Punk Princess

I have always been a hard core Avril fan. The first CD I ever got was her first album, “Let Go”, for my birthday. And it blew my second grade mind. The combination of depression and grunge made me hate preppy girls instead of wanting to be one. I instantly got the CD for all my friends and we’d sing it during recess. A month after I got “Let Go”, I forced my hands on “Under My Skin” her second album. It was so dark and deep, I didn’t listen to it very much. Two years later, I picked it back up after being made fun of at school, and the darkness spoke to me. I wrapped myself in the lyrics and focused on myself and feeling better rather than hanging out with friends and doing fourth grade things.

In 2007, Avril released “The Best Damn Thing”, her third album. I went crazy. It was completely opposite of everything she had ever done, no fun acoustics riffs, no depressing lyrics. I was so confused. After a quick google, I realized my idol had gotten married to Sum 41’s lead guitarist. After swearing to never listen to the CD, I put it under my bed. Until I heard Girlfriend, the single for “The Best Damn Thing”. And man, was I back on the ship! Though Avril added background singers, the guitar went from acoustic to electric, and it seriously ROCKED. I memorized my new favorite album and when I’m feeling particularly carefree, I blare it with my windows down on my way home from school.

Next came “Good Bye Lullaby”, returning to Avril’s acoustic roots. The lyrics were more personal, but not as angst-y. It wasn’t my favorite album, but man did I love track five. Smile is so incredibly uplifting, and when I watched the music video even more. I can’t even describe it. It’s just great. Watch it. I’ll post a link.

Avril came out with a self-titled album in November. Its sort of like a reaction to “Goodbye Lullaby”- a response to a conversation almost- the Ying to Lullaby’s Yang. Where “Goodbye Lullaby” is soft an personal, “Avril Lavigne” is a blaring new sound. Avril said she named the album after herself because she really couldn’t think of a better name. The song Hello Kitty is a DUBSTEP song! My pop princess tried DUBSTEP!!! And I love it! She sings “Mina sako arigato, Kawi!” meaning something along the lines of “thank you all very much” and “cute”. I’m confused, but I love it.

Smile:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KagvExF-ijc

You've got to be kidding me.

American Idiot- The Musical. Are we really so out of ideas that we have to take a band that's over glorified and make them into a Broadway musical? What has our world come to? Since Green Day isn’t making enough money on their so called music, we better make them a musical so they can suck more money out of… well… American Idiots.

 

I liked Green Day once. I liked their album Dookie, which is my basis for any good punk band or song. Green Day’s Dookie set the standard for true punk music. And they threw it all away. I’m going to be legitimately honest; some songs on American Idiot were okay (like Holiday and Wake Me Up When September Ends) But a musical? Really guys? Let’s give a punk rock band a musical to make people with poor taste to spend more money on their sad excuse for music and to piss off the informed population even more. Are you freaking kidding me?

 

And the story behind Wake Me Up When September Ends isn’t a patriotic tale about 9/11. The original meaning behind the song was when Billy Joel Armstrong’s father died in 1982 when he was ten. During his father’s funeral Armstrong ran home and hid himself in his room, and when his mother came to check on him he asked her to wake him up when September ended. Now, a lot of Americans took the song and thought of 9/11, which is fine, the lyrics match up really well ("Drenched in my pain again, becoming who we are" - the realization of the fact that everything we go through, all the pain and losses), but it pisses me off that people don’t know the actual story behind the song. IF you’re a real fan, you do. And I wouldn’t consider myself a fan, so why do I know that? Google. That’s how. If you really like a band, you’ll at least google them. Come on.

 

The musical is pretty much a bunch of Broadway idiots dancing around in grunge-punk clothing and ridiculous amounts of eyeliner, imagining they are actually going to make it somewhere. Yeah right! Apparently they invited a story line out of Green Day’s bullshit anti-America album, American Idiot. The “story” follows three friends trying to follow their dreams and find meaning in the September 11^th terrorist attacks. So, they’re making a patriotic musical about… an album smashing the American system and the American people? Awesome. That’s not any form of money making crap. I’m so done with Green Day. Wake me up when this crappy musical ends.

In a place where we only say goodbye

I have discussed Death Cab for Cutie before, so if you want to check out my little biography of them look at my post for The Ice Is Getting Thinner.

What Sarah Said has been a favorite song of mine for some time. I first heard it when I was in eighth grade. I had been having a rough time with kids at school and was extremely depressed. I’m sure you can all speculate my mental state at this time after listening to this song. Around sophomore year I decided I disliked the direction my life was going in and that my family didn’t need to be in the waiting room wondering if I was alive. Whenever I feel weak, I listen to this song and remind myself of the dangers of returning to old habits.

“And it came to me then, that every plan is a tiny prayer to father time. As I stared at my shoes, in the ICU that reeked of piss and 409.” Gibbard sets the scene of being in a ruddy little waiting room, the reek of harsh cleaning products (409 is a disinfecting cleaner, in case you didn’t know). Clearly the situation is dire, because he is in the waiting room for the Intensive Care Unit at a hospital, usually meaning the patient is either dead, dying, or somewhere in between. Not a happy place to be. “I rationed my breaths, as I said to myself, that ‘I’ve already taken too much today’. As each descending peak on the LCD took you a little farther away from me…” Gibbard at this time was a raging alcoholic, which makes this situation seem even worse. My first thought was maybe he was drinking and was in a car accident, but now I think something completely different. Obviously the person he’s concerned about isn’t doing stellar, because the heart monitor screen is slowly falling…

                “Amongst the vending machines and year-old magazines, in place where we only say goodbye. It stung like a violent wind that our memories depend on a faulty camera in our minds.” I have a family in very poor health, and I wish I could remove every memory of a nurse walking in and being terrified that the person currently ill had died. I would pray that the nurse would go to some other poor Joe in the room and tell them their bad news. That my person had lived and theirs died- what a selfish thought to have.

                Later in the song I pieced together that this person was in the hospital for a suicide attempt, and in the music video this is only more painful. In the music video the girl seems to be invisible to her lover, because she’s dead. He is thinking of all the things he could have done to help her and she doesn’t understand why he is ignoring her (or at least that’s how I deciphered the video). It’s heart breaking. When she writes on the mirror, her hand, her arm, etc. she is playing the game of he loves me/ he loves me not.

Il m'aime: He loves me.

On her hand, "un peu?" is "a little bit."

On the walls, "beaucoup?" is "a lot."

On her arm, "passionaïément" is passionately. On her leg, "à la foue" is "to madness."

And then in the end, "il m'aime pas du tout" is "he doesn't love me anymore."

Here’s the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I483tB12SyE

The seasons have changed, and so have we.

