Show and tell

Remember show and tell? I always brought in my cat. He’d bite and claw everyone but me. I felt special that my cat hated everyone but me (and still does). An eleven year old in Australia decided to bring in a grenade to her morning class and show it off. It had no firing pin, so the girl figured it was inactive or a fake for practice. The teacher, shocked by her item, brought it to the principal of the catholic school and the principal called the bomb squad, which evacuated the school and took the grenade in for examination. I can’t find any articles that say wither or not it was real, so I’m going to assume it was just a practice grenade. The girl, whose name hasn’t been released, is reported to be “bewildered and embarrassed.”

I’d hope she’s embarrassed. She brought a grenade to show and tell. If you did that in the U.S, even if you were eleven, you’d be expelled, even if you were at a private school. Then the cops would be told, and you’d have a record and a lot of counseling. I think it’s pretty cool that she’s getting off with just a pat on the back. She just brought it to show the class. It’s not like she’s a crazy kid who wanted to blow up the school. She just wanted to bring in something unique and cool, and she doesn’t deserve to be punished like she would be here. It was a misunderstanding. Here, you can’t bring in a squirt gun without being screamed at. I hope she can look back at this and laugh.

Just out of curiosity though, why did the bomb squad evacuate the school? Why didn’t they just take the grenade out of the school and let everyone go about their class? Wouldn’t that be easier? Fun fact about grenades: the explosion doesn’t kill, the shrapnel does. That’s why grenades have an array of boxes on the outsides, so that when the gunpowder goes off, the metal will separate easier to be flung out and around to hit people. These arrays are similar to pineapples, so grenades are often referred to as “Word war two pineapples.” Now, you can buy grenades at army surplus stores. Of course they’ve been drilled into and had all the gun powder drained out, but its still a fun thing to scare your friends with!

 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newsvideo/weirdnewsvideo/9723546/Australian-school-evacuated-after-pupil-brings-hand-grenade-to-show-and-tell.html

Ninjas in Newport!

For some reason I can’t get the link to be all link-afied. So just copy paste it. It’s not hard, I promise.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9742744/Is-it-a-bird-Is-it-a-plane-No-its-the-Newport-vigilante-ninja.html

At one point, we have all have wanted to be a superhero. But 21 year old Tanis Baker of Newport, Wales did it. He made himself a ninja costume and a wooden samurai sword and took to the streets, telling thugs to get going and scaring off underage drinkers and smokers from his area. He was often seen running from building to building, ally to ally, in his ninja suit ready to fight off crime. However one day a cop saw him and his sword, and called in for back up thinking it was an actual sword. Baker ran from the cops, hiding in a bush at a nearby children’s park. After being hauled in, the cops noted he was just trying to help and didn’t mean to frighten anyone. He had been bullied in school, and last year was mugged by some thugs hanging around in his neighborhood. Since then he was keen to help the police in any way possible. However, the surrounding neighbors were not so pleased that he had been patrolling the neighborhood. One neighbor commented, “He was running across it and doing roly-polys. He’s been watching too many films.”. Who calls them roly-polys? Theyre stunts. Parkour. Learn to be educated and cultured, people!

I think his neighbors are just jerks. He just wanted to help, and sometimes cops don’t or can’t get the job done. Cops have trouble getting the evidence they need legally, and if they do it illegally, the evidence is thrown out and the person may not be convicted. Im all for personal freedom, but im willing to sacrifice some to put people behind bars. For example: child pornography. Its on peoples computers, where the law cant reach it legally, and those people watching it are still out free.

He hadn’t hurt anyone; he just took alcohol off some school kids and got rid of some thugs by throwing smoke grenades at their feet. He did flee from the fuzz, but whatever. He had been doing good in the community, it makes me mad that his neighbors were making fun of him for wearing a ninja suit. I want to be a ninja, too. And anyone who makes fun of me is gonna get a round-house to the face. Chuck Norris checks under his bed at night for me. BAM.

