Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Death to the Compilation!

My parents, bless their hearts, for the last two Christmases have inevitably bought me one thing that always gets returned. Interestingly enough, both times it has been almost the exact same thing. In an effort to help me complete my Bob Dylan discography, the 'rents always set out with a clearly defined list of albums I don't yet have and the one or two that I want most. Unfortunately, they've had no luck and have, instead, come back with a Greatest Hits or Number 1s collection, instead. It's a well-meaning gesture. But when it comes to my favorite artists, I want the real thing.

In most circumstances, there is an art and a purpose to the production of an album. Track two follows track one for some very specific purpose. Track fourteen is the last song for another very specific purpose. The reasons are varied, depending on artist or producer. Sometimes songs are tracked by the order they were written or recorded. Often times they're tracked in order to tell a specific story and still other times they're tracked in order to evenly space out slow and fast songs. Whatever the album, there is almost always a reason for the track orders. Maybe the middle isn't such a big deal but the producer thought that a few lines of notes needed to be the opening sound. Maybe a that last song on the album is also the song that the band will play to end each concert. Either way, someone somewhere wanted me to listen to the songs on an album in a particular order. I owe it to everyone involved, including myself, to follow their advice.

You miss out on that well-orchestrated musical flow or lyrical story when you only get one or two songs from a specific album. Furthermore, most lifelong musicians will inevitably have an album or two that produced no chart toppers and were originally considered "flops." Those "Number 1s" albums obviously won't have any samples from those albums. There is something so beautifully intimate about listening to someone's entire discography in order. You can note subtle changes in everything from religious beliefs to relationship status. If you know even a little about the artist's life, the experience is only multiplied. Missing those details has to be a sin, right?

In other words: Compilations are a crime against humanity. Long live discography junkies!

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Stars Do Broadway

I’ve just read that apparently Billy Corgan is considering writing a Broadway musical. (Thanks, Paste!) I immediately wondered what, exactly, sort of musical Corgan would write. Stereotypical or not, we tend to think of Broadway musicals as upbeat…something Corgan is clearly NOT. This also led me to wonder what sort of musicals/plays other celebs might write. Behold my cliché and slightly ridiculous musings of celebrity Broadway shows.

Billy Corgan
Under-Appreciated Genius.
The story of a depressed kid who is continually taken advantage of and stolen from by schoolmates, friends and family. The climax will be a suicide and the rest of the play will be people discussing his brilliance. Plot Twist: He faked his death.

Taylor Swift

Searching for a Fairy Tale
A young girl bounces from one relationship to another, constantly depressed because she thinks she’s the only girl to ever experience heartbreak. Sign that it’s a T-Swift Production: No new scores-Just all her singles. The protagonist will “write” them after each break-up

Katy Perry & Russell Brand
The Willy Wonka Burlesque Show
Candy Bikinis, one effeminate man in multiple bright suits, and “Singin’ in the (Chocolate) Rain.” Attendees will wear ponchos for the Gallagher-style tap dancing number in the inch-thick pool of melted Wonka bars.

Steve Martin

Brooklyn Hillbillies
The story of a bunch of barefoot hipsters with Appalachian accents slouching around a cardboard Williamsburg carrying banjos and pretending like they don’t care about “making it.” Break-out hit: “She left me for a better ‘Stache.”

Radiohead
Paranoid Android in Paris
A post-apocalyptic story of a bionic man who fears he’s being tracked through Paris by Interpol. When they bust in on a one-night stand, he warns them of “Karma Police.” Orchestra will consist of one dude at a computer.

Friday, December 9, 2011

Reviews & Updates

Now that I've failed yet another French exam, I thought it was time for a new blog.

I've been following the shit out of Kate Gabrielle recently. She's this crafty, stylish artist whom I dearly love. She has attempted and succeeded at blogging daily. She's my inspiration. You can (and should) check here out.


My blogging has been even less than sporadic lately. So, my new goal is to blog at least twice a week. I will do at least one album review (possibly something new or maybe something old that I've stumbled across while bin digging) and then some sort of play list. It may simply be a "this is what I'm listening to this week while driving/studying/trying not to kill myself" or it may have a more in-depth theme. BUT...there will at least be a theme.

This week I already have a couple (semi-)new album reviews written, so I'll hand one over now and save the rest for next week.

Laura Marling-A Creature I Don’t Know

A year ago, I’m not sure this album would received as much attention from the general public (or even from me) as it has recently. ACIDK is a bit like a flashback to the Folk music from the 60s and 70s, but has been slightly modified and modernized. While her London friends have gotten more synth-y (I’m lookin’ at you, Noah & The Whale) or more rock (Mumford & Sons), Laura Marling as, instead, seemingly stripped down. She turned her back on modern pop music and looked to her heroes. The best example of such an aboutface is “All My Rage” with it’s Joni Mitchell-channeling soprano and swelling, well, rage.


Marling performing "All My Rage" on Jools Holland.

