(With special thanks to Suzi Riot)

The darkest secret of this country, I am afraid, is that too many of its citizens imagine that they belong to a much higher civilization somewhere else. That higher civilization doesn't have to be another country. It can be the past instead-the United States as it was before it was spoiled by immigrants and the enfranchisement of the blacks.

This state of mind allows too many to lie and cheat and steal from the rest of us, to sell us junk and addictive poisons and corrupting entertainments. What are the rest of us, after all, but sub-human aborigines?

Kurt Vonnegut Bluebeard

I'm confounded watching the Wingnuts in a State of Apoplexy over the "Financial Crisis."

Isn't this is Exactly what they Wanted?

And they're Bitching?

Good old "Free Market Values," Baby!

Unbridled Capitalism.

Yeeeeeeeee Haaaaaaaawwwwww, Ride'em Cowboy!

Line'em Up, and Knock'em Down, that's what I Always Say.

Hello?

<<<Echo>>>

Where are my Wingnut Brothers, and Sisters?

Instead of taking Credit, they're trying to Put This Off on the Democrats?

What?!

Okay, I can see it, a little bit.

Sure, the Moonbats walked side by side with the Free Marketeers down this Glorious Path.

That's true.

The Democrats are nothing, if not Enablers.

And it's also true that both parties took America by the hand, and told her-

Come on, it's okay, don't be scared, it's only a Harmless ol' Cliff. We promise, we're not going to Push You. That's it...That's it...just a few more steps...

I'm well aware of this, and not the Least Bit Surprised.

But Come On, People!

At most, the Democrats drove the Getaway Car.

Anyone can Drive.

The True Genius is in the Planning, and Execution. Doing the Deed, not sitting at the Curb in a '73 Impala, Waiting.

Wake Up Wingnuts!

Thirty Plus Years of Training, Preaching, Convincing. Decades of Blood, Sweat, Tears-

And now You want to Act All Pissy?

The Bailout is the ACME of YOUR Revolution.

This should be Your Shining Moment. The Time when you sit back, and Reflect upon your Success.

Not only did you Figure Out how to play with House Money, you convinced the House to Guarantee your Winnings, regardless of how the Hand Played Out.

Don't Be Angry America, THINK, Goddammit!

They played with your Money, Lost it All, and Left the Casino with more Loot than they can Carry.

Fucking Brilliant!

Seriously, give them their Due.

Take a Bow Wingnuts, a Curtain Call. Here, let me get you a Bouquet of Roses.

Splendid, Superb, Glorious, an Unbelievable, Monumental, Legendary Performance.

Hip, Hip Hooray!!!

You accomplished what the Moonbats, despite Decades of trying, could not-

To do Whatever You Want without a Single Consequence.

Masterful.

Don't Whine. Don't Feign Outrage.

No, no, no, no, NO.

Wallow in your Glory. Rub it in the Liberal's faces-

How you like us now, you Limp Wristed Wankers?

I can only imagine the joy my former co-worker at the Wingnut Paper is Feeling.

Why, at this point, he's probably Shooting Blanks after his Two Week Masturbatory Celebration. Oh, the visions of Sugar Plums that must be dancing in his Little. Empty. Head.

Praise Jesus, and God Bless the "Free Market."

Cathartic-

I must admit, I'm feeling a Tad Giddy, myself.

In fact, I'm fairly certain a Jolt of pure Joy Just ran through the center of my Jimmy.

Ooooooooooooo, Lordy Me. Ain't it Great to Be Alive?!!

Freedom, FREEDOM.

Mr. Gorbachev, TEAR DOWN THIS WALL!

Oh, Come On, Wingnuts.

It's Far Too Late to Change Your Minds, now.

She gave up It Up, TO YOU.

Not to that "Touchy, Feely, Poof" from her Poetry Class.

Your a Man's Man, and she knows it. She saw it, and by God, she had to Have It.

They'll sing songs in your Honor.

Hell, as we speak, Bruce and the Boys are warming up, ready to Serenade you.

Glory Days.

Get on Board, and Come On In for the Big Win.

"These are great days we're living, bros. We are Jolly Green Giants, walking the Earth..."

I wish this song had been around way back when I first started learning how to drive. It may have relieved some of the anxiety of taking the driver's test.