Death Cab for Cutie is a more modern indie/alternative band formed in Washington in 1997. Lead singer and writer Ben Gibbard is a recovering alcoholic from Washington State. Chris Walla is the lead guitarist, Nick Hammer on bass, and Nathan Good on drums. The band has seven albums, and have left their underground status when they signed to major label Atlantic in 2004. Since then they have gained plenty of fans- short and tall.

The Ice is Getting Thinner by Death Cab for Cutie is a really grim song. I love it, but whenever I hear it I can't help but think of dramatic love stories that fall through. My favorite thing about the music over all is that the bass line is the most prominent. It’s a simple, slow line repeated over and over. But it has a ring. When I hear it I think of when I have bad days and everything seems to lose its color. I don’t hear people speaking to me, I don’t comprehend what’s taking place around me. Everything is just a blur and the world is moving normally without me. Or falling through a black void that never ends. When this song is played I go numb and want to go back to bed and let the world go on without me. What I find brilliant is that the song is just the same few notes over and over for every instrument. The bass being the lowest instrument presented is the loudest to highlight the death of their love. The tune repeats itself over and over- like a romance that has fizzled out of its passion.

            “Were not the same dear, as we use to be. The seasons have changed and so have we. There was little we could say, and even less that could do to stop the ice from getting thinner between me and you.” Already I need a hug.

            “We buried our love in a wintery grave. A lump in the snow was all that remained. Though we stayed by its side as the days turned to weeks, the ice kept getting thinner with every word wed speak.” So this is going to get happy, right? Things rarely end sadly..

            “When spring arrived we were taken by surprise when the flows under our feet bled into the sea and was nothing left of you and me.” So their relationship isn’t going to work out. Youch. I feel a ping of pain every time I hear that. To think that a relationship between two people could just leave nothing left.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgRVeNMoU2c

My problem with sampling and covering music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFsHSHE-iJQ

Not too long ago, I found out the the song Mad World was originally by the band Tears for Fears. This of course came as a pretty big "WHAT?" kind of statement. I had always thought it was Gary Jules and loved the song very much. I'm not a big fan of Tears for Fears, but I do feel that I should have known that they were the original creators of a song that I have enjoyed for quite a while. This situation has really got me thinking, why do covers not give as much credit to the originals as is deserved? Take for example the song Land of Confusion by Disturbed. The song is originally by Genesis and most people would tell you that Disturbed wrote the song. The band Van Halen has made quite an impression on the world with the song You Really Got Me, which was a song by the band The Kinks.

This seems wrong to me. Now, don't get me wrong I do indeed enjoy covers. I really enjoy covers when covers are done well. Take for example Kidnap the Sandy Claws. Originally a song in the Nightmare Before Christmas and then redone by the Band Korn. It was a flawless cover and I enjoy both versions of the song, but what really gets me is when people don't realize the song is a cover. This is why I feel that if an artist is going to cover a song, they should put a mention in readable print on the back that it is indeed a song that was originally done by a separate artist.

 I might be the only one who feels this, but I am all about credit given where credit is deserved. And the people who originally write music deserve credit if another artist is going to cover their music. If I was an artist, I would want to be recognized for the song I wrote, if another person is going to sing the same song. I do have to say though, good covers can give a whole different perspective of a song and that is why I do indeed feel that covers are an okay thing. Let's take for example the song Mad World. The original song focuses on the whole mad and craziness of the world and how its easy to get lost in it. While the cover by Gary Jules is more about how sad the world is. Both perspectives are very beautiful and have good messages, but they came from the same song. Overall, I feel that covers, regardless of who does them or how well they are done, need to give more credit towards the first artist who wrote them.

Where IS the love?

For those who haven't heard this song or seen the video, as usual, I highly encourage you to do so. The message is truly moving.

Where is the Love is one of my songs for this week. The Black Eyed Pees recorded Where is the Love with Justin Timberlake in 2003. Beginning in LA, the Peas have five albums and are working on a sixth now. The hip-hop group consists of Fergie, Will.I.Am, Taboo, and Apl.de.Ap (I don’t know how they got their names). At the end of 2011 the Black Eyed Peas were the second best-selling group (with over 42 million record sales) because of their album the E.N.D.

            Where is the Love is one of my favorite political songs. In a nutshell, the song is about being accepting and tolerant of different races and countries and all of the violence taking place in our world today. The question is posed: where is the love? Strings and the xylophone are incorporated with the simple guitar line and clapping, created what I would call a tropical feel. It’s a relaxing uplifting tune, but when you listen to the lyrics you see that the peaceful melody is the only peace the Black Eyed Peas see in the chaotic world.

“If love and peace are so strong, why are there pieces of love that don’t belong? Nations dropping bombs, chemical gasses filling lungs of little ones, with ongoing suffering as the youth die young.” The part that hits me every time is the comment he makes about children dying young in horrible ways. I’m unsure if he refers to pollution or terrorism when he brings up chemical gasses though. I bet it can go either way, since there both unfortunate. “Father, father, father, help us, send some guidance from above, ‘cause people got me got me questioning, where is the love?” A desperate plea for the almighty to help us and fix our world. This line is repeated several times in the refrain, which makes me think that this is a question the writer of the song has had for a long time, and with what’s taking place in Syria… Well let’s hope if there is a god he pitches in soon.

I the music video, which I encourage to all of you fantastic mortals, shows hooded figures running around a city. They are posting signs containing question marks in a box everywhere they are in the video. A van with the question mark is driving around with the Black Eyed Peas inside as they sing their song in the van which is projected through a loudspeaker to the streets they pass. During the refrain they have shots of sad children singing “where is the love”, which is an emotional plea that I find insanely effective.

 

The video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpYeekQkAdc

"Oh, wow. Look at my wrist, I have to go!"

Today were going to do something a little different. Look out, I’m reviewing… A MUSICAL!!!! Anyone that knows me knows I hate most musicals. It’s far easier to list the musicals that I like then the musicals I hate. So let’s see… I like: Burlesque, Moulin Rouge (if you want to call those musicals), Grease, and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog.

            Which is our topic for this post! Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog is a mini three act musical about a super villain named Dr. Horrible and his love interest, a very sensitive and charitable girl named Penny. Dr. Horrible is played by Neil Patrick Harris from How I Met Your Mother. Dr. Horrible wants to take over the world because he is sick of the “status quo”, and how the people in charge have ignored him and brushed him off for so long. Penny, the love interest, is Doc’s crush from the Laundromat he goes to. She is working on getting the city to give her a building for a homeless shelter. Captain Hammer, the hero of the city and Dr. Horrible’s arch-enemy, meets Penny during one of Horrible’s heists, is able to persuade the mayor to give Penny the building and has Penny fall for him.

