Music Minute, Manic Math Edition

Uh, that kind of came out wrong. What I really meant to say is that Manic Drive and Mute Math have a new album out this week. But "Manic Math" sounded kind of like a back-to-school nightmare (hey, I'm an artist!) so I thought, um...OK, never mind. On to the music!

First, I'd like to comment on their cool, shiny suits and ever-so-perfect hair. Canada's own Cavallo brothers (otherwise known as Manic Drive) look a little bit like they just wandered over from the set of Gossip Girl to play music. However. Don't let appearances deceive you—these fellas know how to rock. If you're partial to P.O.D. or Linkin Park, this is an album for you.

Blue is the first major-distribution release from MD and includes several new tracks plus 8 songs that originally appeared on their album Reset & Rewind. You'll find all kinds of musical influences here, including funk, rock, hip-hop, and a touch of Latin music. Also, we'd like to mention they're playing about 50 tour dates between now and December! Click here to preview the album online...we like the song "Music" best.



Next up, a new release from Mute Math. Alternative Press calls them the "#1 band you need to see live before you die," (cheery, guys!) and you might remember their song "Spotlight" if you went to see the movie Twilight—but we kind of hope you didn't. (Just kidding!)

Mute Math see themselves as a bunch of Christian guys in a band (not necessarily Christian music). This album was born of creative differences; it happened because the guys in the band were having trouble getting along. A stalemate over which of their songs to record led them to interview some producers for an outside opinion, and one of them said "write new songs." After a few days of discussion, they threw out everything they'd written so far and started over. The result is fresh and inventive. You'll find rocking guitars, soaring vocals, and punishing drums (we do kind of wonder how the drummer keeps up). The band says this record is about "the experience of knowing when to stop fighting for the sake of progress."

They're also playing a lot of shows this fall. The album is called Armistice; click here for a preview, and check out the song "Backfire," which is a kind of tribute to Murphy's Law. (PS, an "armistice" is a situation where warring parties stop fighting. Pretty sweet.)