Now that I have my own kids who are just around the corner from driving age, I have a different perspective than I did as I approached driving age myself. I realize that this milestone in life is not just about the driving, but the entire rite of passage from youth to adulthood and all of the associated benefits and responsibilities of driving and impending adulthood.

This song carries on a tradition that has been so prominent in rock and roll and other genres of music over the years - the metaphorical marriage bewtween two of these biggest rites of passage - driving and sexuality.

-B

Come on Dad
Gimme the car tonight
Come on Dad
Gimme the car tonight
I got this girl I wanna....
Come on Dad
Gimme the car

Come on Dad
Gimme the car tonight
I tell you what
I tell you what I'm gonna do
I'm gonna pick her up
I'm gonna get her drunk
i'm gonna make her cry
I'm gonna get her high
I'm gonna make her laugh
I'm gonna make her...shh
Woman, woman, woman
She gotta, I know she's it

Cuz I'm gonna touch her
All over her body
Gonna touch her
All over her body
Gonna touch her
All over her body
Gonna touch her
All over her body

And she can touch me
All over my body
She can touch me
All over my body
She can touch me
All over my body
She can touch me
All over my body

Time goes by
I can feel myself growing old
Burning inside's making this boy turn out cold

What's wrong
What's right
I don't care when I hate my life
What's wrong, What's right
Y'know people don't care when they hate their life
But how can I explain personal pain
How can I explain personal pain
How can I explain my voice is in vain
How can I explain the deep down
Driving, driving, driving,
We're driving, we're driving, we're driving

Hey Dad
Speaking of driving
Come on Dad
Gimme the car tonight

So much he don't understand,
Just might never make it to a man

Come on Dad
Gimme the car
Come on Dad
I ain't no runt
Come on girl
Gimme your...
Cuz I ain't had much to live for
I ain't had much to live for
Y'know I ain't had much to live for
Y'know I ain't had much to live for

Gimme the Car, Violent Femmes

I have included some other songs with the metaphorical marriage of the driving and sexuality themes below.*

Crash in to Me - Dave Matthews Band
Driving With the Brakes On - Del Amitri
Born to Run - Bruce Springsteen
Little Red Corvette - Prince
Radar Love - Golden Earring
Vehicle - Ides of March
Roll Me Away - Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band
Racing in the Street - Bruce Springsteen
Boys of Summer - Don Henley
Slow Ride - Foghat
Paradise By the Dashboard Light - Meatloaf
Wicked Twisted Road - Reckless Kelly
The Road Goes on Forever - Robert Earl Keen
Brand New Car - The Rolling Stones
Motorcycle Drive By - Third Eye Blind

*I know there are a billion more I did not include, but I can't list every one of them as much as I would like to so that I can show off my "vast" musical knowledge.

If you liked this post, please rate my blog on Humor-Blogs.com.

Download!

[audio http://cobwebsandstrnge.podomatic.com/enclosure/2008-09-15T18_47_42-07_00.mp3]

[violent femmes - happiness is]

Oh, and look who decided to show up to the party! :)

I share my birthday with two other famous composers: Peter Maxwell Davies and Antonín Dvořák. The Davies coincidence is cool, because he wrote one of my very favorite pieces, Eight Songs for a Mad King. The sad thing is, my CD of it got sucked into the ether during one of my moves... ah, the peregrine, vagabond life of the musician... And there's no youtube of it, can you believe it? Well, it's really cool, you'll just have to take my word for it!

I'm sad to report that I have a bunch of errands to run today, but the bright side is that McDoc has the day off, so I'm sure he and I will find time to go do something fun to celebrate.

Meanwhile, here's a fun song to dance to. No disrespect to Max or Tony, but there's a time and place for everything. ;)

I'm not here for your entertainment
You don't really wanna mess with me tonight
Just stop and take a second
I was fine before you walked into my life
Cause you know it's over
Before it began
Keep your drink, just gimme the money
It's just you and your hand tonight

----

Broken down kitchen at the top of the stairs
Can I mix in with your affairs?
Share a smoke, Make a joke
Grasp and reach for a leg of hope
Words to memorize, words hypnotize
Words make my mouth exercise.
Words all fail the magic prize
Nothing I can say when I'm in your thighs

Oh my my my my my mo my mother
I would love to love you lover
City's restless
It's ready to pounce
go Here in your bed from ounce to ounce
Sayin' oh my my my my my mo my mother
I would love to love you lover
The city's restless
It's ready to pounce
go Here in your bed from ounce to ounce

