Sunday, March 09, 2008
The daily 5 Category: Music
another round Category: Music
I currently have 13945 songs in my itunes folder. I randomly update my ipod every few days....the last 5 songs I've listened to while playing on random:
5. The Didjits...Sweet Sweet Satan: Stars off with a bit of an acoustic lullabye "Sweet, sweet Satan I will sell you my soul for a piece of pussy and a lot of action" These guys got the rocknroll thing down. The drums pound...the bass pummels and the guitar kills 2 chords with merciless abandon. They don't leave a rocknroll cliche out and somehow they manage to do it without sounding trite. Great out of control guitar solo...almost sounds as if it's the first time he's played guitar and is possessed by the devil to get enough skill to make it stay together. These guys rock and are probably best known for the cover of their song Killboy Powerhead by The Offspring on the Smash album. 7/10
4. Into Another...Maritime Murder. This one starts out with some reverberating guitar fading in and out as Peter Moses works the volume knob on his axe. Then the guitar slips into some wah wah sounds. Richie Birkenhead starts the vocals in piercing falsetto moving into some real strong screaming. The song slowly builds to a pretty intense climax only to come back down to the guitar harmonics from the beginning. An acoustic guitar adds some texture. A very complex song structure with numerous parts that all retain the same motif. A great off time solo leads into another building toward climax and then the song stops short of hitting the high set earlier and a few drum fills on the toms slide into a fade out. A masterpiece! 10/10
3. Superjoint Ritual....The Horror. Brutal and pounding yet managing a groove. The middle part actually had my head bopping. I like Phil Anselmo's voice more in Pantera and Down. Too much yelling here for a guy who can sing his ass off. 6/10
2. John Frusciante....Away and Anywhere. For those who expect some RHCP outtakes on Frusciante's solo albums, it can be quite a shock to hear what he's able to record and release. He's quite an eccentric guy, perhaps this generation's Syd Barrett. This song has a haunting repetitive riff with underwater vocals...the drums are very straightforward (drum machine?). The focus here is on the song. Weird synthesizer part in the middle. Memorable song that will stick in your head for awhile. 7/10
1. Faith No More...The Real Thing. Starts off with some very interesting rhythmic drum work. Some eerie guitar sounds slowly blend with some shimmering keyboards. The bass and vocals gently join in. Bam. A quick, harsh crescendo. Pattons vocals are strong and beautiful. The open guitar chords are distorted as fuck and sound great. When the song completely kicks in, it's brutal and hammering. And the layer of keyboards on top of the metallic mayhem works so well. I remember when these guys first started making mainstream noise in 87 I dissed them because of the keyboards. I was into metal, and keyboards weren't metal. When The Real Thing came out, my buddy Lippy reintroduced me to FNM while playing pool at Justin's house. I had no intrest in hearing this again and probably called them "gay." By the end of the first side of the cassette, I was won over. This is a top ten album of all time on my personal list. This song captures everything that was good about these guys. Brutal metal parts. Quite interludes with melody and texture. Great vocals. Some of the best in modern rock. These guys were the shit. The blew up, became huge, refused to sell out and went quietly into the dark night. The next album, Angel Dust, was a dark, blistering fuck you to trying to follow up a hit. They did their own thing with awesome results, too bad the original following they stirred up didn't stay along for the ride. 10/10
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the daily 5 Category: Music
I currently have 13854 songs in my itunes folder. I randomly update my ipod every few days....the last 5 songs I've listen to while playing on random:
technical difficulties lost friday's 5 songs...if i remember correctly the blog was about zeppelin, ween, tree, murphy's law, and someone else...can't remember.
so, here's today's daily 5:
5. Jesse Malin...Brooklyn: The former singer for the NY city bands Heart Attack and D'Generation makes his singer/songwriter debut in the vein of Ryan Adams, Jack Johnson, John Frusciante, and Bob Forrest. The vocals are a bit whiny, light years from his work with his early punk outfits. Love the hammond organ on this one...it's got that Deep Purple sound when it's not doing it's church thing. Also some piano and acoustic guitar filling out the track. Without paying any attention to what the lyrics are actually saying the song conveys a sense of lonliness and dispair. I'd give this a 6 out of 10.
