Family music act Howdytoons is scheduled to release its latest album, Dinosaurs & Monsters Friday through its own label, Howdytoons Productions, Inc. The band’s fourth album in its ongoing “dinosaur rock” series of releases, the nine-song album is a fun new offering for the entire family. That is due in part to its featured musical arrangements. They will be examined shortly. The lyrical content that accompanies the album’s musical arrangements makes for its own interest and will be examined a little later. The record’s sequencing rounds out its most important elements and will also be examined later. Each item noted is important in its own way to the whole of the record’s presentation. All things considered they make the album just one more enjoyable addition to this year’s field of family music albums.
Dinosaurs & Monsters, the latest new album from family music act Howdytoons, only runs nine songs deep, but in that spread, it offers plenty for audiences to appreciate, beginning with the album’s musical content. The musical content comes largely in the form of some hard rocking compositions that are still mostly family friendly. There is a touch of some ska and reggae to mix things up a bit, too. The whole thing opens with a Soundgarden-esque composition in ‘Allosuarus.’ That comparison is most evident in the song’s verses. More specifically, the comparison is to Soundgarden’s hit song, ‘Spoonman.’ At the same time though, the chromatic scale used in the guitar line in the verses is also comparable to Filter’s hit single, ‘Hey Man, Nice Shot.’ ‘Dimetrodon,’ which immediately follows immediately conjures thoughts of works from System of a Down. ‘Brachiosaurus’ is just as easily comparable to Marilyn Manson’s cover of the Eurhythmics’ single, ‘Sweet Dreams.’ So right here in this first trio of songs, grown-ups get songs that will appeal to them while also introducing young listeners to some fun rocking compositions. ‘Brontosaurs is Back’ changes things up with its ska approach and gives way to the even easier moving reggae style composition, ‘Diplodocus.’ From there, things pull back even more with the folk style Stegosaurus.’ Things gradually pick back up after that song, carrying listeners through to the album’s end with three more rocking songs in the kindie-rock of ‘I’m a Pterodactyl,’ and the much heavier ‘The Kraken’ and ‘Kronosaurus.’ The short and simple of these arrangements is this: From one to the next, the styles and sounds of the arrangements offer a certain level of variety. The songs will appeal just as much to grown-ups as to their younger counterparts. To that end, they form a strong foundation for the record.
Building on the strength thereof is the lyrical content that accompanies that musical content. The lyrical content featured here is, as the album’s title suggests, about dinosaurs and at least one monster, the kraken. From the Stegosaurus to the Dimetrodon to the perhaps lesser-known Kronosaurus (which was a real, sea-going dinosaur) and more, the album teaches listeners of all ages about a variety of dinosaurs. Believe it or not, there are plenty of adults who remember very little about different dinosaurs (and other topics), so to that end, this content serves as a great review for those grown-ups and an equally welcome introduction for young listeners. What’s more, kids love dinosaurs in general. So, adding fun rocking songs to lessons about dinosaurs will just get kids enjoying learning about them even more. Keeping that in mind, this simple, straight forward lyrical content from one song to the next, as it follows one, central theme makes the lyrical side of this record just as appealing as the album’s musical content.
While the content featured in Dinosaurs & Monsters clearly does plenty to make the album enjoyable, their sequencing puts the finishing touch to the presentation. As noted already, the sounds and styles featured in the arrangements changes ever so much from one to the next, at least in regards to the heavier content. The placement of the more pop-oriented songs in the middle of the album shows even more the time and thought that went into the album’s sequencing. It shows the band did not want audiences to grow tired of the album. That effort paid off, too. That is because it ensures the stability of the album’s energy even as the sounds and styles of the songs change from one to the next. Keeping that in mind, the album’s sequencing puts the finishing touch to the presentation. When the positive general effect ensured by the sequencing is considered along with the album’s content, the whole makes the album an enjoyable presentation for audiences of all ages.
Dinosaurs & Monsters, the latest album from family music act Howdytoons, is a presentation that the entire family will find enjoyable. That is due in part to its musical content, which provides some fun rocking tunes that grown-ups will find familiar and that younger audiences will find a great introduction to the rock realm. The lyrical content that accompanies the album’s musical arrangements is straight forward. It centers on…well…dinosaurs, as with its three predecessors. That straight forward, accessible presentation ensures audiences’ engagement throughout the album in its own right. The sequencing of that content brings everything full circle and completes the album’s presentation. That is because it ensures the album’s energy remains stable even as the sounds and styles of the arrangements changes ever so much throughout the album. Each item examined here is important in its own way to the whole of the album. All things considered they make Dinosaurs & Monsters a blast about the past for future generations of audiences.
Dinosaurs & Monsters is scheduled for release Friday through Howdytoons’ own label, Howdytoons Productions, Inc. More information on the album is available along with all of the band’s latest news at https://www.facebook.com/howdytoons.
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