This blog isn't about any artist in particular. It's more so about the idea of what a lot of bands do that a lot of people tend not to like; "selling out".
Bands sell out; it happens. But I feel that people often throw this term around without fully understanding what it means. To me, selling out means that you're just putting out garbage to appeal to the mainstream and to the record companies, ergo: you're only doing it for money; financial success. I think that's a fair definition.
I think the best examples is comparing Green Day and Metallica. A lot of people would say that Green Day sold out when they made American Idiot. I would have to strongly disagree because American Idiot was described as, "The most personal album they've worked on." With that in mind, it has the perfect kind of songwriting; attitude and passion with just the right amount of pop. Never on this album does it become too poppy. My point is, there's a difference between selling out and growing as an artist. Yes, they had more financial success, and yes they're a Hot Topic band, but they had the intention of just wanting to create something beautiful and they did, and that's why I love it. If Green Day sold out, they weren't trying to. They were just a bunch of kids just trying to have fun, and then they grew up.
When Metallica made the Black Album, they had the intention of just selling a buttload of records. And then when they made Load and Reload, they didn't stop. Black album is a bit forgivable for a having a handful of good songs, but nothing on Load and Reload is at all memorable or worth mentioning. Fuel and King Nothing. I BARELY like those songs. Fuel is just catchy and King Nothing's bassline is sweet. That's. It. And to be honest, I can't tell you which album(s) those songs are off of. Neither can Jason Newsted, actually. He said so in a relatively recent interview, it was quite hilarious.
Yeah, Metallica's tried to get back to their roots with Stanger, but a major problem they had I think was Bob Rock. The problem being he was still there. If anyone wants to blame anyone for Metallica losing their edge and respectfulness, fingers tend to be pointed at Bob freaking Rock. I kind of agree. Point is, him being their means he was still taking place as producer, which is what they should get away from to get back to their roots. Then when Death Magnetic happened, they fired him and got the producer for Slayer. And while that album had the intention of getting back to their roots...again, it kind of worked, but not really. To me the album is like Metallica trying to be as heavy as they were and as proggy as AJFA. "Trying" is the key word. The album isn't really creative or interesting, and the mixing sucks. And that's the problem. No creativity. I feel that Metallica will never be able to grow artistically.
Friday, May 30, 2014
Friday, May 23, 2014
Snoop Dogs (Lions?) Movie
This movie was interesting. Interesting choice in movie to show that is; interesting as a movie, not so much. The Reggae was good, and personally I don't care what Snoop does, because he can do both. My only issue with the movie was that 99% of it was just them smoking weed, and the other 1% is them talking about their old careers and recording the new stuff.
Overall: I like the change; it's interesting and cool. The movie wasn't needed.
Overall: I like the change; it's interesting and cool. The movie wasn't needed.
Mastodon's Leviathan
Leviathan is the second album Mastodon put out, and it's my personal favorite. It's the perfect blend of Prog and Heavy Metal, and that's just my jam: Prog Metal.
From Blood and Thunder to Joseph Merrick, this album is a masterpiece. The instrumentation and overall concept this album tackles (being Moby-Dick) is phenomenal; everything is pulled off well.
My one complaint: The mixing for the bass and drums could be better. the guitars are easily the loudest thing on the album, and they sound really good, but I'd like to hear the bass more clearly. It's not as bad as AJFA by any means, but it could be better.
From Blood and Thunder to Joseph Merrick, this album is a masterpiece. The instrumentation and overall concept this album tackles (being Moby-Dick) is phenomenal; everything is pulled off well.
My one complaint: The mixing for the bass and drums could be better. the guitars are easily the loudest thing on the album, and they sound really good, but I'd like to hear the bass more clearly. It's not as bad as AJFA by any means, but it could be better.
Dookie
I like to play albums in the car when I'm with my girlfriend because she has a subscription to Rhapsody, so the other day we were listening to Dookie from Green Day. This is probably my favorite album from Green Day in terms of the music because it's punk, but it's also just musically...smart. I dunno. It's a lot more creative than most punk rock. Whenever people talk about Green Day, they like to put them into the genre of Pop Punk, which is technically correct, but I don't like that title for them because Green Day's actually good. That, and they don't really sound like Pop Punk...at all. Compare them to Blink 182, We The Kings, Fallout Boy, etc... Green Day sounds totally different. I kind of like to think of it as Black Sabbath being a root for Heavy Metal, but they're technically not metal. Maybe Pop Punk being lamer is the same of heavy metal getting heavier...and perpetually lamer.
ANYWAY. Dookie is a great album. The songs are punk while still being musically creative, and it's got a good element of pop to it. Enough of it, anyway.
ANYWAY. Dookie is a great album. The songs are punk while still being musically creative, and it's got a good element of pop to it. Enough of it, anyway.
