I think it’s time we part ways.

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The new Weezer album is practically unlistenable. I did some searching around the blogs and I am not the only one to feel this way. What happened to this once favorite band of ours? Ever since Pinkerton, I’ve tried to convince myself the subsequent albums were good. They haven’t been.

They do have some great singles off the “Green” and “Red” albums, but in this day in age you need to come with a great album else we will just buy your singles off Amazon or iTunes. If you are ok with making sales a $1 a time, then fine. Although most bands don’t make money off albums and instead make money from touring and merch.

Even so, not all the singles have been great. Catchy does not equal great. Like you – I can’ help but to sing along to that monstrosity Pork and Beans.

Shall we take a listen? You’ll have to play this from your own collection as DCG, Weezer’s label, does a great job of removing the songs posted on the internet.

Everyone likes to dance to a happy song/With a catchy chorus and beat so they can sing along/Timbaland knows the way to reach the top of the chart/ Maybe if I work with him I can perfect the art.

Garbage. Sure it’s catchy…and it’s on the radio so often you are forced to love it. Alt-rock and pop radio I might add. It’s a magic formula that Weezer front man Rivers Cuomo has, like a mad scientist, been working on in a deep dark lab somewhere. Really. In 1998, Cuomo spent a good year secluding himself in an LA apartment with black walls and covered windows disconnected from the world. He spent the year, like the geek he is, trying to figure out the formula to pop/rock success. He deconstructed all the popular songs he loved. He has a three ring binder of analysis’s of every Nirvana, Green Day, and Oasis song. Trying to mathematically dissect the formula of these songs that he loves. He even calls it the Encyclopedia of Pop.

All this studying, tweaking, and anti-social behavior to produce what? Raditude?

I can’t even get through this new album. One of the worst songs might be Can’t Stop Partying. Take a listen.

Download Weezer – Can’t Stop Partying

Not even Lil’ Wayne can save it. In fact it might be better if it was just Wayne rapping on the whole song.

You might be saying, “What about that cute single off Raditude? That’s a good song!” You mean (If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To? One geeky love song is not enough to save this album. This album is bad. Even the god damn title irks me. (Thanks for nothing Rainn Wilson)

I have accidentally typed Ratitude about a dozen times.

I’m not spending anymore money on this band after dropping 9.99 in this shit economy on this sub par album. When the band has had enough of selling out, I’ll be back.

Besides, another great band dropped an album the same week Raditude was released. Dashboard Confessional has come out with album number 6, called Alter The Ending. It’s an amazing album that also includes an acoustic version in the deluxe edition. The funny thing is, that both Raditude and Alter The Ending were produced by Butch Walker. What a small world. Luckily for us, the end result is day and night when comparing the two albums. With Raditude you can polish a turd, but it’s still a turd after all.

Download Dashboard Confessional – No News Is Bad News

Fuck it. Just buy them both…

And storms will surely come

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There’s many who’ll tell you they’ll give you their love,
But when they say “give” they mean “take.”
They’ll hang ‘round just like vultures till push comes to shove.
They’ll take flight when the earth starts to shake.

Guitarist/lyricist/vocalist Dustin Kensrue has yet again provided a deep and resounding message in Thrice’s sixth studio album, Beggars. In fact, this time around, they tweeted the entire recording process. Watch this video and check out what qualified as their “studio” for this album.

Someone may say that they’ll always be true,
Then slip out the door ‘fore the dawn.
But I won’t leave you hanging on.
Another may stay till they find someone new,
Then before you know they’ll be gone.
But I won’t leave you hanging on;
No, I won’t be that someone.

Yes, this entire album is completely an observation of the human condition, and it takes several spins before it really hits you over the head. This. Is. A. Masterful. Album. In the video above, Dustin touches on the fact that they’ve done a hybrid between recording live and recording piece by piece. The end result absolutely glows with all the energy of a live performance.

And come what may, I won’t abandon you or leave you behind
Because love is a loyalty sworn, not a burning for a moment.
And come what may, I will be standing right here by your side;
I won’t run away, though the storm’s getting worse and there’s no end in sight.

