I'm slacking on the 'worst album covers' post; I'll get to it Thursday.
side note:
Never have I been more angry about the incompetence of another coach or school! I went to a game at another school today and was forced into a horrible situation where I was the one controlling the whole game, gym, students, etc. Complete incompetence! I'd say more, because I'm so pissed, but my students might read this blog. I had players leaving crying and they're not wimps; we're just classier than that school.
5/09/2007
5/05/2007
BOTW (April 30-May 5)
When I started this whole Band Of The Week thing I knew I’d eventually stick my neck out there for a new band b/c of some concert or something and today’s the day. After a GREAT show here in Shanghai, this weeks BOTW is Madison, Wisconsin’s breakout band, Locksley.
Tonight (last night, by the time I finished the post) Bet, two friends and me went to see Locksley play at a small place here in Shanghai.
The venue was a little music bar here in Shanghai called 4 Live. This is the second time I’ve gone to this place for live music and it won’t be the last; they get great local bands and, obviously, international acts too.
-side note- Every year our school organizes a charity concert; a bunch of high school bands play and all the money goes to help Chinese children go to school. This year 4 Live has donated their space for the charity concert. So ya, this is a good little venue.
Back to the band/show, Locksley sounds like the early Beatles and Kinks with more distortion and a lot more energy; basically a garage rock version of the early 60’s rock scene. If you still don’t get it, try to imagine the band from the movie ‘That Thing You Do’ mixed with The Strokes. If you still don’t get it you’re out of luck b/c I’m out of similes. Any of you that know me know that this kind of music is ‘my bag.’ But as they say on Reading Rainbow, “don’t just take my word for it;” The three other people I went with (one loves Lilith fair, one loves U2, and the other loves movie scores) were all VERY impressed. If you can please that broad of a demographic, you’re doing well.
Here’s where it gets tricky; if you heard their music w/o seeing them live you might dismiss them as just a retro pop act riding that whole Hives schtick. Also, if you just googled them and read their story, you might think they’re a little too mainstream b/c they owe a lot of their success to MTV. (which is very lame, but it’s not their fault) So to prevent this from happening, or to just let you know you’re wrong, I’ve included some videos here to give you a better perspective on the band. That’s not to say that they won’t turn out to be all those things and thus, I end up looking foolish…
Oh ya, if you're over 50 the odds of you liking this band are drastically reduced by the second. (that's not meant as an insult; points for honesty?)
'She Does' (live on BLK20Live)
'Don't Make Me Wait' (live on Jimmy Kimmel)
'Why Can't I Be You' (music video)
Ok last of all is a little video clip I made of the show last night. Before you watch this you should know a few things:
- yes I know that the audio quality is horrible
- yes I know that the video quality is horrible
- my movie program was messing up when I made it so it's very 'bare bones'
- watch the whole thing b/c there are a few great moments in there
They closed w/ a new song that they've never played before b/c the crowd kept cheering them back out and they ran out of songs that they know. In a moment of honesty they came out for the second encore and announced that this would have to be the last song b/c they don't know any other songs and that this new song that they were playing had only been rehearsed while it was being written. The song sounded flawless, the show was great and the crowd was left happy, well done fellows!
Here ya go, sorry for the bass overload w/ about 1.5 minutes left but it goes away and there's some GREAT 'riffing' around the 1 minute left mark. Watch the little timer...
oh ya, almost forgot:
Barkley, Barkley, Barkley! (that's just for you John 'DC' Taylor)
Tonight (last night, by the time I finished the post) Bet, two friends and me went to see Locksley play at a small place here in Shanghai.
The venue was a little music bar here in Shanghai called 4 Live. This is the second time I’ve gone to this place for live music and it won’t be the last; they get great local bands and, obviously, international acts too.
-side note- Every year our school organizes a charity concert; a bunch of high school bands play and all the money goes to help Chinese children go to school. This year 4 Live has donated their space for the charity concert. So ya, this is a good little venue.