Monday, May 19, 2014
American Idiot Broadway
Watching this movie brought out the child in me. You've gotta understand, American Idiot was not only the first album I ever bought and owned, but it really got me into being who I am today. Now, I love all the stuff I listened to beforehand, but when I discovered Green Day, it was like Moses discovering the 10 Commandments, OK? It was really big freaking deal.
I thought that what they did to bring their songs onto Broadway was really interesting. I really liked the story they told with the songs and the choreography that went along with them.
MY ONLY COMPLAINT: And this can't really be fixed, but I'm just really picky about people who sing Green Day. I think Billy Joe Armstrong can sing Green Day...and that's about it. There's just certain words he sings with a certain tone and a certain way that just can't be replicated, not to say that anyone tried to replicate it...but that's another problem. It's really odd/unsettling to hear those songs sung by not him; that's all I'm saying.
It's kind of like if you were to listen to someone cover a Bob Dylan song. Yeah, they might get the music totally right, but it won't be the same because they're doing their own thing, or they're trying to much to be like him be imitating him. And if the imitation is a joke, that's cool, but you shouldn't base your whole show on that unless you're Weird Al or something, in which case you can do whatever you want.
Great movie. Thank you so much for showing it.
I thought that what they did to bring their songs onto Broadway was really interesting. I really liked the story they told with the songs and the choreography that went along with them.
MY ONLY COMPLAINT: And this can't really be fixed, but I'm just really picky about people who sing Green Day. I think Billy Joe Armstrong can sing Green Day...and that's about it. There's just certain words he sings with a certain tone and a certain way that just can't be replicated, not to say that anyone tried to replicate it...but that's another problem. It's really odd/unsettling to hear those songs sung by not him; that's all I'm saying.
It's kind of like if you were to listen to someone cover a Bob Dylan song. Yeah, they might get the music totally right, but it won't be the same because they're doing their own thing, or they're trying to much to be like him be imitating him. And if the imitation is a joke, that's cool, but you shouldn't base your whole show on that unless you're Weird Al or something, in which case you can do whatever you want.
Great movie. Thank you so much for showing it.
Monday, May 12, 2014
My performance at Trojan Live
Danger Dog I thought did a very good job at Trojan Live on Friday, and an alright job on Thursday.
Thursday's showing was just sloppy. I feel that a lot of the focus from the band was put into the energy as opposed to actually being good. Yeah, we played our most upbeat songs, but we didn't play them as well as we ever had.
Friday was much much much better. The crowd was better, the performance was better, and the music was much better. I would say that an accurate performance is better than that of loud, not good performance.
Thursday's showing was just sloppy. I feel that a lot of the focus from the band was put into the energy as opposed to actually being good. Yeah, we played our most upbeat songs, but we didn't play them as well as we ever had.
Friday was much much much better. The crowd was better, the performance was better, and the music was much better. I would say that an accurate performance is better than that of loud, not good performance.
School Of Rock Southern Rock Show
This show was amazing at it's best, and kind of alright at it's worst.
The best song in the set was Freebird. You can't beat that song in this kind of set. You just can't. It's too epic. Also, both of my band members played the ending solo (they split it) and they rocked it.
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed was probably a real close second because of how genius it is, and that it was pulled off so well. The guitarist in my prog band, Jupiter Five played the solo, and I've never seen him play with that much passion. It was beautiful.
And my third favorite was Black Betty for the same reason. Really great performing to add on to it.
I'll bet money that those 3 songs make Best of Season.
The best song in the set was Freebird. You can't beat that song in this kind of set. You just can't. It's too epic. Also, both of my band members played the ending solo (they split it) and they rocked it.
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed was probably a real close second because of how genius it is, and that it was pulled off so well. The guitarist in my prog band, Jupiter Five played the solo, and I've never seen him play with that much passion. It was beautiful.
And my third favorite was Black Betty for the same reason. Really great performing to add on to it.
I'll bet money that those 3 songs make Best of Season.
School of Rock Punk show
Both showings of this school of rock production I played in was pretty good. It had a lot of energy, and a really good crowd turn out. I'll talk about all of my songs.
Die Die My Darling: Guitars sounded great. I was really happy with the kids on that song. My bass was also good.I suppose my vocals were also good; I've never been really happy with them. I just always felt that something about them was missing, and it sucks that I never settled that feeling by the time the show happened. Drums were very meh; the drummer we had gets on my nerves. Too busy hitting on the girls and being a poser instead of actually learning his shit.
Pretty Vacant: I loved it. My only criticisms are toward our drummer and one of our guitarists, but they're kids, so whatever. Even though SOR has taught me that everyone should work hard and has no excuse for not practicing or learning your own stuff regardless of age...whatever.
Hungry Wolf: Easily my favorite song in the set. I didn't notice a single real bad thing. Drummer could've been a little more accurate with his particular beat, but no one noticed it. Also, I flubbed the lyrics at one point the second showing, but no one noticed I don't think, so no bog deal.
