Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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austin.
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

Post by austin. »

Godspeed and falling light all I heard so far. Not a fan of either unfortunately. Bitter end on now. Digging the guitar

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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Mullet151
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

Post by Mullet151 »

yeah I saw a couple of interviews from Mark talking about IoF. One he dogs the song pretty good saying "its not the best song on the record" and another he complains about the rhythm section being weird because his and Myle's style are so different. So I take it as Mark does not like that song.

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Mr. Slash
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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Timotheus wrote:Props to Mark for name-dropping Myles before his first chorus in Forever Falling.
"Shadows cast for Myles" ohh shiiiit

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anguyen92
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

Post by anguyen92 »

Octane Unleaded with AB is on air right now. Standard interview and they have played Wouldn’t You Rather, In Loving Memory, Broken Wings, and Ghost of Days Gone By.
Last edited by anguyen92 on Fri Oct 18, 2019 3:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.

mycarhasabs
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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phatnonphatness wrote:Man, didn't realise so many people hated The Last Hero. Thought it was a decent album. I feel like it's miles better than ABIII at least.
I def don't hate The Last Hero, I just find myself skipping tracks more frequently on that album.

Twilight, My Champion, Writing on the Wall (god I'm gonna catch so much flack for that one), You Will Be Remembered.
I generally skip those.

Crows, Other Side, Cradle, The Last Hero, Island of Fools, Show Me a Leader, <--- those are the massive standouts from that album.

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

Post by John3977 »

I have to say I was rather harsh in my initial commentary on this album. After listening to it today several times it definitely is a grower and I appreciate it a lot more than I did when I initially listened to it. I think my ears have gotten so used to their classics that I judge everything on that. The fact is there is no way to duplicate such albums as Blackbird and Fortress. Part of the issue was they released so many songs that it felt like I was literally listening to half an album. My favorites from this album are as follows. There is some great music on this album for everyone. My top 4 non pre released songs are Walking the Sky, Godspeed, Forever Falling and Native Son. Again I apologize if I stated my opinions as fact. I know we all have our favorite songs and albums but sometimes it takes more than one listen with this band to appreciate the music and effort.

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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mycarhasabs wrote:
phatnonphatness wrote:Man, didn't realise so many people hated The Last Hero. Thought it was a decent album. I feel like it's miles better than ABIII at least.
I def don't hate The Last Hero, I just find myself skipping tracks more frequently on that album.

Twilight, My Champion, Writing on the Wall (god I'm gonna catch so much flack for that one), You Will Be Remembered.
I generally skip those.

Crows, Other Side, Cradle, The Last Hero, Island of Fools, Show Me a Leader, <--- those are the massive standouts from that album.
I must be weird in that I like Twilight and My Champion. I generally skip Writing on the Wall and You will be Remembered and sometimes the otherside (depending on my mood). I can't listen to that album straight through because it's too harsh in the order it is in.

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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To me this album feels like fortress + ODR. Anyone else get that feel? I mean it has definitely a unique sound that I could tell the songs as belonging to this album. It's more upbeat but has some extremely heavy riffs like Fortress (Forever Falling, Native Son, WYR, Indoctrination) but also has a lot of the anthems like ODR (godspeed, tear us apart, clear horizon). Dying Light and Indoctrination sound like it they could be on ABIII.

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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I think people are definitely way too hard on My Champion. For me the weak songs on TLH are The Writing on the Wall, Poison in Your Veins, Losing Patience, and You Will Be Remembered. The rest of the songs range from really good to excellent.

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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*Lengthy, in-depth review incoming. You have been warned*

Song-By-Song Analysis

One Life: Very cool way to start the album, great atmosphere/vibe. Too short to rank, I wish it would’ve been connected smoothly with the next song as one compete album opener. N/A.

Wouldn’t You Rather: Great way to fully kick off the new record. This song took a little bit of time to grow on me, but it’s still a Top 5 song from the album. This is one of the songs closest to classic AB on the record and that’s not a bad thing. Huge chorus, excellent riffing, and a badass solo. 8/10.