People are disgusting

After this incident, New Delhi has been nicknamed “Rape Capital”. As it rightfully is. A 26 year old med student boarded a bus with her male friend, on the way home from classes. Six men on the bus then grabbed her and forced her to the back of the bus after beating her friend for trying to defend her. She was also beaten for struggling against her aggressors. At the back of the bus she was gang raped, and her injuries were so brutal that she later died in the hospital from organ failure after having to have most of her intestines removed due to the severity of her rape. I read on one news site that she was violated with the metal rod used to beat her and her male friend, but have not found it on any other sites. There’s a lot of difference on the details of what happened because of the Indian police’s attempts to keep the victim and her friend’s name out of the public. Five of the six men have been identified and arrested, and are being charged due to the bite marks on them while the woman fought back. The sixth, to my understanding, is a minor. A few articles state that the men threw her from the bus, or that the driver threw the men from the bus. Most of the details are fuzzy, but whatever happened, happened.

There is no penalty large enough for this crime. Death would be a gift to these monsters. If it were up to me, I would turn them over to the family of the girl raped and let them do what they wish with them, since apparently rape has never really been a big deal in India, why bother giving them a trial? Make an example of them. Tear them apart for the public to see, and show the world that India is working to end rape. But not hard enough obviously. I didn’t believe in the death penalty until I heard about this, and I’m done pretending that killing people to show others that killing people is not right. I heard on the radio the other day that every 16 seconds a woman in India is raped. I don’t know if that’s true, but the idea sickens me. Screw these guys. This is just disgusting. I’m freaking done.

wait.. what?

Last Friday, Christy Walsh was fined 700 Euros for having patrons in his bar too late at night. The police came first at 1:45, 45 minutes after closing time, to ensure that everyone was out of the bar. At this time there were 51 ‘nuns’ in the bar, all waiting for rides home. When the police checked by again around 4:00, there were still twenty ‘nuns’ in the bar. At the time of the second check in by the police, Walsh was driving people home because they were too intoxicated to drive, and the small Irish town only had about ten taxis at the time. There were so many ‘nuns’ because of a charity event being hosted by Walsh to raise suicide and self-injury awareness. They chose to dress as nuns to break the world record of most people dressed as nuns in one area. During this event, the town’s population nearly doubled, bringing in 3,000 people for the event. Walsh made sure to discuss the topic of participants dressed as nuns to the local priest, who said it was humorous and beneficial for the cause. Walsh is taking the 700 Euro fine gladly.

Dude. If the pub owner was really driving people home I don’t think they should have been given such a large fine. I mean, he was keeping people from driving home hammered, and it was a charity event. Now maybe he should get a slap on the wrist, but 700 Euros? Really? Come on! It was for charity and they didn’t want to drive home drunk. The owner couldn’t kick them all out when they were so drunk, but he couldn’t let them drive home. What was he supposed to do? Invite all 51 of them to crash at his place while they sobered up?

And for those who don’t know, 700 euros equals about $950, and in the states we have a similar law, that alcohol cannot be sold after two AM. It is also illegal to sell alcohol to someone already clearly intoxicated.

I wonder sometimes if we took away drinking laws if years down the road drinking wouldn’t be such a big deal. Right now, if you drink underage you are cool.. But if we take out the taboo, maybe teenagers wouldn’t drink, or maybe it would become less of a problem. Would abolishing drinking laws or lowering the ages help discourage underage drinking indirectly?

Canadian suprise

So, Canadian woman checks into a hotel, and is fine. Then one night, she acts crazy. Running around the hotel, pushing elevator buttons, screaming, etc. People assumed she was on drugs. Later, this month, people in the hotel were complaining about the hotel’s water pressure. Janitor guy goes to the roof to check out the water tanks. And hey! THERE SHE IS. DEAD CRAMMED UP AGAINST THE DRAIN PART OF THE WATER TANK. The part where the water drains out! She was last seen on January 31st, and then went missing. So she was in that water tank for a little less than a month. For a month, people in the hotel were drinking, bathing, and brushing their teeth with water that a dead body had been in for about a month. The police have run the water, and have proclaimed that there was nothing wrong with it and that it was perfectly clean and safe to drink because the chlorine in the tanks had killed all of the woman’s icky Canadian bacteria. Police have not ruled out a drug related death, but say that her death is indeed suspicious. The water tank was closed when authorities found it, how could she have gotten in there and closed the hatch? Since she was acting frantically in the elevator, I think she was being chased and was stuffed in the water tank. I’ll be interested to see how this all shakes out.