Dustin’s voice carries a pure velocity. He means it. It just doesn’t get much better than this. Check out “The Weight”:

Download Thrice – The Weight

And what of the name of the album? I really enjoy the message he conveys through many of the tracks asking just who you think is in charge? Just what lies do you tell yourself so you won’t have to do the right thing? And hey… You never hurt anyone. This means you’ve led a good life, right?

“I think we are at most times deluded in thinking that we are totally responsible for our circumstances, but in the end almost everything is beyond our control to a high degree and we can’t even be sure we will wake up tomorrow. Whether you believe that God created you for a purpose, or that the world is governed by blind chance, everything in life is a gift at its core; we are beggars all.”

You must buy this album. It really hits the mark that Thrice has been trying to clobber all this time. I could write another entire post on the tracks “In Exile” and on “Doublespeak.” Nevermind the fact that the title track wraps the record up beautifully.

A bit of a sidetrack on what to post

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So I had a grand plan on what to post this week. After a long Sunday night in which I went to see “Little” Louie Vega play, I was dumbfounded by the number of songs I hadn’t heard in literally years. However, as the typical man with a problem involving his attention span, that has changed. Last night I heard a track that made me rack my brain to find out what it sounded like.

The band Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros seems to have made quite the splash amongst the indie rock gods that be. Their strange overly melodic songs are reminiscent of a mish-mash of older artists ranging from David Bowie to Billy Joel to the artist I will make comparisons to here – Elton John.

The track “40 Day Dream” is the first off of their debut full length album Up From Below. It’s an epic beginning to an album that signifies what the band is about. Full sound melding different genres in music ranging from folk to blues to rock. It’s an unbelievable track, to say the least. It elicits quite the emotions from me, personally.

Well, when I first heard it, I heard the chorus as well as the tempo of the song, and I was absolutely kicking myself wondering why it sounded so familiar. It isn’t that it’s directly similar to the song I’m about to give you all, and I may also have been thinking of a different song.

Well, I kid you not that I woke up this morning out of a total slumber having realized what it sounded like to me. I can’t even say if it was my subconscious helping me while asleep, but that would be great if it was. The song I instantly woke up with in my head was Elton John’s “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues”, and I am going to leave everyone here with both to compare the two for themselves. All music is most certainly influenced by music of the past, so my comparison here is certainly not a slight against the band. In fact, it’s quite the opposite! Enjoy!

Download Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – 40 Day Dream

Download Elton John – I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues

And yes. Buy this stuff. If you don’t, you will get a phone call from your mother telling you you were actually adopted. True story.

the future’s cloudy and gray

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so can I lie in your grave at the edge of the end of the world

where I will sit with my love, in its fluorescent swirl

eat us up, break it down to the tiniest cell

in a room with a view and a window to hell

with those who bury bodies into barrels of fun

will be marched through museums that display what they’ve done

they’ll be shot up through the sky by the cannon of sin,
and we’ll reluctantly let them in

Max Bemis is an evangelist for my generation. His sermon delivered with song and lyric.

I’m a Say Anything fan. From their first release Junior Varsity to their latest self titled release, I just enjoy all of this bands albums. The albums are filled with sing-a-long anthems. Shameless and A Walk Through Hell are some examples of his earlier work.

Easily a favorite of mine from the album …Is A Real Boy is Admit It! A song you can crank up and belt along with Max.

You’re free to whine. It will not get you far. I do just fine, my car and my guitar, guitar go!

Download Say Anything – Admit It!

The album In Defense Of The Genre was a double album of…well…of mostly filler. I am of the opinon that if this double album was pared down to a solid single release, it would have been a more successful endeavor. The anthems are still here, you just might have to skip around the album. Check but Baby Girl, I’m A Blur.

Download Say Anything – Baby Girl, I’m a Blur

I got my hands on the latest album before the November 3rd release date. It reminds me more of …Is A Real Boy than Defense. My first real listen to this album was driving back home from a long day at work. I enjoyed the album, but the last song. Track 13. Like any good preacher, it ends with a big and resounding AMEN!

Download Say Anything – Ahh…Men

Ahh…Men is a stellar song. Chanting, passionately sung lyrics, a song with a strong and heavy message. I knew right away this song was important to Max. Even while navigating the busy streets in rush hour I knew this was an important song.

