Lately, examining the processes behind critique and the act of critique itself has left me thinking deeply about my stance on the (somewhat) constructive criticism of other peoples art that I spend so much time doing. I’ve been told by several individuals before that critique is a shallow career choice— I hide behind a computer screen or magazine and rant about what I feel or think to be the best interpretation of someone else’s work. The right person would say that it is never anyone else’s place to create opinions, especially negative ones, of an individuals masterpiece.

Since I’ve been trying to be the most critical of thinkers lately in order to keep my mind intact and up to speed while I’m out of school, I have been analyzing the pros and cons of the act of critique— and I believe I’ve finally come up with my final opinion of the subject. My opinions can be seen and defined as art as well, given they are in the proper setting to be interpreted as so therefore as long as I can judge other people’s work, they can judge mine. It’s a cruel cruel world out there. Anyways…

I haven’t written a review in a terribly long time because I haven’t been inspired by any artists’ work enough to write a long and educated analysis of anything, other than maybe an episode of the Real Housewives of New York. But in all seriousness, I’ve been attempting to scope out as many new artists as possible in hopes of finding someone I can rant and rave about positively for this blog. I really love having this blog more than I love any other internet account I possess, but I despise coming off as negative through my writing. Ultimately because of this, I’m left torn— simply because to me, a negative writing style exudes arrogance and creates this image of me as a narcissistic and elitist know-it-all with a blog and unlimited time to think of such nasty things about other people making music and doing things I personally could not do myself. But it’s hard for me to think up positive ideas and develop opinions on musical acts that aren’t original and are unimpressive— and sometimes being negative is fun and mildly entertaining.

I hope to someday find a band, a current one, that leaves an impression on me in the way that Pearl Jam, the Smashing Pumpkins, and other bands have left on me throughout my musical inquiries. As any music fan could say, the amount of time consumed in listening and analyzing music seems like an eternity— but an eternity well spent. I truly never want to stop listening to music and thinking and enjoying what other people create to keep themselves happy and fulfilled, as well as pleasing thousands of people they don’t know throughout the world. With all the greediness on this planet its nice to know I will always be able to share a bond with bands who value the idea of knowing they’re making people they don’t know happy by their music— essentially sharing the wealth of creativity.

But on that note… I’ve finished all of Pearl Jam’s discography and I have been basking in it like no other. Chemistry to me is so major in the process of making music, and any sensible person can tell when there is cosmic, intergalactic, sort of out of this world connection between individuals making music because the music will without a doubt sound good. Good is broad, but good in the sense of you can feel the warmth and fullness of a song made by people who care for each other, who see each others flaws, and can build off of them to create something beyond the physical limitations of this world. I feel like Pearl Jam really defines what I just explained; their chemistry is undeniable and contagious to everyone and anyone who takes a stab at listening to them.

When I look at Pearl Jam and compare them to other favorite bands of mine, they stand out because of their chemistry. No other band I favor is still together in almost their complete original lineup, except Radiohead, and I only like Radiohead prior to Amnesiac, so….they don’t even really count because now they’re just batshit (sorry for the negativity). But honestly I feel like bands like the Smashing Pumpkins, who allowed fame wealth and control to define their creative processes, fell apart because they lost sight of the major goal— making themselves happy and bringing joy to others. I don’t know; I may be really over thinking all of this but I just feel like music is a beautiful thing and it deserves to be thought out in a way beyond the logistical standpoints most people choose to graze when asked to think about the subject.

Thank you for reading this rant. I promise more substantial things will come soon enough. 

It’s hard to choose a starting place for this post because I have been so intensely involved in one particular band for the past few months, and since they blow my mind away, it’s hard for me to decide where to even begin my explanation of love and appreciation for/towards them. Ironically enough, they used to be on list of “Bands I hate and will never listen to, ever”. It’s evolution, baby! 

