Category Archives: Music

Metalli-riffic

27 September, 2008 Brian Mc Leave a comment

I am probably one of the last people who has not talked about Metallica‘s Death Magnetic. Everyone out there has their opinion on the CD. My pal over at Pitriff wrote a few things about it earlier as did many other music lovers. Some said it was a comeback album while others find it brittle.

I think it is great. It’s hard to say Metallica is back to what they used to be because let’s face it, age and the battle of life takes its toll. I think Death Magnetic is the best album the band has done in years and I really enjoy listening to it. I am not going to sit here and pick through songs and say this one could have been better and this one was perfect.

I will just say that in a whole, the boys did a great job. Way to grab another #1 album! That right there is impressive. The album makes me think back to the first five albums and forget about the last few. It’s nice to see that they still have it.

I finally got to see the video for “The Day That Never Comes”:

Reminds me of the video for “One”. Very sorrowful video.

Metallica is going to be touring in support of Death Magnetic. The sad thing is that they are hot hitting Cleveland yet but they will be in Columbus. Some of me wants to see them again. I have seen them 3 times now but they were all tours in support of the albums I could care less about. I really want to see them rock out.

I also want to see this tour because Down is opening for them…awesome.

Emo, Hip Hop, Live Shows, Mash-Up, Music, Music Video, Punk, Reunion, Rock

Face To Face Reunion?

24 September, 2008 Brian Mc 3 Comments

I was just killing some time tonight when I came upon a post on Punknews.Org stating that Face To Face has started a reunion tour. Excuse me??? Apparently I have been out of the loop because I thought the band called it quits for good in 2002. I really hadn’t heard anything from them since.

Face To Face is a So.Cal punk rock band that was one of my favorites in the late nineties. Their one song that got major attention was “Disconnected”…

I am not sure yet if the band is going to only tour a couple of cities at this time in the US and overseas or if they will take it one step further and create and album together. I would love to see a new Face To Face album as they are one of those punk bands I wish never broke up.

I have been aware that front man Trevor Keith has been doing his own thing since the band split. In fact he has been doing a few things…a few things I was not entirely aware of.

First there is his solo material he has been working on and his label Antagonist Records. I had no idea Trevor Keith has been working on creating music on his own. Earlier this year he released his solo album Melancholics Anonymous. The album is available on his website via download for 5 bucks or you can send him some of your cold hard cash and he’ll send you a CD if he has any left. I am going to be dishing out 5 bucks myself so I can check it out. He has the album streaming on his site and from what I hear I like so far.

Then there is Legion Of Doom, a mash-up project like no other featuring Trevor Keith and producer Chad Blinman. The duo remixes emo, punk, and hip hop songs as well as creates original material, some of which have been featured in films. I have been a fan of this project for a couple of year now when I accidentally came across a remix of Senses Fail and Coheed & Cambira….

I love the sound of the two bands clashing together, it’s perfect (but you have to like the bands to appreciate it too of course). I also got a kick out of Claudo’s shorter hair on the video…. This song and others were released on Legion Of Doom’s debut CD called Incorporated. The CD is well out of print but you can find it out there in the digital world, I know I did.

Music

Nominations For Rock Hall Inductees Announced Today

22 September, 2008 Brian Mc 3 Comments

It’s about time the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame has their induction ceremony in good ol’ Cleveland, Ohio. Seriously, why is it always in NYC when the museum is in Cleveland? It’s about time the rock n’ roll capitol holds one of the most important event of the year!

This year there are a few bands I have enjoyed throughout my life that are being nominated as possible inductees including Metallica, The Stooges, and Run-DMC. Tickets will be made available to the public for the first time ever and you can bet your sweet you-know-what I am going to try and be there.

From the Rock Hall website:

The nominations for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum have been announced!

The 2009 Induction nominees are:

Jeff Beck
Chic
Wanda Jackson
Little Anthony and the Imperials
Metallica
Run-D.M.C.
the Stooges
War
Bobby Womack

Five of these nine nominees will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The inductees will be announced in January 2009. Ballots will be sent to more than 500 voters, who will select artists to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the 24th Annual Induction Ceremony on April 4 at historic Public Hall in Cleveland. For the first time, tickets to the ceremony will be made available to the public. Advance ticket sales for the events will be made available to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum members and then to the public.

For more information check out the official Rock Hall press release.

Funny, Indie, Live Shows, Music, Music Video, New Release, Rock

Ben Folds Five Reunites – Kinda.

19 September, 2008 Brian Mc 1 Comment

Today would be the day where I wished I lived in North Carolina.