I’m rarely wrong about these things:

@ummAndrew asks what the deepest song I’ve written is; probably ahhh men because it concerns god the afterlife redemption eternity etc

Don’t be a sinner and steal this album off the torrents, buy this album. Else face hell and brimstone.

Amen.

But we all fade sometimes, I believe

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When life gets you down, you know what you gotta do? Just keep swimming.

“I know I can survive. I just don’t wanna have to.”

Jack’s Mannequin’s EP, Dear Jack, was released this week in conjunction with the film of the same name. The band was formed as a side-project piano-based rock band by Something Corporate frontman Andrew McMahon.

And then McMahon was diagnosed with Leukemia.

Just find the horizon, I promise it’s not as far as you think.

I loved Jack’s Mannequin’s first album, Everything In Transit. My favorite track from that album was “Dark Blue”. I do enjoy the night when it is that perfect shade of dark blue. And I don’t slow down enough to experience it. The song means even more to me now after experiencing the EP. I realize that “Swim” was released on the second album, The Glass Passenger, but somehow I missed that record. Enjoy Dark Blue, and if you haven’t heard of this band before, then consider yourself cordially introduced.

Download Jack’s Mannequin – Dark Blue

You can visit the band’s MySpace page to get the film or the EP. Or check out their website for all kinds of other goodies, including this tee which I know you will want to buy for me!

Seriously, I was able to get hit with this EP just at the right time. It’s been quite a week for me. I know we all have them. But you do realize, don’t you… That you do have to keep swimming.

Jack’s Mannequin will support Weezer on six dates beginning in December, and then headline 13 shows in February and March.
December 2009
1 – Chicago, IL – Aragon Ballroom (w/ Weezer)
2 – New York, NY – Hammerstein Ballroom (WRXP radio show)
3 – Milwaukee, WI – Eagles Ballroom (w/ Weezer)
5 – Toronto, Ontario – Air Canada Center (w/ Weezer)
7 – Boston, MA – Agganis Arena (w/ Weezer)
9 – Baltimore, MD – UMBC Fieldhouse (w/ Weezer)
10 – Philadelphia, PA – Susquehanna Center (w/ Weezer)

February 2010
5 – Seattle, WA – Showbox SoDo
6 – Portland, OR – Roseland Theatre
7 – Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory
9 – Salt Lake City, UT – In the Venue
11 – Sacramento, CA – Sacramento State University
12 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues
13 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theater
16 – San Antonio, TX – The White Rabbit
17 – Dallas, TX – House of Blues
19 – Kansas City, MO – Beaumont Club
20 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
24 – Indianapolis, IN – Egyptian Room

March 2010
5 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa

The version of “Swim” on the EP is a Music Box edition. Instead of piano, the music box tones cast an underwater-aquarium light on the same message: “I’m not giving in. I swim.” Check out the original music video for the first release of the song below. And get inspired, and get motivated, and swim with me.


Jack’s Mannequin “Swim”

Jack’s Mannequin | MySpace Video

It’s good to be back!

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So I’m finally back up and running after not having internet access for about 2 weeks. I had it last Wednesday, but was finishing up moving into my new place. So that said, here’s the latest in inanity with my ramblings on!

Do you guys have a song that just is never out of your head when it comes to a song that just never fails to make you happy? See, I have one of those, and I will be sharing that one along with two songs that have lately made me feel that way each time I’ve heard it.

First off is a song I am sure most of you reading this already know. Indie darlings Belle and Sebastian made what could easily be thought of as one of the top 10 songs of the last 15 years in the indie world. The track “The Boy With The Arab Strap” just appeals to so many different people as well as to many different emotions. It’s very rare that I find a song that doesn’t simply fade with how it makes me feel, and this is one of those rarities!

Download Belle and Sebastian – The Boy With The Arab Strap

Next up are two songs I’ve picked up on recently. The first is by a young woman from New Zealand named Annabel Alpers that goes by the stage name Bachelorette. This song reminds me so much of Stereolab back in the day, and I can’t help but feel very warm and happy with this song, entitled “Lifetime”. You can check her out here, also!

