| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Aug | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | |
Posted on September 8th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Entertainment, Music.
So, every now and then, I try to educate you lot of rabble by pointing out a musical artist worthy of your time. For a lot of years, Peter Gabriel was at the top of my list as far as solo performers went. He really does have a vision and a voice that is not just unique but universally distinct. It is a combination I never tire of. Pop in one of this guy’s CDs and it’s an instant shot of adrenaline and self reflection that’s a hit every time. Here are a couple of live videos for your viewing/listening pleasure.
“Signal to Noise”
See, this guy still rocks at 58… even if it does take until around 2:40 for him to kick in. What a great tune.
“Man, I’m losing sound and sight
Of all those who can tell me wrong from right
When all things beautiful and bright
Sink in the night
Yet there’s still something in my heart
That can find the way
To make a start
To turn up the signal
Wipe out the noise”
“Secret World”
Ah, the “Secret World”, a place you knew had to exist when you were young… but then time and reality set in on you and all of the magic evaporated. How sad… no really… it’s sad. A dollar and a day to be so blissfully naive and optimistic as I once was… ahhhh F YOU TOO.
Posted on August 27th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Entertainment, Music.
This poor blogger. Imagine, getting locked up for streaming songs from “Chinese Democracy”, the yet to be released CD from Guns N’ Roses that has been ten years in the making! What the hell was this guy thinking? Guns N’ Roses were a pack of posers 20 years ago, you’d think that these old bastards would be happy for the free promotion!
A blogger suspected of streaming songs from the unreleased Guns N’ Roses album “Chinese Democracy” on his Web site was arrested Wednesday and appeared in court, where his bail was set at $10,000.
Sure copyrights should be protected. Sure this guy screwed up. I still contend it started with poor band selection. “Welcome to the early bird, we eat mac n’ cheese here every day,” I mean seriously… are people out there really waiting for this album to be released? Are people really interested in enduring the antics of Axl Rose, yet again? Everybody knows that Axl Rose is the biggest whiner in all of music. Would anybody go to a show to see this guy? Does anybody really think that this old man can still hit the notes? Color me uninterested… which leads me to my reason for posting this blurb in the first place, “WHO CARES?”
The story mentions that this blogger could have done significant financial harm to Guns n’ Roses. Uh huh. Somebody better tell Grandpa Axl and the rest of that retirement village lounge act that this is 2008. As soon as that album hits the stores, it hits the internets… and then all of the little pirates will go to town anyway… and they won’t be listening to poor quality streamed versions off of this poor bastard’s site either. Nope, those crusty old farts are going to have to tour (which is how bands seem to make their money these days) and we all know how stable a Guns N’ Roses tour is, don’t we? Scratchy Rose will sound like a moose in heat inside of three songs and then what?
OK, come to think of it… these guys need every penny off of this album that they can get. SHAME ON YOU MR. BLOGGER, taking money from the elderly!
P.S. Axl, please leave your headana at home… everybody knows that Brett Michaels owns that look now. You’ll just have to figure out another way to keep your hair on.
Posted on July 15th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Music.
In an effort to keep you people aprised of what constitutes “good” music, I’m posting Interpol’s “Narc”. Just a great overall song, even if it is a couple of years old. How can you not appreciate a song about love and betrayal? Well that’s at least as close as I can come to deciphering the lyrics, anyway. My favorite line… “Cuz it’s just you, me and this wire”… you also have to love the campy keyboards and bass that bring up mental images of a smoke filled nightclub trapped hopelessly in the mid 1970s. Maybe that’s what I like about the tune… it just paints so many pictures in my head.
Bah… whatever… I’m outta here. Click on the image to hear “Narc”.
Posted on July 10th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Music.
Here’s a link to Coldplay’s Lost! As I said in my review, it doesn’t do that much for me musically but lyrically it’s a great tune. Typical of Coldplay, the music has a meaning. Gotta love it when a band bothers to “say something” these days.
Posted on July 9th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Music.