I've given you a decision to make
Things to lose, things to take
Just as she's about ready to cut it up
She says
Wait a minute honey I'm gonna add it up
Add it up (x8)
Day after day
I get angry and I will say
That the day is in my sight
When I take a bow and say goodnight

---------------

Well you done done me and you bet I felt it
I tried to be chill but you're so hot that I melted
I fell right through the cracks
and now I'm trying to get back
Before the cool done run out
I'll be giving it my bestest
Nothing's going to stop me but divine intervention
I reckon it's again my turn to win some or learn some

Scooch closer dear
and i will nibble your ear

I've been spending way too long checking my tongue in the mirror
And bending over backwards just to try to see it clearer
My breath fogged up the glass
And so I drew a new face and laughed
I guess what i be saying is there ain't no better reason
To rid yourself of vanity and just go with the seasons
It's what we aim to do
Our name is our virtue

No please, don't complicate 
Our time is short
This is our fate, I'm yours

No please, don't hesitate
no more, no more
It cannot wait
The sky is your's!

it could change with this.......

no it can't I guess.

the vapors "turning japanese"

the who "pictures of lily"

billy idol "dancing with myself"

cyndi lauper "she-bop"

green day "longview"

violent femmes "blister in the sun"

elvis costello "pump it up"

iggy pop "i'm bored"

veruca salt "seether" (and for the record, i LOVE louise post!)

and to end, ween's "mister richard smoker".  i left out the buzzcocks b/c there's is a give away.

yes, that actually just happened.

simple minds "don't you forget about me" for JCPenney

depeche mode "just can't get enough" for payless

violent femmes "blister in the sun" for wendy's

why are they doing this to me. and yes i do take it personal. i was never that fond of simple minds but dm and vf played an integral part in my formative years and i can't hear one of their songs without thinking of someone, something or some place from that time. i just hope they made enough money (i won't say selling out) to offset my disappoint. but really? violent femmes for wendy's? it's makes me cry just a little inside.

This weeks Indie Music Hour podcast has just been uploaded.  Tracklist this week is as follows:

Thou Shalt Always Kill by Dan Le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip

Add It Up by Violent Femmes

Sugarless by Autolux

Harry & Maggie by Swervedriver

Sister by She Wants Revenge

The Lights Went Out by The Cribs

Little Miss Pipedream by The Wombats

Speechless by Cibo Matto

Take Me To The River by Talking Heads

Talking, Talking by New Young Pony Club

Goodbye by Asobi Seksu

Lua by Bright Eyes

Jersey Clowns by Josh Rouse

Please leave your comments here.  Enjoy :)

Dubmatix's new album Renegade Rockers offers some true gems with classic dancehall don Pinchers and rocksteady veteran Alton Ellis laying down superb tracks with the Canadian dubmaster. Lining up sensational reggae vocalist like Willi Williams, Linval Thompson, and Ranking Joe, Dubmatix has produced dynamite soundscapes to be played loudly in the hot Texas heat.

Hayes Carll's "She Left for Jesus" from his new album Trouble in Mind is the best country song of the year if not the decade. Witty, humorous, and delightfully sounding Hayes Carll embodies the best of roots music.

VP's Reggae Gold 2008 compiled some of the hottest reggae coming out of the Caribbean, including Mavado, Beenie Man, Bugle, Richie Spice, and Collie Buddz. Syren Hall's "Sombody Come Get Me" and Tarrus Riley's "Ease Off" play like smooth roots reggae. The compilation contains burning dancehall anthems, such as Stephen Marley and Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley's "The Mission." YT's "Champion Sound" kills the competition, dropping bombs and crazy bass.

For a trek across New Mexico and Arizona and onto the old casinos of downtown Las Vegas, the sounds of Joe Ely and Joel Guzman's new album Live Cactus framed a passing desert landscape. And where eventually the desert plain gave way to mad rapids on the swollen Colorado River rampaging down the truly grand canyons of the American Southwest.

