Today I've finally decided to make a playlist since I have done them in a while, usually taking me all day to search and decide which songs should represent it at best. Today was a really tough one to select sinceI consider this one of the most important genres. As I have mentioned this before, this one wasn't actually invented yet as an actual genre until several decades later, when music critics decided to categorize musicians who inspired several Punk Rock bands. I'm talking about Protopunk!
The Kinks
Some of you may remember me partially covering information on what defines someone as a Protopunk musician. It's hard to find a complete list since a lot of groups are usually hidden and lost in archives since back then, their style wasn't deemed "acceptable" and overlooked them. Also, other bands have usually a couple of songs that are considered Protopunk material, but are mostly associated with another genre.
Patti Smith
Not everybody before 1976 could be considered Protopunk just because they played Hard Rock, Pub Rock, Heavy Metal, Psychedelic Rock, Garage Rock, Art Rock, Glam Rock, or Experimental Rock. No, because then it would be easier. Critics and musicologists categorized these bands because they were serious, usually rejected by famous labels, sounds are new and unusual, showed creativity more then the marketing division of major labels, views are socially, environmentally & politically aware, topics are usually taboo for mainstream audiences, and actually seemed to give a shit about their message.
Los Saicos
This was the first genre in history to crossover and merge with several genres. This actually wasn't really a movement in the genre since it wasn't official until about 30 years later, way after Punk Rock finally started. It's thanks to musicologists & long time fans (Many of them being in popular bands.) recognized these groups as influential candidates.
Death
Today I'm going to show you some of the many influential groups around the world that have started Punk before Punk Rock was born. The following artists/songs in order are:
The Stooges: I Wanna be Your Dog
Aerosmith: Toys In The Attic
Los Saicos: Demolicion
The 101'ers: Rabies (From The Dogs Of Love)
Patti Smith: Free Money
The Manikins: Love At Second Sight
T.Rex: Children Of The Revolution
Sparks: Barbecutie
The Mops: I'm Just A Mops
The Who: I Can't Explain
Richard Berry: Louie, Louie
The Modern Lovers: Pablo Picasso
David Bowie: Suffragette City
Big Star: Thank You Friends
The Kinks: All day And All Of The Night
Peter Hammill: Nobody's Business
The Seeds: Pushin' Too Hard
Goldie & The Gingerbreads: Can't You Hear My Heartbeat
It's time to go East! Our next song takes us to a whole new underground. Not only because it's part of the indie scene. It's not because it's not widely shown on English websites (but those who actually look will be rewarded.) It's mostly because it's located in a strict country. I mean STRICT as hell! This place is called China.
This place right here!
If you already know, being a rock band inside of a strict country, you have to be careful of what you usually sing about (unless it's what the damn public wants.) If you want to rebel or spread artistic interests, you have to go underground. Wherever you live at, if society is trying to control your civil rights, there will always be people searching for freedom. Today's SOTD is:
P.K. 14: They
Who does rebel better then the Punk Rock scene? (Or usually the hippies) I'm not talking about commercialized punk or Pop Punk (even though I still kinda like them anyways) I'm talking about real, raw, still fighting for everyone to live peacefully. We can't please people who are too focused on plastic-like drama or are afraid to voice themselves that they follow and become the assholes they fear, but we can gather those that actually not only think about themselves, but think about having a brighter future where stuff like wars of all kinds would come to a halt. Thank God (or whomever deities you believe in.) that bands like P.K. 14 are around. With songs like "They", It's no wonder these guys deserve to be recognized!
They are this awesome!
Starting us off with the simply, catchy, you've heard it a million times but this shit never gets old beat Johnathan "Tan Tan" Leijonhufvud delivers, it drives off to where we meet Xu Bo & Shi Xudong strumming to an early 70's riff in which both guitar and bass sound equally the same instead of competing for sound. Yang Haisong vocals remind me a lot of how Death sings (And no I'm not talking about the Grim Reaper, check out the band.) before revving in the Psychedelic synth reminiscent of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. C'mon, you guys, even though it's in a different language, you got to appreciate songs like these. Everyone's complaining about new music but you always got to dig to find treasure, not just sit there and go "Hmmmmmmmm, can't find anything from the chair I'm sitting in." In which this is probably the same response the Communist Party gave when they didn't realize the meaning of the song. You have to check them out. :) NOW!!! :P
It's 10:06 at night. I have been wondering about whether or not I make a new blog based on everything scary (Since I love horror.) I've been thinking about doing these things for about three years. I've always (other than being a musician) wanted to create and share stories that have been popping in my head, but since just scary stories and legends don't seem to be enough, I also wanted to talk about movies, shows, video games, books, hell even music videos. There are so many things I've found since being on the internet that I've come to enjoy, an alternative to Youtube and mostly Facebook. I'm still going to be updating as usual on this blog since I love rock music also, I've just wanted to manke another blog based on horror. I've even thought about doing a nosleep account to share my creepy stories online, besides, there doesn't seem to be enough Spanish horror (mostly movies) so I wanted to partake my favorite hobby ever since I was 6.