I’ve liked Coldplay for years, even before they hit it big here in the states with “Clocks” I was mowing the lawn to these guys. There is something that I find compelling about their music. I’ve heard people refer to some of their songs as “pop standards” and I completely reject that notion. They have a multifaceted sound that offers something a little different every time I listen, it’s hardly “pop”. So of course when Viva La Vida came out I had to get it.
First of all let me say that it took me a few listens to get into this new album. I know that Chris Martin and the rest of the guys are always talking about wondering how some fictitious 16 year old named David is going to respond to their music but I must be missing something because at that age I would have HATED this CD. This album is completely unlike most of what they’ve done to this point. They teamed up with Brian Eno for this album and his influence is ALL OVER this sucker. Brian Eno isn’t exactly the fare of 16 year old boys. For my part I was thrilled to hear that Eno was on board for this project, but I don’t think most people look at his work as mainstream or “pop”. It should be no surprise then that this album covers all sorts of material that is not a part of the average 16 year old’s thought process.
The album has a paranormal/supernatural/religious slant to it from top to bottom. We hear songs that mention ghosts, God and The Crusades… sorry but I wasn’t giving much thought to any of those topics when I was 16. The album as a whole is a bit disjointed in its sound, but the whole of the thing reminds me of old “theme” albums of the 70s. Everything seems to tie together nicely in the end.
This album will NOT be everybody’s cup of tea and I have to admit that I am pleasantly surprised to see that it is selling so well. I’d be interested to see how the next Coldplay album sells in its first few days and would take that to be a true reflection on how well this project has been received by the fans vs. the adoring and whoring critics. I can see where this album might actually alienate the Coldplay fan that has enjoyed the deep, yet flighty forays of Coldplay into life and love. This album sets most of those usual Coldplay standards aside and takes us all on a trip through life and death.
Overall, I think it’s a good album… but again, not everybody’s cup of tea. Standout tracks for me are “Life in Technicolor” for its transporting quality. It’s the first track on the disc and sets the tone that we’re going somewhere different. It is followed by “Cemeteries of London” another great tune that hits all of the right notes. “Lost!” is the third song on the album and while I don’t find it musically all that fantastic, lyrically it touches a chord. “Yes” is like two songs in one, and I dig the way it switches up in the middle. What’s to say about “Viva La Vida” the title track? You’ve probably been beaten bloody with the thing by now. Great melody and a quality that will remind listeners of the summer of ‘08.
If you haven’t bought this thing yet, go ahead and take a chance, but be ready to invest a couple of listens before giving up on it. This is the kind of album that slowly grows on you.
Peace
Posted on May 22nd, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Entertainment, Music, Television.
Nice. It didn’t matter what Simon, Randy or Paula thought. The audience voted for David Cook and he beat Archuleta by 12 million votes! This is great news and I am very happy for Cook, he deserved to win it!
Now I’m going to go into a corner and lick my wounds… as I simultaneously celebrate. It’s tough to feel bad about being wrong, when I wholly WANTED to be wrong. If you have to be wrong in life… I recommend this way of going about it! SWEET!
Grats, David Cook!
Posted on May 21st, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Entertainment, Music, Television.
OK, I used to be very proud to announce that I was one of the three people across this country that did not watch ‘American Idol’. This season, I tuned in to watch the train wrecks called “auditions” and never stopped watching. It’s a pretty funny prospect given that this is supposedly the lowest rated season for Idol. I got onboard just in time for its decline.
I have always thought that the winners of Idol were all pretty suspect as talents. I don’t know that a popularity contest necessarily determines talent and my assessment seems to have been justified by this season. The two finalists are completely different artists. Cook is the pseudo rocker and Archuleta is the Manilow-like, easy listening format friendly, bland that seems to permeate music. Throughout the competition Cook has shown a willingness to take chances, to expand his boundaries and to pretty much create an identity for himself in a media circus that is all about punching artists from molds. Archuleta is white bread, safe and boring.