4. Sick of It All....Jungle. This is off one of their records on Atlantic. One of the few bands to sign to a major label and not change their sound one iota. The strongest aspect of the SOIA game is their ability to stay hard and groove at the same time. When they're on target, they write songs that get the body rockin, head bobbin, or what ever it is you do with yourself with a good song. There's raw emotion in their tunes and you can feel the urgency of their anger. This track is no different. It's a mid tempo track that chugs along and rocks out. 7/10
3. Alice Cooper...Hard Rock Summer. This was the B-side to the song for the Friday the 13th soundtrack. This is a clear attempt at attempting to write a song for a movie soundtrack. It's pretty bad. It's like any other "rock" song playing in a teen movie with a bunch of kids in the gym dancing in ruffled gowns and skinny ties. It's funny how generic the song is but when the solo kicks in it's typically metal...it's screeches and whammy bar divebombs kind of kick ass. The song sucks though. 3/10
2. Murphy's Law...Good For Now. The title of the track sums up this whole release. It's not their best by far, but it's good enough. It's a uptempo punk rock song. The revolving door of supporting players makes it almost impossible to keep up with who's playing on what. Jimmy G's the only constant these days. Chuck Valle (RIP) is playing bass on this one as well. Todd Youth is not on this track but rather Jack Flanagan their manager and former member of The Mob. The production's a bit flat on this one. 6/10
1. Zeke...Kicked in the Teeth. Sounds a bit like the Boston band Bullet Lavolta. This one does kick you in the teeth. Almost sounds like the strumming of a rusty mattress spring instead of a guitar. The vocals are all gravel, a bit like Nashville Pussy but not as harsh or as bad. The vocal sound actually works well with these guys. It's a fist pumping anthem. They just keep repeating the same lyric over and over "twisted, on my 69, i'm in love with the 69, 69, yeah, yeah, yeah." Whatever the fuck that means. 7/10
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Thursday, March 06, 2008
another round Category: Music
I currently have 13523 songs in my itunes folder. I randomly update my ipod every few days....the last 5 songs I've listen to while playing on random:
5. Elton John....Your Song: Starts out with a nice piano melody. Soft vocals. Stand up bass. Pretty and a bit melancholy. When the strings kick in it's a bit much. The song would be better with just the piano, vocals, and bass. Nice message in the song. "I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful life is while you're in the world." Makes me think of my son. The song does a great job of capturing the mood of absolute love of another beyond the words. I don't even know if I knew any of the words beyond the chorus until I listened as closely as I did here. The music emotes. I love the addition of the flemenco guitar at the end of the song and the harp. I still think the orchestra is too much.
4. The Ramones...Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment. Right from the get go it hammers fast and hard. Lightning fast. Simple. Joey's vocals are classic and always remind me of those early rock n' roll singers from the 50's. A minute and a half of pure rock.
3. Dave Matthews Band...What Would You Say: At times the acoustic hippie jam thing gets to me with these guys but they are a good band. The harmonica tweaks the annoyance button a bit too. Love the bass line and drums in this song. It's actually got a great metal beat in it. The rhythm section of this band is the band. Good party song. "Knock Knock on the door"-the drums are great there. "Mom... It's... My...Birthday..." I sing along everytime and now as I listen it's pretty fucking annoying. The hippie bar party break in the middle bites ass. More harmonica...fuck..I didn't hate this song until right now. There's the metal beat again....
2. House of Pain...On Point (Lethal Dose Remix): Great stand up bass line. It's the sound that made their second album, Same As It Ever Was, so much better than the first, and the first was great. Haunting ambiance fills every groove of this track. Some twisted horns add an eerie motif. The grizzle of Everlast's vocals provide a great contrast to the music. Catchy chorus. Easy to remember and you can sing along immediately, even on first listen. Danny Boy's vocals are wonderfully whiny providing a break from the relentless gravel of Everlast's throat. These guys just reunited as La Coka Nostra. I've only heard clips on myspace. I should check it out a bit closer.
1. Killswitch Engage....Desperate Times: Starts out with an open chord resounding. A slow dirge beat kicks in and the guitar chugs along in distorted glory. Screaming vocals typical of the screamo movement. But melody is what sets these guys apart. Melancholy chorus with melodic vocals. The song chugs along at a slow, deliberate pace. The screaming vocals change to more actual singing through most of the rest of the song. Nice thick bass line in the middle of the track. The cookie monster screams return before a nice mellow bridge toward the end. Howard Jones can sing!
....as I wrap up for the evening Ween's Waving my Dick in the Wind comes on...great title. Funny song.