This entire little play was written and filmed during the actor strike (2008), and was directed by Joss Whedon, the creator of my all-time favorite show, Firefly. If you haven’t seen Firefly, it’s on Netflix. Watch it or be a loser forever. The play goes back and forth between Dr. Horrible’s blog and (some of) the events he has schemed. It’s pretty fantastic if you ask me. The beginning of the movie/ miniseries/ play begins with Dr. Horrible sitting in front of his computer reading fan mail. One fan writes “You always say you will show her the way, who is her and does she even know you exist?” Her of course being Penny.

That sparks my favorite song from the whole play- “My Freeze Ray”. Dr. Horrible is singing to himself quietly in the Laundromat watching Penny, about if he had his Freeze Ray ready to perform, he could freeze time to think of things to say to her, and pluck up the courage to tell her how he feels about her. The whole song is light and happy, defiantly something you could imagine singing to a lover or potential lover.

The play goes on from there. I could describe it, but I feel like I wouldn’t be able to be objective and give you an over view without either giving away the end or writing out the entire script. So watch it, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog is on Netflix. Make sure you have tissues for the end.

Penny: You're not really interested in the homeless, are you?
Dr. Horrible: No, I am, but... it's a symptom. You're treating a symptom while the disease rages on, consumes the human race. The fish rots from the head, so they say. So I'm thinking, why not cut off the head?
Penny: [pause] Of the human race?
Dr. Horrible: It's not a... perfect metaphor.

Link to the IMBD:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1227926/

Waiting by the mail blox, by the train...

So the Gorillaz have always been one of my favorite bands. My brother got into them when their 2005 hit Feel Good Inc. hit all of our favorite music stations. Feel Good Inc., from their second studio album, was a pretty big hit as I remember it. What hooked my older brother Spencer was the bass line- the bass had the melody rather than the guitar. Coming from a band background, this was new to us. Though I never asked my brother, I think this is what led him to learning bass. Spencer is the best bass player I know, but I suppose I’m biased because I’m his sister. I owe most of my music taste to my brother- he got me into some of my favorite bands (Led Zeppelin, The Gorillaz, and The Who), and taught me how to really appreciate music.

The Gorillaz is a virtual band, meaning they are made up characters representing real people who make their music. After their first album (self-titled), they were immortalized in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most successful virtual band. The band’s genre ranges from alternative rock to alternative hip-hop to Britpop (they are native to Britain).

To Binge (featuring Little Dragon), from their third album Plastic Beach (2010), is defiantly one of my favorite songs by these guys. The song depicts sort of a heart break feel with longing in the guitar line. There are highlights of hope by the synthesizer, making the song still upbeat and easy going. My boyfriend once said this song reminded him of me, because it conveyed a longing and lonely feel. So of course, I listened to again to remember it a little better. After listening to the lyrics, I had to explain to him that the lyrics did not fit us very well.

2D (vocals and keyboard):“I wait to be forgiven, maybe I never will. My star has left me to take the bitter pill. That shattered feeling well the cause of it’s a lesson learned, ‘just don’t know if I can roll into the sea again. Just don’t know if I can do it all again’ she said, it’s true.” When I hear that I think of a break up. Then when I hear the next part sang by Little Dragon (a female role), I get a much different feel.

“Waiting in my room, and I lock the door. I watch the colored animals run across the floor. I’m looking in the distance and I’m listening to the whispers. Oh it ain’t the same when you’re falling out of feeling and you’re rolling in and caught again.” Colored animals? We’re talking about drugs! The girl locks herself in her room to take hallucinogenic drugs, hence she’s caught back in the sea of addiction.

Next, 2D almost replies with “I’m caught again in the mystery, you’re by my side, but are you still with me?” Clearly the man is concerned for her well-being, worried if she will once again drown into the world of drugs. The song is actually sad, the longing sound about drugs forming a wall between two lovers.

I then explained this to my boyfriend, and cleared it up that only video games could form a wall between us. Can you believe he likes Kingdom Hearts?

 

Song Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0AUHWdTT9M

Deep in the cell of my heart, I will be so glad to go...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIsiVzlvEhI

“Asleep” by the Smiths. However I like the version from the movie Sucker Punch, sang by Emily Browning, the main character in Sucker Punch and Violet from A Series of Unfortunate Events (the movie was awful, but the books were pretty good.).

Again, listen to the song before you read this. The lyrics are almost nothing compared to the music.

Soft piano line and violins, the song sounds like a lullaby. You don’t even need the lyrics. At points in the song, the violins take over the piano and the song almost sounds happy or less sad. Almost hopeful when the bells come in.

This song is so obviously about suicide I’m surprised I didn't notice the meaning until I listened to it a few times. The song is so beautiful it distracts you from the depressing background of the lyrics. I think this is definitely about suicide or thinking about suicide. What we never know is whether the guy in the song goes through with it in the end. It's more about longing to be somewhere else, longing to be somewhere better than the place you are. Eventually, the person thinks the only way out of their situation is to take their own life. They're that desperate to be in another world forever.  It almost feels like the character is pleading for help in the beginning, and throughout the song loses hope. Towards the middle of the song, the character proclaims she wants to be dead, and tells her friends and or family to not feel bad, and that is what she wanted. Towards the end of the song she begins to think about the afterlife, "There is another world, there is a better world. Well there must be", and how good it is promised and said to be. This makes her increasingly depressed. The outcome is obvious. "Goodbye.."

Morrisey (the writer of the Smiths) really did well with the lyrics. The repetition adds to the desperation and depression. Especially the goodbyes at the end, then piano fading to a music box. That brings me to a point; I think the music box at the end represents the character looking back on her life (her life flashing before her eyes), and specifically her childhood, where maybe the root of her depression lays.

Personally, I like the version sang by Emily Browning more, because she has a gentler voice than Morrisey and her accent isn’t so prominent. Morrisey almost sounds whiney- where Browning sounds desperate and lost. 

Music the Inspiration or Death Bringer?

http://www.antilife.org/files/marilyn.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbine_High_School_massacre#Music

Columbine, the tragedy of a nation. It was so shocking in fact, that the police, victims, and media needed some sort of explanation. Why did this happen? Why would these kids do this? In ignorance came blame. "Dark Metal"bands became the scapegoat and this kind didn't summon up four lamb tokens. The largest of these names, Marilyn Manson. As is known by many, Marilyn Manson has a very dark sense of inspiration, and entertainment. His lyrics are profane, gruesome, and disturbing (at least in my opinion) and many people would consider him a freak (not that I agree). The kids involved with this spectacle of shear madness, were very into his music. As the kids got famous out of murder and their faces ended up on Time Magazine, Manson became a large public enemy and his music became a symbol of murder. Manson went on to explain his out look on shows like the O'Reilly Factor, and gave a statement in Michael Moore's documentary about the event. He explained that his music was about expressing ones self and always being true to ones self. Manson never condoned what had happened at Columbine but did say this when asked what he would have said to the kids, "I wouldn't say a single word to them. I would listen to what they have to say and that's what no one did." 

