More Bands You Should Listen To!

That's right, it's time once again for: MORE BANDS YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO! (If you want to look cool)

We'll start with a British electro-punk band called Does It Offend You, Yeah?. Rolls of the tongue, don't it! These guys are awesome, and have that right mix of synthy trance like keyboard and awesome distorted guitar. Their first and only(To my knowledge) album is You Have No Idea What You're Getting Yourself Into, and it's really good. Two tracks worth listening to are Dawn of the Dead and Attack of the 60 Ft. Lesbian Octopus.

The next band is one hailing from my hometown of Baltimore, Animal Collective. Comprised of Avey Tare, Panda Bear, Deakin and Geologist. Their latest album, Merriwhether Post Pavillion, is named after a famous venue in Columbia, MD. Tracks to definitely check out from that album are Brother Sport and My Girls. Also listen to the songs Peacebone and Chores, off their album Strawberry Jam, and Safer, from the Peacebone EP.

The final band today is a great math rock band known as Hella. Now, I don't know much about the background of the people of Hella, but I can tell you that they know how to rock and they show it, with songs like World Series and 2012 and Countless from "There's No 666 In Outer Space" it's easy to see why they're in this list. Also check out the album Hold Your Horse Is.

That's all for now, but I'm gonna end with a plug to my good friend Justin's blog, Tone Soul Evolution (http://tonesoul.blogspot.com/). And with that, I am off! Toodles!

Album Review #1 : Enter the Chicken

As I hopefully mentioned in my last entry, I have been listening to a lot of Buckethead lately, mainly his collaboration album Enter the Chicken. I will be breakin this bad mother down track by track and giving you my thoughts on it. Today's rating system will be chickens by the way.

We Are One: This is a pretty heavy song featuring Serj Tankian (of System of a Down fame). Now, I love Serj's voice, he's easily my favourite metal vocalist. However, this song really blows in the vocal department because Serj is known for his poetic lyrics, but this song really doesn't show that. The only lyrics you can easily understand are him saying "Don't you know that we are one". In the guitar department, this track certainly exceeds all expectations. It has an amazing solo, the perfect amount of distortion, and a really good overall sound. All in all, I have to give this song 3 and half chickens out of five

Botnus: This song features vocalist Efrem Schulz who I honestly know nothing about. This song however, has ever greater guitar than We Are One, as well as awesome, grinding, grungy lyrical sound. When you read the lyrics, it's actually a pretty cool song. The solo in this song is absolutely AMAZING in every aspect. This is one of those songs that really shows off Buckethead's metal chops. Four out of five chickens agree this song is amazing!

Three Fingers: This song features my favourite slam poet/musician, Saul Williams, and this song is certainly full of the lyrical rhythm and power I have come to expect from Saul. It has a funky, yet metal sound to it, and unlike We Are One, the masterful lyrics are perfectly comprehensible. This track shows that Buckethead is not only a master of the solo, but also of the ambiance, adding a minimalist, dark, and funky guitar to the background that turns the scene Saul is describing into a real life situation that puts you into the scene. 4 and half chickens!

Running From the Light: This features singers Gigi and Maura Davis and is an unexpected yet beautiful diversion from the metal sound of the first three tracks. It has a wonderful soul guitar in it and Gigi and Maura are beautiful singers with powerful voices. One of the coolest parts of this song is the overlapping vocals from the two. Another amazing part is the heavy guitar that enters when the chorus does. The solo is reminiscent of Stevie Ray Vaughn's bluesy solos (listen to Texas Flood to hear what I'm talking about)The drums in this track are minimalist, but powerful. I give you three chickens!

Coma: This song features angelic and ethereal lyrics by Azam Ali and Serj Tankian, that truly add more effect to the ambiance of this track. Buckethead takes a back seat with his arpeggiated chords in this song, but still remains powerful overall. The only understandable lyrics are very bleak and nihilistic, which truly encompass the feelings one associates with a coma. Four out of five chickens!

Waiting Hare: Another song featuring Serj Tankian, as well as Shana Halligan. This song has more of an R and B feel than the other songs, and since that's not one of my favourite genres, this song isn't really my favourite on the album. It has a pretty good solo, but the lyrics get pretty repetitive after awhile. Two and a half chickens.