Download this episode

Lipstick on Your Collar - Rita Pavone
My Girl is Calling Me a Liar - Chromeo
It's a Sin to Tell a Lie - Ricardo Juarez and his Orchestra
I'll be a Liar - Betty Harris
Hollywood Liar - Grace Jones
Les Mensonges - Jeanne Moreau
Lies - Violent Femmes
Do You Want to Know a Secret - The Beatles
To Hide a Little Thought - Jonathan Richman
Mr Mystery - Fabienne Delsol
Silver Dagger - Jim Smoak and the Louisiana Honeydrippers
Sneaking out the Back Door - Matt Bianco
Lies, Lies, Lies - Anisteen Allen
There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop - Kirsty MacColl
I Hope to Die if I Told a Lie - The Ink Spots
Spy vs Spy - Brian Briggs
Mensonges - Patrick Harrison
I Think We're Alone Now - Lene Lovich

Saudações, ALTianos e ALTianas. Notícias do fronte.

Sexta-feira. Primeiro post. Dia de fechamento.

Desculpem o atraso, mas é que continuamos na correria para tentar fechar a edição 24 do ALT antes das 7h da manhã de sábado. Não sei o quão mais cedo iremos embora, mas esperamos ter uma boa noite de sono após um mês de sextas-feiras viradas. Evidentemente, é um desejo a parte do que pretendemos com a edição. Só saíamos daqui quando de fato colocamos nas páginas do caderno o que consideramos ter o selo ALT de qualidade.

Enfim, praticamente todos os textos estão fechados, faltando apenas a crítica da Ju e do Anderson sobre o CD do Violent Femmes. O Jeff está fechando a tirinha e então vai para a diagramação das páginas centrais.

O video de hoje é uma propaganda da MTV muito diferente do que estamos acostumados a ver. Show.

***
01/08
- Dia do Selo Postal Brasileiro;
- Irmãos Warner, produtores de cinema, experimental o vitafone, sistema inovador de sincronização de som e imagem, em 1926;
- Help, dos Beatles; lançamento, em 1965;
- MTV; inauguração, nos estados Unidos, em 1981;

***

Até mais.

ALT.

Quinta-feira. Segundo post.

Este bendito dia que é quinta-feira é também a hora de comentarmos a próxima edição. Por sinal, a primeira de agosto, já que hoje é o último dia do primeiro mês da segunda metade do ano, right?

Certo. Divagações à parte, os assuntos são os seguintes: um misto de oração e tributo ao Grateful Dead, por o Sr. Prof. Dr. Silvio Ricardo Demétrio; uma matéria sobre a Academia Literária Luís Vaz de Camões; escritos do presidente da Academia Cascavelense de Letras, Antonio de Jesus; uma discussão interessante sobre a prosa do romantismo, pelo crítico literário e jornalista Emanuel de Campos; análises muito embasadas sobre o CD do Violent Femmes, indicado por Vander Colombo; a discussão intelectualmente estimulante deste cineasta e da socióloga Laysmara Carneiro Edoardo sobre o filme Café-da-manhã em Plutão. Mundo Sebo e Emblogado estão firmes e fortes.

É isso.

Agora vamos continuar no clima surrealista que nos cerca. Afinal, os relógios derreteram e já deve passar do meio-dia.

Hasta.

ALT.

I'd like to take you through a musical journey here: album-by-album, stage-by-stage.

The early years: Blue & Pinkerton

I'll be honest--during this period of time I was still going through my ska/punk phase so I didn't give Weezer much more than a glance--it's only once I started highschool that I realized exactly how incredible these albums were. This is the stage of Weezer's career that we all like to believe they still embody: the geeky high school kids playing dungeons & dragons, then taking a break to write awkwardly catchy power-pop songs about goofing off, vulnerability, girls, and pop culture. They had a sound that was incredibly tight musically yet it had a rough feel to it as if the guys had just picked up their instruments and immediately were bestowed the talent with which to play them--they merely had to write the songs. They can match pitch (sometimes), the rhythms have a simplistic yet unconventional 4/4 chugging feel and the solos often sound a little chaotic (as if they were just messing around and said "hey, that sounds pretty cool... do that again"). It sounded like Pixies mixed with Green Day (and a little bit of Violent Femmes thrown in for good measure).

Once Pinkerton was recorded, the band had adopted a more mature sound (well, they were sounding 18 instead of 16) and the songs had a much more conceptual feel to them. Oh, it was still awkwardly catchy power-pop, don't get me wrong, but there seemed to be more purpose and truth in the songs than in Blue's feel-good aesthetic. It seemed like there was much more emotional investment in this record. It bombed. Today it's considered their masterpiece.