Marilyn Manson is quite the man. Creepy, dark, and unnecessary are words that I would use to describe both he and his music. Even though I am not much of a fan of  the dark knight, I do not feel that he is to blame for a group of disturbed and tortured kids. Music is inspiration  but not a reason for anyone to harm another person. I have a playlist for just about every emotion that I feel, but just because I listen to the Pokemon theme song doesn't mean I am going to go out and try to fit squirrels into baseballs. This whole situation just seems like a media cop out to both find a reason for such a thing that should not be, and to stir the pot of media evil. To me the media found a story that could cause controversy and get a lot  of attention. All in all, I feel that music isn't to blame when tragedy arrives, instead maybe we should ask ourselves what we could have done to prevent it.

Where Did the Funk Go?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHGOO73Gxg4

Recently I was watching Pulp Fiction, and was jamming out to Jungle Boogie by Kool and The Gang. After the massive dance session, I got to thinking. What in Quentin Tarantino's good name happened to songs where you could just get down? Classic funk songs where the best. Songs where they didn't have any sort of reason other than just simply dancing without a care. Dance music today either has really gross undertones or sounds like Optimus Prime having a seizure. I miss Walk the Dinosaur and Boogie Wonderland. All of this thinking got me to a very depressing conclusion. Music today sucks. Whats worst? The songs of today will be the classic dance songs of tomorrow. Miley Cyrus will be the next Kool and the Gang. Now, this may be a bold statement, but the horrid music of today will indeed be the oldies of our children's day.
Being a fan of Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, and other "oldies"I find this fact of time to be vomit worthy. When my kids run up and say mommy, who was Justin Beiber I will reply with "A mistake of humanity." To even think of music that is played on Z102.9 is you know, actual music is an insult to people who actually wrote their own songs and didn't sing with auto tune. I feel that as an ode to these great artists of the 70s, 80s, and even 90s should be taught in a class and should be a requirement to graduate high school. Maybe I'm just angry at the world, but I seriously think that today's music is so terrible that I actually get mad when I hear it. It just isn't fair that other people my age recognize Nicki Manaj as a writer of music, but have never even heard of Chuck Berry. The most cringing thing about this, is that music could even get worst from here and music could completely become about face rather than about talent. Right now, music is near talentless, and I have zero percent doubt in that statement. Today music is all about face and presentation and not enough about talent, and quality of music. Music of yesterday should be much more recognized as an example of what music should be. We as a society should encourage talent, not bizarre showmanship.

Just as Legit as The Beatles or The Rolling Stones

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/nine-legitimately-awesome-video-game-soundtracks-20131004?page=2

What can make a video game memorable? Rolling Stone feels that music in games not only can make a video game more memorable, but culture as a whole loves video game music. The article is list of Rolling Stone's favorite video game music. Rolling Stone covers some great music from Halo, Super Mario and Tetris. The author feels that the music is not only catchy, but just as much music as anything else that is produced by major labels today.

I love video games. I also love music, but more specifically I love music in video games. Nothing is quite like the catchiness of Nintendo music or the awesomeness  of orchestrated music in RPG games. Music is just as much the experience that the story or the graphics are in the game. Let's take Pokemon for example. First you'll be walking around carefree while hearing the harmonic sounds of a route, then just as suddenly as the music changes to fast paced darker sounding tones, the game switches into a battle of epic portions. The music gives a sense of how the game should feel. The biggest thing that I have noticed about these songs within the games is that people are willing to scout the internet and pay fifty dollars in overseas shipping for copies of the OST (Original Sound Track) of these songs. For the popularity and artistry of the music in vide games, I feel that video game music should be just as recognized as any other music. I mean come on, Lost Woods from Zelda is way more musical than anything Miley Cyrus has shoved out of her brain. I personally have fallen in love with music from Pokemon, Zelda, Mario, and Starfox. The orchestration, the catchy tones, and the memories are enough to get me to say, video games over pop music any day. I feel so strongly about this that I think game companies and record labels should release the original sound tracks of video games when they release. Think of driving around to the Mario Kart soundtrack. Wouldn't that be awesome? It would be great listening to Starfox while on a plane or listening to Lost Woods while hiking, or even listening to Pokemon Center while in the hospital. (It would make the outrageous pricing of the bill a little better at least.) For these reasons and many more, I feel that video game music is not only incredibly complex, but also store worthy.

Credit Absent Where Credit is Needed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFsHSHE-iJQ

Not too long ago, I found out the the song Mad World was originally by the band Tears for Fears. This of course came as a pretty big "WHAT?" kind of statement. I had always thought it was Gary Jules and loved the song very much. I'm not a big fan of Tears for Fears, but I do feel that I should have known that they were the original creators of a song that I have enjoyed for quite a while. This situation has really got me thinking, why do covers not give as much credit to the originals as is deserved? Take for example the song Land of Confusion by Disturbed. The song is originally by Genesis and most people would tell you that Disturbed wrote the song. The band Van Halen has made quite an impression on the world with the song You Really Got Me, which was a song by the band The Kinks.

This seems wrong to me. Now, don't get me wrong I do indeed enjoy covers. I really enjoy covers when covers are done well. Take for example Kidnap the Sandy Claws. Originally a song in the Nightmare Before Christmas and then redone by the Band Korn. It was a flawless cover and I enjoy both versions of the song, but what really gets me is when people don't realize the song is a cover. This is why I feel that if an artist is going to cover a song, they should put a mention in readable print on the back that it is indeed a song that was originally done by a separate artist.

 I might be the only one who feels this, but I am all about credit given where credit is deserved. And the people who originally write music deserve credit if another artist is going to cover their music. If I was an artist, I would want to be recognized for the song I wrote, if another person is going to sing the same song. I do have to say though, good covers can give a whole different perspective of a song and that is why I do indeed feel that covers are an okay thing. Let's take for example the song Mad World. The original song focuses on the whole mad and craziness of the world and how its easy to get lost in it. While the cover by Gary Jules is more about how sad the world is. Both perspectives are very beautiful and have good messages, but they came from the same song. Overall, I feel that covers, regardless of who does them or how well they are done, need to give more credit towards the first artist who wrote them.