Funbus: All I have to say about this track is that it is pure screaming metal fury. Four and a half chickens out of five

The Hand: This creepy, operatic delve into insanity is made even scarier and crazier thanks to the vocals of Maximum Bob ( of the Deli Creeps, another Buckethead project) as well as the ethereal operatic vocals provided by Ani Maldjian. The guitar is heavy, with some crazy high-pitched fills that appear at random intervals. Another, *ahem* interesting touch is the weird sound that almost sounds like a female, shall we say, climaxing. Three and a half insane, committed chickens out of five.

Nottingham Lace: This ending track needs no vocals to get it's message across. That message is, let rock fill the stage. This song is Buckethead's chance to shine and truly show his chops. With overlaying harmonics, distorted "verse" and that funky, flangey, kill-switchy sound that Buckethead is known for, this is the last bombardment of musical energy this album has to offer, and if you have been listening well enough, it will have won. Five out of five headbangin chickens.

Crazy New Bands and Songs GO!!!

Right... so I finally remembered bout this thang, so let's get it started.

I'll start with two new Steampunk bands I've started listening to. The first being Abney Park, a steampunk band hailing from Seattle, WA. They have one of the coolest stage themes I've seen in a while *cough* Flaming Lips *cough*. They play as crew members of the airship HMS Ophelia, and their instruments truly show the influence of the Steampunk culture. Their keyboard has a Tesla Coil on the top, the guitar and bass contain pressure gauges and have a real Jules Verne vibe to them. They currently have 3 albums out now, but the one I recommend the most is their album, The Death of Tragedy. It contains the track Stigmata Martyr, which is one of my favourite songs recently. The other artist is a man named Dr. Steel. He is the closest thing to hip-hop Steampunk can get, with hissing and clanking industrial drum beats, he is the master of his art. Under the guise of a toy maker, Dr. Steel is secretly building a Toy Soldier Army to make the world a more fun place to be. Make sure you listen to his album People of Earth (Thanks, Brown Matt), which contains my personal favourite track, Fibonacci Sequence.

Another musician I've been listening to a lot of lately is Buckethead. Now, Buckethead is by no means new to the music scene, but he is still one of the best guitarists I've ever heard. The track Electric Tears (Off the album of the same name) is one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard, and can evoke powerful feelings of sadness and sobriety. At the same time though, Buckethead shows a truly twisted and insane mind with the fake theme park he lives in, Bucketheadland, which contains rides such as John Merrick's Elephant Man Bones Explosion, and the Slaughter Zone. His back-story is harrowing and eventful, and yet explains very little. Tracks such as Nottingham Lace and Soothsayer bring together slow, meaningful rhythmic guitar work and fast-paced shredding the likes I've never seen before. His acoustic work is also a true work of art, with songs like Ghost, For Mom, and Lone Sal Bug rounding out Buckethead's repertoire. He is one of the most versatile and yet he is by no means a master of none of his styles. Everything he does, he does with emotion, skill, and meaning. Those interested in listening to more, I suggest his albums Giant Robot, Colma, Enter the Chicken (A collaboration album with the likes of Saul Williams and Serj Tankian), and Bucketheadland Vol.2 (For a look into the true insanity this man harbours)

The final band I've recently started listening to is the talented Flobots. They're a political hip-hop band from Denver, CO and they are a force to watch. Their songs have powerful meanings on both a political and personal level, with songs like Combat and Fight With Tools talking about the almost-constant war (be it physical or mental) between the different classes of the world. On the other hand though, there are songs like Handlebars and The Rhythm Method (Move!) which are simply songs about loving life and having fun doing whatever you do. Their most recent (and possibly first ,I need to look into it) album, Fight With Tools is out now and should be picked up immediately.


Recent songs to check out: Aesthetic by Between the Buried and Me, Mikhail Gorbachyov by the Russian metal band ANJ, Handlebars by Flobots, Three Fingers by Buckethead and Saul Williams, and Boten Anne by Basshunter.

Some of My Favourite Songs

Well, in my first post, I talked a little bit about three of my favourite albums, and today I'm going to talk about some of my favourite songs.