I discussed this story with my boyfriend, and shared my fear of suddenly becoming a Canadian zombie with him. It was so romantic when he told me if I ever became a Canadian zombie he would kill me. He then for the rest of the evening kept calling me a ‘hoser’ and saying ‘eh’ after everything he said. He must have drank the water. Did the woman get high and think, “HEY! I want to swim in the water supply.” Or did someone chase her through the hotel, and stuff her in the tank to drown? The police haven’t said yet, but I think she was killed. How else would the lid of the tank be closed?

Also, I am aware that the hotel was located in LA, but since the woman was Canadian and Dr. Ayers doesn’t read these anyway, I think it should count. Plus Bryan Lee O’Mally is from Canada, and He wrote Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, which we all know are the greatest books ever.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57570240-504083/elisa-lam-death-body-of-missing-canadian-tourist-found-in-la-hotel-water-tank-police-say/

But not that kind of club

240 hours to think about fraud. 

Christine Wilson has  joined an unfortunate club. This club is also known as the sex offenders list. Ms. Wilson, or as she would prefer, Mr. Wilson has a disorder known as gender identity disorder. This means that Ms. Wilson was born a woman, but psychologically feels that she is a man. As a man trapped in a female’s body she posed as a male to be able to have an intimate relationship with two minors who were girls. Wilson pleaded guilty to the charges brought upon her and as so the judge sentenced her to probation and community serves, as well as a free spot on the sex offenders list. The official charge however was gender fraud, not statutory rape. This charge had the Equality Network, who fight to protect gay, lesbian, and transgender rights, in a bit of a fit. They felt the charge of “gender fraud” sends a poor message to those who are transgender; that it says, if you are transgender you have committed fraud by being intimate with someone else. This situation has raised some tempers and for Ms. Wilson, 240 hours of community service to think about if its wrong for a transgender person to engage in relations.

Clearly it is wrong for a person to engage in a sexual relationship with a minor. But is it wrong for a transgender to have relations with another person in the form of who they feel most comfortable in. After having read the above article, I do feel that what Christine Wilson did was wrong, but I do feel that she wasn’t wrong in doing it as a man. Gender identity is something that someone is born with. There have been many cases where even children don’t feel that they are right in their skin. Ms. Wilson should be punished for having an intimate relationship with minors, but not for having done so as a man. I also feel that that it was wrong that Ms. Wilson was punished for fraud, and not statutory rape. it does send a poor message to her fellow transgender peoples. In the future these cases should be handled more sensitively and more direct in my opinion. Punish people for what they are guilty of, not what they psychologically think.

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-22078298

Excellent soundtracks

One of the most important song writers of all time, Bob Dylan has a message that is still important today. Bob Dylan is folk singer that has written many songs that have impacted the world with their poetic messages. Dylan started back in 1959 and his early works became songs of the civil rights movement and anti-war movements. Of these, The Times They Are a-Changin' became big.

I had heard this song for quite a while, but it wasn't until I heard it in the movie Watchmen did I really start to think of it's meaning. From there I became a fan of it's sound and message. The song has a very folk sound to it, but that's expected from Bob Dylan after all. It's a simple sound, yet one that is catchy and easy to listen to. Bob Dylan's voice isn't one that I would say is above all, but at the same time it adds so much towards the simplistic feel of the song. Aside from it's wonderful sound, it has such a strong foundation for the message of, evolve with the times, and change from the bad. 

The song has many different indications of change within the world and that it's more positive to embrace growth than allow ignorance. One example of this is the very beginning of the song where he sings "And admit that the water around you head grows." This indicates the change within our world. This verse eventually leads to "And you better start swimming or you'll sink like a stone." This is powerful. This shows that if you don't get with the times and move forward, you'll be a chimp amongst humans. Another example of this message is when Bob Dylan sings "Come senators, congressmen, please head the call. Don't stand in the doorway, don't block up the hall." This is basically saying that the government shouldn't get in the way of the change. That the power of change should be within the people and therefore the people should be enabled to bring change. The last example, and my personal favorite line in the whole song, is "Don't criticize what you can't understand." These words are words to live by. They say that you can have your beliefs, but don't tell others what they should love or do. Powerful words and in a time that needed them. These words are still relevant today, with changing society comes the need for change in the world.

When psych and music collide

Recently I was doing a little independent research on a psychology concept called Shadow. It’s quite complex, so forgive me if my information is incorrect.