Story Albums are Indeed a Thing to Check Out

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/coheed-and-cambria-silence-superheroes-at-comic-con-yahoo-crash-concerts-20121130

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mar1mSlDsM

A little before this time a year ago, San Diego's Comic Con was rocking the geek universe. What many people did not know was that a rock band was also there.  A surprise performance by graphic novelist and front man for the band Coheed and Cambria was a major hit amongst both fans of progressive rock, and comic books alike. Claudio Sanchez, the front man as mentioned above, was at the Con promoting his own graphic novel, the Armory Wars, and decided it was time for an acoustic performance. Nervous at the reactions and feedback he might get from the audience there, he managed to silence the buzz of geek culture and his voice was heard. Some fans began to sing along, while others though to themselves, I should really check this band out. There new two part album, The Aftermath, was just around the bend at this point and was inadvertently promoted through this acoustic concert.

Coheed and Cambria. I personally don not care for the progressive rock band, but my boyfriend happens to be huge nerd over the different sounding graphic novelist turned rockstar. As a background, all of Coheed and Cambria's music is a continuing story of love, hatred, and sci-fi wars in which people gain powers and destroy worlds. Although I am not a fan of this band in particular, I do think it is cool that bands do these concept albums. I feel like it all kind of started back with bands like Rush and Genesis. Rush did a song back in the 70s called 2112 which was a story by itself and Genesis did something similar with the sing Suppers Ready. The whole idea of concept albums seems pretty popular within the prog rock sub genre and are something interesting to check out. No songs about drugs, politics, or other things that can get in the way of good music. Just a continuing story that one can really get into. I personally am open to more music like this. It seems really cool that a musician can tell such a complex story through lyrics and sound, rather than printed words and pictures. Now I do have to say that some better bands should probably make these albums. Coheed and Cambria, Rush, and Genesis just aren't very good in my book. I'd like to see bands such as Breaking Benjamin or Death Cab for Cutie do albums such as this. Overall, I love the idea of concept albums and would encourage more people to listen.

Drugs and Music, the Combination of Angels and Demons

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/billie-joe-armstrong-rehab-his-425111

Billie Joe Armstrong has had quite a time with his last tour. His alcohol and prescription drug abuse had him hitting the floor when he had a meltdown back in 2012. It was at the iHeartRadio festival and a storm was brewing as the band went on. When the set managers tried to cut him short, he smashed his guitar and started on a "I'm not Justin effing Beiber" rant. This all happened right in the middle of his set and the storm had finally hit and hit harder than a hurricane. Billie Joe had reached his limit and it ended up in a postponed concert tour, an album promotion that got sidelined, and a few weeks in rehab. Billie Joe opened up the experience to Rolling stone and talked about how his struggle with alcohol had played a role in his meltdown. He also went on to talk about his mixture of prescription drugs. Anxiety and insomnia, two conditions that Armstrong takes medication for. He mixed them to the point where he didn't know what he was taking when, and ultimately fell victim to what was supposed to even him out. Rehab had a negative and positive effect on him, as the withdrawal was horrific, but the learning that took place was very self aware and helpful. Billie Joe Armstrong is back on track with his life, and his tour went phonemically.

Let's face it, people do drugs and abuse substances. It's not just those who are famous and its not everybody. As fan of Green Day (mostly older Green Day let's just get that out of the way right now) I had heard of the Billie Joe Armstrong meltdown. It really got me thinking, why does this always seem to happen to those who are successful? Amy Winehouse, Kurt Cobain, and even John Lennon had drug problems. After careful thought, I came across what seemed to me the most obvious answer. External pressure. You see it in the schools of America and plenty of other places in the world as well. Human beings experiment with substances due to curiosity and pressure. Musicians are no different as they are indeed, human beings. The media's role in ruining people's lives is the reason we hear so much about these icons fall from grace. The biggest problem we have as "common folk" is that we eat this media  up. It's like crack (pun indeed intended) to us. We see these people who are famous get bad publicity and the reaction, positive or not, is what the new perception of these people are. I feel that we as a people, should let anybody, even those who aren't famous, work out their own lives without quick judgement. With positive support, we might actually see the abuse numbers decline and our society as a whole can be a better, more understanding place.

Make Up Your Mind Damon. Seriously.

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/jun/24/blur-gorillaz-new-albums-damon-albarn

Two bands, one common factor. Damon Albarn and his indecisive nature. Damon Albarn is both a member and friend of the band Blur, as well as the co-creater of the band The Gorillaz and in a day where its getting harder and harder for bands to be able to make money, both of the bands are to come out with new albums. Blur will be the first to release, followed by the Gorillaz. The biggest problems that both bands are running into is Damon Albarn's indecisiveness. Albarn has been known to start recording a new track, and then immediately scrap the idea altogether. This of course frustrates his band mates and although they respect him and his talent, wish he could get some of the issues worked out.

As a fan of The Gorillaz, I was drawn to the above article. The albums Demon Days, and the original Gorillaz really inspired be back in the day. The next two albums, were different, but I still loved the tracks on them and I love relaxing to the sounds of the self titled albums, G-sides and D-sides. What has really gotten to me though is how much decision making that Damon Albarn has really put into his music. Other than this article, I have read many articles about new Gorillaz albums (when they were just coming out of course, and the most consistent  thing I have come across in these articles is that Mr. Albarn is extremely indecisive when it comes to his music. Now I'm sure that this comes from wanting his music to be something unique and special to his fans, but many people have come and gone from the Gorillaz for this reason. I even noticed how many songs were different from one another on the album Plastic Beach. I know from interviews with Damon (that I read of course) that he wanted to try many different directions with the band, and there is nothing that said he couldn't decide on the album as a whole, but my personal theory would be that Damon had trouble trying to figure out what the main theme should be to his new album. I love the Gorillaz, in fact there isn't a single song that I hate by the Gorillaz, but I would hate to see such talent and sound be broken due to Damon's endeavor for perfection.  My personal taste will always keep me coming back to the Gorillaz, but perhaps it's time for Damon to get some help with this perfectionist attitude.

"I'd rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not."

I’m sure most of you don’t know me very well. In light of that, I will fill you in on my outlook on celebrity crushes.

They’re ridiculous.

That in mind, when I tell you I’m crazy about Kurt Cobain… You know I really, REALLY like him. So much so that I named my teddy bear (that my boyfriend got me) Cobain. My boyfriend and I are such hard core Nirvana fans that we both have agreed that should Cobain come back from the dead, we would both be groupies. I now encourage you to Urban Dictionary ‘groupies’.

Kurt Cobain committed suicide in 1994 at age 27. I find this a little hard to believe, because Jim Morrison, Brian Jones, Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, and Jimi Hendrix all died at 27. CONSPIRACY.

At age 8, Cobain’s parents split. At fourteen, he got his first guitar and taught himself the popular rock songs of the day. After being bullied all throughout high school for choosing art over sports, Kurt dropped out his senior year. Two years later, he formed Nirvana with bass player Krist Novoselic and drummer Chad Channing. Bleach, their first album, came out in 1989. After which, Channing was replaced with the nicest man alive: David Grohl, who is now the lead singer of the Foo Fighters. Nirvana signed to major label DGC, and produced Nevermind, their second album, in 1991.

