...Is something I cannot understand for the life of me.
What is so appealing about having the same life as everyone else? 9 to 5 job, 2.5 kids, white picket fence, a family dog...so many of us seem to strive for something so mundane and cliched, and recently it has ceased making sense to me.
We all want to be "different", to try and set ourselves away from the crowd in some way, yet, as we grow older, something compels us to become yet another boring, dull, middle-aged American living "the dream".
From so many angles, we seem to be fed this conception of an ideal life. Movies, books, TV shows, magazines are all getting the finger here. (Not the middle one) We see Mr. and Mrs. Average Joe living so peacefully, usually encountering a series of average problems which end in the obvious moral the plot was pushing the whole time.
There's so much more we can do with our lives! Sure, you can have kids, sure, you can get yourself a nice, stable job, but be YOU. Don't fall into the supposedly perfect lifestyle, thrown at us from so many media outlets, don't become another faceless human being, irrelevant and impact-less on the world.
To quote a smarter man than I am,
"If you would not be forgotten, as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading, or do things worth the writing."
MAKE YOUR MARK.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
So...
School starts on August 27th. (Tomorrow) I've had such great fun this summer. For posterity, I'm simply going ot list the larger things I discovered that made me happy:
-Kevin Smith's films, which I started watching one night after playing Zombie Master. It was the movie Clerks.
-I discovered Nine Inch Nails, Pearl Jam, Weezer, and bought a bunch of awesome CDs.
-Started a music blog and shared my reviews and opinions with others
-Got a little better at guitar
-Got past my prior regrets and started to feel better about myself
-All the fun times staying up till sunrise watching movies
-Staying up all night talking to friends on AIM, playing video games, etc
-Got into bootleg collecting (I'm almost crying now, lol. Gonna miss this summer.)
-All the crazy people, maps, people, and insanity courtesy of the Zombie Master forum goers and the TDR Gaming server
-Passed summer school for Biology
It's been a great summer. I'm getting ready to go into my Junior year of High School, and at 15! I'm really going to miss all the great times these past few months and all the discoveries I made, the feeling of finding new, intriguing things is better than anything.
Goodbye, summer 2008.
-Kevin Smith's films, which I started watching one night after playing Zombie Master. It was the movie Clerks.
-I discovered Nine Inch Nails, Pearl Jam, Weezer, and bought a bunch of awesome CDs.
-Started a music blog and shared my reviews and opinions with others
-Got a little better at guitar
-Got past my prior regrets and started to feel better about myself
-All the fun times staying up till sunrise watching movies
-Staying up all night talking to friends on AIM, playing video games, etc
-Got into bootleg collecting (I'm almost crying now, lol. Gonna miss this summer.)
-All the crazy people, maps, people, and insanity courtesy of the Zombie Master forum goers and the TDR Gaming server
-Passed summer school for Biology
It's been a great summer. I'm getting ready to go into my Junior year of High School, and at 15! I'm really going to miss all the great times these past few months and all the discoveries I made, the feeling of finding new, intriguing things is better than anything.
Goodbye, summer 2008.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
"No Code" review
A Welcome change for Pearl Jam - 4 Stars
Tracklist:
1. Sometimes
2. Hail, Hail
3. Who You Are
4. In My Tree
5. Smile
6. Off He Goes
7. Habit
8. Red Mosquito
9. Lukin
10. Present Tense
11. Mankind
12. I'm Open
13. Around the Bend
With 1996's "No Code", Pearl Jam began to shift away from the limelight and dove deep into themselves to produce a record that is both diverse and entertaining.
"Sometimes" begins the album, a track that is moody, and somewhat somber, exploring religious themes about the creation of man and man's struggle through life while remaining concise.
The next track, "Hail, Hail" picks up the pace, with a dirty, fuzzed out riff and a good bass line. The song manages to take the somewhat depressing lyrics about a relationship gone wrong while staying fast paced, and as the song goes on some hope manages to seep in.
The next two songs, "Who You Are" and "In My Tree" pick up in "Sometimes" place after the frenetic "Hail, Hail", with rolling, almost tribal drum beats carried by Jeff Ament's bass and Eddie's voice.
"Smile" has a riff with a similar dirty quality to it, and relatively simplistic lyrics. The harmonica interspersed throughout adds another dimension to the trudging rocker, making it one of the more standout tracks.