The second coming: Green, Maladroit, & Make Believe

Weezer took 5 years before releasing another album after Matt Sharp left to pursue The Rentals full-time. When Green was finally released, it had so much hype behind it that it was immediately picked up by mainstream culture. Not only that, but Weezer had learned how to harmonize. Their instrumentals were tighter and there seemed to be more method to their songs (verse-chorus-verse, solos that echo the verse structure). Basically, they didn't sound like Weezer anymore. Fans lauded it as a more accessible (although Weezer was always accessible IMO), less awkward, and even more catchy pop record. Critics and former-fans claimed it sounded like it was shat out of a factory that churned out mediocre pop records with mass appeal. Where was the geeky awkwardness and the rough-around-the-edges sound that they had adored so much when they were 16?!

Maladroit was then released with a bit more sensitivity to the old Weezer fans and was as close as they've come to their old-style since the release of Green. It had longer solos that didn't merely sound like the verse on guitar and it had hooks that had less of a mass-produced sound to them. However, it had almost completely foregone its pop-punk roots and had matured incredibly in its musical style (more complex rhythms that no longer focused on power chords). Unfortunately, this is not what the old fans were looking for either.

Make Believe was just garbage. It was eaten up by 2005's MTV demographic. It sounded like they had given up on integrity.

"We're Weezer, what do you want?!": The Red Album

After the amazing sales of Make Believe yet the loss of whatever dignity their music had left, Weezer was left with one option: to say "Fuck it. Let's write some pop songs." The Red Album was released in 2008. All that needs to be said can be said in their near-six-minute anthem, 'The Greatest Man That Ever Lived (Variations on a Shaker Hymn).' It's obvious that Weezer doesn't want to be the Weezer that we loved when we were 16, they want to be Weezer for the 16 year-olds in today's world... and they don't give a shit what you think.

Y a la basse qui frappe et la guitare qui choque
Et y a le batteur qui s'éclate et toi qui tiens le choc

Tu sais qui c'est ? Envoie-moi un mail...
Ou balance un commentaire.

Donc, grâce à Obiwan, je suis tombé sur ce site, communautaire et collaboratif, sur lequel une bande de malades répertorie l'ensemble des concerts auxquels ils ont assisté, scannent le billet, mettent des commentaires, et même peut-être bientôt des vidéos. ça s'appelle myconcertarchive. Tu me crois pas ? Tiens voilà un billet d'un concert des "Violent Femmes" en 1991...

148 concerts à ce jour répertoriés, c'est pas beaucoup, mais si l'initiative prend, ça peut être assez sympa.

Et pour ceux qui aiment l'improvisation, la spontanéité, la nouveauté, je ne saurais que trop vous recommander l'excellent site concertsaemporter (ou la Blogothèque). Quoi ? Y'en a encore parmi vous qui connaissent pas ? Ouhla...
C'est quoi le principe ? Un artiste, en concert, dans un lieu insolite. Dans la rue. Au bord d'un lac. Un délicieux moment Live. Une vraie Révolution musicale rendue possible grâce à la Révolution des Nouvelles Technologies. Preuve s'il en était besoin que la musique se réinventera toujours...

Je vous ai sélectionné une chanson de Lykke Li (je vous en parlerai plus tard) tournée à San Francisco (la classe...)

[dailymotion id=x68bnd&related=0]

Et puis une chanson de Cali tournée dans le Funiculaire de Montmartre. Enorme.

[dailymotion id=x3md6i&related=1]

Mais aussi mon copain Jason Mraz, qui joue notamment avec une tzigane à Beaubourg...

Je salue au passage l'ensemble des membres de la Blogothèque pour le concept, la qualité de l'image et du son.

Et puis je vous laisse chercher "I'm from Barcelona" (suédois tout comme Lykke Li) qui finit par embarquer dans son sillage tous les badauds parisiens.

La Blogothèque et les concerts à emporter continuent de croître, les lieux de tournage se multiplient. Faites un long tour sur leur site et partez en découverte... Vous n'écouterez plus la musique de la même oreille...

Pour diffuser cet article, cliquez ici :

I thought as a teaser, I'd list my numbers 110-101 as sort of a "just missed." It might give you an inkling of what is to come (and to show how hard it is to make the list and try to make it be something beyond a qualitative list ... heck, a lot of these albums might have easily made the top 100).