The idea is that a person’s Shadow is the darker side of their unconscious. First described my Sigmund Freud, and then reiterated on by Carl Jung, the Shadow is the embodiment of things that were presented to us and we banished. For example, you’re angry with someone and you consider hurting them. You know doing so is wrong, so you banish the thought, and that negativity goes to your Shadow. In this sense, your Shadow is an unconscious being of your darker desires, such as violence, lust, greed, and so on.

Forty Six & 2 is a song by Tool, off of their third album Ænima (my personal favorite). A person’s shadow is an anima if it is male, and animus if female. I believe this is why they named their album, but the title track is about how sinful and horrible the world has become. This of course will require further research on my part, which will take place soon.

If my research is correct, forty six & 2 is the point in a person’s mind where they are merged with their Shadow, accepting that they have some evil in them, but choosing to live with it and keep it under control. The lyric “Forty-six and two ahead of me.” Is about two thirds through the song, and I believe the song is depicting the changing of someone while they are merging with the Shadow.

“I choose to live and to

Grow, take and give and to

Move, learn and love and to

Cry, kill and die and to

Be paranoid and to

Lie, hate and fear and to

Do what it takes to move through.”

Though most people consider the Shadow something to fear or be afraid of, that’s not what this song is about. This song is about self-discovery, learning yourself and how to cope with the darkness that we all possess. The lyrics above mention growth, and I could understand how maybe merging with the Shadow would be seen as personal growth to people. Personally though, I don’t like to think of these things. I understand that I can do horrible things, but I chose not to. That’s what separates humans from the animals, doing what’s right and having free choice. To me, the Shadow just seems like an embodiment of primary instincts.

Song link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tja6_h4lT6A

Research links:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evil-deeds/201204/essential-secrets-psychotherapy-what-is-the-shadow

Let's Talk About the Piano Man

When I was in 5^th grade, I received an email from my aunt. “Your taste in music sucks”. At this point in my life, I was listening primarily to pop music, which at the time was not the greatest stuff. A few months after receiving that email, I received a package in the mail. It contained Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits. A two disk conglomeration of some of the best songs ever written. I had no idea who Billy Joel was, but I loved my aunt and popped in one of the two disks in the set.

And at that moment, my life truly began.

Billy Joel was born in 1949, but wasn’t known well until his 1973 song, Piano Man. He was born in the Bronx, and was raised in a suburb of New York. His father, Howard Joel, was an immigrant from Germany. He had moved to Switzerland and later America to flee the Nazi Regime. In 1960 His parents divorced, when Billy was only eleven. He was forced by his mother to learn piano at an early age, and was bullied often in school for preferring music over sports. This caused him to take up boxing, and he won twenty one bouts before quitting after his nose was broken in his twenty forth match (he only lost three boxing matches, which is insanely good for any boxer). He then decided to go into music, because he didn’t want to earn his high school diploma. “To hell with it. If I'm not going to Columbia University, I'm going to Columbia Records, and you don't need a high school diploma over there.” It only took him five years after to produce a hit, and now he is widely admired by America. The last song he wrote was River of Dreams in 1993, and since then has not made any new music. He still tours, and has been inducted into the songwriter’s hall of fame.

But wait, this is the best part. Last Thursday, Billy Joel attended an elementary school play featuring his music. He was invited by the children and their teacher, but parents and teachers did not expect him to come. He came before the show, and sat in the back row so that the students did not feel intimidated by his presence. If that isn’t being a good sport and a nice guy, I don’t know what is.

If you haven’t listened to Piano Man, I encourage you to. 

Thrash Away, Your Rage Is Welcome Here

The embodiment of pure anger criticizes the government again and again. Rage Against the Machine is a thrash, punk, and rap group all mixed into one, and this splicing of musical genes is a portrait of good music, clever lyrics, and above all rage. The band's direction is usually to give the government a big middle finger, and say we are done with your crap. One song that especially gets the point across is their big hit Bulls On Parade.

My brother and father were both huge fans of Rage Against The Machine, so I myself got into the anger filled group. One of my favorite songs, Bulls On Parade, has a plethora of elements that make it a head banging good time. The thrash sound makes for a great song to listen to when you are really mad about something. Tom Morello is one of my favorite guitarists of all time, and this song is great reason why. One must truly listen to the song in order to really understand how Morello has really taken what you can do with six strings to its's limits. Another reason I love the song is it's cleverly written anti-government lyrics.