I Wanna Be Your Dog: Easily the crowd favorite. I feel that I did a really good job performing and singing this song. Unfortunately I feel that I was the only strong musician on that song. I don't mean to sound like a dick, but sometimes I question how often some of these other players practice.
Ball and Chain: Why did we do this song? No seriously. Why did we do this song? It's not even punk. Screw this song. No one likes this song. No one likes playing this song or hearing it. Why? Because it's about 4 minutes or so of 3 chords, and that's 3 notes for me. Awesome. I love wasting my time with garbage like that. But I digress. I doubt my sarcasm with bleed through the screen enough.I just wanna emphasize my supreme negative feelings toward this song. Also, guitar players on this song don't like tuning.That pisses me off.
Teenage Lobotomy: It took forever for everyone on this song to learn it properly, but they eventually did it, and it became one of the best songs in the show...at least in the first showing. The drummer messed up the reintro the second showing. We got back on, but it still happened.
God Save The Queen: The show closer. It was really really good, minus 2 of the guitarists not being on their A-game at all. Both had problems learning the arrangements. And by that, I mean, they probably didn't practice in their freetime, or even care to listen to the song more that once or twice.
Overall, fun show with flaws, just like every show I've been in for SOR so far.
Die Die My Darling: Guitars sounded great. I was really happy with the kids on that song. My bass was also good.I suppose my vocals were also good; I've never been really happy with them. I just always felt that something about them was missing, and it sucks that I never settled that feeling by the time the show happened. Drums were very meh; the drummer we had gets on my nerves. Too busy hitting on the girls and being a poser instead of actually learning his shit.
Pretty Vacant: I loved it. My only criticisms are toward our drummer and one of our guitarists, but they're kids, so whatever. Even though SOR has taught me that everyone should work hard and has no excuse for not practicing or learning your own stuff regardless of age...whatever.
Hungry Wolf: Easily my favorite song in the set. I didn't notice a single real bad thing. Drummer could've been a little more accurate with his particular beat, but no one noticed it. Also, I flubbed the lyrics at one point the second showing, but no one noticed I don't think, so no bog deal.
I Wanna Be Your Dog: Easily the crowd favorite. I feel that I did a really good job performing and singing this song. Unfortunately I feel that I was the only strong musician on that song. I don't mean to sound like a dick, but sometimes I question how often some of these other players practice.
Ball and Chain: Why did we do this song? No seriously. Why did we do this song? It's not even punk. Screw this song. No one likes this song. No one likes playing this song or hearing it. Why? Because it's about 4 minutes or so of 3 chords, and that's 3 notes for me. Awesome. I love wasting my time with garbage like that. But I digress. I doubt my sarcasm with bleed through the screen enough.I just wanna emphasize my supreme negative feelings toward this song. Also, guitar players on this song don't like tuning.That pisses me off.
Teenage Lobotomy: It took forever for everyone on this song to learn it properly, but they eventually did it, and it became one of the best songs in the show...at least in the first showing. The drummer messed up the reintro the second showing. We got back on, but it still happened.
God Save The Queen: The show closer. It was really really good, minus 2 of the guitarists not being on their A-game at all. Both had problems learning the arrangements. And by that, I mean, they probably didn't practice in their freetime, or even care to listen to the song more that once or twice.
Overall, fun show with flaws, just like every show I've been in for SOR so far.
Eagleclaw
This was the band headlining the show at the Red 7 that night.
Lets make something clear: I was at the show to see my friend Jamey play, but also because there was a raffle going on to have the chance to win a brand new Orange bass amp. Like, 500 watts or something. Great deal. However, you had to have not only entered the raffle, but stay the whole night, or at least show up at the end of the show to be able to claim it.
So, LSD was boring. So Rozie and I were just sitting around hoping that Eagleclaws set wouldn't be as painful. It was.
It's not particularly fair of me to say that considering that we didn't stay the whole time, which means we didn't win the amp. As a matter of fact we left during their first song...about 8 minutes into it or so.
Saying that, they had the same problem as LSD. They were really really boring, and by that time I had even less patience. But also, I was told that this band was very Metallica/Iron Maiden but instrumental, the problem with that statement is that it was completely false, or at least it was based on what I had heard before I lost my patience.
I have a real problem with certain people in the metal community. Not even the community, just any metalhead. That problem is, there are some people that listen strictly to metal because it's metal and nothing else, and be close minded assholes about it. And that bothers me because there's a lot of metal that they're listening to, such as this, that is super fucking boring and is only popular because people don't know what good metal is so they just find something that's metal and just like it regardless of if it's actually good. Because metal. You know? There are some metalheads that will like any metal simply because metal. That is silly to me, because at that point, it's merely about the image and not the music. Sure, a lot of metal is the image, so is any other genre with their own image; it's the balancing of the image and the music that make said artist worth listening to. And from what I can see, a lot of people in the world of metal seem to forget that, or they never learned it.
