song of the day, November 30th

"Great Expectations" by The Gaslight Anthem

What a perfect song to open an album. I remember hearing this song for the first time on my way home from the post office picking up my Gaslight Anthem '59 Sound pre-order. I remember getting chills. Physically goosebumps rose on my arms at how great this song is. I still get that feeling when that little guitar intro kicks in.



and acoustic, for fun

check it out, Red Scare and their new Band in AV CLub

read it here


lazy blogger...sending his readers to different sites...

Song of the day, November 29

The day after Thanksgiving, I was lucky enough to go see Matt Skiba and Brendan Kelly play acoustic. Derek Grant (drummer of alkaline trio) also showed up and played. Let me tell you, the show was great. It really felt like it was just a group of friends taking turns playing songs, jumping in and out of each other's sets and having as much fun as we (the audience) were watching it. Bredan Kelly's new songs, which he played a few of, really kicked some ass. I can't wait to see what he does with them.

Today's song is from Brendan Kelly's acoustic solo album he split with Joe McMahon from Smoke Or Fire called, "wasted potential." The song is called "there is no place like a stranger's floor" which was originally performed on the Lawrence Arms/Chinkees splot "Present day memories" and then again on "Cocktails and Dreams" and was originally a Chris McCaughan sung song.

song of the day, after turkey coma edition

BEST. BAND. EVER

song of day, November 24

"Mr Chainsaw" from the Alkaline Trio.

"From Here to Infirmary" was the first Alkaline Trio album I owned. I bought it off the then drummer's wife. It is not that I did not like the band before then, i did. I just had no access to getting my own copies of them at the time. This was during my formative music years, like I have discussed before. This was before the internet was "the" way to get music. Before contacting a label and ordering online was an easy way. Back then you had to send "well-hidden" cash to most labels to get stuff you wanted. Best Buy carried some music, there was a record store kind of near my house that I had never heard of so I was kind of stuck. Anyway, my lady and i were listening to this album this morning and sometimes i forget how much this album influenced me at that time. I remember hearing unfinished, raw recordings of the songs in the photo lab in college thanks to his wife bringing them in. it was pretty cool.

This might be the last post this week, or it might not. I dunno. Friday i have tickets to see Brendan Kelly and Matt Skiba play, that should be rad.

Song of the day, Novebmber 23

today sucks at work. Basically, i work with some of the laziest people i have ever met. They are "too busy" and they do not seem to understand that the reason their department is almost completely gone is because they have been "too busy" and complaining so long that almost all of their work is completed by other people and they still complain about being "too busy"

today, because of this, i pick "dropjaw" by the broadways. This song may show up many times in my song of the day posts as it is one of my all time favorite songs.

"Fuck the whole world!!!!!"




seems like another wasted day
sometimes i think i think too much
my heart just seems to run away
i thought of you
fuck the whole world
i just want to sit and cry tonite in the arms that make me happy
i never thought a smile could change my life, my whole life
what a pretty girl on such a cloudy day
and i don't care about anything
every night i make a wish that i'll see you tomorrow.
sugar, i've never tasted anything so sweet
never felt something so beautiful
this ugly world needs more beauty like yours
my star, my love

song of the day, Nov 22

Did you like covers week? It was kind of fun for me to dig around in my head each day. Of course, I had Friday's "Kiss The Bottle" in my mind all week.

Today, I am going to take it to Chuck Ragan and "God Deciding."