In the Deep: Really enjoy the guitar work throughout this one. The verses and pre-choruses are excellent, but overall it’s let down by an average at-best chorus and bridge. In the bottom half of the album for me. 6.5/10

Godspeed: This one suffered from overhype upon my first listen of the song, but now I love it a lot. The intro is a blend of Journey, Skillet, and The Killers all in one, which I’m a fan of. Easily the most pop-oriented song AB has put out, but they do it very well. That second chorus is something special. Good guitar work throughout, especially the verses and the lead line in the chorus. Neat solo too, I love the tone on that one. My only complaint from this one is it did NOT need to be mixed and produced in a modern rock/metal style. A cleaner/crisper mix would really elevate this one even higher. 8.5/10

Native Son: I jumped when the band kicked into this one. The transition felt a little messy, but that main riff is NASTY. This one is pretty average to me, nothing too memorable here. 6/10

Take The Crown: Have mixed feelings on this one. Really like the intro guitar line, but not a fan at all of the vocal passage before the band kicks in. The guitar work throughout is killer, especially that harmonics-based riff in the verses and Myles’ bluesy outro. Actually dig the chorus a lot and it’s capped off by a classic melodic Tremonti solo. This one sits right in the middle of the album for me. 7/10

Indoctrination: This one surprised me a LOT. That sludgy guitar riff is really badass, as is Myles’ vocal fry when the drums kick in. Pretty cool chorus and a killer bridge, but the verses don’t interest me a ton vocally. The more I think about it, the more I relate it to The Unholy. Definitely in the upper half of the album for me, one of the more unique songs in AB’s catalogue. 7.5/10

The Bitter End: Another song I have mixed feelings about. Might just be me, but I hear a mix of All Hope is Gone and Iris of the Storm in this one, just a more uplifting version. The chorus is average, but I really enjoy everything else about it. This is another one that didn’t need to be produced and mixed the way it was. Overall, this sits just below the middle of my album ranking. 7/10

Pay No Mind: This was my least favorite of the pre-release songs and my opinion hasn’t changed much since. This song just doesn’t really do it for me, I’m pretty consistently bored throughout it, especially the bridge. Probably my favorite use of the synth stuff though, I will give it that. This one sits pretty close to the bottom for me. 6/10.

Forever Falling: Probably my most anticipated track coming in, and like Godspeed, I was initially kind of disappointed by it because of the hype. With more listens though, it has definitely grown on me a lot and is one of my favorites. I think my hangup with this song is the chorus. It’s a good chorus, I just think it’s in the wrong song. Not sure if the fact that Myles takes the lead is what’s throwing me off, or the sudden change in feel/rhythm. Probably my favorite song instrumentally on the record and I love Mark’s vocals in this one, I much prefer it to Waters Rising. 8.5/10

Clear Horizon: Another unique song in AB’s catalogue, was very surprised this one was almost cut from the record. That main riff section when the band kicks in is a major highlight for me, one of my favorite moments of the record. This is a standout vocal performance from Myles. The first section of the bridge reminds me of another band, but I can’t quite place it. Overall, a pretty good song that sits nicely right in the middle of the album for me. 7.5/10

Walking on the Sky: This is a GEM of a song, my favorite of theirs since Cry of Achilles and Calm the Fire from the Fortress days. This song is an “epic” without trying to be, in my opinion. The vibe/atmosphere is what makes a song epic, even more-so than the song’s length. It is so interesting dynamically. The intro section is so damn good, the chorus is extremely powerful, and it has my favorite bridge on the record. This is AB firing on all cylinders to me. 10/10

Tear Us Apart: I’m going to get a lot of heat for this take, but I really can’t stand this one. This is THE cheesiest song AB has ever released, and this is coming from someone who has All Ends Well and My Champion in their Top 10 songs. I’m a sucker for catchy, “cheesy” anthems and I’m glad a lot of you like this one, but I must be hearing something else. My least favorite song on the album. 5/10

Dying Light: This is a weird one for me. “Epic Alter Bridge” is definitely my favorite version of them, but this doesn’t come close to Blackbird, Achilles, Calm the Fire, Words, or even the title track from this album. I think my expectations of this being the last song on the album, the longest song, as well as AB themselves describing this as the epic-type, left me feeling kind of disappointed with it. But it’s definitely not a bad song at all, probably in my Top 5 from this album. I just wanted something a little more from this one. Solid song, just not the greatness I expected. If they swapped this and the title-track, I might feel a little better about it. 7.5/10

Song Ranking
1. Walking on the Sky
2. Godspeed
3. Forever Falling
4. Wouldn’t You Rather
5. Dying Light
6. Take The Crown
7. Indoctrination
8. Clear Horizon
9. The Bitter End
10. In the Deep
11. Native Son
12. Pay No Mind
13. One Life
14. Tear Us Apart

Overall Thoughts:
This is really strange feeling for me, I’m still not quite sure on how I feel about this album. It is definitely a new direction for the band and they are taking chances, I can’t say they played it safe here. But in my opinion I believe it could have been better had it been given more time, it’s missing another epic or two. There are a lot of “good” to “pretty good” songs, with only one truly GREAT song. But at the same time there is only one song I would call bad, so it’s a pretty consistent album. I would consider this album above average, but not AMAZING like some of their others.