1) Fingertips by They Might Be Giants - Now, although it's considered one song, Fingertips, from the Apollo 18 album, is really 21 mini songs rolled into one. Now, I love this idea. It really just shows the fun side of the Johns. Everything about this song is fun, the topics for the mini songs, which range from passing the milk to hearing a mysterious sound, the sound coming from the horn section, almost always upbeat and blaring, to the way the vocals really just sound like cartoon characters. I love everything about this song.

2) When You Smile/Psychiatric Exploration of the Fetus with Needles (Live) by The Flaming Lips - Now, I know, again, this is two songs, not one, but it is a live track found on the Fearless Freaks : 20 Years of Weird album and it is amazing. It has a really rocking intro that becomes the classic song When You Smile and as the last note strikes, a guitar-noise solo of sorts starts playing that becomes the intro to Psychiatric Exploration. Everything from Wayne's voice to the guitar work and the amazing drumming just makes this song one of my all time favourites.

3) Do You Realize (T.P.S. Remix) by The Flaming Lips - This song is one of the more interesting tracks of the Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell EP as it's drum track has been re done and is completely out of sync with everything else. But, it's because of this and the fact that the way the g uitar has been remixed makes it sound like an 8-bit song that makes it amazing. When I listen to it, I feel like I'm playing some sort of awesome Flaming Lips video game, and really, it reminds me of some of the music I would hear as a little kid.

4) Unicorn by Gojira - This song is both great and odd. The band Gojira, is a French Thrash Metal band that has some amazing guitar and drum work. However, this song is not what you'd expect from a Thrash Metal band, it's nice and slow, with some weird effect on the guitar that makes it sound a little bit like a whale's song. That mixed with the nice, smooth lead guitar work makes this song seem almost like a lullaby. You can find this track on their album, From Mars to Sirius

5) Jungleland by Bruce Springsteen - Off of the famous Born to Run album, Jungleland has a beautiful intro on the violin with some amazing piano and organ work thanks to Roy Bittan and Danny Federici respectively. It has two amazing solos in it as well, one by the local saxaphonist and all around awesome dude Clarence Thompson, and a guitar solo by The Boss himself. Truly one of the all time classic songs and an all around great tune.

6) God by John Lennon - Found in the album Plastic Ono Band, this song is one of the most amazing songs I've heard, it really says what people need to know. That in reality, there is no god, or ruler, or king, there is only you. It has some beautiful piano work and some of John's greatest lyrics. There is no better song to really show how I feel about the world than this one.

7) Voodoo Child (Slight Return) by Jimi Hendrix - Truly one of the greatest guitarists that ever lived, Jimi shows just how he got that title in this amazing track off of the Electric Ladyland album. Featuring some top notch guitar work and fantastic lyrics, this is truly Jimi's greatest song

8) Question! by System of a Down - Now, most folks will say that acoustic guitar doesn't belong in metal, but this song says different. Having some of the most hypnotic lyrics and beautiful guitar sounds, it's not hard to see why I love this song off of their album Mesmerize.

9) My Bonnie Lassie and Me by Barleyjuice - Off of their latest album, Bonny Prince Barley, My Bonnie Lassie and Me is a song that truly places you where it takes place. It's soothing acoustic work, beautiful fiddle and whistle solos and lovely lyrics place you in the Highlands of Scotland and just remind me of a nice, warm sunny day in a green pasture.

10) TIE: Revolution 9 by the Beatles and Revolution 42 by Nuclear Bubble Wrap - Now, both of these songs are essentially the same, simply bits and pieces of random sound bytes put together in a way that really creates a hypnotic effect that is absolutely genius. Both around 8 minutes in length, the two are easily some of the best songs I've heard in a long time. You can find Revolution 9 on The White Album, and Revolution 42 on NBW's album Paint, due out sometime soon I hope (in other words, I don't know when to expect it)

