Neo Geo Find Their' DNA' On New Album

Dance-rock band Neo Geo rose to fame with their self titled debut album in 2011. The album featured some great songs like "DT Killer" and "Leave Me Behind" but with the exception of many four or so other songs that were great,, the album also contained some filler. Last month they released their sophomore album Digital DNA and it was an improvement on their debut.
The band thrive on rockers like "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," "I'll Be Fine" and the album's best track and first single "Superstar?" The band rock with the best of them. Singer Rainy Terrell does her best Hayley Williams impression and channels Gwen Stefani on other tracks. On "I've Done it Alone" Terrell channels Sierra Kusterbeck from VersaEmerge (now known as Versa).
The band also know how to do ballads well. "Sunshine State" starts out as a piano laced slow jam and then in true power ballad fashion. The beginning of "Shakedown" features a piano and recalls "Private Parts" by Halestorm before turning into a  straight up rocker. The album also closes with the ballad "Marionette." The song which also turns into a slight rocker is a tad melodramatic and isn't the best ballad the band have ever done.
The band also have some songs that are straight up dance music. "One Way Ticket" is an electropop song that has a fun bouncy beat and tons of energy. Also "One Night Stand" is a dance-rocker with a  killer beat.
Neo Geo don't get as much popularity as they deserve and hopefully this album will change that. While this album isn't perfect, he band have truly found their DNA and their sound .

VersaEmerge follow trends on new EP

VersaEmerge have always made great music. Their first EP had a post-hardcore sound before Sierra Kusterbeck took over as frontwoman. Once Kusterbeck was the singer their next releases sounded like Paramore and Evanescence wrote scores for movies, they were so original.
VersaEmerge have been hard at work on their second full length album for almost two years and earlier this month they released an EP entitled Another Atmosphere Preview, which features three songs from their upcoming album Another Atmosphere.
The three songs "No Consequences," "Bones" and "Domesticated" have rock oriented aspects but they are predominantly dance tracks. The band heavily use synthesisers on this album and few actual instruments. From the dubstep wobbles on the songs to the synthetic guitar solo on "Bones," this record is synthesized.
"No Consequences" contains a more rock sound with guitar chords and tons of attitude. The song is very different from the rest of the EP and is by far the best song. The song is about getting what you want and not caring what others think.
"Bones" is the next best song. The song also has dance-rock sound to it. "I want you to rest those bones over me," Kusterbeck sings seductively in the chorus. The song is far from as good as most of VersaEmerge's other songs but it's still a fun ride.
"Domesticated" is by far the worst song out of the three, mainly because the lyrics are cheesy as hell. The "piano" driven track is about not fitting into the mold and not being the girl that everybody wants Kusterbeck to be. It's clear in the song that Kusterbeck is not trying to fit the mold, yet why is her band following the dance music trend?
This dance music trend is ruining many good bands. VersaEmerge's new EP isn't bad in any sense, but it just doesn't stand up to their last album Fixed at Zero or their self-titled EP. Hopefully the rest of Another Atmosphere contains a more classic VersaEmerge sound. VersaEmerge are an example of a band who have tried to follow a trend and have lost what made them great in the first place.