"Off He Goes" is one of my favorites from the album. The lyrics set a narrative over a slow acoustic guitar, telling the story of a friend that sets off on a trip brought on by what could be strains in his personal life ("Know a man...his face seems pulled and tense.../
Like he's riding on a motorbike... in the strongest winds"), and as doubts creep into the narrator's mind about this friend's return, he unexpectedly shows up again, seemingly the same person. However, he is soon off again, and the song ends on a note similar to how it started.
"Habit" has a garage rock/grunge-type riff to it, with muddled and often hard-to-understand vocals from Vedder. It seems to explore the drug use of someone close, how it's wrong for them but yet they're still sucked in and on the way to self-destruction. However, the two breakdowns Both crammed into a 3:36 song), coupled with the guitar solo (Which is pretty impressive) fading out right as it gets some good momentum behind it, put the track lower than it deserves to be.
"Red Mosquito" has something closer to a country rock vibe going for it, with interesting vocal melodies. It's got a good flow and progression to it, and is one of the better tracks off the album.
However, the next song takes a turn for the more abrasive side of Pearl Jam. "Lukin" is a 1 minute long song, with a simple three-chord riff and screechy vocals from Vedder, describing his own fallacies and a stalker that might or might not be out to kill him.
"Present Tense" is a slow and introspective number, which also happened to put me in a much better mindset after some personal issues that had plagued me. The atmospheric guitar work during the verses highlight the lyrics and message without getting in the way, but I'll leave that message for you to discover yourself. It's worth it.
"Mankind" is something that is either enjoyable or unenjoyable in my opinion, with little to no middle ground. Rhythm guitarist Stone Gossard employs the mic on this song, who also wrote the lyrics for the song. What's being conveyed is a man that is watching mankind obsess over the little things, while he sits back and wonders why. Again, you either like it or you don't.
"I'm Open" begins and ends with spoken word poetry from Vedder, which is interesting to listen but may end up leaving the impression of him being pretentious and rambling. For those who can appreciate the song, though, it's an interesting piece of music that deserves a bit more praise.
"Around The Bend" finishes the album, a number mostly carried by the bass and drums. The vocals are soothing and relaxing, and listening to it right now in my tired state is actually wearing me down further! The story behind it is that Vedder wrote it as a lullaby for one of the member's kids, and that quality leaves it's fingerprints through the whole song, both in lyrics and instrumentation. It's good to listen to when you want to get away from everything, if only for four minutes, because of it's optimistic and calming lyrics.
Overall, Pearl Jam took a big chance with this album. It is markedly a much slower tempo than their previous albums, and marked the point in the band's history when they shifted to a less commercial and more mature entity. Of course the album was greeted with less-than-stellar sales, but it was well worth it in my mind.
Tracklist:
1. Sometimes
2. Hail, Hail
3. Who You Are
4. In My Tree
5. Smile
6. Off He Goes
7. Habit
8. Red Mosquito
9. Lukin
10. Present Tense
11. Mankind
12. I'm Open
13. Around the Bend
With 1996's "No Code", Pearl Jam began to shift away from the limelight and dove deep into themselves to produce a record that is both diverse and entertaining.
"Sometimes" begins the album, a track that is moody, and somewhat somber, exploring religious themes about the creation of man and man's struggle through life while remaining concise.
The next track, "Hail, Hail" picks up the pace, with a dirty, fuzzed out riff and a good bass line. The song manages to take the somewhat depressing lyrics about a relationship gone wrong while staying fast paced, and as the song goes on some hope manages to seep in.
The next two songs, "Who You Are" and "In My Tree" pick up in "Sometimes" place after the frenetic "Hail, Hail", with rolling, almost tribal drum beats carried by Jeff Ament's bass and Eddie's voice.
"Smile" has a riff with a similar dirty quality to it, and relatively simplistic lyrics. The harmonica interspersed throughout adds another dimension to the trudging rocker, making it one of the more standout tracks.
"Off He Goes" is one of my favorites from the album. The lyrics set a narrative over a slow acoustic guitar, telling the story of a friend that sets off on a trip brought on by what could be strains in his personal life ("Know a man...his face seems pulled and tense.../
Like he's riding on a motorbike... in the strongest winds"), and as doubts creep into the narrator's mind about this friend's return, he unexpectedly shows up again, seemingly the same person. However, he is soon off again, and the song ends on a note similar to how it started.