That's mostly all I wanted to talk about right now. I'll see you guys later! :P
Lately I've been tired during the daytime and at night I have trouble sleeping. It's not because of the fact that lately I've been looking at creepy things and stories (since I've been looking into that since I was 6 years old.)
Even though this shit creeped me out, I've seen worse and still slept
Point being, I totally forgot to update the last two days. So yeah............ :) Today's songs we will be viewing are:
The Velvet Underground: After Hours Genres: Art Rock, Folk Rock
El Otro Yo: Sensacion Especial Genres: Noise Rock, Shoegaze, Punk Rock, Alternative
The Strokes: 12:51 Genres: New Wave, Indie Rock, Garage Rock
Yay! First off, I'm in love with this band. Anyone who's really into the Indie scene must know The Velvet Underground. They are THE most legendary underground band during the late 60's. Named after a intriguing book about the exploration and mysteries of sex, The Velvet Underground inspired a shitload of artists since they were one of the first prominent artistic bands in history. They were also famous for being associated with Andy Warhol, The Factory and The Exploding Plastic Inevitable Events.
The man is a fucking genius!
This song is the final track off of the self-titled third album. "After Hours" is a folk song sung by drummer Maureen "Moe" Tucker. It's a cute song about trying to find love at social gatherings, usually held at night. The only company there with her vocals are Lou Reed playing acoustic guitar and Doug Yule on bass. It's reminiscent of the Tin Alley style of the 30's. This is a special song from the band not only for it's innocent, almost child-like lyrics, but for the fact that Moe barely sings in the entire band's discography, not even as backing vocals. You mostly saw her usually drumming upright or plucking the bass in some live performances. When she did sing, the songs felt different, unique, magical, quirky but also beautiful.
Plus she dressed tom-boyishly!
The next song comes from an Indie Rock band straight from the heart of Argentina. Yes, of course, they sing in Spanish. Think of this band like a Latin version of Sonic Youth or Pixies. One of the most diverse bands of the 90's, El Otro Yo could simply be stated as Alternative, but that was only ONE of the styles they played. no they were more than just your average Alternative band, all of their songs seemed to range differently on influence. Actually they are considered the Latino equivalent to Sonic Youth, another influential band that experiments with various genres. They even have different lead vocalists.
"Oh my God, that's been around for a long time."
Yes I know that compositions like that have existed. It's just the rarity of having different lead vocalists with an equal amount of songs, especially ones that feature a male and female. This song starts out with a Dinosaur Jr.-like riff (Jangly guitar sound provided by Gabriel Guerrisi.) before vocalist Cristian Aldana sings in a bellowed whisper with an audibly strong bassline by Maria Aldana (She also ehoes in a dreamlike sequence towards the end of the song.) along with Rocky Rua's steadiness on the drums. Then Cristian yells out during the song's main chorus about that "Sensational Feeling" that only the special someone can give off. Kinda like Francis Black on several Pixie songs.
"Quit with the band references! It's annoying!"
Sorry but that's how I seem to describe every single artist I can think of, by describing someone else in a unique way (Even though I feel awkward since it kind of kills the whole uniqueness of bands.) The last song is a Strokes song (No not "Reptilia", even though you have to admit the whole snare and bass intro that Nikolai and Fabrizio do while distortion starts to settle in is fucking awesome.), "12:51". Alongside the usual vintage Garage Rock sound the band plays, "12:51: has a different sound then the other songs. It's reminiscent of New Wave, except none of the band members recorded a keyboard in the song, which was a usual in a regular New Wave song other then the Post-Punk sound. Nick Valensi happened to make his guitar sound just like a synthesizer while Albert's guitar just sounds like a normal guitar in an catchy ass melody. Julian Casablancas croons about the questions an older person ponders when falling in love with someone younger. Sure it's short and has somewhat bleak lyrics, but it's a top personal favorite to a lot of Strokes fans. You have to check out all of these songs.
Not exactly a happy motivating photo, but still......