My first real experience wiht Hot Water Music was when they did the split album with Alkaline Trio. I was definitely interested in what I heard, but I let the opinions of the fellow members of my then "ok sounding" band influence me away from them too much. I hate how people slag something because it takes what they consider to be "punk" and changes it. It was not until after Hot Water Music broke up that I really started becoming interested again. That all changed in November of 2006 when for my birthday i got tickets to 2 shows on the same night, and both for my birthday. I parked at the McDonald's on Clark street, go in a cab, went to the congress theater to see EMERY on the nintendo fusion tour. After Emery Played, I got into a cab to go back to the car and back to Metro to see the Lawrence Arms. Chuck Ragan was the second band on the bill that night and we got there just as he was going on stage, this was the night my opinions changed and I really go into Chuck and what Hot Water Music had created. Today, i have bee lucky enough to have seen Chuck a few times as well as the reformed Hot Water Music a few times. They are just so freaking good. Had I not made it back to Metro in time, i may never have known.

"God Deciding" was a Hot Water Music song. Full band, kinda shouty, definitely driving. But, this is an example of a good song becoming a great song when it is stripped down, slowed down and you can really hear the lyrics and feel the emotion. It changes the dynamic of the song in such a powerful manner. The Chuck solo version has become one of my favorite songs.

end of covers week, Friday, November 19

I am going to end this week of cover songs with a song that I have always loved, and continue to love with each version i hear. The song is Jawbreaker's "Kiss the bottle"

there are 2 versions of the song below, Lucero and Brendan Kelly and then in the links you can check out SPARTA's version of it. Honestly, I cannot tell you which one is my favorite. Listen to the lyrics, this song is special. It tells a story, one we have probably all lived.

Song of the day, cover week song #4

I can respect Tegan and Sara for what they do, but i find their singing kind of painful. Regardless, Alkaline Trio did some role-swapping (Dan on Guitar and Vocals, Matt on bass) and Tegan joined them in a cover of "wake Up Exhausted"

This version is another example of a cover adding so much more than the original represented.

Song of the day, cover week song #3

The Counting Crows were/are one of those bands that radio loved for some songs, fans loved for others and everyone kind of knew about. To this day, they are still popular and make music. Punk bands have put out covers of their work for a while now, but Dustin Kensrue from Thrice performs solo and his version has the most impact i feel. So here it is (i was almost at this show, but i had the weekend wrong)

inspiration for the senor and the queen

According to Brian Fallon, this was one of the influences for "Senor and The Queen" and it makes it that much better

song of the day, cover week song #2

if you do not know of any of these bands, i feel sorry for you. Check out the Replacements "bastards of young" as performed by The Cardinal Sin, but since i cannot easily find a sample of that here, BONUS Against Me! version included.

JBTV Gaslight Videos

so if you want to watch the whole episode, check out yesterday's post. I was screwing around last night trying to get the songs on my ipod and there are 3 more songs that did not air as well as more between songs banter on JBTV online.

My absolute favorite thing about the whole show was the little stories told by Brian between songs. I usually cannot stand that stuff, but he reminds me of how my lady and I talk. Just bustin' people's chops, talking about nothing and everything all at once. My favorite quote is probably "this is a baby-makin' song. Just listen to the lyrics. So, if you are susceptible to babies, LOOK OUT."

I love the band and honestly, i just kind of want to hang out with them. The interviews prove that they are just as much fans of music as I am. Brian even mentions his "default" Lawrence Arms tattoo and how he knew he "made" it when Chuck Ragan from Hot Water Music sent him a song to get his opinion. That is pretty awesome.

The Gaslight Anthem on JBTV

so this was supposed to be on my local NBC 5, but it did not happen, at least not at my house.

Anyway, JBTV is probably the best independent music shows out there. Consistently awesome. Well, The Gaslight Anthem are featured in this episode and you can watch it yourself HERE

I am watching this as I type this, so far so good.

edit: i have been skipping the dan black stuff, just not my speed.

but damn, Brian Fallon just said what i am calling Quote of the day "It's a baby-makin' song" ~Brian Fallon~talking about "senor & the queen"

Song of the days...COVER WEEK

So, after my Johnny Cash post last week, I decided that this week should be dedicated to cover songs. To start it off, I am giving you HOT WATER MUSIC's cover of Alkaline Trio's "Bleeder." Now, below, there is a video of Chuck Ragan from Hot Water Music performing the song on his own, which is pretty much how it was released.