• 110. AC/DC: Back in Black
• 109. Beastie Boys: Check Your Head
• 108. Violent Femmes: Violent Femmes
• 107. Chemical Brothers: Exit Planet Dust
• 106. New Pornographers: Mass Romantic
• 105. Amon Tobin: Bricolage
• 104. The Streets: A Grand Don't Come for Free
• 103. Guns 'N Roses: Appetite for Destruction
• 102. The Roots: Things Fall Apart
• 101. Quasi: Featuring 'Birds'

The rest will be coming soon!

Violent Femmes covering T-Rex's "Children of the Revolution": pinpointing the moment at which I realized there was a boatload of music not being played on Top 40 radio. Glad I didn't have MTV at this time, cause this vid is pretty darned goofy. Although it does capture the look and feel of a typical Wisconsin Friday Fish Fry.

I grew up listening to AM radio. Loved Streisand's "Evergreen" as much as Anita Ward's "Ring My Bell". Didn't quite understand the appeal of "Heart of Glass", because I didn't understand that Debbie Harry circa 1979/80 was smoking hot. She was just a breathy voice in front of a disco beat. I saw the cover of her 45 at my local National Record Mart, and didn't realize what they were really selling.

Tell me that's not a Farrah Fawcett clone. Oh, to be innocent again.

Then in the early 80s, MTV came when cable television hit town. The former "music channel" is such a strange phenomenon of my generation. I can clearly remember life pre- and post-MTV. Was I a better person because I knew who the Buggles were? Probably not, but I heard my first Kinks song this way, and also learned that if my friends didn't dance they were no friends of Men Without Hats.

Then our family moved to Wisconsin, which was a culture shock to say the least. It was rural, quiet. Filled with mosquitos and tourists in the summer, and measurable amounts of snow the other 9 months of the year. MTV was a distant memory. In fact, there wasn't even cable in our town in 1985.

A friend of mine introduced me to the Violent Femmes song above (still classic) and album (not so much), which not only marked a change in my view of entertainment, it also was a rude awakening. It's not even the dirtiest song in the Femmes' repertoire, but when I heard local-boy Gordon Gano growling "Bump and grind, have a good time", I finally understood what it meant.

S-E-X.

Within a few months, after MTV had returned to my life, I lavished in Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer", thanks to its fantastic video, and cryptically sexual lyrics. The girls that I knew didn't exactly "open up [their] fruitcage", but that didn't mean I wasn't aware of said fruitcages.

My newfound musical appetite not yet whetted, I stumbled upon Elvis Costello's Blood and Chocolate at Musicland. I remember counting out pocket change to buy that cassette, because I had read such a great review in the year-end Rolling Stone. First of all, that album proves that Elvis was the original Napoleon Dynamite, and he should be getting DVD residuals to this day. However, more importantly to this post is that at the heart of that album - track #5 - is "I Want You", a quintessential Costello song, and a nasty sex song.

"I Want You" chronicles a man driven mad by jealous thoughts of his lover sleeping with another man. And Elvis more or less spits the lyrics instead of singing them. He's wounded, angry and murderous. And yet, it's still kinda hot, because it's apparent the song's protagonist is horny as hell. It was through this song, um, among others, I learned that sex is natural, sex is fun, but sex is best when it's between monogamous consensual adults. Better said, one on one. I mean, c-c-c-c-c-c-c-come on.

I got my driver's license in 1988, and I discovered music and girls nearly simultaneously. Unfortunately, the outbreak of HIV/AIDS around that time almost guaranteed that I was going to be spending more time driving around with only the music to accompany me. No wonder I started listening to such angry stuff.

Les podría decir que este disco es maravilloso, pero la verdad es que fuera de sus momentos y su sonido de garage que influenciaría años mas tarde a Nirvana y legiones, no tiene mucho, pero es un verdadero documento histórico. El presente tema es una maravilla de naturalidad y espontaneidad rockera con una ligera influencia de Iggy Pop. Un tema excelente lleno de naturalidad que funciona muy bien en la carretera. Vale la pena mencionar que el disco es de 1982. Gracias Cerpin

Avedrio

One moment of the past few days has stuck in my mind and so I figured it’s the perfect time to finally make that first post I was invited to months ago (yes, I’m a slack bastard).

The other night while a few of us were chilling on a couch, over a few beers and stories, others were in another room, a bedroom converted into a studio, creating a track in memory of the one who had passed.