"Habit" has a garage rock/grunge-type riff to it, with muddled and often hard-to-understand vocals from Vedder. It seems to explore the drug use of someone close, how it's wrong for them but yet they're still sucked in and on the way to self-destruction. However, the two breakdowns Both crammed into a 3:36 song), coupled with the guitar solo (Which is pretty impressive) fading out right as it gets some good momentum behind it, put the track lower than it deserves to be.
"Red Mosquito" has something closer to a country rock vibe going for it, with interesting vocal melodies. It's got a good flow and progression to it, and is one of the better tracks off the album.
However, the next song takes a turn for the more abrasive side of Pearl Jam. "Lukin" is a 1 minute long song, with a simple three-chord riff and screechy vocals from Vedder, describing his own fallacies and a stalker that might or might not be out to kill him.
"Present Tense" is a slow and introspective number, which also happened to put me in a much better mindset after some personal issues that had plagued me. The atmospheric guitar work during the verses highlight the lyrics and message without getting in the way, but I'll leave that message for you to discover yourself. It's worth it.
"Mankind" is something that is either enjoyable or unenjoyable in my opinion, with little to no middle ground. Rhythm guitarist Stone Gossard employs the mic on this song, who also wrote the lyrics for the song. What's being conveyed is a man that is watching mankind obsess over the little things, while he sits back and wonders why. Again, you either like it or you don't.
"I'm Open" begins and ends with spoken word poetry from Vedder, which is interesting to listen but may end up leaving the impression of him being pretentious and rambling. For those who can appreciate the song, though, it's an interesting piece of music that deserves a bit more praise.
"Around The Bend" finishes the album, a number mostly carried by the bass and drums. The vocals are soothing and relaxing, and listening to it right now in my tired state is actually wearing me down further! The story behind it is that Vedder wrote it as a lullaby for one of the member's kids, and that quality leaves it's fingerprints through the whole song, both in lyrics and instrumentation. It's good to listen to when you want to get away from everything, if only for four minutes, because of it's optimistic and calming lyrics.
Overall, Pearl Jam took a big chance with this album. It is markedly a much slower tempo than their previous albums, and marked the point in the band's history when they shifted to a less commercial and more mature entity. Of course the album was greeted with less-than-stellar sales, but it was well worth it in my mind.
Friday, July 18, 2008
The Test of Time
I've been thinking about something recently...more specifically, about how that with the ever-increasing technological capabilities of the human race, the shorter the life span of that technology gets, and how long our society would be remembered through what we leave behind gets.
Archeologists are still finding stone tablets with writing more than 10,000 years after they were created, yet the lifespan of a recorded data CD-R is roughly a decade under optimal conditions. If we were to go extinct, how long would our society leave an noticeable impression on Mother Earth?
It seems that the longer time goes on and the more advanced we become, the more meaningless our actions become.
I came upon these thoughts after speaking to my father about how he should back up his old discs of vacation pictures soon, and then yesterday (On my first ever day of work in a garage) when I was helping take apart a Land Rover and thought about that for how complex a vehicle is, it will rejoin the earth in, give or take a few years, a century.
I'm not sure if I can really explain anymore about this at the moment, because it's still something that's on my mind. I guess this is even more of a reason to go and do something that will be meaningful and memorable through history.
And even more so, I guess this could be a good song.
Archeologists are still finding stone tablets with writing more than 10,000 years after they were created, yet the lifespan of a recorded data CD-R is roughly a decade under optimal conditions. If we were to go extinct, how long would our society leave an noticeable impression on Mother Earth?
It seems that the longer time goes on and the more advanced we become, the more meaningless our actions become.
I came upon these thoughts after speaking to my father about how he should back up his old discs of vacation pictures soon, and then yesterday (On my first ever day of work in a garage) when I was helping take apart a Land Rover and thought about that for how complex a vehicle is, it will rejoin the earth in, give or take a few years, a century.
I'm not sure if I can really explain anymore about this at the moment, because it's still something that's on my mind. I guess this is even more of a reason to go and do something that will be meaningful and memorable through history.
And even more so, I guess this could be a good song.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
The Music Industry
It's something I've been paying attention to a lot recently. Most people that follow music even in the slightest know that record sales have declined massively since the advent of Napster (And a few could argue that the quality of what we're buying has gone down as well as originality - but that's for another time) and some artists are choosing to go independent of labels and release their music online, before you can even buy a physical copy in stores.
I can think of three bands that have done this so far:
*Radiohead - Their album "In Rainbows" was released with a "Pay Any Price" option for the album -from $0 to millions, if so you chose.