This is one of my favorite Alkaline Trio songs, but there is something to be said for how much more impactful it sounds on acoustic guitar with Chuck's signature raspy growl. This is such a great song, I do not know what else to say other than "enjoy"

song of the day, Friday, November 12

Today is my birthday. I have had the joy of working all day as well. Wa-freakin-hoo, I should have taken the day off.

Oh well, today's song is Johnny Cash's "God's Gonna Cut You Down" This is just a fantastic song that I wish Mr. Cash had been around to hear everything that follows it. Gaslight did a cover of it for the Johnny Cash Tribute that is pretty freaking great too.

song of the day, Thursday, November 11

Today's song is kind of an odd one. Today, i bring you "use somebody" by kings of leon. However, today is the Paramore acoustic cover. Which honestly, I think is about 10xs better. Hayley needs to embrace the smokey, raspy vocalist she has inside. I would buy a bluesy album of her music any day

song of the day, Wednesday, November 10

is there anyone who actually knows how to spell Wednesday that does not go "WED-NES-DAY" in their head each time they spell it? I think not.

Today's song is "breaking the broken" from Sparta's Album "Porcelain." This is hands down one of the best songs i have ever heard. Probably a desert island type song if you catch my drift. There is excellent music, a great flow to the song and an outstandingly catchy chorus that is not poppy at all. Such a great song.

BONUS! I had no idea they had a video for it

want to hear a new social distortion song? of course you do

Social Distortion - Machine Gun Blues by KROQ

Thanks go KROQ for posting "Machine Gun Blues" which is coming out next week on itunes as a single and the album "Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes" comes out early next year. I have been getting into Social D a lot more lately as they seem to fit my musical mood.

there is an interview with mike ness on KROQ as well as the track, so you can read it by going HERE

song of theday, Tuesday, November 9

Today's song is from Tiger Army, "Cupids Victim" it is a fun song and a great example of old and new styles coming together to create a great song.

i cannot embed it but the link is here for youtube and below for amazon.

YOUTUBE

song of the day, monday, Nov. 8

"Walls" by EMERY

"The Weak's End" is the first Emery album and helped me get through one of the darkest times in my life. While being considered a Christian band, you would probably never know it. The songs deal with various emotions and feelings and basically have a positive, "getting through it" vibe. The whole album is great and while "Walls" is not my absolute #1 track on the disc, it was the first one I heard.

I was watching JBTV, which is a local music video/interview show on late-night Wednesday, in 2004 and was wide awake. See, when I am depressed. I can't sleep. Most people lay around in bed and do nothing but sleep. But not me. I lay there and cannot shut down. But, then I heard "Walls." That song got me so pumped up that I went in search of the album the next day. That album pretty much did not leave my cd player for a month straight. Such well written songs. Somewhat uplifting but NEVER preachy. I had never heard music like this be executed so well.

If you are not into the screaming, give it 30 seconds and the whole song changes.

song of the day for friday and the weekend

today was busy, so i did not get a chance to post my song. But I am doing it now. So, my unexpectedly awesome song to show up on random today was "Sink Florida, Sink" by against me!

How about i start something new today?

i am thinking of starting a song of the day. That seems easy enough. Probably write a little bit about it, include a clip or something and a link to buy it. Deal is, you go buy it, support these bands so they keep doing good things.

Today's song is "My Friend Chris" from the menzingers. I always liked this song, but seeing it performed live was amazing. This is an anthem to being young, trying things for the first time and missing someone or something that made things important. At least, that is my take on it.



best video i could find, sound kinda sucks. but this song is absolutely amazing

just go download this now

yeah, this song always blows me away, always. just came up on random. Go get it

The more things change...