Lets make something clear: I was at the show to see my friend Jamey play, but also because there was a raffle going on to have the chance to win a brand new Orange bass amp. Like, 500 watts or something. Great deal. However, you had to have not only entered the raffle, but stay the whole night, or at least show up at the end of the show to be able to claim it.
So, LSD was boring. So Rozie and I were just sitting around hoping that Eagleclaws set wouldn't be as painful. It was.
It's not particularly fair of me to say that considering that we didn't stay the whole time, which means we didn't win the amp. As a matter of fact we left during their first song...about 8 minutes into it or so.
Saying that, they had the same problem as LSD. They were really really boring, and by that time I had even less patience. But also, I was told that this band was very Metallica/Iron Maiden but instrumental, the problem with that statement is that it was completely false, or at least it was based on what I had heard before I lost my patience.
I have a real problem with certain people in the metal community. Not even the community, just any metalhead. That problem is, there are some people that listen strictly to metal because it's metal and nothing else, and be close minded assholes about it. And that bothers me because there's a lot of metal that they're listening to, such as this, that is super fucking boring and is only popular because people don't know what good metal is so they just find something that's metal and just like it regardless of if it's actually good. Because metal. You know? There are some metalheads that will like any metal simply because metal. That is silly to me, because at that point, it's merely about the image and not the music. Sure, a lot of metal is the image, so is any other genre with their own image; it's the balancing of the image and the music that make said artist worth listening to. And from what I can see, a lot of people in the world of metal seem to forget that, or they never learned it.
Lonestar State Demons (LSD)
This is the band I saw at Red 7 after Jamey Simms Band. They're a more aggressive styled stoner metal band that at first doesn't seem that bad.
Lemme put it this way, I really liked them their first 3 songs or so, but then I realized that all of their songs were the same and that they weren't very good performers, either. They were pretty bad, and pretty boring.
Also, their set was REALLY long. It was bad enough that their songs were legitimately long, and boring so it seems even longer, but they had more time in their set for more songs than the other bands, and they weren't even headlining. They APPARENTLY set up the show, so they got more stage time. But, they just sucked out loud.
Lemme put it this way, I really liked them their first 3 songs or so, but then I realized that all of their songs were the same and that they weren't very good performers, either. They were pretty bad, and pretty boring.
Also, their set was REALLY long. It was bad enough that their songs were legitimately long, and boring so it seems even longer, but they had more time in their set for more songs than the other bands, and they weren't even headlining. They APPARENTLY set up the show, so they got more stage time. But, they just sucked out loud.
Jamey Simms Band
Saturday night I saw my friend's band play at Red 7 with his band, Jamey Simms Band. They're just pure rock and roll with plenty of attitude, and they were freaking loud. I really enjoyed their show because it was full of energy, both from the band and the crowd, but the band members are just really really good players. Jamey is probably the best if not one of the best guitarists I've ever met in my life.
Thursday, February 13, 2014
Rhandy Rhoades
This is kind of cheating, but I had this conversation with my friend Jonah the other day about Zakk Wylde. (I think that's how you spell it).
He was saying that he loved him because he's a really good guitarist, and that's fair.
Buttttt.... I disagree. I don't like Zakk that much. I think that he's a shredder with some ideas that I don't really care for.
It's not really fair, but the main reason I don't like him that much is because of Rhandy Rhoades. That being that he's the best guitarist that Ozzy ever had. On top of being the amazing metal player he was, he was classically trained, and he was barely 20-21 when he died.
Rhandy is a boss. No one can compete with him. It doesn't really help that Ozzy hasn't done much better in his music without him. Don't get me wrong, he's made great stuff without him, but it's not nearly on par. You can't sit there and tell me No More Tears is even close in potential to Mr. Crowley. You can't. causeitcan'thappenbro
He was saying that he loved him because he's a really good guitarist, and that's fair.
Buttttt.... I disagree. I don't like Zakk that much. I think that he's a shredder with some ideas that I don't really care for.
It's not really fair, but the main reason I don't like him that much is because of Rhandy Rhoades. That being that he's the best guitarist that Ozzy ever had. On top of being the amazing metal player he was, he was classically trained, and he was barely 20-21 when he died.
Rhandy is a boss. No one can compete with him. It doesn't really help that Ozzy hasn't done much better in his music without him. Don't get me wrong, he's made great stuff without him, but it's not nearly on par. You can't sit there and tell me No More Tears is even close in potential to Mr. Crowley. You can't. causeitcan'thappenbro
Having us play DJ
I love listening to new things, and I love other people showing me things, especially since a lot of times if I'm looking for new things, I don't really know where to start.
Saying that, did I find anything that I liked from last class that was shown?
No.
I'm glad I listened to it, but..no. I found the songs to be WAY too long. Length isn't even really an issue with me. The problem is moreso being that there's nothing really innovative about it on top of it being really long.