Download Bachelorette – Lifetime

The last track is one I’ve heard fairly often as of late. The group White Denim comes out of music-rich Austin, Texas, and it’s hard to really find a place that they fit in the genre spectrum. Honestly? Who cares? I have two genres in music. Stuff I like, and stuff I don’t. It’s that simple. So take what you will from their track “Regina Holding Hands”. It’s part of the former of the two genres I described. I would like to think it’d be one you all would like, as well!

Download White Denim – Regina Holding Hands

And again, buy some shit. If not, whichever deity you believe in will make your testicles small. That’s assuming they aren’t already small, like mine, of course.

You been drinking brew for breakfast?

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There’s a way to make it out in time
Keep the cash under the mattress
They’re down in the streets
Run for cover

The end of the year seems to be quickly approaching. The weather has changed and so has my mood.

On cue, as it is every year for me, when the mercury falls so does my spirit. The cup becomes half empty, not half full. Not that I am an overly optimistic soul on a normal day.

This tends to change what I listen to. I don’t listen to music that might cheer me up. No way! I listen to dark, desperate music that just sends me deeper down the spiraling fall.

And if theres any consolation
I never got mine so
While your out you’re taking name
and taking orders

The White Rabbits versus The Clash. The cup half empty, the cup half full.

White Rabbits is originally from Columbia, Missouri but is now based in Brooklyn. A six piece indie band that has released two studio albums. The most recent, It’s Frightening, was released May 19, 2009. The song that really captures my mood these days comes from this album and is called Rudie Fails. Take a listen:

Download White Rabbits – Rudie Fails

A song about bitterness and anger. A fuck it all anthem.

Then there is the song Rudie Can’t Fail by The Clash. The British Punk band that formed on the the same year I was born. Not just punk, they got into many different genres while performing together. Reggae, ska, and even rap!

It might be time to define what Rudie probably means. Although it is a name, it’s also a nickname for Rudeboys, which are pretty much poor rebellious kids in Jamaica. It evolved to be the name called of fans of the ska culture forming in England in the late 70s.

Download The Clash – Rudie Can’t Fail

It’s a decent song…but maybe it will sound better in the Spring…

Sean, Madonna, and Me

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I’m probably not a true Sonic Youth fan, and I’m OK with that. I’m a casual fan I suppose.

Well, I was a casual fan.

I just listened to 2009’s The Eternal and it makes me wonder what I ever saw in them. In fact, did I really know who they were, or did I just associate them with Nirvana and Mudhoney and assume that I was a fan? Do you remember the 90’s? Were you alive in the 80’s? Did we really listen to this shit?

I should like Sonic Youth, I suppose. There is a lot to admire about them. I understand why they have so many insanely raging fans. They pioneered Alternative Music as we have come to know it. That’s probably hard to believe, especially when taking a listen to any one of their tracks. Try “Thunderclap for Bobby Pyn.” This is probably the best track on the album, so it might leave you wondering just what I’m bitching about.

Download Sonic Youth – Thunderclap for Bobby Pyn

But honestly, when you find a way to start a truly punk band – in the punk ethos, rather than the punk sound – in the early 80’s and move it progressively forward but remain threateningly indie, and experiment with the guitar without becoming a rock band… It seems to me that this is how you create that crazy, confusing genre called Alternative.

And the members of Sonic Youth are musicians I should look up to and respect. So I will give them cred. I’m just not digging this sound. I don’t get why anyone would accept this from a band for almost 30 full years.

Here’s what I’m bitching about:

Download Sonic Youth – Leaky Lifeboat

So there you have it. My review of Sonic Youth’s eightieth album in as many years is… What the hell is this all about anyway?

Thank you, don’t forget to tip your waiters.

Don’t Get It Confused

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2Pac

Rap music is the only vital form of music introduced since punk rock.

– Kurt Cobain

I am sitting in the car with The Little One. She’s driving for a change and I am playing with my iPhone. It started with her and I trying to remember the title of a particular song we heard at the Brand New concert.

After the song Archers, the band paused to reset, and Vinnie began playing a riff that we all recognized. It was just a tease though, as they never played more than that riff.

