Firstly, I'd like to note that this release is on Jade Tree, and as much as I dislike Jade Tree, they were bound to do something right sooner or later.
Now, second, I'd like to get past all the "hype" this release has. I'm not going to focus on the "this band features members of..." or the "Well, these songs were released on the internet..."-- I am going to take this CD purely for what it is, and that is eleven songs of bliss.
To describe the sound of New End Original, they're something inbetween an emo band and an indie rock band. Well, I don't like "emo" or "indie rock" really, so let me elaborate. People who listen to music will enjoy New End Original. People who enjoy "emo" and "indie rock" will eat this up. I don't want people to think of this as an "emo" or "indie rock" release though, simply for the fact that if you say "I don't like that kind of music", you shouldn't pass this CD off. I don't like that kind of music, but "Thriller" is in new constant rotation in my CD player.
The songs have great variation. I'm not going to go through the whole CD, song by song, but I will tell you about some of my favorite songs to give you an idea of how great this CD is.
The first song on "Thriller" is called "Lukewarm". It's a great song that leans more towards the upbeat, catchy pop punk kind of sound. Is this an upbeat, catchy pop punk kind of CD? No. Most certainly not. But the first song- "Lukewarm"- does a great job of luring you in and making you want to continue to listen. It offers great lyrics like "a house in the 'burbs and a bitchin' SUV is how I'm never gonna wind up". In what music traditionalists would call a bridge, you find out what a lot of this whole CD is about, when the vocals almost stand out alone and have this passion and conviction in them that you simply can not fake.
The next song is "14 to 41", which is a great song that just leads close enough in the pop punk sense to make a smooth transition from "Lukewarm", but it drifts just far away to move nicely into "Hostage"- which is the third song and one of my favorites. This song starts off slow and quietly, and builds into a fast crashing kind of action where the words "falling up a flight of stairs again" accompany. It moves into lyrics like "Back off or someone will die", amongst other brilliant writings, with a mostly start and stop guitar sound turning into a barrage of melody.
"Hostage" quickly makes way for the fourth song, "Leper Song". This is a slow song that is mainly piano and vocals, but it is so beautiful and heartwarming. Words like, "I'm lonely as a leper. I'm contagious as hell. With my clothing and my make up, I bet you couldn't tell" make this song truely an original (no pun intended). If you think it's too "soft" or "wussy", well, at the slightest hint of hearing it, it will be forever embedded into your head, and therefore leave you begging to hear it again- whether you are the most hardcore of the hardcore kids, or the most delicate of the emo girls.
The CD continues on with a lot of the same pattern- great music and clever words. By the time you hit song eight, you reach "#1 Defender". This song captures the idea of the music in no other way. Aside from the lyrics ("I don't need a raise, I don't need a paycheck"... "I always thought there'd be this girl. And she'd be just like me. But not like me"), "#1 Defender has the quiet start that builds into this rocking chorus, a more calm verse, and then eventually it leads up to full out rock session which could easily end the song on a droning chord. However, the song instead comes back and finishes quietly, and in a rather beautiful manner.
The song structure on "#1 Defender" is a good set for the whole CD- well, the CD on a whole and all of the songs- as it has the rising action, great build ups and leads, and it does the unexpected and breaks new musical boundaries and is by far better than anything you have ever heard before.
"Thriller" closes with a seven minute and some odd second song called "Better Than This". The majority of the time, the song is merely vocals backed by carefully plucked guitar notes. The vocals say it all though. As you begin to feel each word tear into you, you begin to realize that you have just been through one of the most incredible experiences of your life by listening to this CD. At some where between the three and four minute mark, you think the song will end, but it comes back to rock out, and then end slowly and pretty.
Overall, this is not only one of the best CDs I've heard this year, it is also one of the best CDs I have heard in my life time. I guess my listening to it some three times a day is a good sign of that belief to be true. It's definitely addictive. And, man, is it good.