Back to the band/show, Locksley sounds like the early Beatles and Kinks with more distortion and a lot more energy; basically a garage rock version of the early 60’s rock scene. If you still don’t get it, try to imagine the band from the movie ‘That Thing You Do’ mixed with The Strokes. If you still don’t get it you’re out of luck b/c I’m out of similes. Any of you that know me know that this kind of music is ‘my bag.’ But as they say on Reading Rainbow, “don’t just take my word for it;” The three other people I went with (one loves Lilith fair, one loves U2, and the other loves movie scores) were all VERY impressed. If you can please that broad of a demographic, you’re doing well.
Here’s where it gets tricky; if you heard their music w/o seeing them live you might dismiss them as just a retro pop act riding that whole Hives schtick. Also, if you just googled them and read their story, you might think they’re a little too mainstream b/c they owe a lot of their success to MTV. (which is very lame, but it’s not their fault) So to prevent this from happening, or to just let you know you’re wrong, I’ve included some videos here to give you a better perspective on the band. That’s not to say that they won’t turn out to be all those things and thus, I end up looking foolish…
Oh ya, if you're over 50 the odds of you liking this band are drastically reduced by the second. (that's not meant as an insult; points for honesty?)
'She Does' (live on BLK20Live)
'Don't Make Me Wait' (live on Jimmy Kimmel)
'Why Can't I Be You' (music video)
Ok last of all is a little video clip I made of the show last night. Before you watch this you should know a few things:
- yes I know that the audio quality is horrible
- yes I know that the video quality is horrible
- my movie program was messing up when I made it so it's very 'bare bones'
- watch the whole thing b/c there are a few great moments in there
They closed w/ a new song that they've never played before b/c the crowd kept cheering them back out and they ran out of songs that they know. In a moment of honesty they came out for the second encore and announced that this would have to be the last song b/c they don't know any other songs and that this new song that they were playing had only been rehearsed while it was being written. The song sounded flawless, the show was great and the crowd was left happy, well done fellows!
Here ya go, sorry for the bass overload w/ about 1.5 minutes left but it goes away and there's some GREAT 'riffing' around the 1 minute left mark. Watch the little timer...
oh ya, almost forgot:
Barkley, Barkley, Barkley! (that's just for you John 'DC' Taylor)
5/02/2007
Worst Album Covers (weekly)
It’s May break here in China so I’m a little bored. I’m making this post on a whim so I can’t guarantee it will actually be weekly, but w/ all the no-talent hacks out there I’m sure there will be plenty of material to keep it going.
A friend of mine recently sent me a link to some bad record covers from the 60’s-80’s and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed them. This gave me an idea; dozens of major releases come out each week from ‘artists’ in all genres and thus album covers. Considering that 90% of the music that comes out each Tuesday sucks, I’m guessing there’s horrible album covers ‘aplenty’! So this is the first installment; I’ll pick the worst album covers of the week and then maybe throw in a classic from the 90’s-present.
5. John Tesh, perennial purveyor of poor taste, brings us this new gem. If you look close you can tell that the girl is either photoshopped or a vampire.
4. I HATE these kinds of album covers! Pink Floyd did this kind of album cover well and Dream Theater has been trying since. Now we have this new pack of weirdos, Young Galaxy, out there picking up the torch.
3. This was obviously done on purpose; nobody makes an album cover this bad on accident. So because this putrescence was done as part of their schtick, I only put it at #3.
2. My only mentionable thought on this album cover is that I'm so glad I'll never hear the nuevo Boy George music!
1. Congrats goes out to Kelly Marie for winning the first Worst Album Cover! If this album came out in 1988 we wouldn't be discussing it. Not b/c I'd be nine and Al Gore hadn't invented the internet yet; it wouldn't be horrible in the 80's b/c it looks like it is from the 80's! I can't believe anyone allowed this to happen; where were her friends, the record company, her own logic?
A nice added bonus to this whole thing is that I’ll always know when new albums (by artists I like) are coming out.
As for an old classic, try this hot pile dropped by Scott Stapp. It doesn't get much worse than this steamer!
photos came from Amazon.
