Something different...

Hey guys, I'm back again. It's become difficult for me to consistently update this thing. I'm going to take a little bit different approach to this entry. Rather then sputtering out facts about music and my opinions on them, I'm actually going to go a bit deeper into the way music has affected my emotional status, and vent a little bit at the same time.

Let me start by saying, that tonight I realized that I am completely emotionally numb, and that even in the face of any travesty that I could possibly face, and all that numbness comes from one source. The mind-numbing media (despite how cliche that sounds) and that even though I am so out of "the loop" of current events, I still find it hard to 1)Pay attention in classes, 2)Get enthused about work, and finally 3)Accept other peoples opinions and inputs to anything I'm involved in. 

When all of that is put into play, it makes me sound like I'm not unique or I'm not "my own person" but in all honesty, that's who I try to be everyday of my life. I try to be my own Kevin, and not what all the other kids in my school see as "cool." I view life a lot like the way John Lennon saw song writing. You can do the same thing over and over again, and try to change it, but it will always be the same thing. So to the people out there like me, who are stuck in the rut that is high school, I want to say that if you're going to be doing the same thing regardless, then have  some fun with it. 

The song "Roll With It" by Oasis is one of the greatest songs for rebels in today's generation....or sort of today's generation. "You gotta say what you say/Don't let anybody get in your way." How fitting for a high school... So many times in my day-to-day life I find myself biting my tongue and holding back to fight for what I know is right. But I've never sold myself out and I can say that with a Hell of a lot of pride.

So, I mean, it's not that tough to get lost and bogged down as a teenager in today's society, but the only way to cope with that is through music. Music has helped me through some of the toughest times in my short life. So, just keep rolling, and don't give up.

Which Came First, the Music or the Misery?

Hello once again fellow and yet humble patrons to the blogging world. It's been awhile. It has recently occurred to me, through reading various pieces of literature and going over thousands of songs that are on my iPod, that I, at age 15, am a failure. How did I come to this conclusion you maybe asking yourself? Simple. By opening up my eyes and realizing that I spend every Friday night home listening to "So What" by Miles Davis, drinking cups of tea and/or coffee, and waiting for something better to come along.

The fact that I've spent all night tonight pouring over antique vinyls from way-back-when like Madman Across the Water and Verities & Balderdash, sitting still in shock and awe of how much the music world has changed in general is in a way one of the saddest things I've ever heard, but I still like to think that it's remarkable cool, because most 15 year olds could not tell you who released either of those records, let alone other records in my collection like Tommy, Ram,  and One-Trick Pony (which is a Paul Simon record that was written for the movie.) God forbid kids my age learned some culture through the new age music. Culture like Nat King Cole, Duke Ellington, Buffalo Springfield, and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.

I wouldn't say that the thought of that is necessarily surprising, but it is depressing, especially when you look at the top ten artists on iTunes right now include Rise Against, Metallica, and T.I, but at the same time, do I want kids that find those bands talented listening to my chill and laid back contemporary music? (Yeah, I threw a curveball at you.) I don't want every kid my age even knowing, let alone listening to people like the Smiths or even the Black Keys (even though that's pushing the laid back part of my music taste.)

So, I guess the overall view of this "editorial" is that I don't frankly care any more what the skater punk genre considers "punk" anymore, and what the "rock" genre (which has turned into guys in tight pants and makeup) considers rock n' roll. Neither of the people in those genres have the first idea what punk or real rock n' roll is. Because when you reach that level of music, you start to depreciate the actual meaning of the music, and the music itself turns into background noise.

I hate to say it, but John Lennon summed it up the best in an interview in 1968. He says, "In the old days I used to think songwriting was this and I love you and you love me, and my writing was something else. I just realized through Dylan and then other people that it is the same, and that's what I didn't realize being so naive. That you don't write pop songs, and then you do that, and then you do that. That everything you do is the same thing. So do it the same way." Does that not sum of the basis of all lyrical music? Are we all not doomed to die in a painful avalanche of pop music? Pretty deep from a guy who called himself the Walrus.

I guess the basis of the real thought behind Lennon in that quote would have to be that rock music in general has alway had that repetitive poppy vibe, and that vide will never end. Pop music and rock music will always go hand-in-hand...and that's a sad truth to have to come to terms with. So, in close. Kids. Be diverse. Buy a Randy Newman record, and fall asleep, and wake up when emo dies...no pun intended. So goodnight. Good day. Good riddance. Let's go Rays. 