When Nevermind hit its popularity, Kurt Cobain was crammed into the music spotlight. Something he hated. Trying to use his fame wisely, he spoke about gay and women’s rights. However Kurt never liked all the attention he was getting, and the heroin addiction he developed in the eighties began to return. In 1991 he began a relationship with Courtney Love, an alternative rocker from the band Hole. Courtney and Kurt got married on February 24, 1992, and had their daughter about six months later.

In 1993, after admitting to drug use, there began a custody battle over Francis Bean Cobain (Kurt and Courtney’s daughter). A few times the police were called to the Cobain home because of domestic disputes and at one point Kurt was charged with domestic abuse.

In 1994 Kurt overdosed while on tour in Europe, and went into a coma for about 20 hours. After which he went through detox, and was sent to rehab. He was there a day and left, going missing for a week. He returned to his home state of Washington, and was found dead. He went to his home and shot himself in the head. And that was the end of Kurt Cobain. 

"At this point I have a request for our fans. If any of you in any way hate homosexuals, people of different color, or women, please do this one favor for us -- leave us alone!

Don't come to our shows and don't buy our records." – Kurt Cobain

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/kurt-cobain/biography

http://loudwire.com/nirvana-kiss-deep-purple-nominated-2014-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-induction/

Can the lonely take the place of you?

I’ve already analyzed a song by Christina Perri, so below the post should be down there somewhere.

                This week Im reviewing the Lonely, a song off of Perri’s album Lovestrong., her only album (so far, anyway). Perri spent more time in the studio deciding what songs to put on the album than actually writing the songs, because the songs presented and their order was so important to her.

                The song’s tune brings about a gloomy feeling around. The piano’s rhythm is fast, but the minor key is what makes it sad. “Two am, where do I begin? Crying off my face again” this is referring to when she was driving home one night after recording. She stayed late at the studio and on her way home at 2 am, she had to stop the car and decided to grab a milkshake to cheer her up. I eat chocolate when I am sad. Milkshakes are cold. I don’t like being cold when I’m sad. “The lonely” that she refers to is a past lover or a dead family member, or maybe something like a monster that comes to her and scares her back into bed (“The silent sounds of loneliness want to follow me to bed”). “I’m the ghost of a girl that I want to be most, a shell of a girl that I use to know well.” The Lonely monster took her previous life and now she feels like the remains of someone, as if now she is half a person.

                “Too afraid to go inside, for the fear of one more loveless night. ‘Cause the loneliness will stay with me, and hold me until I fall asleep.” Here the lonely is taking care of her, the depression lulling her to sleep. Because she is so caught up with her illness, she is too afraid to love again or go out and meet new people, like someone refusing to drive after a bad car accident.  “Broken pieces of a barely breathing story, where there once was love, now there’s only me. And the lonely.”  This break up tore her life apart and left her all alone. This reinforces my thought of the lonely is a hole left by a break up. Go me.

                It almost seems like she is unsure of the lonely herself. Is it helping her? Protecting her from another heart break? Or is it impairing her, keeping her away from trying again? 

The lyric video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO4e4nCYBEo

Gone be the birds when they don't want to sing.

So. I’ve already written up a little biography for the Black Eyed Peas, it should be the post under this one. After I reviewed Where is the Love, I remembered this song and how good it was. Gone Going was released in 2005 on their album Monkey Business. As I recall, Monkey Business was their fourth album and the one that confirmed their new fame from Elephunk (their third album). Monkey Business sold well over ten million copies worldwide, so I’m sure they made plenty of money off it. Personally I’m not the biggest Black Eyed Peas fan, because I’m not much into hip hop or pop music. However, I do like Fergie because she’s a fantastic singer and their lyrics have a fair amount of punch to them.

                One of the main reasons I don’t like the Black Eyed Peas is because they did a cover of the tune from Pulp Fiction (the greatest movie ever), Misirlou, and so many stupid people think that they originally wrote it. Few things make me angrier than people not giving credit where credit is due. The Peas sampled it, and I hated their version.

                Moving on….

                The song Gone Going depicts a man who is making money wrongfully, and is enjoying his rich life- not caring about what is truly important. “He's a rich man so he's no longer singing the blues. He's singing songs about material things. And platinum rings and watches that go bling- But, diamonds don't bling in the dark” this is a man who was changed by his new found fame, not only in his morality but in his music. He begins to sing of material possessions instead of his true feelings. I think this song is about a lot of rappers. They start rapping of the “thug life” that “chose them”, and end up singing about money and things that don’t truly matter. In the end this loses them fans and record sales. But I don’t like rap, so I don’t really care.

                “You say that time is money and money is time; So you got mind in your money and your money on your mind. But what about... that crime that you did to get paid? And what about... that bid, you can't take it to your brain. What about those shoes you'll wear today, They'll do no good on the bridges you burnt along the way” I am assuming the crime he supposedly committed is plagiarism- stealing the work of others and using it in his music. I especially enjoy the last line, commenting on his shoes that won’t be any good with all the relationships he’s ruined by stealing other’s work. His shoes don’t love him or care about him, and neither do the people that he stole from so he could make the money to buy the shoes.

                SHOES ARE THE PROBLEM.

Link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiEjy-Ey5sw

Lack of understanding, leading us away from unity.

For those who haven't heard this song or seen the video, as usual, I highly encourage you to do so. The message is truly moving.

Where is the Love is one of my songs for this week. The Black Eyed Pees recorded Where is the Love with Justin Timberlake in 2003. Beginning in LA, the Peas have five albums and are working on a sixth now. The hip-hop group consists of Fergie, Will.I.Am, Taboo, and Apl.de.Ap (I don’t know how they got their names). At the end of 2011 the Black Eyed Peas were the second best-selling group (with over 42 million record sales) because of their album the E.N.D.

            Where is the Love is one of my favorite political songs. In a nutshell, the song is about being accepting and tolerant of different races and countries and all of the violence taking place in our world today. The question is posed: where is the love? Strings and the xylophone are incorporated with the simple guitar line and clapping, created what I would call a tropical feel. It’s a relaxing uplifting tune, but when you listen to the lyrics you see that the peaceful melody is the only peace the Black Eyed Peas see in the chaotic world.

“If love and peace are so strong, why are there pieces of love that don’t belong? Nations dropping bombs, chemical gasses filling lungs of little ones, with ongoing suffering as the youth die young.” The part that hits me every time is the comment he makes about children dying young in horrible ways. I’m unsure if he refers to pollution or terrorism when he brings up chemical gasses though. I bet it can go either way, since there both unfortunate. “Father, father, father, help us, send some guidance from above, ‘cause people got me got me questioning, where is the love?” A desperate plea for the almighty to help us and fix our world. This line is repeated several times in the refrain, which makes me think that this is a question the writer of the song has had for a long time, and with what’s taking place in Syria… Well let’s hope if there is a god he pitches in soon.