So, Pearl Jam. The undying love still treks on, and even more intensely than before. I have to say that after carefully examining their discography (live albums and Lost Dogs included) up until Riot Act, I am way more fond of their post-Vs. stuff than I am of their music prior. Surprising, I know, since I channel the “grunge” gods like no other, I’m even surprised that I prefer their alternative-alternate over their deeply rooted, Seattle-punk based influences. Oh well.

But for recommendations, I would definitely 100 percent recommend Vitalogy (1994). It is a quintessential Pearl Jam conglomeration of creativity and uniqueness that displays the total change of pace the band was going for come 1994. It’s an album equipped with it’s own personality essentially; Not For You, Better Man, Nothingman, Last Exit, Corduroy…I mean, there is no wrong here. Each song is like it’s own human being— packed with individuality and a nature all of its own.

Regardless of their differences in melody, lyrical content, and over all feeling, the songs on Vitalogy are unified in such a fashion that the album is frankly addicting. I can listen to Not For You and Corduroy a million times over with no disregard towards either.

I’m all for repeats and I always have been, but these two songs sound different to me every time- and that’s why I choose to listen to them on repeat. So many sounds and instruments are being utilized in not just the two songs mentioned, but in all of the songs on the album, that every time you listen to one of them you hear something different that you didn’t hear before, or you listen to the song from a different perspective than you did prior, ultimately leading to even your frame of mind altering the way you hear the song.

Vitalogy is pure power and energy. If you want to hear a Pearl Jam album that isn’t the least bit “grunge”, try it out and see how you like it. If not there are other options.

No Code and Yield (1996 and 1998, respectively) are good as well; I prefer Yield over No Code simply because of the creative process that spawned Yield—it was a more positive and passionate environment shared between all the musicians of the band, instead of monopolized and controlled by Eddie Vedder. Not to discredit him; he has grown on me significantly, but regardless I still have some angst towards him and his crazy Capricorn control freak ways. He can’t help them though, heh.

From No Code I recommend the following:

Hail, Hail

Who You Are (my favorite from the album)

Off He Goes

Smile 

From Yield:

Brain of J

Do the Evolution

Given to Fly (my favorite from the album)

SO yes. If you want to enter the 21st century, something I will always be weary about, Binaural (2000) is genius. Nothing As It Seems sends chills up your spine. Just saying. 

On a side note… I’m going to Outside Lands this August! I can’t wait to see some of the greatest musicians of all time, Stevie Wonder, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, and not to forget my most favorite act on the lineup…Metallica. There are no words I can think of to explain the anticipation and excitement I have to see what Metallica chalks up for their set. Metallica live is something I have longed to see for far too long; their performances exude more energy than a hyper active five year old, and I feel that rush just from watching youtube videos…so you can assume what I’ll feel like during their live show. Ahh!

In terms of some of the other acts, I’m not nearly as excited to see them but I still am rather chipper about experiencing them live. Die Antwoord will be incredibly cool, as will Beck, Tame Impala, Norah Jones, etc. But once it gets closer to the date I’ll definitely post another entry in regards to an Outside Lands playlist of some calibur. 

Thank you for listening always— updates will hopefully coming more frequently now than they have been. 

Hello, this is going to be a particularly rage fueled post, so please read at your discretion. 

I’ll just start by going right into it— what the fuck Perry Ferrell. I’m not even questioning, I’m stating, what the fuck. Honestly I cannot say I’m surprised at all at the Lollapalooza 2012 lineup. It turned out to be exactly what I could have guessed; a lineup full of mediocre musicians who are the poster children for this pseudo rock movement that has been plaguing airwaves, iTunes, and all other mainstream fountains for music for the past several years now, and I am so beyond sick of it.

To start with a more positive outlook (if you want to call it that), seeing Jack White and RHCP on the lineup was mildly spirit lifting, but I can’t say I respect what RHCP has become since last summers release of I’m With You, and I could have easily guessed Mr. White would be performing since his first solo album Blunderbuss is dropping this summer (which I cannot deny, I am quite excited for). Nonetheless they’ve both been around since before the turn of the century, which is why I’m not as angry about them performing, but be aware that that doesn’t mean I’m not upset about it.