Top Five Modern Records

1. Sky Blue Sky-Wilco

2. Attack & Release-the Black Keys

3. Surprise-Paul Simon

4. Psychocandy-The Jesus and Mary Chain

5. Goo-Sonic Youth 

Wicked Man's Rest-Passenger

Although I know nobody has heard of this band, the Brit Rock party of five from Brighton has released their debut record recently (August 5, 2008 to be exact) Wicked Man's Rest featuring such classics as Night Vision Binoculars which is an all-in-all creepy narrative of a man who is so in love with a woman that he stalks her and watches her from her neighbor's tree, (haven't we all...) and the title track Wicked Man's Rest, which starts the record off on a slow foot, but deep at that.

The record, as previously stated, starts off a little bit slow, but if you can put the slow-paced title track, and get to Night Vision Binoculars, then it's certain that the listener will be hooked by the upbeat and poppy sounds of the song. The next song on the record, Things You've Never Done, is another slow-going song with great lyric meaning, and it has one of my all time favorite quotes, "Don't be scared of failure, the only failure is the failure to try." The same can be said of the fourth and seventh tracks (Girl I Once Knew  and Four Horses). The tempo kicks up once again in track five, Do What You Like. The record is full of it's great shifts in tempo, and is profound for it's lyrics.

The sound is a mixture between two other British acts of David Gray and sadly, James Blunt for his high pitched Falsetto voice. But this record is far superior in it's class and is a hybrid of Falsetto vocals mixed perfectly with a balanced amount of pop and rock sounds. This rock record paves the way for other British acts, and leaves the door and my ears open to more and more great things to come.

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Top Five Side One Track Ones

My own tribute to High Fidelity

1. Carry On-Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young-Deja Vu

2. Scarborough Fair-Simon & Garfunkel-Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme

3. Rainy Day Woman #12 & 35-Bob Dylan-Blonde on Blonde

4. Come Together-The Beatles-Abbey Road

5. Roundabout-Yes-Fragile

Harps and Angels-Randy Newman

As we all know, the 62 year old man who wrote the song from Toy Story called You've Got a Friend in Me and the song from Major League called Burn On (which is a slow bluesy tune about the city of Cleveland, Ohio) recently released his latest studio record called Harps and Angels, which was a new blend of political bluesy music, mixed with the aged reminiscence of a 62 year old artist.

The new record deals with such themes as getting old, universal healthcare, and of course... politics. It would not be a Randy Newman record without involving some form of politics, such as the song Piece of the Pie which touches on certain issues like universal healthcare, education, and the administration in general. The record is typical though, it shows how consistent he is with his sound, but for him releasing so many records, one would think he'd change the way he sings or plays. It is a cool bluesy record, especially in the title track Harps and Angels because it's a laid back tune with simple piano and a lot of lyrics that mean a lot, and relate to his life, but also apply to the daily life of most Americans. Harps and Angels  is a good mellow record that actually does spark thoughts in the listeners mind through the lyrical importance of the words that he sings, especially towards the end of the record in songs like Korean Parents and Potholes. 

In closing, Newman again makes a solid record that strikes at the core of our personal being and what the listeners believe and how the listener should keep an open mind about what others believe. So, although there is a lack of change in the song style, it is still a monumental record for Randy Newman because it gets everything out on the table for him, and he doesn't hold back in his lyrical stand point and lets the listener knows what he's feeling.

The Age of the Understatement-The Last Shadow Puppets

In May, Alex Turner of the Arctic Monkeys and Miles Kane of the Rascals teamed up as the Last Shadow Puppets and released their first LP The Age of the Understatement, which spurred on to a large spread outbreak of Arctic Monkeys fans and Rascals fans, but still has not gained much recognition for the dynamic duo from "across the pond."

The record starts out with the title track of Age of the Understatement, which dragged me into the record from the start because of its attractive up-beat tempo with its techno-esque intro, and then takes it just a bit slower in the second track Standing Next to Me which combines a little bit of up-beat acoustic but still has that dark side to it that is so familiar in Favourite Worst Nightmare (Arctic Monkeys', 2007 release) and Rascalize (Rascals', 2008 release). Which is why they're one of the most perfect combinations because of the mutual darkness in their style of music. It keeps up that same pace all throughout the record, but the song that truly stands out is the fourth track Separate and Ever Deadly which is hard to explain, but it's seemingly a perfect rock ballad.