Barleyjuice, All the Sounds of Ireland, and None of the Potato Famine

I know I promised to talk about Voltaire in this post last time, but instead I wish to divert your attention to another band that is quite near to me, in both location and sentimentality. I speak, of course, of the band Barleyjuice. Barleyjuice is a band whose members hail from Philadelphia and Frederick, Maryland. They combine traditional irish music with a rock twist that forms an amazing sound. I have had the pleasure of seeing them live not once, nor twice, but four times since first hearing about them. Barleyjuice has made 5 albums containing mostly songs of their own writ, but has a few traditional songs and covers, including one of The Clash's hit London Calling on their latest album, Bonny Prince Barley. They have an amazing live show that contains witty banter, amazing medleys and even the occasional suprise appearance of the Man in Black. I suspect one might see him somewhere in the instrumental in the traditional song Whiskey in the Jar. Their line-up includes Kyf Brewer on the main vocal pipes and the bag pipes, as well as lead guitar, Swanny Keith Swanson on the mandolin, vocals, bag pipes and rythym guitar, Eric the Bass Player, Billy on the Fiddle and Jimmy Carbomb on the tinwhistles. For those just starting to get into the band, I would reccomend you listen to their third album, Six Yanks, as I feel that it has the perfect combiniation of studio sound of a modern rock band, and the traditional sound of an Irish band.

My Favourite Albums

Well, this being my first entry, what better way to start it off than by talking about some of my favourite albums?

To start it off is the classic album Let it Be by The Beatles. Now, the original album itself was nothing special, but Let it Be Naked, which is all of the studio tracks unedited, is so much better than the original. It starts off with the classic song Get Back. This song has an amazing chord structure and sound, and the lyrics have an amazing quality. The next track, Dig a Pony has this amazing honky-tonk sound to it that reminds me of a song you might hear in a mid-western Saloon. For You Blue is one of those songs that defies the type it is. It follows the standard blues structure, but it has a topic that is far from depressing, and it's overall sound does not normally remind someone of a blues song. The Long and Winding Road is one of the most popular songs from the album, along with the title track and Across the universe. It has a slow, somber feeling and really, the song's topic is sad and really fits the feeling. Now, I'm not a fan of Paul McCartney and is songs in general, but this song is absolutely beautiful and really fits his voice well. The next song, Two of Us, is one of my favourites. It reminds me of just sitting out in a grassy field and relaxing in the Sun. I've Got a Feeling, the next song, really shows the difference in the writing styles of Lennon and McCartney. McCartney wrote the main parts of the song, while Lennon wrote the vocal bridge that you hear after the first verse. One After 909 is another song that has that honky-tonk rock and roll feeling akin to early rock from the 50s such as Twenty Flight Rock. Don't Let Me Down has a beautiful song with an interesting sync up between the piano and guitar that occurs throughout the verses. I Me Mine has a really good lead guitar and uses an organ in a way that doesn't overpower everything else in the song. Another interesting part is the way they incorporate a honky-tonk piano in the chorus, which seems to be a recurring feature in the album. The next track, Across the Universe, is one of the most beautiful songs that shows just how simple a song can be and still be a powerful song. The song itself has only vocals and rhythm guitar in the background and yet manages to be the most passionate song, simply through John's lyrics. The final track, Let it Be, is a beautiful example again of how all you need is powerful lyrics to make a song beautiful. Again, I'm not the biggest fan of Paul McCartney, but he did a great job with this song.

The next album is Hot by the Squirrel Nut Zippers. This album is like a tribute almost to the big band and jazz of the early 1900s. It incorporates the use of muted trumpet, saxophone, and has the overall feel that just makes me want to jump and do the LINDYHOP! My favourite track off of it called Damnation and is essentially a song about the perils that await those who sin and go to Hell. It has this overall feel that isn't scary, but it makes you feel like something sinister is afoot.

The final album for today is the album Stunt by Barenaked Ladies. This is another one of those albums in which I like all the tracks. Like most of their songs, these have a habit of sounding like one thing and being completely different. For instance, the song Some Fantastic sounds nice and uppity, when in reality, it's about this poor soul's failed attempts at trying to win over the love of his life. The ending track When You Dream is absolutely amazing. It has this feel that is lilting, ethereal and simply marvelous, just like a really good dream you don't want to end.

Now, as you can see, I seem to have a formula set up here, where I will go into major detail about one album, and minor detail about two others. Next time, I'll introduce you to the wonders of the musical band Voltarire.