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5 more songs. Category: Music
I currently have 13518 songs in my itunes folder. I randomly update my ipod every few days....the last 5 songs I've listen to while playing on random:
5. Everlast...Children's Story: A cover of the old Slick Rick song. Not one of Everlast's best, more like album filler. It's got a funky beat, a good groove in the guitar, and a decent beat box for the rhythm. Nothing special...but it does make you bop your head a bit.
4. Agnostic Front...Rock Star: This is off of one of their releases while on Epitaph records. Straight up hardcore. Roger Miret is one of the best hardcore vocalists out there, slurred and marble mouthed. Nice catchy rhythm guitar from Vinnie Stigma (is jhe actually playing these days?) The influence of the west coast record label shows up in the back up gang vocals. The song comes in at about a minute and a half. It's fast, hard, and brutal. The chorus provides a break from the brutality and provides a pretty decent hook, memorable. NYHC!!!!!!
3. Jimi Hendrix Experience....Love or Confusion. This is a live version from the BBC sessions. Sound isn't too bad, a bit muddy. Great guitar work as always from the master. It's cool to hear some of the sounds he gets on this song live and not as a product of studio manipulation. Mitch Mitchell's drumming is great too. One of the all time great rock drummers maybe only coming in behind Keith Moon and John Bonham. Actually, Mitchell's style is almost identical to Moon's but not quite as unbridled and out of control. But the constant fills as rhythm work so good to complete the songs...to make them fuller.
2. Alice Cooper...He's Back (Demo version). Not quite as polished as the final track that ended up on the Friday the 13th soundtrack and Coop's Constrictor album in 1986, but it's a demo dumbass. The chorus on this version is pretty lame. Very flat...kind of out of key. Sounds like a drum machine providing the beat. I remember loving this song when it came out. Loved horror movies and heavy metal. Not really a metal song but a pop song with a metal solo in the middle. Really cheesy keyboards litter the sound of this demo making little ticking sounds throughout. Also missing the "chu chu chu, ah ah ah" sounds from the movie that made the final version of the song.
1. Seemless....The Crisis. Jesse Litch from Killswitch Engage on vocals here. One of the better modern vocalists out there. At times he screeches like Spike from Mind Over Four (a unforgivably overlooked band from the late 80's early 90's proabably most famous for Phil Anselmo wearing their shirt on the back cover of Pantera's Vulgar Display of Power album). Great grinding guitar to open this track. The drums, bass, and screeches kick in to pummel. Great groove rock. This guy can sing too. His melodic voice is strong. A good mix of hardcore screaming and metal singing. Great band. Good song. This one's a bit like some Godsmack stuff but with a bit of C.O.C. thrown in.
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Wednesday, March 05, 2008
more musical musings...nothing on tv tonight Category: Music
I currently have 13433 songs in my itunes folder. I randomly update my ipod every few days....the last 5 songs I've listen to while playing on random:
5. Rocket From The Crypt....Born in '69: Catchy song. Great guitar hook with the horns accentuating. Gravelly vocals..."I need it...I feel it." Rocks out right from the beginning. Every minute of this song is catchy. It's amazing that these guys were never bigger than they were. They had a bit of MTV play back in the mid 90's and then kind of vanished off the face of the earth. I was never a big fan back then and am really glad that I've recently come across these guys. The album is Scream Dracula Scream. Good stuff. Real good songwriting on this one.
4. Def Leppard...Miss You in a Heartbeat. This is a sappy rocker ballad. That means piano plus melodic vocals and some "ooh ooh ooohs." A great rock band when they started, Def Leppard found where the money is and stayed with the overproduced ballad & occasional pop song disguised as a rock song. Everything they've put out since Hysteria is crap. Hysteria is a great pop rock album. Pyromania rocked but was a transition into the pop world. The stuff before that is the good ol' rock and roll stuff. This song is off of their 2 disc greatest hits "The Definitive Collection."
3. One Man Army...All Your Friends (Live). This one is off a Vans Warped Tour compilation. Poppy punk rock. Starts off with some melodic raspy vocals and a single guitar slightly distorted playing some basic power chords. Once the rest of the band kicks in....Hello Blink 182. Nothing too original here. Nothing I haven't heard a million times before. Not a bad song. Actually some good stop/start parts in the middle. Otherwise, not bad but doesn't stand out at all from anything else in the genre.
2. Dropkick Murphy's ...Finnegan's Wake. Can't go wrong here. Great band. Great traditional Irish Folk Song. They've picked up the tempo a bit. Punked it out with some distortion and speed. Love this guys vocals. The original singer, not Al Barr. Sounds like he's got a mouthful of marbles. Go get me a beer please.