And it got me thinking, and it got us talking, about the insane amount of power that something as simple as music can have.

Few people will probably ever hear this track. It was created for a special moment in time, to pay tribute to an incredible person, and played for a special occasion, but to the people that heard it, and understood, it held more meaning than can be described. And that’s the power of music. To every millions of people that take no notice of a song playing on the radio, or openly scorn it, there will be one person, like the close friends who understood what this made-in-a-night-over-a-few-beers track represented, who will be affected in such a way that can, if you’re really fucking lucky, literally change the course of life.

I remember reading an article a while ago, written by a restaurant reviewer, who always felt a little odd admitting his area of journalism and I feel his pain. There’s always an underlying feeling, whether it’s intended or not, that the ‘entertainment’ areas of journalism don’t really count in the big scheme of things. It’s the political reporting, or the highly investigative pieces that pull impressed looks. Sure, interviewing bands and scoring free albums would be cool but music is just a bit of fun isn’t it?

Sure, to some it is. But in a way, that’s half the magic of music.

One of the most amazing things about music, and art in general, is its open-ness to personal interpretation. It’s something unique about music that, when you think about it, is pretty damn impressive.

Take some of the most famous words ever spoken:

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character."

Words that have, undoubtedly, affected a hell of a lot of people. And still do. But there's one meaning, and one only, that can be found in the words.

Music on the other hand, is entirely different. To me Blink 182’s highly criticised ‘Adams Song’ is a message of triumph through desperation. An idea that if you stick with it long enough, you’ll get through.

To the kid who was famously found hanging from his garage roof with the song locked on repeat, it may have meant something else entirely.

There are a handful of songs I don’t think I’ll ever listen to again without shedding a tear. There are others that got me through some pretty crazy times. If Journey starts playing I’ll always be taken back to a crazy drunken night in Vegas. Everytime I hear Violent Femmes, I’m 15, with my best mate, chasing her pet pig down the beach.

There’s a lot of stories I’ll never tell, but there’s rarely a moment in my 27 years without a soundtrack attached.

There’s a lot of it I don’t like. There are bands I believe do no good in the world and countless I cringe at every time I hear the opening chords to one of their generic, passionless songs. But I’m sure there are people who have a story that means the world to them attached to that very song.

For every song that you trash, for every scene that you belittle and for every band that you talk shit about on some forum, there will be some kid, somewhere, who’s been through hell and back with the very song you’re hating on.

(Hopefully that kid isn’t someone who reads my reviews …)

Personal meanings behind, I’d be pretty keen to argue with anyone who wants to tell me any other medium has the same power on such a broad scale as music. I’ll buy you a beer if you come out on top in the end.

When you think about it, there are few events, people or places that haven’t in some way been immortalized by music.

Who can think about the Berlin Wall without the image of 450,000 people crowded around to watch Pink Floyd perform? The legendary Joe Strummer will forever be immortalized through the perfect placement of the final track on his final album. It’s difficult to hear Geldoff belting to words to ‘I don’t Like Mondays’ without getting images of a 16 year old kid shooting away at the school next door.

With power, of course, comes fear … and we’ve all heard the stories of artists and entire genres being held responsible for all that is evil in the world. Sure, it’s absurd and incredibly frustrating, but what else holds such power, that people can blame it for the tragedies of entire subcultures.

Music can bring a stadium of people together, regardless of race or culture or language barriers, every night, throughout the world. When the right band is playing, it doesn’t matter which country you’re in, how old you are or what car your mum drives. The night is yours. The passion is real and if you’re lucky enough to be at the right show, this night will be etched in your memory for the rest of your life. And then you look around you and realize every single person in the venue is feeling exactly like you are right now.

If that’s not something pretty damn special, then I don’t know what is.

In response to the question in the previous post of whether punk is dead – in many ways it is. In many ways it died the day it was born. But at the end of the day it doesn’t matter. My interpretation of punk is very much alive – as it is to countless people and bands around the world. I’ll take the music, embrace it and live it. I’ll take in the stories it’s got to tell, and if the story doesn’t quite fit – I’ll create my own. That’s the power of music right there. Whether it’s hip-hop, punk, drum and bass or pop - as cliché as it sounds – music does have the ability to change the world.

If I get to be there, to report even a small part of it – I’ll be pretty fucking lucky I reckon.