The next day I was trying to figure out what that riff was from. We decided it sounded like Lit and I jumped on Pandora to try to listen to the song. Pandora doesn’t let you pick a song to listen to sadly, so then I had to go to the iTunes store to play the preview of My Own Worst Enemy. After getting a second opinion we confirmed that was definitely the riff. Mystery solved.

Then, moments later I was giving props to TLO on recognizing another song with just a few notes. Testing her I reopened Pandora to see how good she was. I would pick a genre in Pandora and let it randomly choose a song to play, then TLO would have to guess the song title.

She is fantastic at 80s and 90s songs. She never missed a Journey song! She falters a little in other catagories, but overall did fantastic. Until I choose the Rap/Hip-Hop category.Jay-Z

I was starting off easy I thought. Dear Mama by Tupac.

She says “Oh boy, this is that..um…Carter…Lil’ Carter…Wayne…er…Jay-Z!”

I shake my head slowly.

I get it. You are not into Rap and Hip Hop. I get it. I don’t love Country, but I know the difference between Kenny Rogers, Johnny Cash, and Garth Brooks!

Even if you don’t listen to rap music, you need to know the difference between Jay-Z, Tupac, and Biggie Smalls. Period. End of Story.

This post is for The Little One.

Tupac Amaru Shakur (or 2Pac or simply Pac) is my favorite. A poet. He could weave a tale into a song. His distinctive voice, lyrical style, and untimely death made him one of the best-selling music artists in the world. West Coast Rap is defined by 2Pac. The East Coast versus West Coast rap fued probably gets its start with Tupac claiming that Biggie Smalls and Puffy Combs facilitated him getting robbed and shot five times.

Tupac released 5 albums while alive and another 6 released after his death.

Download Tupac – Loyal To The Game (DJ Quik Remix)

Christopher George Latore Wallace (aka Biggie Smalls or The Notorious B.I.G. or simply Biggie) is often believed to have brought East Coast Rap to the masses. Signed by Sean “Puffy” Combs and then released Ready to Die which went Platinum 4 times and puts Brooklyn back in the the rap spotlight.

His unmatched style and ability to make multi-syllabic rhymes sound smooth and easy make him a hit in the rap scene.

Life After Death goes to number one after Biggie is shot outside an award show. Many believed this shooting was in retaliation to the shooting of Tupac in Las Vegas. Either way, another rap legend ends up dead.

Download The Notorious B.I.G. – Suicidal Thoughts

Shawn Corey Carter (or more commonly known by the stage name Jay-Z) is a Grammy award winning artist and a business entrepreneur that made his way from the Marcy Projects in New York very much on the backs of the success from Biggie and Tupac.

Jay-Z has released 11 albums and has appeared on countless other albums as a collaborator. He owns the New Jersey Nets and is the current holder for the record of most number one albums by a solo artist on the Billboard 200.

His style is diverse, able to rap fast or slow and always making it look easy.

Download Jay-Z – Run This Town

These three legendary artists are very different, yet form the backbone and voice for rap and hip-hop for much of the 90’s and even up to current day. Although there are many other amzing rap acts that you should know about, these three artists you must know… and know well.

What’s Your Favorite Colour, Baby?

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That’s right, they are back. They blew you away in the late 80’s, because you had no idea a Black guy could kill an axe like that. (You were too young and sheltered to really know about Jimi Hendrix.) They are pioneers for sure, and they have a new album.

Remember?

What Living Colour provides to heavy metal is good taste. And I don’t say that to be conservative. No other metal band can actually produce thoughtful lyrics, a clean delivery, and melt-your-face-off grinding. Other bands are either too lazy, or too over-produced, or too over-paid, or all of the above if those traits are not already synonymous. The Chair in the Doorway is the band’s 12th album, by my count. There have been some greatest hits and live collabs mixed in over their 25-year history.

These albums have been hits and misses. The 2009 album is not one of their greatest, but it is something to appreciate and give respect to nonetheless. Buy the record and support these guys. Then let’s anticipate a truly monumental new Living Colour record in the next two years.

Have a listen to “Out of My Mind”… And then let’s see you actually buy the record. I’m watching you!

Download Living Colour – Out of my Mind