A friend of mine recently sent me a link to some bad record covers from the 60’s-80’s and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed them. This gave me an idea; dozens of major releases come out each week from ‘artists’ in all genres and thus album covers. Considering that 90% of the music that comes out each Tuesday sucks, I’m guessing there’s horrible album covers ‘aplenty’! So this is the first installment; I’ll pick the worst album covers of the week and then maybe throw in a classic from the 90’s-present.
5. John Tesh, perennial purveyor of poor taste, brings us this new gem. If you look close you can tell that the girl is either photoshopped or a vampire.
4. I HATE these kinds of album covers! Pink Floyd did this kind of album cover well and Dream Theater has been trying since. Now we have this new pack of weirdos, Young Galaxy, out there picking up the torch.
3. This was obviously done on purpose; nobody makes an album cover this bad on accident. So because this putrescence was done as part of their schtick, I only put it at #3.
2. My only mentionable thought on this album cover is that I'm so glad I'll never hear the nuevo Boy George music!
1. Congrats goes out to Kelly Marie for winning the first Worst Album Cover! If this album came out in 1988 we wouldn't be discussing it. Not b/c I'd be nine and Al Gore hadn't invented the internet yet; it wouldn't be horrible in the 80's b/c it looks like it is from the 80's! I can't believe anyone allowed this to happen; where were her friends, the record company, her own logic?
A nice added bonus to this whole thing is that I’ll always know when new albums (by artists I like) are coming out.
As for an old classic, try this hot pile dropped by Scott Stapp. It doesn't get much worse than this steamer!
photos came from Amazon.
4/30/2007
Best Of The Month (April)
To make life easier on those that come to this site in the future, I'm starting a 'Best Of The Month' post.
Here's the best of April:
Barkley's 'Super Bulge'
Basketball Party
Peter, Bjorn, and John
BOTW - Pavement
BOTW - The Black Keys
BOTW - Sonic Youth
Barkley vs. The Skateboard
iPod Vending Machine
Sonic Youth Concert
Monkey Dog
The Black Keys Concert Webcast
Faculty Field Trip
Here's the best of April:
Barkley's 'Super Bulge'
Basketball Party
Peter, Bjorn, and John
BOTW - Pavement
BOTW - The Black Keys
BOTW - Sonic Youth
Barkley vs. The Skateboard
iPod Vending Machine
Sonic Youth Concert
Monkey Dog
The Black Keys Concert Webcast
Faculty Field Trip
From the www, Vol. 6
I am probably the biggest Pearl Jam fan that any of you know; I maintain a fanclub membership annually just to get good tickets to their concerts and they only tour once every 3 or 4 years. I know, it's crazy. But I'm not one of those looney tunes that thinks they do no wrong; I can't stand a lot of their political views and I will admit, w/ a certain grain of salt, that Eddie Vedder is more than slightly unintelligible. He doesn't mumble or anything, he just runs his words together. (mock it all you want, we all know that a million musicians have tried to duplicate his 'style' over the last 15 years.) But, with all that said, even the world's biggest PJ fan, or smallest, would have to laugh at this:
This song is named 'Yellow Ledbetter' and was never released on a Pearl Jam album. The story behind this song being completely unintelligible is that when they recorded it there weren't actually words for it. Singers often do 'scratch tracks' in the studio; they just improv a vocal range over a song so that they can get a better idea of how to fit words to the music. RHCP does this and has even put some scratch tracks in their songs like 'soul to squeeze' and 'around the world.' What you hear in this song is just that, a scratch track. The problem was that the bluesy (AMAZING) guitar riff in the song didn't fit in w/ the album 'Ten' so the song never got completely finished. When the song was later released as a b-side, radio stations started playing it heavily b/c the disc-jockeys loved it. By the mid nineties this song was considered one of their best and is still a common closer at any PJ concert. The improved lyrics actually come out to a 'death letter' sort of meaning. The opening lyrics are "unseal-ed, on a porch that letter sat. Then they said 'I wanna leave it again.'" If you watch the video again w/ your eyes closed you'll pick up on more of the lyrics. The box or a bag comment is vague but when they sing it live the lyrics are 'coming home in a box or a bag' which kind of adds to the idea that the song is about a death letter and thinking back on someone that has died.
