. It’s massive. It doesn’t sound like anyone. Saying it’s a step back from OHZ is like saying The Bends is a step back from Pablo Honey. Seriously, put the albums on back to back and if you still think it’s not moved on or even a step back, you don’t deserve to be writing reviews on this website.
Another negative is ‘a tiringly persistent reliance upon the old quiet/loud formula’. Again, I disagree. It’s not like the tired quiet verse/loud chorus thing that so many go for. This is quiet for mood and effect, loud for drama and bombast (in a good way) and not once does he rely on it!
I’m not trying to make you change your mind, I respect your opinion even if I don’t share it, however, I’m not even sure you really know what your opinion is.

Come back in 2 weeks after a few listens and tell us that your review is spot on.

This review = my name

realy like about DiS is that I can trust the reviews and I feel that this is the first case where I have been let down by DiS.
All I can say is that I am so glad that I read Rocksounds 9/10 review before I read this, otherwise I would of missed out on such an amazing piece of work.

9 out of 10 for sure.

but then again...that's just my opnion.