I personally don't wanna listen to the same piano progression for 7 minutes straight with dumbass lyrics over it. That's kind of retarded.
If you're gonna make a long song, keep it interesting. How do you keep things interesting? Have more than one part? How many parts exactly? The more the better, honestly.
Saying that, did I find anything that I liked from last class that was shown?
No.
I'm glad I listened to it, but..no. I found the songs to be WAY too long. Length isn't even really an issue with me. The problem is moreso being that there's nothing really innovative about it on top of it being really long.
I personally don't wanna listen to the same piano progression for 7 minutes straight with dumbass lyrics over it. That's kind of retarded.
If you're gonna make a long song, keep it interesting. How do you keep things interesting? Have more than one part? How many parts exactly? The more the better, honestly.
Morphine Cure For Pain
My drummer in my prog band was nice enough to burn me a couple albums from the band Morphine since I told him that I was introduced to them and I was impressed. I listened to their second album, Cure For Pain, and I was not disappointed.
What I really like about Morphine is that it's a 3 piece consisting of a slide bass player with 2 strings, a saxophone player, and a drummer. It's an odd line-up, but the really odd thing about that band is just that they sound so full, and surprisingly a little heavy. They're all great at what they do, and the bass player/singer really impresses me with his playing style, and his really neat sounding baritone voice. It just sounds really tight.
That's kind of the key word with this band. Tight. Everything just flows together really well, and I think that's why they sound so full.
What I really like about Morphine is that it's a 3 piece consisting of a slide bass player with 2 strings, a saxophone player, and a drummer. It's an odd line-up, but the really odd thing about that band is just that they sound so full, and surprisingly a little heavy. They're all great at what they do, and the bass player/singer really impresses me with his playing style, and his really neat sounding baritone voice. It just sounds really tight.
That's kind of the key word with this band. Tight. Everything just flows together really well, and I think that's why they sound so full.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
School of Rock Metallica show
This show went really well. It wasn't nearly as good as I wanted it to be, but it went pretty well.
But what was wrong? It had a ton of energy, a lot of people went to it, and it's me playing Metallica.
Yes, all of those are true, but we also had to deal with a bunch of dumb stuff that shouldn't have happened.
We played Sad But True, and that song is in D. Whenever the SoR has a song that in a tuning like that, the director usually just says, "F*ck it" and has the kids play it in standard. I convinced our director to play it in D, because it would otherwise just kill whoever was going to be the singer (which originally was me, actually)
But, showday comes, and at least two of the kids are tuned wrong. One kid is tuned in C for some bizarre reason that I still don't understand, and another was tuned to standard because he wasn't listening because he's dumb. I'm not happy with that kid. He'd been rehearsing that song for months, and he didn't tune down. That leads me to believe that people had been holding his hand and doing stuff for him such as guitar maintenance, which includes tuning for me. THAT IS UNACCEPTABLE. FAILURE. GET OUT.
But I can't tell him that, because he's already on stage looking like a moron. So, our director unplugged him, and took his guitar to tune it. On top of that, the kid with tuned to C was never fixed, and the song never ended properly. It just kind of ended right before the bridge where the vocals echo "I'm your dream, I'm your eyes, I'm your pain." btdubs, even when they did play that part right, they didn't do the callback right. THENOTESAREN'TTHESAMENOTESFORTHECALLBACKWHATISWRONGWITHYOUKOFDBMDUBFMDFMBZ
I was upset. So what else went wrong?
Well, for the second showing, the tuning wasn't an issue, and that song actually didn't sound terrible, but one of the main drummers of the show got sick, and we had to scramble to fill in his parts. That wasn't fun. And most of the songs that people covered for him on sounded not very good. On top of that, the sick drummer is one of my best friends when it comes to playing music. I love playing with him more than I love playing with most people. We just kinda connect, you know?
I was upset. But hey...Master Of Puppets was really good... and so was Creeping Death.
...Master didn't make Best of Season, though.
...that upset me.
But what was wrong? It had a ton of energy, a lot of people went to it, and it's me playing Metallica.
Yes, all of those are true, but we also had to deal with a bunch of dumb stuff that shouldn't have happened.
We played Sad But True, and that song is in D. Whenever the SoR has a song that in a tuning like that, the director usually just says, "F*ck it" and has the kids play it in standard. I convinced our director to play it in D, because it would otherwise just kill whoever was going to be the singer (which originally was me, actually)
But, showday comes, and at least two of the kids are tuned wrong. One kid is tuned in C for some bizarre reason that I still don't understand, and another was tuned to standard because he wasn't listening because he's dumb. I'm not happy with that kid. He'd been rehearsing that song for months, and he didn't tune down. That leads me to believe that people had been holding his hand and doing stuff for him such as guitar maintenance, which includes tuning for me. THAT IS UNACCEPTABLE. FAILURE. GET OUT.