But to see the Black Keys, Florence and the Machine, At The Drive In, and Bassnectar as headlining acts makes me cringe more than anything. Perry Ferrell, you are only attributing to every teenager’s fantasy of bad indie music, wannabe blues rock, and now age old, substandard dubstep. I feel like being an musician aficionado of Ferrell’s caliber, the man who helped to bring 90’s alternative to a level it hadn’t ever even dreamed of reaching, he could at least try to speak to a crowd different than just the general masses of today. I appreciate Ferrell’s efforts every year to put on a festival bigger and better than any other one going on in the country, but to be honest, how many fucking festivals have the Black Keys headlined in the past two years? [It’s more than sickening that people actually give them the time of day— the day the Black Keys release an album that doesn’t sound exactly like the past two they’ve put out, maybe I won’t hate them as much. Until then I have zero tolerance and almost no respect for their strange cult following of boat wearing shoe boys and floral dress wearing girls who think they’re listening to rock and roll. Pish posh.]

To continue on the topic of Perry Ferrell and whatever fucking committee he put together to create this joke of a lineup, I need people to understand and be educated on the bands he has in the past line up his festival. The Smashing Pumpkins, George Clinton & Parliament, Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails, Hole, Pavement, Rage Against the Machine, I mean I could go on literally for an hour explaining why it makes legitamately no sense that Lolla has stooped so low. Since the revival of the concert in 2003, it just seems to have gotten worse and worse each year with who is asked to perform.

And at the same time as me heavily criticizing Perry Ferrell, I also want to say it’s not his fault. What has music become, really, that the so called “best festival line up of this year” is made up of such bad music. I wrote a post several months ago actually addressing this topic so I won’t digress into it any further, but all I can say is that it breaks my heart to see how dilapidated the music industry is these days. 

In regards to the smaller acts on the line up, such as Toro y Moi, Die Antwoord, Sigur Rios and Tame Impala, I will not surprised if their crowds of fans are significantly smaller and their sets are overshadowed by the bellowing of bands who don’t deserve the respect they will most likely be given. The fact that this will most likely be a reality is also absolutely horrendous to have to think about. 

And the one final thing about the Lolla lineup that left me shell shocked was that Black Sabbath is on it. I’m sorry— did I read that right?

Sabbath has so much going on with them as of right now (as most people attending Lolla wouldn’t know), from lineup changes to lawsuits, I have no clue why they’d sign up to participate at a festival that seemingly goes against all that they cherish with being one of the founding Shock Rock metal bands of the 20th century. Why isn’t Sabbath playing at Orion Fest, a place they will be much more appreciated? It makes no sense to me, and ultimately their decision to play at Lolla makes me think that they’re revitalization to them is about attracting a younger and hipper audience than it is about gaining the liking of a smaller group of metal fans who still exist, young and old. 

Once again, to see such shitty acts on a lineup for such a legendary festival is just proof of how deplorable the music industry is right now. It makes me so angry to have no sort of liking for any current band, and that I’ve had to resort to the bands of past generations in order to hear some real music. 

I don’t even really want to discuss the assortment of rap and hip hop Lolla has on it’s lineup this year because I don’t really feel like it’s my place to. Even so, it’s not really my place to say any of this… but just know this rant is coming from the place of a frustrated rock fan. 

Thank you for listening. 

Lately I’ve had a lot of trouble attempting to get into new music.

I spent most of the summer trying to find new bands that I could get into. Not to say that I wasn’t already content with my list of favorite bands, I just wanted something new to pop out at me and give me the same rush of feelings I get when I listen to my usual music.

I can say that I pretty much failed. Over the past three months I have gotten several albums including Joy Division’s first album Unknown Pleasures, Watch the Throne, both Grizzly Bear albums, Sonic Youth’s so-called masterpiece ‘Goo’, Reel Big Fish’s only major album Turn The Radio Off, Radiohead’s and the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s full discographies, and lastly Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes.