One example of this is the verse "Terror rains, drenchin, quenchin the thirst of tha power dons." These words indicate that our fear is what keeps the government powerful. By our dismay, the government may thrive and continue to oppress us. Another great example of anti-government lyrical genius, is when Zack de la Rocha raps "Weapons, not food, not homes, not shoes, just feed the war cannibal." This is Rage Against The Machine saying that the government pools more money into the military than it does on it's support of the poor. The verse then leads to "I walk the corner to the ruble, that used to be a library, line up to the mind cemetery now." Powerful stuff. it says that the government wants us to stay ignorant, and this is further backed up with "What we don't know keeps the contracts alive and movin." My final, and favorite verse in the song is "They don't gotta burn the books they just remove em." This is so powerful to me. Books that show the world how much it has failed, are the books that usually get banned and Rage Against The Machine is playing on how the government would rather the people be ignorant than realize how much we have failed. Truly powerful words, and it's why they have such a fan base. You don't have to be politically driven to love Rage Against the Machine, and I'd suggest the band to anyone who enjoys, thrash, rap, or punk. Just don't be surprised if you end up angry at our leaders as well.

Still Important Today

One of the most important song writers of all time, Bob Dylan has a message that is still important today. Bob Dylan is folk singer that has written many songs that have impacted the world with their poetic messages. Dylan started back in 1959 and his early works became songs of the civil rights movement and anti-war movements. Of these, The Times They Are a-Changin' became big. 

I had heard this song for quite a while, but it wasn't until I heard it in the movie Watchmen did I really start to think of it's meaning. From there I became a fan of it's sound and message. The song has a very folk sound to it, but that's expected from Bob Dylan after all. It's a simple sound, yet one that is catchy and easy to listen to. Bob Dylan's voice isn't one that I would say is above all, but at the same time it adds so much towards the simplistic feel of the song. Aside from it's wonderful sound, it has such a strong foundation for the message of, evolve with the times, and change from the bad. 

The song has many different indications of change within the world and that it's more positive to embrace growth than allow ignorance. One example of this is the very beginning of the song where he sings "And admit that the water around you head grows." This indicates the change within our world. This verse eventually leads to "And you better start swimming or you'll sink like a stone." This is powerful. This shows that if you don't get with the times and move forward, you'll be a chimp amongst humans. Another example of this message is when Bob Dylan sings "Come senators, congressmen, please head the call. Don't stand in the doorway, don't block up the hall." This is basically saying that the government shouldn't get in the way of the change. That the power of change should be within the people and therefore the people should be enabled to bring change. The last example, and my personal favorite line in the whole song, is "Don't criticize what you can't understand." These words are words to live by. They say that you can have your beliefs, but don't tell others what they should love or do. Powerful words and in a time that needed them. These words are still relevant today, with changing society comes the need for change in the world. Don't try to stop change, or you'll sink like a stone.  

The Voice of The Teen Experience

Radiohead. Some would claim that they are the greatest band ever, and some would claim they are the true voice of teens everywhere. Either way you want to look at them, they were of large impact towards their listeners, rock music, and music as a whole. Radiohead is an alternative rock band from the United Kingdom and slowly rose to be a huge influence with cult fans. The band still has a large fan base today and have been highly regarded as a great band.

Radiohead has many great songs, and amongst these include their debut hit, "Creep." I first heard this song from my boyfriend as he is bigger Radiohead creep than I am. This song has many different aspects that I enjoy. It has a very steady, yet progressive sound. It starts smooth, goes into a grunge sounding distortion, and back to steady sound. True angst and sweet depression has a flowing distortion as it comes from Johnny Greenwood's guitar. It's sad sound really gets me at my core, and it does well what it's meant to do. Get you to think, and to put yourself in the shoes of feeling out of place.

The song is about feeling out of place, like you aren't as good as those around you. The major chorus goes, "I wish I was special, you're so f***ing special." It's not only that Johnny Greenwood sang these words, it's how he sang them. With an urge, as if he longed so desperately to be like this other person who was seen as perfect. The song then goes into, "But I'm a creep, I'm a weirdo. What the hell am I doing here? I don't belong here." These lyrics right here as the very pinnacle of the entire teenage, and life experience. The feeling of being out of place, like you are lesser than the people who the world wants you to see as pretty and so perfect. The song is written with such a sarcastic anger, and it should be. The world wants you to aspire to be "perfect" when in fact we already are. The song is relatable, as so many have felt this cold feeling of being out of place and how wrong it is to feel that way. Overall, this song is great simply because it speaks out against the feeling of despair that we are all so prone to. Its great in this message, in its musicality, and well just being Radiohead.