There are always trends in music. Whole periods of time that kind of take up a similar audio space. Like how you can tell when a song was from the '50s or '60s and how horribly '80s music has held up. Even the, at times terrible, period of "alternative" music from the '90s. I wonder what will "sound" like the 2000-2009 period or the "'00s"?

I am not sure really. But I do know that when I go back and look at some of the things I was really in to 10 year ago, I kind of go "ugh, why?"

My tastes in music have changed. Evolved? Evolved. I have always been into music, finding what I liked out of whatever I had access to. When I was a kid, like elementary or younger, it was the '50s and '60 cassettes that you could get as a series at the gas station. I loved that shit. My mom was totally supportive of it. Of course, shitty '80s pop was there a little. "Thriller" was awesome. As I got older, I started getting into classic rock. Probably because that was what my dad always had going. Alternative was kind of a part of that, so bands like Nirvana and Green Day were around for me as well. I never really got into soundgarden, smashing pumpkins or bands like that. I had some of their music, but none of it really grabbed on to me.

It wasn't until I was in high school that I started getting into other forms of music. I was a jazz band and orchestra nerd. I was surrounded by older kinds that were really into music. I kept my ears open and found out as much as I could. This was pre-internet days, so I could not just go home and start finding out band after band and listen to and download them. No, I had to borrow cds and check out listening stations and ask around.

It was around this time that I started getting into ska and punk. Again, that was what I was surrounded by and I was curious. Also keep in mind that I graduated HS in 2000 so I am not Interestingly, PHISH also made its way into my collection at the same time. That is pretty varied tastes, but I was into music and anything new or different got my attention. Now, actual punk, what we now call "street punk" where dudes had sketchy tattoos and piercings and mohawks, this was not what I was exposed to. No, it was more of the blink 182 MXPX NOFX skate punk and ska. However, the more I listened to it,the more I started to like the music that sounded like ska, but without the horns. Like, the songs still had the beat and what not of ska, but not that stupid trombone "burruurr urr urr urr" over and over. Electronic music was huge with my friends, and still is today, and i got into bands like the chemical brothers, underworld, prodigy and the future sound of london.

This then morphed into emo, and not the stupid shit emo now, but Jimmy Eat World, Weezer, get up kids etc. Then that ended up as just the punk sounds like Rise Against, Alkaline Trio, Fall Out Boy...interstingly enough, a lot of Chicago bands as they all seemed to somewhat support each other. Most of my musical meandering came from compilation discs, usually free of cheap from the record labels.

The internet was starting to be a way to discover things when I started college and not just a way to find dirty cartoon pictures, boobs, or term paper information. Then there was a huge jump between chat rooms and IM and the web as we know it today. This same time was when I really got into the music that I still somewhat listen to today. More and more alkaline trio, the lawrence arms, the broadways, coheed and cambria, dashboard confessional. The whole genre of "punk" was exploding and getting more diverse. I still got a lot of influence from those around me. As a college freshman, I just kind of started hanging around other music fans and people that knew people in bands etc, and the more I did, the more I learned. I never stopped playing music all the way through college and still play today. Whether in bands or just picking around once and a while, i never stopped playing.

I bought a ton of music. 2 or 3 albums a week at times. I just wanted to listen to and absorb as much as I could. Bands like jawbreaker were noticed for their contribution to current music. However, this was also when I started to break away from my friends. At the time, they were still into the power pop sounding stuff and ska type things and I was getting into the heavier, more hardcore screaming and sing/scream bands. The fusion of metal and punk was starting to take place again and it was really interesting to me. But, i was having a hard time finding great music still. Listening stations were disappearing, well-written reviews were hard to find, the internet had not yet truly reached me as a way to explore and learn beyond what was right there in front of me.

After college, these same bands and trends in my listening stuck with me. However, what followed out of school was a drop in friend involvement. I kind of just cut myself off from everyone I knew. Sure, I was depressed at times, I was just down and felt stuck. This was the time in my life where my love of music became a part of who I am. I found the better part of who I was through music. I cut out the outside influences and just went with what felt right.