Let me just tell you that I am only still listening to Radiohead and Jimi. Everything else I invested in I was impressed by for merely a week, tops. 

This experience of trying out new music made me realize that sticking to what you’re used to may not always be such a bad thing. I like what I like and everyone else should like what they like too. If one is open to suggestions, they should always take them. Otherwise, do not try to guide yourself because you may end up in a pile of musical shit, like I did, which ultimately made me realize that I should not be my own musical guru. I am only good at recommendations for others, not myself, if that makes any sense to you.

Nonetheless, I’m still going to post a list of songs for you to listen to and enjoy, all from the music I accumulated this summer.

1. Beer- Reel Big Fish (Turn Off The Radio, 1996) Actually, an old favorite. I’ve been listening to this song for the past three years. It was, and still is the only Reel Big Fish song I actually like. I decided to get the whole album because I liked this song so much, and I can now say that Beer is the best song on the album, by far. If you like ska but haven’t really investigated into the older ska, listen to this song. It’s really cool. The album though wasn’t really for me, but maybe if you like Ska a lot, you’ll like it. You never know.

2. Bones- Radiohead (The Bends, 1996) I really really love this song. The Bends has turned out to be my favorite of all the Radiohead albums, and this song really sealed the deal on that for me. I don’t know what it is specifically about the song that I find so intriguing, maybe it is the prominent bass line, the almost new-wave intro, or the incredibly powerful chorus, I’m not quite sure but I do know the song is phenomenal. It is my most favorite song from The Bends by far, so take a listen you won’t regret it.

3. Gotta Have It- Jay-Z & Kanye West (Watch The Throne, 2011) One of the most fun songs from the album. Watch The Throne is an album filled with hits and misses, but this song is my most favorite so you can assume it is a hit… to an extent. The beat is really sick, the switch off’s from Jay to Kanye are really good, and Kanye’s parts are fucking great. It is my second favorite song from the album, my first being No Church For The Wild. The only reason I didn’t write about that song is because never is it acceptable to say an album intro is your favorite song on the album. But that’s just my opinion. Overall I love this song and if you’re interested in Watch the Throne but you’ve only grazed over the album, take a listen to this song.

4. Remember- The Jimi Hendrix Experience (Are You Experienced?, 1967) Are You Experienced? is my favorite Jimi album by far. Every single song off the album is filled with such emotion and excellent vibes, you can’t help but smile during every song. In particular, Remember has such a nice riff, a great chorus, and a beyond excellent instrumental interlude. I’ve noticed with Jimi’s songs that the shorter the song, the better it is. This song is short, simple, and to the point- a great song for idle listening.

5. 64- MellowHype (BlackenedWhite, 2011) Holy. Fuck. I really need to get this whole album, but I want to buy it instead of download it soooo, I’m waiting. But let me just say, I love Hodgy Beats. His flow is absolutely ridiculous, his lyrics are so fucking clever, and Left Brain…thank you. I accredit Left Brain for bringing back truly good beats to rap music. Tyler and himself are such excellent producers, but Left Brain’s style is very different from Tyler’s, which I admire greatly. MellowHype is definitely a reflection of how well Hodgy and Left Brain can collaborate. 64 is such a creepy, dark song that you can’t help but get a little on edge when you listen to it. At the same time though, it’s one of those songs that MUST be on repeat. Bravo, guys.

So yeah, there’s just five songs that I liked from the summer. Since summer is now officially over and it is fall now, I will start to get into my fall mood, which means, better music. The seasons I like the best always bring the best songs with them. So get ready for future posts with some excellent tunes. 

Hello there. So today I’m going to try to discuss various things, some things will have shorter snip its than others. Bear with me?

So I have Watch The Throne. It’s chill. That’s my only real critique, sorry. Yeah I know, I’m late but I figured I’d wait for the hype to die down a wee bit, then get my listening time in on the album. I think if you know me or read this blog, you know that I’m going to say that The Neptunes are absolute geniuses (Chad Hugo and Pharrell, if you didn’t know), Frank Ocean should marry me, or better yet, just live in my house and serenade me while I venture around my abode doing daily chores, and fuck Otis cause that song is so repetitive and really irritating. But kudos for that VMA performance cause they did an impeccable job in comparison to some of the hot messes who performed that night. I’ll get back to that later.