Step Into the Shadow

 As a few of you know, I am not the biggest fan of the band Tool, but as of late I change my mind.

Recently I was doing a little independent research on a psychology concept called Shadow. It’s quite complex, so forgive me if my information is incorrect.

The idea is that a person’s Shadow is the darker side of their unconscious. First described my Sigmund Freud, and then reiterated on by Carl Jung, the Shadow is the embodiment of things that were presented to us and we banished. For example, you’re angry with someone and you consider hurting them. You know doing so is wrong, so you banish the thought, and that negativity goes to your Shadow. In this sense, your Shadow is an unconscious being of your darker desires, such as violence, lust, greed, and so on.

Forty Six & 2 is a song by Tool, off of their third album Ænima (my personal favorite). A person’s shadow is an anima if it is male, and animus if female. I believe this is why they named their album, but the title track is about how sinful and horrible the world has become. This of course will require further research on my part, which will take place soon.

If my research is correct, forty six & 2 is the point in a person’s mind where they are merged with their Shadow, accepting that they have some evil in them, but choosing to live with it and keep it under control. The lyric “Forty-six and two ahead of me.” Is about two thirds through the song, and I believe the song is depicting the changing of someone while they are merging with the Shadow.

“I choose to live and to

Grow, take and give and to

Move, learn and love and to

Cry, kill and die and to

Be paranoid and to

Lie, hate and fear and to

Do what it takes to move through.”

Though most people consider the Shadow something to fear or be afraid of, that’s not what this song is about. This song is about self-discovery, learning yourself and how to cope with the darkness that we all possess. The lyrics above mention growth, and I could understand how maybe merging with the Shadow would be seen as personal growth to people. Personally though, I don’t like to think of these things. I understand that I can do horrible things, but I chose not to. That’s what separates humans from the animals, doing what’s right and having free choice. To me, the Shadow just seems like an embodiment of primary instincts.

Song link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tja6_h4lT6A

Research links:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/evil-deeds/201204/essential-secrets-psychotherapy-what-is-the-shadow

Music education is good!

 Coming from a pretty musical family, the art of noise has always played a big role in my life. I was in the children’s church choir in elementary school, I thrived in our once a week music class, and in middle school playing the flute in concert band was my favorite part of the day. Spencer, my elder brother, has always been the driving force behind this. My brother has won numerous awards for his skill in jazz. He has played the bass, both electric and string, since about freshman year. I watched my brother’s fingers dance on the strings, and how the same fingers could perfectly master the piano with no teaching or music books. Today, my brother can play clarinet, bass, guitar, piano, banjo, trumpet, trombone, and violin. The last six instruments he taught himself. I have always admired Spencer’s skill, being a mono-instrument person. But in 8th grade I discovered something I had that my brother never could master. I could sing. Though I don’t participate in band or choir at school, I still do both on my own. I never do anything without a song in my head or without ear buds in.

This all being explained, I want to abolish something my father has always told me.

I hear a lot about how music is a waste of time.

My dad always said math and science will always be there for me, and music will fluctuate depending on my skill on any given day. But guess who did a little research on how wrong he is? You got it. The link below takes you to a PBS article about the benefits of music education. According to this article, learning to play and read music teaches children to do multiple difficult things simultaneously. Even listening to music is beneficial, which stimulates the brain. Studies also show that musical education boosts the IQ score, and makes the brain work harder overall in daily life.

Though all of those facts are mentioned in the article below, I can prove that they’re true. Today, after having music in my life, I am a 3.0+ student, and am going to college next year. My brother received scholarships for his musical talent, and is graduating from college in a few months to pursue music and electrical engineering. Think about the benefits of something before you shoot it down because of the time commitment. Music is worth it, I promise!

http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/music-arts/the-benefits-of-music-education/

Back in my day...