The record has its downsides. It sounds like all Arctic Monkeys songs, despite having one of the Rascals, and although consistency is not a bad thing, it gets a little old because the band is basically using the same material and putting a new name on it. Not that it isn't good, it's just nothing new. Although, there were a few changes to the music itself, they still had the basic Arctic Monkeys sound. Even though the record has its advantages and it is a great record, it's not perfect, and could use work in a lot of areas. The duo has not quite mastered the sound, but they're close to accomplishing it, and they'll get it if they release a sophomore record."

In Rainbows-Radiohead

This record is long overdue for review. Radiohead has, in recent history, released their seventh record, and even more impressive, they did this one without a record label, after their contract with EMI Records ran out...and I may say, that they have out-done themselves this time...even for Radiohead. The record encompasses everything that it is to be human. The flaws in this record, in a way make it stronger.

This record is the soundtrack for human existence, if one was to be compiled. The reasoning behind that judgment isn't so much in the music itself, but rather the tempo that it poses. It starts out with a catchy, up-beat anthem called 15 Step, signifying birth and early childhood, how everything is fast, and really catchy, and up-tempo, and restless. Then, as the record progresses, it starts to get a little slower, and then picks up again here and there. Just like mid-life. All of the sudden, you're at the end, and it just stops. Now, I'm not trying to give the entire record away, rather telling my readers what to expect when the turn on 15 Steps, and start the hour long ride of your life...literally.

As for the actual review of the record, I hold true that it is one of the best records of 2007-2008, and it makes it even more special because this was made completely on their own, with no help from the label. They jumped one of the most difficult hurdles in their new record, and that is pulling a complete 180 on their sound, and turning it in to something that is monumental for them as a band. Which is why I agree with Rolling Stone Magazine when they say, "The Future Belongs to Radiohead." They've done something that, in a way, is impossible to do. They changed their genre. They went from being a typical rock band, with "something about them" to being known to me now as "God knows what that is, but it's damn good." That, my friends, is what I say Radiohead's new genre is.

The one, true downside I could find with this record, is that you can't understand a lot of the lyrics, and I think that actually adds to the signifigance of the music itself. Although, I would like to have been able to understand some of the lyrics that Thom Yorke had put into the record without having to look them up. It's an outstanding record, with vocals that compliment the background noise in flying colors. I really hope that Radiohead stays the same way for their next record (also hoping that it doesn't take them two years to release it.)

So, to In Rainbows, I give 5 stars. It took me almost an hour to find a flaw in it. Absolutely go out and buy it. By far the best self-released record that I've ever heard (even though self-released records come from up-and-coming artists who have little money or talent for that matter.) It's brilliant on almost every level.

The Black and White Album-The Hives

In October, the Hives released their new record called the Black and White Album which actually was a different brand of punk rock from the dynamic five Swedish guys who can be declared as the different breed of punk rockers who, instead of ripped Levi's, they choose black slack, and rather then a Misfits t-shirt, they choose a black dress shirt, and instead of a leather jacket, they choose the white dress jackets. "Why?" One might ask, and the only legitimate explaination to think of, is to be different.

That's exactly what this record was. Different. To say the least. Very new for them, and unknown. Which hints a label of "a different type of punk rock." That's what they are all-in-all, is a punk rock band. One of the only surviving ones, at that. They're so pure about it, and nothing is phony, and that's what makes the Hives punk. The fact that they don't care about what they look like, or what their music sounds like. I applaud that. Which makes them the kind of band that you listen to to get pumped up.

One of the most fun things about this band is how egotistical their lead singer Howlin' Pelle Almqvist is. He takes a great sense of pride in what they create and he thinks that it is perfect. And in all honesty. It is. He once said in an interview, "We've been explaining to the world a lot of things about our new record, and how good it is, when it will eventually come out. Sometimes it feels like we're making Chinese Democracy." I mean, if the record sucked, he would sound like an asshole, but the record was a classic, so you don't even care, and in fact, you find it moderately funny.

This record, compared to the other records which areTyrannasaurous Hives, Veni Vidi Vicious, and Barely Legal (try to download that one on LimeWire) this one is way different. Frankly, some of it's downright weird, but it's still cool....a lot like Daft Punk. Especially songs like T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S. and A Stroll Through Hive Manor. It's punk, but, as I said earlier, it's a different breed of punk rock.

One thing that did pain me to see, was that they toured with Maroon 5. In response to that, I quote the movie Superbad,"That's like slapping God in the face for a great gift." Anywho. That doesn't really matter anymore. I'm excited to see what they do for their fifth record. It should be rather interesting...to say the least. Also, I apologize for the tardiness of this review, considering it was released almost a year ago. I give it four stars, and not five, because it was a little lengthy...which shouldn't be surprising to me anymore. Most records are now.