Second, I’m With You came out this week. If you do not know, it is the highly anticipated new Red Hot Chili Peppers album, minus John plus Josh. Since The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie was so so, as everyone is now aware, I have developed a sort of blueprint as to how I am planning to listen to this album. Now listen to my logic here, because I think it’s pretty valid.

I’m not going to listen to the album until I buy it hard copy. When I buy the hard copy (this could be from two days from now, or two years from now) I plan to be completely ready mentally to be disappointed by complete castastrophe this album could be. Or, I want to be so fucking shocked because my expectations were so incredibly low, that I cry and go into a complete state of shock and become the most devoted Red Hot Chili Peppers fan I could possibly be (even though I’m pretty sure I’m already at that level). So basically either I want this album to impress me beyond mental capacitance, (the chances of that happening are so fucking slim), or I just want to be expecting some extreme disappointment. But I digress…

The MTV VMAS. I’m going to keep this short because I’m talking way too much, but seriously. What was that!? Justin Bieber seriously was just refusing to clap for anyone. Justin Bieber, stop being such a pompous identity confused 17 year old and show some respect for real musicians. Thanks. Lil Wayne you fucking suck, I don’t even want to dirty my hands with Tha Carter IV, Chris Brown just quit it (even though I love you), and yeah fuck you Justin Bieber. Odd Future I’m so proud of you guys, good fucking luck with your future, it’s looking super bright. Oh yeah and Britney….I fucking love you. You are my idol for life.

So, to end this excessively long post, what is a blog post of mine without some good ol’ tunes to recommend? My iTunes was doing that annoying shuffling thing it does, and with a music library like mine, the chances of a good song that actually fits my current mood is uh…50/50. So being me, I’m always expecting the worse, and tonight I was actually so pleasantly surprised by some of the songs that came on. Here are a few of the songs that in particular made me smile when they graced me with their presence, randomly:

1. The Morning After- Faith No More (The Real Thing, 1989)

2. Interstate Love Song- Stone Temple Pilots (Purple, 1994)

3. Last Caress- The Misfits (Beware, 1980)

4. Holidays in the Sun- The Sex Pistols (Nevermind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, 1977)

First song is an old favorite. Faith No More is an acquired taste. They’re loud in a different way (don’t ask me to evaluate on that). Their lead singer has a voice that sounds like nails on a chalk board, but at the same time you wanna just turn them up and bob your head really hard, maybe even dance around in your bedroom in your undies, I don’t know your life but I do know mine, and this song def makes me want do those things. Anyways…..Morning After has a great intro that automatically reels you into the song. Take a listen.

Second song, I can’t even begin. Stone Temple Pilots are one of my all time favorite bands. I really don’t why but whenever I listen to their music there are two actions I immediately want to take, per them as inspiration. First, take a road trip somewhere cool and secluded that would need some good ol’ rock and roll as the soundtrack, and Scott Weiland as the lyrical narrator (hehe i’m so funny). Second thing, is cry. They just make me wanna cry. Scott Weiland’s voice absolutely petrifies me. I don’t know why, but I don’t think the feeling I get when I hear his voice will ever subside. I can legitimately feel tears being created every time I hear those two musical masterpieces. I’m talking about Core and Purple. (released in 92 and 94, respectively)

The third and fourth songs, forgive me. I had a bit of a punk music phase about 4 years ago…I was trying to find myself…yeah okay I’m not even going to get into that but these are two songs I love that survived through that phase with me. Holidays in the Sun is the ONLY Sex Pistols song that doesn’t make me want to rip my hair out (in a bad way) and The Misfits are pretty tight but they’re a toughie. So this song is even ground for me, catchy and upbeat. 

So yeah um that’s my post. Have a great holiday weekend, readers.