This song is named 'Yellow Ledbetter' and was never released on a Pearl Jam album. The story behind this song being completely unintelligible is that when they recorded it there weren't actually words for it. Singers often do 'scratch tracks' in the studio; they just improv a vocal range over a song so that they can get a better idea of how to fit words to the music. RHCP does this and has even put some scratch tracks in their songs like 'soul to squeeze' and 'around the world.' What you hear in this song is just that, a scratch track. The problem was that the bluesy (AMAZING) guitar riff in the song didn't fit in w/ the album 'Ten' so the song never got completely finished. When the song was later released as a b-side, radio stations started playing it heavily b/c the disc-jockeys loved it. By the mid nineties this song was considered one of their best and is still a common closer at any PJ concert. The improved lyrics actually come out to a 'death letter' sort of meaning. The opening lyrics are "unseal-ed, on a porch that letter sat. Then they said 'I wanna leave it again.'" If you watch the video again w/ your eyes closed you'll pick up on more of the lyrics. The box or a bag comment is vague but when they sing it live the lyrics are 'coming home in a box or a bag' which kind of adds to the idea that the song is about a death letter and thinking back on someone that has died.
4/29/2007
BOTW (April 22-28)
After a rousing ‘one night only’ here in Shanghai, this week’s 'Band Of The Week' is the perennial Sonic Youth.
(LtoR) Lee, Thurston, Kim, and Steve
To be honest, I had them lined up for this week four weeks ago when I got the tickets but that’s beside to point. (I talk more about the show in my revised post from that night, so look below this post for that. Plus I added a bazillion photos and videos.)
When people write or talk about Sonic Youth they often use words like ageless, ever-young, w/o age, sans aging, etc. (ok maybe just ‘ageless’) But the reason people say this is because they’re REALLY old for what they do; the married couple at the core of this band are 49 and 53! They’re not the Stones up there playing hits they wrote in their 20’s, they’re a band out there in the prime of their career whose current songs stand tall beside their classics. (and they play them w/ the intensity they had in their 20's)
Before you go searching your favorite download source or youtube, Sonic Youth isn’t for everyone; they’re not even for ‘most.’ SY plays melodic noise rock that hints at punk riffing one minute and meanders into feedback walls the next. They’ve been at this for over 25 years; no one does what they do and I don’t think anyone could if they tried. Some SY loyalists would weep over this statement but I think their last 3 albums (Murray Street, Sonic Nurse, and Rather Ripped) are some of the best albums the band has made. Ya these albums don't have some of the grit that drove the band's earlier albums but their sound is getting more melodic, more musical. It's their best work since the first 6 years of the 90's.
New stuff:
Incinerate (live on Letterman in 2006)
Empty Page (2004)
Reena (2006)
Older stuff:
Kool Thing (1996ish)
100% (in this video you see Jason Lee and Spike Jonze as the lead actors)
Silver Rocket
More videos to explore:
Do You Believe In Rapture? (2006)
Disconnection Notice (2004)
Incinerate (Live on Rove 2006)
Silver Rocket (Live early 90's)
Recommendations:
older:
Kool Thing
100%
Silver Rocket
Sugar Kane
Teenage Riot
Candle
Mote
Sunday
Skip Trace
Diamond Sea
Junkie's Promise
Last 3 albums:
Empty Page
Disconnection Notice
Unmade Bed
Dripping Dream
Stones
Peace Attack
Pink Steam
Reena
Incinerate
What A Waste
more videos and mp3's can be found here.
(LtoR) Lee, Thurston, Kim, and Steve
To be honest, I had them lined up for this week four weeks ago when I got the tickets but that’s beside to point. (I talk more about the show in my revised post from that night, so look below this post for that. Plus I added a bazillion photos and videos.)