Katy Perry's Dark Horse is... quite the video. We're in Egypt, Katy is on a gold throne with some dancers dressed as Egyptian Hieroglyphs (having cat masks on). They dance in a jerky fashion, and then we're taken to Katy's palace. It looks like the typical Egyptian palace, except everything is red, blue, and pink. A guy dressed as what I would describe as an Egyptian pimp steps forward, gives Katy a huge diamond, and she melts him into sand. Then she is presented with a pyramid of Twinkies, and some Cheetos.

We see the same type of logic in the video for Turn Down for What, by lil Jon and Snake. The video begins with a man in pajamas dancing, and then he dances and breaks through the ceiling of the building he is on, and startles the women in the apartment that he has just fallen into. She calls the police, and we see the officer's face melt off. The women then dances too, and they fall though the floor, get the people in that apartment to dance, and the trend continues.

I am slowly losing faith in humanity. Once upon a time, videos meant something, or at least the lyrics did. For example, the first music video shown on MTV was Video Killed the Radio Star, by the Buggles. Though this video doesn’t really back the meaning of the song (that new things are putting traditional things out of style, making life hard for some people), it still doesn’t involve vulgar dancing or simply inaccurate and stupid things that are being shown to children as “hip”. Maybe I’m just old fashioned, but in my opinion Dark Horse and Turn Down For What are complete wastes of natural resources.

That being said, just because a video doesn’t back the songs meaning doesn’t mean it’s tasteless. For example, Michael Jackson’s Thriller. The video goes with the song, and entertains quite well. Now on the other hand, Smooth Criminal has good and modest dancing. Videos can be really great, if they’re not vulgar and sexualized how today’s videos are. These videos, this media, is what children are seeing and wanting to grow up to be. I wouldn’t want my CAT dancing the way the man was in Turn Down For What, and this is what our children are watching and impersonating. What kind of message does that convey? This is what is happening to our media, and yet people still ask questions about why teen pregnancy rates are going up. 

Dark Horse:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KSOMA3QBU0

Turn Down For What
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUDVMiITOU

Video Killed the Radio Star
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iwuy4hHO3YQ&feature=kp

Thriller
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOnqjkJTMaA

Smooth Criminal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_D3VFfhvs4

Gentle piano

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.

The first time they've dissapointed me.

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.

Shinedown's best.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7NVxAMQn_I

First, as usual, I highly advice you to watch the music video before reading this post. I’ve never been the biggest fan of Shinedown, but this video was so powerful. I am a victim of bullying, so harsh and cruel that I had to switch schools because I was attempting to kill myself. I will never forget the words they said, the scars they left, or the damage they caused. Nor will I ever forgive them, or let someone treat a living creature the way they treated me.

I first heard this song on the radio, and though I don’t listen to Shinedown actively, I don’t change the channel when they come on. Shinedown has some great rifts and strong lyrics, so I’ve put them on my list of bands to pay attention to.

“It’s eight AM, the hell I’m in, it seems I’ve crossed the line again for being nothing more than who I am. So break your bones, throw your stones, we all know that life ain’t fair, but there’s more of us, were everywhere.” Bullying usually takes place at school, which usually starts at eight in the morning. In the video, you see a boy hiding in his room with his door closed, his mother outside worried and upset. Words flash above her face: power, small, weak, object, useless, and then pauses on FEAR. She is afraid of what will happen to her son. The camera then goes to the father, the words saying: Hell, different, hate, tomorrow, lies, bullying, and ends on WARNING. Ironically, victims of bullying feel alone, but most people are bullied at one point in life. The victims need to band together to fight bullies and make it end.

“Think it through, you can’t undo. Whenever I see black and blue I feel the past, I share the bruise, with everyone who’s come and gone. My head is clear, my voice is strong, but I’m right here to right the wrong.” At this point at the video, the boy is at school. The bullies are running around in black hoods, holding nooses and pushing him. The camera pans to someone representing a teacher, who sees it and turns away, the words “Think, look, hide, forget, ignore, SELFISH.” Teachers over look bullying and do nothing. Not so much at Kennedy, but other places I’ve been. Those teachers are the most disgusting people I have ever encountered and are partly to blame for so many teen suicides.

Later in the video, kids are walking into a forest of dead and burning trees, some in the trees while they burn. In the bible, it is said that those who commit suicide will be banished here in the afterlife for destroying the life that “god” gave them. 