My good pal Matt already talked about this event a few weeks back on Addicted To Vinyl. I previously had heard about it before he reminded me it was not a dream but had not had time to write anything about it until now.

Thanks to MySpace, Ben Folds Five reunited tonight to play a special show in their native homeland at the University of North Carolina. The band helped launch MySpace’s new music feature “Front To Back”. “Front To Back” pretty much sums up the idea, a selected band will play an entire album of theirs front to back for a special benefit show that later will be available on the “Place For Friends” website for public viewing.

Ben Folds was asked to play the premier “Front To Back” show originally solo but chose to contact his past band mates to see if they would get together for a special situation. Thanks to good timing, bassist Robert Sledge and drummer Darren Jessee agreed to perform. The band never really broke up but then again they never have stayed together. In fact it has been just about 10 years since Ben Folds Five released their last album, The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner – the very album they played front to back tonight. All three members agreed to play their last recording live to many lucky fans who nabbed tickets to the sold out show.

Proceeds from the sales of the show will benefit Operation Smile, a nonprofit organization that helps children with facial deformities.

Ben Folds Five does not plan on continuing to tour after tonight as they all have their own projects going on. I just hope that perhaps one day in the future they will come together and put out a Ben Folds Five album once again.

Ben Folds has his new album Way To Normal dropping at the end of this month and I can not tell you how excited I am to hear it.

Here is a video from the new release featuring Regina Spektor as well stars Tim and Eric from the Tim & Eric Show on Adult Swim.

You Dont Know Me (featuring Regina Spektor)

And for those of you that hadn’t heard, Ben Folds himself leaked Way To Normal to the internet himself. The catch was that the leak was actually 6 fake songs the artist recorded in only 8 hours. You can read more about it on RollingStone.Com. The guy is a hilarious genius.

Here are a few more videos from Ben Folds & Ben Folds Five I enjoy:

This is a cover of The Postal Service I randomly came accross…
Such Great Heights

Artist Site

Horrorpops – Kiss Kiss, Kill Kill – CD Review

18 September, 2008 Brian Mc Leave a comment

One of the more unique acts out there in the music world, The Horrorpops, released their third studio album Kiss Kiss Kill Kill earlier this year. The Danish act with original members (who are also married to one another) Patricia Day on stand up bass and Kim Nekroman on lead guitar have been rocking out since 1996, thanks to their unique mixture of rockabilly, surf, psychobilly, and punk rock music. They were a huge success overseas but it was not until around 2003 that the band got their US break thanks to Tim Armstrong’s (Rancid) label Hellcat Records.

Recently finishing up their mini-set tour on the 2008 Van’s Warped Tour, the band just announced their headlining fall tour in support of Kiss Kiss Kill Kill. With bombshell Patricia Day’s giant stand-up bass and smoky singing, layered with Kim Neckroman assaulting his guitar, and Niedermeier’s drumming, the band should have no problem entertaining the masses.

The CD seemed to have a rebel theme with the song titles and lyrics, with many in reference to many female films. The CD cover mimics a poster for a B-Movie. The sound on their third release seems to keep the same as previous without going over any boundaries to make a significant change.

Opening track “Thelma & Louise” of course makes suggestion of driving just like Susan Sarandon and Gina Davis did in their girls gone wild of a film. Patricia Day sings strongly in this track and the music backing her up is very catchy. “Heading For The Disco?” already is played a lot over the airwaves, especially on Sirius Radio’s Faction. The song is a bit poppy but still delivers the pop-rockabilly feel with bass plucking and drumming making you want to boogie down.

“Kiss Kiss Kill Kill” really sounded like the Cure at the beginning, that is until the harmonies began. The song holds Patricia Day’s cries “Kiss kiss kiss me dantly, kill kill me quietly…” with a “whoa oh oh oh” in the wake. The song is a little gloomy, but I really dig the guitar playing. It is a simple riff but is the type that sticks out.

Starting with what sounded like a repeat of a bass line from another Horrorpops release was “Everything’s Everything”. The track about not wanted to let go of a complicated relationship was a reminder that this band is not about sunshine and rainbows. Nekroman strums away during “Private Hall Of Shame” with almost a southern rock feel to his playing.

By no means is this a traditional rockabilly/psychobilly band. They stray away from the rest and incorporate their own style to make for a more unique feel. On their third release, I say the Horrorpops still have it and I really enjoyed what I heard. If you want real rockabilly this band may bestow you mixed feelings but if you are looking for something fun to listen to and have a good time, then this is the perfect release for you.