I the music video, which I encourage to all of you fantastic mortals, shows hooded figures running around a city. They are posting signs containing question marks in a box everywhere they are in the video. A van with the question mark is driving around with the Black Eyed Peas inside as they sing their song in the van which is projected through a loudspeaker to the streets they pass. During the refrain they have shots of sad children singing “where is the love”, which is an emotional plea that I find insanely effective.

 

The video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpYeekQkAdc

Love is watching someone die.

I have discussed Death Cab for Cutie before, so if you want to check out my little biography of them look at my post for The Ice Is Getting Thinner.

What Sarah Said has been a favorite song of mine for some time. I first heard it when I was in eighth grade. I had been having a rough time with kids at school and was extremely depressed. I’m sure you can all speculate my mental state at this time after listening to this song. Around sophomore year I decided I disliked the direction my life was going in and that my family didn’t need to be in the waiting room wondering if I was alive. Whenever I feel weak, I listen to this song and remind myself of the dangers of returning to old habits.

“And it came to me then, that every plan is a tiny prayer to father time. As I stared at my shoes, in the ICU that reeked of piss and 409.” Gibbard sets the scene of being in a ruddy little waiting room, the reek of harsh cleaning products (409 is a disinfecting cleaner, in case you didn’t know). Clearly the situation is dire, because he is in the waiting room for the Intensive Care Unit at a hospital, usually meaning the patient is either dead, dying, or somewhere in between. Not a happy place to be. “I rationed my breaths, as I said to myself, that ‘I’ve already taken too much today’. As each descending peak on the LCD took you a little farther away from me…” Gibbard at this time was a raging alcoholic, which makes this situation seem even worse. My first thought was maybe he was drinking and was in a car accident, but now I think something completely different. Obviously the person he’s concerned about isn’t doing stellar, because the heart monitor screen is slowly falling…

                “Amongst the vending machines and year-old magazines, in place where we only say goodbye. It stung like a violent wind that our memories depend on a faulty camera in our minds.” I have a family in very poor health, and I wish I could remove every memory of a nurse walking in and being terrified that the person currently ill had died. I would pray that the nurse would go to some other poor Joe in the room and tell them their bad news. That my person had lived and theirs died- what a selfish thought to have.

                Later in the song I pieced together that this person was in the hospital for a suicide attempt, and in the music video this is only more painful. In the music video the girl seems to be invisible to her lover, because she’s dead. He is thinking of all the things he could have done to help her and she doesn’t understand why he is ignoring her (or at least that’s how I deciphered the video). It’s heart breaking. When she writes on the mirror, her hand, her arm, etc. she is playing the game of he loves me/ he loves me not.

Il m'aime: He loves me.

On her hand, "un peu?" is "a little bit."

On the walls, "beaucoup?" is "a lot."

On her arm, "passionaïément" is passionately. On her leg, "à la foue" is "to madness."

And then in the end, "il m'aime pas du tout" is "he doesn't love me anymore."

Here’s the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I483tB12SyE

If he was something special, I wouldn't have this song.

Christina Perri is incredible. I personally love her because she is a huge advocate for To Write Love on Her Arms (an organization dealing with self-injury), but her music is fantastic in a gentle way. In all of her songs that I’ve heard, she incorporates her independent spirit and her heart breaks and sorrows into one. Blue Bird is my song for this post.

            Before reading this post, I advise listening to the song so you can understand what I mean when I describe it to you. Here’s a link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vO5NLUOD8v8

            The song starts with a simple question: “How the hell does a broken heart get back together when it’s torn apart? Teach itself to start beating again…” and of course it makes me wonder. How do people bounce back from heart break? I’ve been dumped once, and man it sucked. Luckily I realized what a jerk the guy was, but the rejection still stung. How to people go on with their daily life if the person they were dating or married or whatever just decides to leave? If my cat up and left me I’d be devastated. And I clean his barf and poop. I feel empty like my life is over when a show I like ends. What would I do? How would I go on?

            The song describes a friend coming to Christina, asking her about (I assume) an ex-lover. She refers to this friend as a blue bird. “This little blue bird came looking for you, I said I hadn’t seen you for quite some time. This little blue bird came looking again, I said we weren’t even friends- she could have you. Don’t you think it was hard? I didn’t even say you died… But it wouldn’t have been such a lie. ‘Cause then I started to cry.” I think by this she means the person she knew had died, maybe the lover turned into a jerk or changed himself drastically. She didn’t tell her little blue bird that he had changed, only that she was free to be with him.

            “This little blue bird sure won’t give it a rest. She swears that you may be better than all the rest. I said, “No, you’ve got it all wrong! If he was something special, I wouldn’t have this song.” Don’t you think it was hard? I didn’t even say that you died…” Christina is obviously upset that this lover is making her blue bird so happy but rejected her. That stupid blue bird won’t give her a break.

            “This little blue bird won’t come ‘round here anymore… So I went looking for her- and I found you.” Maybe blue bird and the lover broke up, maybe Christina snapped on her “If he was something special, I wouldn’t have this song.”. Either way, the end of the song makes you question if Christina went back to her ex-lover, or if the blue bird won.

So change your blue star to gold

Sullivan by Caroline's Spine was released in 1997, and boy do I remember it. This was my favorite song until I turned eight-ish. A few years ago when I learned about the Sullivan brother’s in class, I realized what the song truly meant.

There were five Sullivan brothers: Albert, Madison, George, Joseph, and Francis. There were no daughters in the family. They lived in Waterloo, Iowa during World War Two. All five of them were drafted and served in the Navy- on the same ship (USS Juneau) in the South Pacific. The ship was sunk and all of them were killed (technically they were missing in action). Since then, military forces of the United States will not put siblings together in the same bases, ships, etc., to keep one family from losing so much. If you’ve seen Saving Private Ryan, you understand this.

The entire song feels like a dream or a memory, recalling their lives and memories. The guitar riff is very repetitive, and although it is at a more rapid tempo the constant repeat makes you feel like you’re in a big bowl of Jell-O and everything is wavy around you (or maybe that’s just me. I’m also pretty hungry right now, and Jell-O sounds great). All of the instruments become quieter when the lyrics are sang, which puts emphasis not only on the phrasing but on the story itself. The lyrics make me think that this song is a tribute to them and their mother.

            “It’s not hard to reach back to the days after the attack on Pearl. Overnight my buddies turned into men, running out of time for games and girls. And the Sullivan boys were not overlooked, Uncle Sam had called each by name. The very next day they left on a mystery train.” The singer tells the story as if he were there, saying that his friends changed and were drafted.