Welcome to Plastic Beach!

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

Why some musicals are great.

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/

Why most musicals are bad.

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.

Music inspired by the gluteus maximus.

TWERK- verb. to dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance. 


This is the most ridiculous video I've ever seen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL5WCeBY0aU

I don't even know what to say. I watched this video, laughed about it for a while, then realized what our society has come to. This is today's music. This is what kids listen to. This is what is popular. This is 'art'.

My good friend Kolton has a tendency to find the funniest things on the internet, it’s truly his god given talent. He found this song, I don’t know how, and decided it was so funny we had to watch it. My friend Emily and I watched it, and died. First we laughed- this video is ridiculous. All it is, is large African American women “dancing”, which now is what you youngsters call “twerking”. I am appalled by this behavior. Women fought so long for the right to vote and to be called citizens, to be respected as people not property, and here we have a very large black women in a neon thong, “twerking” in a black light with white paint on her body to make it obvious she had been touched in certain areas. I can feel my great grandmother rolling over in her grave.

The song is called Trampoline Booty.

I’ll start with the lyrics. Here’s a verse!

“I told her jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)

Jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)

Jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)

Jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)

I told her Jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)

Jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)

Jumpity jump dat booty (Twerk)”

In the entire song, he says “booty” 70 times. SEVENTY TIMES. At one point in the video, he is jumping on a large “booty” as if it were a trampoline! What is our world coming to?! This is what children listen and watch.

The rappers name is Kstylis, which I don’t understand. He is neither a caterpillar, nor butterfly. His other songs include “Booty Me Down”, “Booty Hopscotch” and “Kangaroo Booty”. I’m sensing a theme here… could it be he’s fascinated by large buttocks? All of his songs have the same words: booty, work, twerk, down, girl, jump, cheeks, etc. please allow me to stress that this isn’t music. This is trash with a record deal. I can tolerate rap music, but this isn’t music. This is trash, a disgrace to all things with a beat and lyrics. Who gave this ignorant pervert a record deal? Who in god’s name gave him money for a music video? Jesus Christ in a chicken basket. Who does such horrible things to humanity? Isn’t our country perverse and stupid enough?

ANGRY MUSIC

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

We don't have to take this, back against the wall. We don't have to take this, we can end it all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7NVxAMQn_I

First, as usual, I highly advice you to watch the music video before reading this post. I’ve never been the biggest fan of Shinedown, but this video was so powerful. I am a victim of bullying, so harsh and cruel that I had to switch schools because I was attempting to kill myself. I will never forget the words they said, the scars they left, or the damage they caused. Nor will I ever forgive them, or let someone treat a living creature the way they treated me.

I first heard this song on the radio, and though I don’t listen to Shinedown actively, I don’t change the channel when they come on. Shinedown has some great rifts and strong lyrics, so I’ve put them on my list of bands to pay attention to.

“It’s eight AM, the hell I’m in, it seems I’ve crossed the line again for being nothing more than who I am. So break your bones, throw your stones, we all know that life ain’t fair, but there’s more of us, were everywhere.” Bullying usually takes place at school, which usually starts at eight in the morning. In the video, you see a boy hiding in his room with his door closed, his mother outside worried and upset. Words flash above her face: power, small, weak, object, useless, and then pauses on FEAR. She is afraid of what will happen to her son. The camera then goes to the father, the words saying: Hell, different, hate, tomorrow, lies, bullying, and ends on WARNING. Ironically, victims of bullying feel alone, but most people are bullied at one point in life. The victims need to band together to fight bullies and make it end.

“Think it through, you can’t undo. Whenever I see black and blue I feel the past, I share the bruise, with everyone who’s come and gone. My head is clear, my voice is strong, but I’m right here to right the wrong.” At this point at the video, the boy is at school. The bullies are running around in black hoods, holding nooses and pushing him. The camera pans to someone representing a teacher, who sees it and turns away, the words “Think, look, hide, forget, ignore, SELFISH.” Teachers over look bullying and do nothing. Not so much at Kennedy, but other places I’ve been. Those teachers are the most disgusting people I have ever encountered and are partly to blame for so many teen suicides.

Later in the video, kids are walking into a forest of dead and burning trees, some in the trees while they burn. In the bible, it is said that those who commit suicide will be banished here in the afterlife for destroying the life that “god” gave them.