* Nine Inch Nails - "Ghosts I-IV" had the option of letting you download the first 9 tracks out of 36 for free, then had a myriad of options for purchasing the album in different formats and packaging. Then, in May, Reznor released "The Slip" as a completely free download - meaning you could get every song without any strings attached.
* Girl Talk - Released the album "Feed The Animals" with the same tactic as Radiohead - pay what you want. If you chose $0, you were asked to select from a list of options why you decided not to pay.
With the major record labels losing money faster than ever, it leaves me wondering what they will try next in order to keep their bank accounts from hitting zero. With so many new methods of cheaper and more efficient methods of distribution, will they resort to jacking up concert ticket prices? Or will they do what The Eagles did with "Long Road Out of Eden", and sign exclusive deals with large chain stores so that the music can only be purchased at those locations?
Releasing music for free through the internet can also offer up a benefit to more local, small-time bands and musicians. With the extra attention they get for going the free or pay any price route, there we always be people that are not fans but will download the music because of it's "price". The band is now reaching a wider audience, and is likely to gain more fans through curiosity. Of course, this is only an option for these bands and musicians if they feel they have a big enough fan base so that they can still make enough money from touring to continue recording and booking arenas.
Musicians make more money from touring than actual record sales, anyway. Source Considering that after the label gets their cut from a CD, and after packaging, promotion, and whatnot, there's not a whole lot left to be split between the actual performers, so obviously if you're paying $50 for a concert over $12 for a CD, you're definitely supporting the artist more than a CD. (Not that the extra revenue is bad)
All I can say for sure that I'm liking the future of the industry. The days where paying for music is mandatory seem to be coming to a close, and music will soon be more accessible to the masses than ever before.
I can think of three bands that have done this so far:
*Radiohead - Their album "In Rainbows" was released with a "Pay Any Price" option for the album -from $0 to millions, if so you chose.
* Nine Inch Nails - "Ghosts I-IV" had the option of letting you download the first 9 tracks out of 36 for free, then had a myriad of options for purchasing the album in different formats and packaging. Then, in May, Reznor released "The Slip" as a completely free download - meaning you could get every song without any strings attached.
* Girl Talk - Released the album "Feed The Animals" with the same tactic as Radiohead - pay what you want.
With the major record labels losing money faster than ever, it leaves me wondering what they will try next in order to keep their bank accounts from hitting zero. With so many new methods of cheaper and more efficient methods of distribution, will they resort to jacking up concert ticket prices? Or will they do what The Eagles did with "Long Road Out of Eden", and sign exclusive deals with large chain stores so that the music can only be purchased at those locations?
Releasing music for free through the internet can also offer up a benefit to more local, small-time bands and musicians. With the extra attention they get for going the free or pay any price route, there we always be people that are not fans but will download the music because of it's "price". The band is now reaching a wider audience, and is likely to gain more fans through curiosity. Of course, this is only an option for these bands and musicians if they feel they have a big enough fan base so that they can still make enough money from touring to continue recording and booking arenas.
Musicians make more money from touring than actual record sales, anyway. Source Considering that after the label gets their cut from a CD, and after packaging, promotion, and whatnot, there's not a whole lot left to be split between the actual performers, so obviously if you're paying $50 for a concert over $12 for a CD, you're definitely supporting the artist more than a CD. (Not that the extra revenue is bad)
All I can say for sure that I'm liking the future of the industry. The days where paying for music is mandatory seem to be coming to a close, and music will soon be more accessible to the masses than ever before.
Thirst For Hunger, my brother's muscial outlet
http://www.myspace.com/thirstforhunger
I think this deserves a post. My brother is a small-time musician who released a great album called "Seasons: Silence And Seclusion Vol II". He's got a bunch of the songs from it on his Myspace page, and if you like, buy the album.
July 6th, 2008. A new blog is born.
So I've started a new blog today. I've never been good at keeping one of these things, because usually I forget my password to them after a week and never care enough to update it anyway. And, that will probably happen again, but hey, I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts. I had the inkling to create this out of boredom, and I'm sure posting music reviews and news articles (And whatever else I throw in) in Myspace bulletins is, well, almost useless. So now I have a post to bitch about this, talk about music, bore you with the things I've done or will do, etcetera, etcetera.
My name is Michael, and thanks for reading.
My name is Michael, and thanks for reading.
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