But I can't tell him that, because he's already on stage looking like a moron. So, our director unplugged him, and took his guitar to tune it. On top of that, the kid with tuned to C was never fixed, and the song never ended properly. It just kind of ended right before the bridge where the vocals echo "I'm your dream, I'm your eyes, I'm your pain." btdubs, even when they did play that part right, they didn't do the callback right. THENOTESAREN'TTHESAMENOTESFORTHECALLBACKWHATISWRONGWITHYOUKOFDBMDUBFMDFMBZ
I was upset. So what else went wrong?
Well, for the second showing, the tuning wasn't an issue, and that song actually didn't sound terrible, but one of the main drummers of the show got sick, and we had to scramble to fill in his parts. That wasn't fun. And most of the songs that people covered for him on sounded not very good. On top of that, the sick drummer is one of my best friends when it comes to playing music. I love playing with him more than I love playing with most people. We just kinda connect, you know?
I was upset. But hey...Master Of Puppets was really good... and so was Creeping Death.
...Master didn't make Best of Season, though.
...that upset me.
Killing is my Business... And Business is Good!
Megadeth's first album is probably one of the most insane yet at the same time most well written metal albums in the history of all the bands I can think of at this moment. Is it my favorite album from them? No. Rust in Peace is...because of other reasons.
BUT, that album is also totally different. This is album is batsh*t crazy. You take one good listen to the first song, Last Rites/Loved to Deth, and the first thing you'll probably think of is, "Cocaine? Like... A LOT of cocaine?" And, you'd be right. At this point in history, the goal of Megadeth was to be the most aggressive, most fastest, and most heaviest band in the history of the universe... and with this album, they kinda succeeded.
Of course not every album is perfect, especially when it comes to me, so what's wrong with it?
Well. First off, the original album cover is a joke. The whole concept was supposed to be of Vic Rattlehead (the mascot of the band who appears on almost every single album cover) but what we ended up getting was a cheap plastic skull with some tinfoil on it with a knife in the background, and everything is covered in ketchup in some really bad lighting. How they messed it up that bad, I dunno. If I had to guess, it was because they only had $8,000 to record and produce the album, and half of that money ended up being spent on drugs, alcohol, and food. After doing that, they ended up being forced to fire their original producer and to produce it themselves, so of course, nothing is really going as planned. I've heard rumors that they had artwork from Dave Mustaine, but lost it...and I just find that really hard to believe.
Secondly...THEY HAD TO PRODUCE IT THEMSELVES.
They were high off of everything you could get high off of literally every single day for the first 3 albums. I'm kind of amazed that it doesn't sound any worse.
Like, if you're the kind of person to throw on a Venom record because you wanna break shit and have a good time, this album is for you. And even if you're not that kind of dude, and you just wanna appreciate or at least see how insane Megadeth was back in the day, also check it out. Minus the demos on the rereleased versions of this album, it clocks in at a length of 31:10, which for a thrash metal album, is perfect.
Go listennnn. Give them your moniess. Or just go steal it orsomethinIguess.
BUT, that album is also totally different. This is album is batsh*t crazy. You take one good listen to the first song, Last Rites/Loved to Deth, and the first thing you'll probably think of is, "Cocaine? Like... A LOT of cocaine?" And, you'd be right. At this point in history, the goal of Megadeth was to be the most aggressive, most fastest, and most heaviest band in the history of the universe... and with this album, they kinda succeeded.
Of course not every album is perfect, especially when it comes to me, so what's wrong with it?
Well. First off, the original album cover is a joke. The whole concept was supposed to be of Vic Rattlehead (the mascot of the band who appears on almost every single album cover) but what we ended up getting was a cheap plastic skull with some tinfoil on it with a knife in the background, and everything is covered in ketchup in some really bad lighting. How they messed it up that bad, I dunno. If I had to guess, it was because they only had $8,000 to record and produce the album, and half of that money ended up being spent on drugs, alcohol, and food. After doing that, they ended up being forced to fire their original producer and to produce it themselves, so of course, nothing is really going as planned. I've heard rumors that they had artwork from Dave Mustaine, but lost it...and I just find that really hard to believe.
Secondly...THEY HAD TO PRODUCE IT THEMSELVES.
They were high off of everything you could get high off of literally every single day for the first 3 albums. I'm kind of amazed that it doesn't sound any worse.
Like, if you're the kind of person to throw on a Venom record because you wanna break shit and have a good time, this album is for you. And even if you're not that kind of dude, and you just wanna appreciate or at least see how insane Megadeth was back in the day, also check it out. Minus the demos on the rereleased versions of this album, it clocks in at a length of 31:10, which for a thrash metal album, is perfect.
Go listennnn. Give them your moniess. Or just go steal it orsomethinIguess.
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Zeppelin 2
Last week, we listened to Led Zeppelin's second album, the appropriately titled: Zeppelin 2.