I started really getting into bands like Thursday and Underoath. But the one band that really pulled me out of that slump was Emery. "The Weak's End" was and still is one the best albums I own in my opinion. Going to see Emery then opened me up to many different other bands and I have just kept going on and on, learning and finding as much as possible. I started getting into Hot Water Music and bands like that. Bands that make music for themselves, not to fit into a genre.

Sadly, I got into Hot Water Music after they broke up, but I have seen them 2 times now since they reformed, which has been awesome.

Today, i listen to lots of things, punk, rock, americana, folk-punk, electronic, rockabilly...i am all over the place.

But, one thing that I have always said during all of these taste shifts, is that if i was ever in a band, it would not be about how amazing the guitar solos were, how fast we played, how loud we screamed, it would be rhythm, blues, old-school sounding guitar rock. Easy on the distortion, heavy on the "feeling." Bands like Lucero, The Gaslight Anthem, Social distortion, The Lawrence Arms, hot water music, Tiger Army, Against Me! and Cobra Skulls all match this sound.

To me, even before i heard these bands, this was the kind of music that I wanted to be involved in. I would go to shows and say, "I love this band, but if i was ever in a band again, i would probably not play music like this."

Well, over the last few years, I have noticed something. I am less and less excited to find a new metallic scream-sing band than I am to find a band like Lucero and The Gaslight Anthem, which is really fucking hard to do.

See, the thing is, whether it is because I am getting older, or because I have refined what I really like to listen to, there is just not a ton of new music that is getting me super excited. Things have that "too compressed" sounding effect on their guitars, or they are double-bass drum kicking with heavy breakdowns blah blah blah. Give me musicianship, give me a song with a melody. I love having music that fits my mood. But if you can create something that works for every move, then PERFECT. I would rather listen to something that could be danced to, or sung along to or just foot-tapping but it has substance. Sometimes, slower songs, with an established groove, show me much strong playing ability that some stupid fast shredding guitar solo. Anyone make make noise, but establishing that foundation of feel and rhythm is what makes a good song great.

I have started getting into it more. The feel of the music. Looking backwards into 50's music, stuff from the 60's, old school punk like the misfits. Things that are pure. I have talked about Lucero and The Gaslight Anthem before. I mentioned that I went to go see Social distortion play live for the first time a few weeks back. I realized something at that show. Lucero and Social D play music that comes from a special place, not just being in a band. Mike Ness and Ben Nicols would be doing the same thing if they were just playing alone. Part of what makes me love gaslight, and what comes through in their music, is that they are having a blast playing these songs every night. Watch them play live, they never stop smiling. They make fun of each other, screw around during songs, they are having a blast. This level of love for music is what helps make their music stand out in a sea of sameness. Social D has been around forever, but seeing them live really made me appreciate something that I had never heard before on their albums.

It is surprising how much our tastes can change. looking back, i never realized how much the influence of others helped me find new things. I mean, i have always sought out music, through magazines or the internet or record labels, but not until I wrote this did i see such a strong correlation. I think the best thing I ever did was quit listening to what others liked and really found my own sound. I followed my heart without worrying about what would follow me. I think I would still enjoy music if I had kept following the previous paths, but what I have been doing now seems to have made it be much more to me. I really don't care if you like what I like, I will just go to the show alone and have a blast.

My Top bands recently in no order:
The Gaslight Anthem
Lucero
Social Distortion
The Lawrence Arms
The Misfits
The Menzingers
Cobra Skulls
The Broadways
Against me!
Hot Water music
Emery
alkaline trio
sundowner
tiger army








ps. This stream of consciousness was written over the course of 5 or 6 hours at work. In between reports, waiting for things to download or just taking a break. I am sorry that it probably reads that way. But really, this has been sitting in my head for a few weeks and needed to be put somewhere.