Conditions of My Parole [Import]

Been listening to it on my computer for weeks until the release day..... finally got to buy it and play it on my Bose system in my car and WOW!!!!! It sounds sooooo good. I cannot describe the difference this makes when putting it on a good system.

1st song: Tiny Monsters. Wasn't really into it at first but after now getting a good listen on some decent speakers, the synths and bass breakdown in the middle of the song is just mind blowing and keeps the song flowing at an awesome pace throughout the end. Just crank this one up and let it hit you.

2nd song: Green Valley. Maynard gets to show off his vocals and show everyone why he is one of the great vocalists of our time in the early stages of this song. Carina Round joins him in perfect harmony, and then the bassline slowly fades in before the drums crash in, bassline picks, up and carries this one the rest of the way. Very solid song to set up the rest of the album.

3rd song: Monsoons: Very electronic sounding with synths the whole way through. Maynards vocals also sound amazing in this one..... On previous puscifer albums he used his deep robotic sounding voice.... but in this song he goes back to his apc type vocals and they really shine on this track.

4th song: Telling Ghosts: Starts of with a haunting guitar strum that blasts into the drums and Maynard yelling "the more you take the more you need..." keeping a rather high pace for a few seconds before coming back down with some really good sounding guitar parts along with maynard vocs..... then picks right back up with a solid bass sound that will have your head starting to bob up and down. I really like the pace of this song by how it slows down and picks back up several times throughout the track. Carina Round with supporting backup vocals.(she has a great voice)

5th song: Horizons: One of my favorites from first listens of the album. I think Maynard's voice is on it's best display right here. Sounds just amazing. Soft guitar along with Keenan's voice with a heavy drum sound throughout the first half of the song. Then at about 2:15 Puscifer shows off their electronic unique sound that just seems to hit home til the end.

6th Song: Man Overboard: I'm sure everyone has heard this song by now as they have advertised it like crazy before the album came out. Very unique and out of the norm song in my opinion. Starts off with a weird guitar strum with maynard singing in his deep voice...then the drums start to pound away with an almost queens of the stone age guitar/piano sound. As the song picks up and goes into the 2nd and 3rd chorus, I love the haunting organ sound that they put together with the drum beat. Poseidon's on a mission, about to turn it up to 11, captain to the seamen, toss the extras over, about to take on water..... could this song be Aenima part 2? Crank this song up to hear it like it should be heard.

Ok now the album gets into my favorite part with the next 3 songs..... Definitely my top 3 songs as of right now.

7th Song: Toma: This song just plain out owns. Toolesque singing style from maynard with the growling lyrics. Very heavy bass lines (WHICH SOUND AWESOME ON A GREAT STEREO IF I NEED TO SAY THIS AGAIN!!!!!) Drumming and deep bass with haunting backing vocals just carries this song. Don't know how you cannot like this one.

8th Song: The Rapture: Probably on top right now for me. Start off with soft deep drums with a haunting bass guitar (I use haunting a lot but seriously it is just a deep mood sound) Maynards vocs to me seem to be going in and out of apc, puscifer and tool mode throughout the whole song he just has amazing range. Backup vocals with Carina Round as they sing "About to drop you like Kane(spelling?), like Kane dropped Abel, about to drop you like Kane I've had enough of your voodoo, about to drop you like Kane you better hope that he takes you before I do" (love this line). Guitar sets the tone for the rest of the song as it is a deep and steady riff as maynard pops in and out. Then when you think it's over they let all of the instruments go off and play while Maynard hums in the backround. Great, great, great song.

9th Song: Conditions of My Parole: Title track and one of my favs..... Def sounds like Puscifer. Deep bass riffs, maynard singing low hooo hooo ohhh oohh ohh whoah whoaaah whoaa ohhh.... Clever fast paced lyrics, mixing in accoustic guitar just flows so well. This one should have your head bobbing if not better check your pulse... cuz you might be a zombie or a dracula.

10th Song: The Weaver: Song hasn't really done anything for me yet. A lot of people were commenting that this was one of their favorites. Maynard's vocals sound great but to me it's just missing something. I'll def give it more listens though.

11th Song: Oceans: Deep electric sound to start off. Soft maynard lyrics. Soft drum beat. Carina Round backing up. Very peaceful chill song. Picks up a bit towards the end but not much to talk or write home about.

12th Song: Tumbleweed: Starts off with a banjo twangin away with Carina Round showin off the vocs. Maynard then joins her in his high voice.... kind of reminds me of when he sang mohhammed my friend with tori amos(if you have not seen that look it up on youtube right now.... it is amazing)... Banjo picks up dramatically while maynard and carina keep their slow and steady pace. I really love when the drum comes in on this song with the fast banjo sound. Beautiful sounding song to slowly digest the album as it comes to an end.

Comment and Write on my review and thanks guys!!!!!! AND BUY THIS ALBUM IT IS GREAT!!!!!

Puscifer started as a way for Maynard James Keenan (of Tool and A Perfect Circle fame) to express some of the wilder, stranger music he wanted to make. While that is still definitely present in "Conditions of My Parole", it is also obvious that Puscifer has truly grown up and come into its own with this album. It is, in short, a breathtaking masterpiece, and a wonderful new direction for this band.

From the quiet crooning of "Tumbleweed" to the beautiful lamentations of "Horizons", the listener truly feels like they are taking part in a grand adventure, and at heart that's really what this is; the travelogue of a journey out West and all of the sorrow, desire, adventure, and hope that go along with it.

If you've been at all interested in anything Puscifer or MJK himself have made before, do yourself a favor and pick this up. This is the type of beauty and growth that most projects can only dream of.

Like everything Mr. Keenan does, it's hard to digest this all in one bite. Every album he and his various minstrels create evolves slowly to me. Rarely have I felt the same way about a Tool, A Perfect Circle, or Puscifer song as the first time it made its way into my head. Conditions of my Parole is no different.

It's a strange beast to be sure, and can be off-putting if you're not careful. The second you hit play (or drop the needle if you're old school) you're greeted by a beat that sounds like something Chris Brown would dance to. It's almost as if Maynard is daring you to stop listening. But you can't. You want to know what's behind door number two. The answer: a pretty good album.

The soundscape reflects immensely on their recording location of choice: Maynard's vineyard. You can almost picture them hammering out these songs in a cellar at two in the morning, sipping a Cabernet, then going to bed with smiles on their faces. Tracks like Green Valley, Telling Ghosts, and Tumbleweed could all pass for spaghetti western fodder (I hope you're listening Mr. Tarantino). The desert vibe is pretty palpable.

None the less, Conditions' architecture is a familiar one for Puscifer fans. Many of the band's themes are intact here. The album is solemn, savage, and stripped. Toma is your upbeat equivalent to Dozo. Man Overboard is the groovy answer for The Mission. And the title track serves as immature schtick in the same vein as Country B**er (It's a shame that song came to Maynard so early. It would have made a great home on this album). For me the standout is Monsoons, a sweeping epic that builds in the verses and thrills in the chorus when Devo Keenan contributes some beautiful cello play.

This album was a grower, not a shower. I wasn't sure at first if I would settle into the picture that Puscifer had painted. It's possible that you may not. But you'd be a fool to dismiss it as either boring or lazy. The depth is there, if you're willing to look for it.