This album just has hit after hit on it, and it's pretty obvious why.
...Is 'cause the songs are gooooooood.
Despite the negative opinion from our own class (and it's not like they read this so who cares what I say) I like this album for pretty much all the reasons they think that it sucks.
They said it was repetitive, while I just think they have a short attention span. (oh snap)
It's really not that repetitive. You can't sit there and tell me that Whole Lotta Love is repetitive. It starts with the main riff leading into a verse going into a chorus with full band followed by the full band doing another verse and chorus leading up to what I call the "hippie jam" section, afterwards we go to a verse, then chorus, then it's the outro.
I think the problem with what the class had is what perhaps a lot of people have. That is that they don't care. They don't care, and they don't wanna expand their horizons. And because they don't give out the extra effort to spend some of their time to try something new, they just pray for the end. It's all about finishing things up and turning it in, rather than actually studying and taking the time to form whatever it is you're working on become really nice. In this case, they're working on a final opinion.
I'm not trying to demean anyone, because I have this problem too. Everyone does, I think. The only thing that really sets me apart from the rest is that I take the time to acknowledge this AND I can admit that I share the same issue, rather than what I would expect from the rest of the class if they were to read this (which they won't.) and that is that they'd probably instantly refuse any claim that I make, and insult me.
Eh. Sucks to suck.
ANYWAY, to get back on topic. Zep 2 was awesome.
This album just has hit after hit on it, and it's pretty obvious why.
...Is 'cause the songs are gooooooood.
Despite the negative opinion from our own class (and it's not like they read this so who cares what I say) I like this album for pretty much all the reasons they think that it sucks.
They said it was repetitive, while I just think they have a short attention span. (oh snap)
It's really not that repetitive. You can't sit there and tell me that Whole Lotta Love is repetitive. It starts with the main riff leading into a verse going into a chorus with full band followed by the full band doing another verse and chorus leading up to what I call the "hippie jam" section, afterwards we go to a verse, then chorus, then it's the outro.
I think the problem with what the class had is what perhaps a lot of people have. That is that they don't care. They don't care, and they don't wanna expand their horizons. And because they don't give out the extra effort to spend some of their time to try something new, they just pray for the end. It's all about finishing things up and turning it in, rather than actually studying and taking the time to form whatever it is you're working on become really nice. In this case, they're working on a final opinion.
I'm not trying to demean anyone, because I have this problem too. Everyone does, I think. The only thing that really sets me apart from the rest is that I take the time to acknowledge this AND I can admit that I share the same issue, rather than what I would expect from the rest of the class if they were to read this (which they won't.) and that is that they'd probably instantly refuse any claim that I make, and insult me.
Eh. Sucks to suck.
ANYWAY, to get back on topic. Zep 2 was awesome.
Captain Beyond
I've been listening to Dancing Madly Backwards by Captain Beyond because I was asked to sing in a prog band with these guys that I know that kick serious ass. This is one of the songs we're doing
Anywho, this song is really cool because it's kind of like a blues jam while at the same time being really weird sounding. It's borderline metal, and it's awesome. The sound of the song itself has a real heavy and kinda spacey sound. It's very psychedelic, to put it simply. Everything about this song has traits of the kind of prog rock that I love to hear. It's not on par with King Crimson, but that's because they haven't reinvented their instruments, or they haven't from what I've heard, anyway.
Interesting cover art, too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iUbry_HkFQ
Anywho, this song is really cool because it's kind of like a blues jam while at the same time being really weird sounding. It's borderline metal, and it's awesome. The sound of the song itself has a real heavy and kinda spacey sound. It's very psychedelic, to put it simply. Everything about this song has traits of the kind of prog rock that I love to hear. It's not on par with King Crimson, but that's because they haven't reinvented their instruments, or they haven't from what I've heard, anyway.
Interesting cover art, too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iUbry_HkFQ
Friday, January 10, 2014
Stanger (uggggghhhhhh)
Metallica again. Only this time it's fairly negative. Actually, I wouldn't say negative, but moreso critical, because THIS MEANS A LOT TO ME ANDGNWGIDIJFNHIDFKNBDF
The thing about Saint Anger, or, "Stanger", as me and many peers of mine call it, is that it actually had a handful of good ideas going for it that would've made it relatively pretty freaking cool, but they had to ruin it with abysmal production quality, the worst vocals James has ever conceived, and arguably the worst drumming on any metal album ever. That last part might be a little far, but....eh. I'm pretty sure Lars was just dicking around. Especially since he went out of his way to disconnect the snare from the snare drum, which in turn made the snare sound like a f*cked up trash can. By the way, he hits the snare A LOT on this album.
The thing about Stanger, is that they wanted to go back to their roots of the garage days, while taking on almost an entirely new form of metal (at least new for them) to the studio. You could argue that the entire point of this album was for it to sound like crap. I don't like that purpose. That's really dumb, actually.