1. Pink Floyd...Don't Leave Me Now. This is off the live version of The Wall, "Is There Anybody Out There?" Starts off with some haunting piano, breathing, and echoing guitar strums. Almost like the soundtrack to the Friday the 13th horror movies. Roger Waters sings in his off key, desperation filled manner. The song plods along and works much better in the context of the full album. As a stand alone track it's too empty. Less of a song than a soundscape. At times it really sounds a lot like the original music from the great 70's gang movie The Warriors. Listen close to those keyboards. Once the songs kicks into full gear the plodding slowness of the beginning is better understood but the full band only plays for 30 seconds or so on the track. Not a song for the gym.
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random musical musings Category: Music
I currently have 13433 songs in my itunes folder. I randomly update my ipod every few days....the last 5 songs I've listen to while playing on random:
5. David Lee Roth...That's Life. Orignally a Sinatra song. Dave jumped the shark here. Although his voice sounds pretty good, the horns sound a bit too much like some session musicians collecting a paycheck. Nothing outstanding from Steve Vai on this track...if it's even him playing.
4. The Meatmen...Blow Me Jah. Sound quality is terrible. Nothing but reverb. Sounds like it was recorded in a photo booth. Lyrics are pretty bad..what you can make out. "Jah will make you a very happy person if you only smoke lots of pot... fuck it...Praise Jah..." Terrible musicianship..I like a lot of their other stuff...this is pretty weak.
3. Bon Jovi...Without Love. I bought this cd for Tara a few years ago. I swear!!!! It's in the Itunes and in the mix...Well produced. Sounds good. Generic song. Brings back a bit of that 80's metal nostalgia with the keyboards and the squealing guitar. Terrible lyric "..cause nothing would be nothing without love." Ouch!!! Right out of the 80's hair metal formulaic textbook here with this one.
2. The Beatles ... From Me To You. Great fuckin band. Good song. Mono mix. Vocals are way up in front and drums down low in the mix. Lennon's vocals got some passion to them. McCartney's backups are right on. Great harmonies. I wish there was a bit more texture to the mix...the main rhythm guitar is easy to hear but when the choruses kick in it's tough to hear any subtle guitar sounds. Harmonica on this one too.
1. Faith No More...Highway Star. Great Deep Purple song. The FNM version only clocks in at about a minute and a half. Sound is terrible...bootleg. All high hat, keyboards, and vocals with some audience vocals interspersed in as the guy starts singing near the recording source. Patton's vocals are always strong. He belts out each note with a deep ferocity when he's actually singing and not screaming, although his screams are very controlled and deliberate. One of the best rock vocalists of the past 20 years. Too bad he's not doing too much mainstream stuff anymore these days. But his work with Peeping Tom and Tomahawk is good as well as with Loveage. I could listen to this guy sing all day, any day.
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Thursday, February 28, 2008
Nofx
A week after seeing Van Halen in a 15,000 seat arena with shit sound, I went to see the veteran punk band from San Francisco, NOFX. 1200 people...sold out. Way fucking better than Van Halen. They out performed both of their live albums (I Heard They Suck Live and They've Gotten Even Worse Live)and the one other time I saw them on the warped tour. They were tight as hell, right on. A ton of energy...not as much usual banter between songs..usually the talk is as long as the song...not last weekend. The highlight had to be the 18 minute opus "The Decline"...un-fucking-believable!!!! They played the whole thing, start to finish...no discernable errors. Iron Maiden would be proud! Definitely in the top five shows I've ever seen behind GNR in 87 and Pearl Jam in 91 or 92 opening for the chili peppers. This show was the shit.
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Monday, February 18, 2008
Van Halen
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van halen 2/ 16/08
80 bucks for a ticket...but, with david lee roth I thought I'd go for it. Great to hear all of the old songs live...especially to see eddie play it live. I wasn't very happy with the backing track providing the background vocals and the keyboards/synths because it seemed that at times the band was off time with the tracks and had to change time mid song and cut parts short to get on track. DLR's vocals were way up in the mix, distorted and hard to hear. Not clear at all. Eddie's guitar sounded great. Alex's drums were lost in the mix. Not much in between song banter, it seemed as if the band was just showing up for the paycheck, not much soul in the show. Overall, it was worth it to see Eddie play since I've never done so before, but wouldn't drop the cash to do it again. W/out Michael Anthony something was missing (hence the addition of the backing track) but out of 10 I'd give the show a 6. PS. Did Wolfie eat Valerie Bertinelli????
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