When people write or talk about Sonic Youth they often use words like ageless, ever-young, w/o age, sans aging, etc. (ok maybe just ‘ageless’) But the reason people say this is because they’re REALLY old for what they do; the married couple at the core of this band are 49 and 53! They’re not the Stones up there playing hits they wrote in their 20’s, they’re a band out there in the prime of their career whose current songs stand tall beside their classics. (and they play them w/ the intensity they had in their 20's)
Before you go searching your favorite download source or youtube, Sonic Youth isn’t for everyone; they’re not even for ‘most.’ SY plays melodic noise rock that hints at punk riffing one minute and meanders into feedback walls the next. They’ve been at this for over 25 years; no one does what they do and I don’t think anyone could if they tried. Some SY loyalists would weep over this statement but I think their last 3 albums (Murray Street, Sonic Nurse, and Rather Ripped) are some of the best albums the band has made. Ya these albums don't have some of the grit that drove the band's earlier albums but their sound is getting more melodic, more musical. It's their best work since the first 6 years of the 90's.
New stuff:
Incinerate (live on Letterman in 2006)
Empty Page (2004)
Reena (2006)
Older stuff:
Kool Thing (1996ish)
100% (in this video you see Jason Lee and Spike Jonze as the lead actors)
Silver Rocket
More videos to explore:
Do You Believe In Rapture? (2006)
Disconnection Notice (2004)
Incinerate (Live on Rove 2006)
Silver Rocket (Live early 90's)
Recommendations:
older:
Kool Thing
100%
Silver Rocket
Sugar Kane
Teenage Riot
Candle
Mote
Sunday
Skip Trace
Diamond Sea
Junkie's Promise
Last 3 albums:
Empty Page
Disconnection Notice
Unmade Bed
Dripping Dream
Stones
Peace Attack
Pink Steam
Reena
Incinerate
What A Waste
more videos and mp3's can be found here.
4/25/2007
Quick Post About Tonight's Sonic Youth Concert (revised)
(revised portion)
The day after my (hastily made) post I found a lot of pictures and a video from the SY show, here in Shanghai, so I'm adding them to my original post. (4 days later, I know. Hey I'm busy; like Pesci said in Goodfellas "whado-ya wanfromme?")
First off lets talk about the venue; it was like an opera house type place where orchestras play and pretentious rich people go to use their golden binoculars. Just gorgeous, prettiest place I ever saw a band play at. It sounded amazing too; just a great small venue!
Seat view:
Stage view:
As for the band, they rocked! (as I mentioned before) Here’s some pictures other people took from the show in Shanghai.
The core four (LtoR) Lee, Steve, Kim and Thurston
Thurston
Thurston (creating noise basically)
Kim (I like to kick and stretch and kick! I'm 50! {53})
High-five?
Lee and Mark Ibold (the bassist from Pavement)
Lee and Thurston 'sword fight'
Photos by Magnovich, Swing James, and Shanghaiist.com
Incinerate - Live in Shanghai (ya the audio is sketchy but that's the camera's fault)
John has a pretty good post about our evening over on his blog.
I'm still 'getting around' to posting the video I took onto youtube. But fear not (not that you were going to) I have the week off this week so I should be getting caught up on all kinds of blog goodness.
(original post)
I'm gonna put in a quick post about my evening.
Tonight was one of the most amazing/random concerts I've been to. I can't begin to understand why Sonic Youth decided to come play concerts in China but man am I glad they did!
I'll post some of the video i took on youtube later this week and include it in a follow up post.
Setlist:
Main Set:
-Candle 
-Incinerate
-Reena
-Mote
-Do You Believe In
Rapture?
-Turquoise Boy
-Schizofrenia
-(I Got A) Catholic Block
-What A Waste
-Silver Rocket
-Skip Tracer
-100%
-Jams Run Free
-Pink Steam
Encore 1:
-Teenage Riot
-Kool Thing
Encore 2:
-Brother James
-Shaking Hell
photo by Magnovich
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