What's even dumber, is that they claimed that the purpose is to go back to their roots, but they still had Bob Rock as the producer AND he played bass on the album.
Fun Fact: Bob Rock is the worst thing ever
Fun Fact: Bob Rock is a sh*t bassist
Fun Fact: Bob Rock sucks
Now the songs themselves aren't that terrible listening to them now. I can almost say I like a few of them. But I can't listen to them with the quality of everything just being so freaking piss-poor.
If there's anything about this album that probably can't be fixed with just a little work of the studio, it's definitely the vocals. These vocal takes are awful. The lyrics for the songs suck too, but that's not the main issue. James' voice on this album ranges from "Wow, you should rerecord that take." to "Wow, you should stop everything you're doing forever."
I have to admit, the best song on here is probably Sweet Amber, mainly because it's the shortest song on the album, but also because I like the idea of what could've been. You know? I could probably do a better recording of this song. And I hate hearing people say that Frantic is the best song. Frantic sucks. The freaking chorus is literally "Frantic-tic-tic-tic-tic-tock!" Apparently Metallica was doing this before Ke$ha.
Here's another problem, the songs on this album are too freaking long. I like long songs if they can be interesting, and it's not that these songs aren't interesting, because they are...it's just that they're painful to listen to. Saying that, I've probably listened to this whole album in one sitting at least twice in my life. It's not very good.
In total, the lyrics suck, the drums suck, the vocals suck, the overall production sucks, Bob Rock still being here sucks, and I don't like it.
The thing about Saint Anger, or, "Stanger", as me and many peers of mine call it, is that it actually had a handful of good ideas going for it that would've made it relatively pretty freaking cool, but they had to ruin it with abysmal production quality, the worst vocals James has ever conceived, and arguably the worst drumming on any metal album ever. That last part might be a little far, but....eh. I'm pretty sure Lars was just dicking around. Especially since he went out of his way to disconnect the snare from the snare drum, which in turn made the snare sound like a f*cked up trash can. By the way, he hits the snare A LOT on this album.
The thing about Stanger, is that they wanted to go back to their roots of the garage days, while taking on almost an entirely new form of metal (at least new for them) to the studio. You could argue that the entire point of this album was for it to sound like crap. I don't like that purpose. That's really dumb, actually.
What's even dumber, is that they claimed that the purpose is to go back to their roots, but they still had Bob Rock as the producer AND he played bass on the album.
Fun Fact: Bob Rock is the worst thing ever
Fun Fact: Bob Rock is a sh*t bassist
Fun Fact: Bob Rock sucks
Now the songs themselves aren't that terrible listening to them now. I can almost say I like a few of them. But I can't listen to them with the quality of everything just being so freaking piss-poor.
If there's anything about this album that probably can't be fixed with just a little work of the studio, it's definitely the vocals. These vocal takes are awful. The lyrics for the songs suck too, but that's not the main issue. James' voice on this album ranges from "Wow, you should rerecord that take." to "Wow, you should stop everything you're doing forever."
I have to admit, the best song on here is probably Sweet Amber, mainly because it's the shortest song on the album, but also because I like the idea of what could've been. You know? I could probably do a better recording of this song. And I hate hearing people say that Frantic is the best song. Frantic sucks. The freaking chorus is literally "Frantic-tic-tic-tic-tic-tock!" Apparently Metallica was doing this before Ke$ha.
Here's another problem, the songs on this album are too freaking long. I like long songs if they can be interesting, and it's not that these songs aren't interesting, because they are...it's just that they're painful to listen to. Saying that, I've probably listened to this whole album in one sitting at least twice in my life. It's not very good.
In total, the lyrics suck, the drums suck, the vocals suck, the overall production sucks, Bob Rock still being here sucks, and I don't like it.
Let It Be
We listened to the final (yet not last recorded) Beatles album in class today, and... I liked it.
..Yeah. That's pretty much it. I mean, it's good. But. Well. The only song on the album that I can personally say is anything memorable or, REALLY good, would be Let It Be. All the other songs don't really seem that special or are just downright filler for an album.
HOWEVER, I can kind of accept this due to it not really being an album...sort of... It's just the recordings of the recording sessions for what could've been, I guess.
Well, what "could've been" just isn't anything special to me. Nothing sticks out except the title track.
At the end of the day, I'd rather listen to Abbey Road.
..Yeah. That's pretty much it. I mean, it's good. But. Well. The only song on the album that I can personally say is anything memorable or, REALLY good, would be Let It Be. All the other songs don't really seem that special or are just downright filler for an album.
HOWEVER, I can kind of accept this due to it not really being an album...sort of... It's just the recordings of the recording sessions for what could've been, I guess.
Well, what "could've been" just isn't anything special to me. Nothing sticks out except the title track.
At the end of the day, I'd rather listen to Abbey Road.
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