Last night, ’American Idol’ did its best to crown Archuleta the winner of the competition, even before the first vote was cast. With the way the tweens are lapping up this Archuleta kid, I think it was safe to assume he was going to win. It’s the lovesick girls that light up the phone lines, not the discriminating adults. Just in case that didn’t happen though, Simon, Randy and Paula were there to add their own insurance policy… crowning Archuleta the night’s winner. The problem I have with that is it ignores the entirety of the competition. For months Cook has been a consistent winner. Archuleta had a better night last night, but does that make him the Idol? I would hope not, but unfortunately… tonight will likely see the breathy, scrawny, mealy, Archuleta being declared the next big thing in music.
Ugh… and the industry wonders why they can’t SELL their wares anymore!
Posted on May 11th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Entertainment, Just Dumb, Music, Television.
Need I say more? If this kid wins “American Idol”, I’ll toss my cookies. I dub this kid… annoying.
Posted on May 2nd, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Music.
The wife and I are big fans of Loreena McKennitt. Not only is she an excellent singer, she is also something different. Her music isn’t your standard fare, she mixes folk and rock while using “different” kinds of instruments to augment her sound. It isn’t just bass, guitar and piano. There is a layered approach to it all that carries you away. Lucky me, Loreena isn’t the only one making this kind of great music.
For a couple of years now, the wife has been listening to Martine Lund Hoel, a Norwegian artist that plays a hardangerfiddle (think twinked out violin). Every time she plays a tune, I ask, “Who is that again?” This time I chose to remember, to store it in my memory and to also share. While instrumental, each piece tells a unique tale. Where Loreena has her voice and lyrics to transport you… Martine uses her instrument to the same effect. The girl knows how to rock out on a “fiddle” and how it should be accompanied. I happen to really like instrumental music because it’s about all I can listen to when writing. If you can stand to listen to something without words, give it a try! Tell me you can’t see yourself walking along a craggy shore overlooking the north atlantic while listening to this stuff. Let’s face it, I won’t be listening to classical music any time soon. This is a nice way to get some “strings” into my audio diet and to enjoy it!
One of my favorite tunes is called “Thisle Dew”… it’s basically her and a piano. It’s somber but then I like stuff like that. If you want something a little more rockin’ try “Villdans”. Cheers Martine, love your stuff… and thanks for the inspiration! Here’s to hoping some others here in the US start hearing your music.
Posted on April 27th, 2008 by Mark.
Categories: Music.
If I ask my kids what’s good in the world of music today… I’ll get answers like “Disturbed” from the girl, and the boy will likely spout off some rap group that I’ve never heard of. Now I know that every generation has its own musical taste and tone, but even the worst of the bands in the 80s sang their own tunes (even if badly) and played their own instruments. We frowned on the whole, lip sync thing. Now, it’s like … who cares? Well, I care. Either you can play and sing or you can’t… I don’t want to watch some idiot DANCE to their music! Recently, we went to see a band play at a local watering hole. The kids were AMAZED by it all. They’d seen them play before, but I don’t think they appreciated how cool it is to watch people actually PERFORM. Now that they’re older they seem to have some concept of how special it all is. They could have watched Sierra play for hours and it wasn’t even like they were playing contemporary stuff, they were playing the classic rock greats. There is something very cool and magical about a good live performance. You just have to envy people that can play an instrument with any kind of proficiency… I can’t and so I really appreciate when someone can. This is why you’re more likely to find me at a Yes concert than you will some modern day band. If I have the CD I don’t need to go to a concert for a “listening party”.
One of the last bands that seems to have any real ability to deliver live these days is Coldplay. Now I know these guys have become the darlings of music, but I listened to them when they were just some band. The wife and I used “Yellow” in our wedding video… they’re just a great band. They carry the torch when it comes to GOOD live performances. Here’s a live performance of “A Rush of Blood to the Head”… one of their better songs that got no play! “I’m gonna buy a gun and start a war, if you can tell me something worth fighting for.” What a great line!