I THINK it’s a step in the right direction and better than TLH, but I can’t commit to saying this blows it out of the water. This album definitely doesn’t reach the heights nor is it as consistent as Fortress or Blackbird, and doesn’t have some of the highs that AB III does, but it’s still a solid record that I would place somewhere in the middle of AB’s catalogue. I was VERY disappointed with this album upon first listen and thought it was their worst, so it’s definitely grown on me after a few days and more listens. I reserve the right to change my opinion as time goes on, but I find I enjoy this one a decent bit.

If they blend some of the newer elements and styles from this record with Fortress and Blackbird while spending more time writing the next go round, if they do make another record, I think AB 7 will make its way to the top of their discography. It seems like this one is going to get them a lot of attention and new fans, so I’m really happy for them in that regard. Hoping for nothing but success for these guys, they deserve it.

I give “Walk the Sky” an 8/10.

And finally...

Album Rankings
1. Fortress
2. Blackbird
3. AB III
4. Walk the Sky
5. One Day Remains
6. The Last Hero
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Mr. Slash
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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anguyen92 wrote:Octane Unleaded with AB is on air right now. Standard interview and they have played Wouldn’t You Rather, In Loving Memory, Broken Wings, and Ghost of Days Gone By.
I'm so glad they changed their unplugged set a little for this cycle. Playing Watch Over You, Rise Today and Wonderful Life for the 1000th time would've been boring.

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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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John3977 wrote:The fact is there is no way to duplicate such albums as Blackbird and Fortress.
Sorry to sound bite one sentence out of your whole paragraph, but I think it's a good example of why the comments seem so polarizing. totally agree with what you wrote there. If we are comparing every new AB song to the giants of their catalog like Fortress and Blackbird, very few will ever live up to that level of excellence, and so it may seem like Walk The Sky is a major letdown. But when you compare this album to the other bands being played on mainstream rock across America right now, it blows most if not all of them out of the water for me.

I've listened to it's once through on not a great sound system so far, and I really liked it and think it has a lot of promise. I typically like albums more the more I hear them, and there is a lot to digest and understand on this one before I will finally settle on where this album ranks among the AB catalog. Nothing will ever touch me the way ODR did on first listen, and it took a few spins for me to fall in love with Blackbird and Fortress. But I already like Walk The Sky more on one listen than TLH and it's about where III was, so I'm anticipating it will land nicely in the middle for me, and if so, I will be very happy with that.

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John3977
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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gbruin wrote:
John3977 wrote:The fact is there is no way to duplicate such albums as Blackbird and Fortress.
Sorry to sound bite one sentence out of your whole paragraph, but I think it's a good example of why the comments seem so polarizing. totally agree with what you wrote there. If we are comparing every new AB song to the giants of their catalog like Fortress and Blackbird, very few will ever live up to that level of excellence, and so it may seem like Walk The Sky is a major letdown. But when you compare this album to the other bands being played on mainstream rock across America right now, it blows most if not all of them out of the water for me.

I've listened to it's once through on not a great sound system so far, and I really liked it and think it has a lot of promise. I typically like albums more the more I hear them, and there is a lot to digest and understand on this one before I will finally settle on where this album ranks among the AB catalog. Nothing will ever touch me the way ODR did on first listen, and it took a few spins for me to fall in love with Blackbird and Fortress. But I already like Walk The Sky more on one listen than TLH and it's about where III was, so I'm anticipating it will land nicely in the middle for me, and if so, I will be very happy with that.

Welcome home, Alter Bridge.
Excellent points you made here !!!

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gbruin
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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I've only found Myles denying one thing so far. Am I missing any others?
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AB23
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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Native Son and the verses in Indoctrination are probably my least favorite parts on the album. Not that big a fan of Clear Horizon or Pay No Mind as well. Indoctrination has an awesome chorus, but the verses just don't go with it at all. Sounds like they're making the soundtrack for a horror movies for high school kids.
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AB23
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

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Also, I need someone to tell me why the guitar in Forever Falling reminds me of a Sonic song. Really, the melody of the chorus. Kinda like In the Deep. Can't put my finger on it, but I'm getting flashbacks to a Sonic game.

I haven't played Sonic in 10 years. It's not even close to my favorite video game series. So the fact that 2 songs have both reminded me of Sonic is very strange to me. It MUST be similar to something in the game. I don't know why else I'd remember the game for the first time in a decade.
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Ubik
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

Post by Ubik »

gbruin wrote:I've only found Myles denying one thing so far. Am I missing any others?
There's Tear Us Apart and Indoctrination. Which I had thought was a pretty good rate for him, but then remembered he only wrote about half the album :lol
For all of the hope that it brings...

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AB23
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Re: Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

Post by AB23 »

Also, Walking on the Sky should be the name of the album. Walk the Sky is weird and I'm triggered because of it.
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