For further proof of her firm allegiances with folk music, you should see her in concert. A typical Marling gig consists of a few mid-set solo songs that features only her and the guitar and often ends with her cover of Neil Young’s “Dance Dance Dance.”


Marling playing "The Needled and The Damage Done" by Neil Young.

Laura Marling has been pressed almost continuously for answers as to whom might be “The Beast.” She’s keeping her lips sealed, though, and I appreciate that. I don’t think you need to know who an artist’s beasts are to appreciate the song, so long as you have a vague of idea who or what may be your own beast. For being all of 21 years old (Sweet Jesus, I feel so unaccomplished next to her), Laura Marling has a firm grasp on what folk, and music in general, should sound like. In her case, it sounds absolutely beautiful.


"Sophia"-The first single from ACIDK

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Mark, Tom, Travis & a lesser known Punk

I’ve accumulated a large amount of my musical preferences from the guys in my life. I fell in love with Eminem when I developed a crush on a juvenile delinquent that time I had to go to summer school. I had only a vague idea of what punk was until this strange, surly boy in the army (I’ll call him, “MOMD” because, well, I do.) scoffed at me for not knowing much about The Clash or The Sex Pistols. Soon after, my life became filled with angry accented boys. Until then, the only “punk” I knew anything about was Blink 182 and Green Day-the same mainstream poppy stuff that’s still around today. A lot of my musical and boy preferences have changed over the years. But I still regularly vie for MOMD’s attention and I still like to thrash around private spaces screaming, “I AM AN ANARCHIST!”

I recently sent MOMD a link to an article in Nylon magazine (here) where Mark Hoppus talks about being a “punk rock dad.” I thought it was cute. The swoony girl in me immediately thought about what an adorable punk rock dad MOMD might be some day, so I sent it his way. Instead, he questioned whether or not Blink 182 was really “punk.” I’ll always defend music that I love. I also revel in the chance to prove him wrong. Plus, he can no longer remember why I started (a decade ago) calling him MOMD. So, I’m going to talk about punk music. He’ll have to read this, too, because somewhere in here is the reason why I call him MOMD. (PWNED, Bitch!)

To begin with (because it’s boring as hell), you have to look at the technical aspects of punk music. Wiki, God of Knowledge, describes the typical punk instrumentation as, “includes one or two electric guitars, a bass and a drum kit, along with vocals.” This is exactly the Blink-182 set up with Mark Hoppus on bass, Tom Delonge on electric guitar, and Travis Barker on drums. Wiki also claims that punk songs are usually in the verse-chorus form and in 4/4 time signature. Oh, and they’re short songs. The Blink-182 sound has evolved over the years and their latest album, Neighbourhoods, is filled with lengthy tracks. But in the beginning, they definitely stuck to the “short song” concept. Almost all songs off their 1997 album, Dude Ranch, were under three minutes. I’m really bad at picking out time signatures, but I’ve been assured from another musical boy in my life that Blink tends to follow that time signature.

I’m not entirely certain, but I think MOMD’s biggest problem with calling Blink a “punk band” is that the band is so happy-go-lucky and punk has always tended to be about anger, rebellion and dissent. But, if you take a second to examine the lyrics and attitudes in their songs, you might begin to see the punk-ness. As much as I hate to do this, I think a classic example of said rebellion is “What’s My Age Again?” The whole concept is that people expect them to act a certain way and they refuse. I don’t think I need to m-w.com the definition of the verb “rebel” for you to see the similarities. That same song, along with “Dammit,” employs the “relentless, repetitive “forced rhythm”” of the bass line that is also an indicator of a punk song. I won’t even go into “Dysentery Gary”-it’s rude, irreverent and, well, punk.

Most importantly in the punk scene has always been attitude. Aside from their music, they tended to have pretty rough interactions with fans. From stage diving to cursing people out, the guys in punk bands liked to get down and dirty with fans. These days Mark & Tom don’t get to much crowd surfing-I imagine it’s a little rough to do in arenas. But they certainly did “back in the day.” MOMD has their live album, The Mark, Tom and Travis Show. They curse and carry on with their fans throughout the concert. They act like badasses and appear to have a great time doing it.

Obviously, you have to keep in mind is that everything changes. Blink-182 has chosen not to roll down the road of political dissent, like their predecessors. If that makes them “wrong,” then it also only makes them more punk. They do what they want to, using a sound that they enjoy and they don’t give a fuck what people call it.

Like Blink, MOMD does what he wants. I’ve always liked that about bands and boys. That’s why I’ve loved Blink since the ‘90s, even during all the other changes in my musical preferences. Whether I was dating a football player or married to an architect, it’s also why MOMD has always been (though often said snarkily) the man of my dreams. He quotes me Smashing Pumpkin lyrics that I only get right because of his (and Billy Corgan’s) predictability and makes fun of my love for “open mic night” music. He also says inappropriate things to me that would warrant a knee between the legs from anyone else. I guess you could say he bonds with his audience by offending them. He doesn’t have a Mohawk, keeps his mouth shut about politics, and wore camo because it was his job, not because it was “cool.” He’s punk, too.

As always, here are a few songs.