            “It’s not hard to reach back to the day when the war finally came home. Uncle Sam will send you a telegram so he doesn’t have to tell you over the phone. I heard she cracked up when she found out what the war had cost- when all five of her boys were lost…...So say goodbye, bye, bye, Mrs. Sullivan. Go ahead and cry, cry, cry, cry, cry. We regret to inform you that all your sons have passed away. All five, five, five, five. So change your blue star to gold.” This woman gave all five of her sons to America and they send her a telegram telling her their gone and to change her blue star (to signify that the family has one fighting) to a gold star (to show that someone in the family died in the war). Families proudly displayed these stars in their front windows, but I don’t think the pride of having a loved one serve is enough to console a person.

An image of a star blue star:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Blue_Star_Service_Banner.svg
An image of a gold star:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Gold_Star_Service_Banner.svg


Sullivan by Caroline's Spine:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAxQRX_A2Dc

Talk to Jesus Christ, as if he knows the reasons why!

So here’s my first post with some inappropriate or vulgar language. Judith is a great song though, so calm yourselves.

 

 

 

A Perfect Circle is a band my mom has listened to ever since I can remember. Maynard James Keenan is the band’s lead singer and also did a lot of work for Tool when A Perfect Circle went dormant in 2004. Keenan was a huge momma’s boy and was devastated when she died. When Maynard was 11, his mother suffered a paralyzing cerebral aneurysm and later died of the complications. She was a very devote Catholic, and her son clearly displays his feelings for his mother’s faith in Judith, the song I’m reviewing today.

            “You’re such an inspiration for the ways that I will never ever chose to be. Oh so many ways for me to show you how your savior has abandoned you. F*ck your god! Your lord and your Christ! He did this, took all you had and left you this way. Still you pray, still you never stray, never taste the fruit, you never thought to question why.” It amazes me how so much rage can be formulated into words that ebb and flow with the music like mixing sugar into water. They meld together expressing Maynard’s rage at a god who his mother worshiped and loved so contently. Maynard expresses that she never strayed from her faith, “never taste of the fruit” (a relation to Adam and Eve no doubt), and yet this god still allowed her to be paralyzed for much of her life and allowed her to die.

            “It’s not like you killed someone! It’s not like you drove a hateful spear through his side! Praise the one who left you broken down and paralyzed. He did it all for you!” After doing some research on his mother I find that she was a caring person and was liked by many. So why would an almighty who loves us do such a thing to someone like this? Maynard makes an excellent and powerful point, which leads many to a vital question about life: why do bad things happen to good people?

            This is why I personally do not believe in a god. People spend so much time worshiping and praying just to get squashed like bugs. If you ask me, god is a kid with a magnifying glass who’s frying us with the sunlight. Judith’s god abandoned and betrayed her. Why?

 

I could not find a clean link...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRl7NEh2HBk

 

Then it saddens me to say what we both knew was true

Death Cab for Cutie is a more modern indie/alternative band formed in Washington in 1997. Lead singer and writer Ben Gibbard is a recovering alcoholic from Washington State. Chris Walla is the lead guitarist, Nick Hammer on bass, and Nathan Good on drums. The band has seven albums, and have left their underground status when they signed to major label Atlantic in 2004. Since then they have gained plenty of fans- short and tall.

The Ice is Getting Thinner by Death Cab for Cutie is a really grim song. I love it, but whenever I hear it I can't help but think of dramatic love stories that fall through. My favorite thing about the music over all is that the bass line is the most prominent. It’s a simple, slow line repeated over and over. But it has a ring. When I hear it I think of when I have bad days and everything seems to lose its color. I don’t hear people speaking to me, I don’t comprehend what’s taking place around me. Everything is just a blur and the world is moving normally without me. Or falling through a black void that never ends. When this song is played I go numb and want to go back to bed and let the world go on without me. What I find brilliant is that the song is just the same few notes over and over for every instrument. The bass being the lowest instrument presented is the loudest to highlight the death of their love. The tune repeats itself over and over- like a romance that has fizzled out of its passion.

            “Were not the same dear, as we use to be. The seasons have changed and so have we. There was little we could say, and even less that could do to stop the ice from getting thinner between me and you.” Already I need a hug.

            “We buried our love in a wintery grave. A lump in the snow was all that remained. Though we stayed by its side as the days turned to weeks, the ice kept getting thinner with every word wed speak.” So this is going to get happy, right? Things rarely end sadly..

            “When spring arrived we were taken by surprise when the flows under our feet bled into the sea and was nothing left of you and me.” So their relationship isn’t going to work out. Youch. I feel a ping of pain every time I hear that. To think that a relationship between two people could just leave nothing left.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgRVeNMoU2c

And so today, my world smiles.

I'll kick off this blog with one of my favorites- Thank You, by Led Zeppelin. Zeppelin consists of four men: Robert Plant, the vocalist, Jimmy Page, the guitarist, John Paul Jones, the bassist, and John Bottom, the drummer (RIP). Led Zeppelin is a rock band formed in London, England around 1968. Thank You came from their second self-titled album, which was released on October 22^nd, 1969. The song was written by Page and Plant, who wrote all of Zeppelin’s songs.

 

Thank You is the most beautiful love song ever written. Not only well written lyrics, but excellent music. The soft acoustic line mixed with the still fairly hyper drumming is insane. How John Bottom and Jimmy Page were able to meld two very differing instruments is intoxicating to me. Though out the song, if the drums are not laying down a driving rhythm, the guitar is picking up the slack by gently pushing a simple melody on the ears. Using this, the song fades in at the beginning and fades out at the end, which is an excellent touch with the light organ tune in the background. The organ is an odd instrument which is incredibly hard to play (who played it for the recording, I don’t know), like a piano on steroids. The music paints a picture of being on a hill on a spring day; it’s a little chilly and the wind is to your back while you look down the hill peacefully. Maybe I’m just a little too into it though.

 

When I first heard the lyrics, a chill ran down my spine. “If the sun refused to shine, I would still be loving you. When mountains crumble to the sea, there will still be you and me.” Nothing like ‘oh yeah you’re pretty and you make awesome mac and cheese’ NO. Plant went straight for the real meaning; that nothing would stop his love or even hinder it. He went deep and came back successfully, his words not sounding cliché or jumbled. “Little drops of rain, whispers of the pain, tears of love lost in the days gone by. My love is strong, for you is no wrong. Together we shall go until we die. Inspiration is what you are to me, inspiration, look see.” I mean dang! If that didn’t seriously move you, read it again. This song is so honest that the inspiration didn’t just come out of nowhere. Someone made Plant feel so happy that he feel into an insane love with them and wrote these lyrics.

 

Link to the song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfDo9AE5r8w