Yes I speak Spanish...................not all of it but enough of it to have a normal conversation. (Also I don't feel like translating.) Half-asleep and suffering from a weird toothache, I've decided to do another SOTD. (I mean I said I would.) Today's isn't Spanish though (Though actually it's one of the top five Romance Languages.) Today's song of the day is:
Bonnie & Clyde (Not the West Coast or Slim Shady songs with the year initials added before the song title.)
is a song by famous French Rock & Roll crooner Serge and model/actress Brigitte around the end of the 60's era. To some people, they consider this a one-hit wonder, even though Serge has made other hits that are still vastly covered by many artists. (This being one of them.) It's a poem found in the diary of Bonnie Parker, one half of famous outlaw gang couple Bonnie & Clyde. It revolves around the couple's romantic feelings along with the bank heist until their death by gunfire ambush.
Happy photo of them
It was the perfect song the duo collaborated and recorded, having a somewhat back-and-forth conversation one singing a verse that usually lasts up to 8 seconds and then the other comes in to finish theirs before singing in a soft, luscious tone "Bonnie & Clyyyyyde" while the background is filled with droning, echoing instrumental and ghastly random "Hoo-Oh-Ohh" (It's someone hiccuping as a ghost I believe.)
Yeah...couldn't find a ghost hiccuping, so i posted one pole-dancing.
Some artists have covered this song, even translating it to English. I believe one of the best covers of today's era comes from a collab. between Serge's son, Lulu Gainsbourg, and actress/model Scarlett Johansson. (Only difference on this version and Serge's is that Lulu sings in French while Scarlett sings in English. Only difference.) It's a classic for anyone really into the Psychedelic era. It also tends to get stuck in your head after listening to it. You should check it out, seriously. :)
I'M KIDDING! (Only the last one was true............) :(
Joking again, but anyways I've decided to make these but I don't feel like counting them (even though I haven't really even made a lot of these posts.) I know I'm not a real music critic by professionalism (I don't even know how the how people get paid to do that shit.) but I love sharing my thoughts on here even though nobody really knows me. I've decide to not number these anymore due to possible laziness, but I still don't think anyone gives a
Anyways, todays SOTD is:
Cinderella: Shake Me
Yes as you can see clearly, today is a Glam Metal track. Yep............80's glamorous take on Heavy Metal............ Also featuring a band you might have remembered some time ago. People might be wondering right now, "Why the fuck are you posting this kind of crap?!" Answer: Because I don't give a
The magic word here isn't sneeze....
Surely they were one of the most heavily played bands (music video wise) on MTV during the 80's. The band is legendary in the Glam Metal genre (even though they also play Hard Rock & Blues Rock also) and their albums sold millions achieving platinum status for only a few short years. But sadly around the time 90's were coming, it seemed like every single decade, mainstream media had to find a genre that flocked a shitload of followers and decided to not understand the meaning of said genre, turn it instead into a fashion, and anything that was in before soon suffered a fate too uncalled for and vanished completely to the public eye just because it wasn't "in". (Not like it was supposed to in the first place.) That's what Cinderella seemed to suffer the most when the 90's came, everything seemed to take somewhat of a more serious tone because of the Alternative scene. Sure Glam Metal started around the 70's, but people were trying to cash in on it around the 80's. When it ended, artists either had to try to change their style and looks somewhat while trying to maintain their dedicated fans, or simply quit. Damn music corporations and fashion imbeciles!
Cinderella though had a really great song that would stick to my head for several days faster than a 2-minute toothtunes toothbrush (Who seriously buys that crap, it's not even the whole song. Minus well just jam out your ipod or mp3 or cd or cassette or record or radio or mind or etc.) "Shake Me" is one of those songs that seems perfect of shaky love under the covers, hence the title. Drummer Fred Coury drops the usual Hard Rock beat before Michael Smerick, Tom Keifer, & Eric Brittingham start strumming to an almost identical intro to iconic KISS song "Rock N Roll All Nite" and several other shitloads of songs that have a similar intro, before playing a different rhythm. (BUT IT'S NOT COPYRIGHT TO USE A COUPLE OF NOTES SINCE THERE'S ONLY SIX STRINGS ON A GUITAR.......UNLESS IT'S GOT MORE THEN ONE NECK.) This song, you guys, is one of the most awesomest nitty, gritty, dirty songs of the 80's that Cinderella created. If you don't believe me, check it out.
Damn it has been 3 days since my last post. I've been too glued to the tv lately since I finally played Bioshock Infinite and that game is soooooooo good!
I'm still not done sadly sooooooooo........
Anyways that being said, I havent done this crap in a while. :P This is the 2nd time I've done something like this. So without any other obligations, I'm happy to announce three songs for today. (Maybe I should be doing this more often.) The songs and artists today are:
The Kinks: You Really Got Me
Ladytron: Sugar
Mickey & Sylvia: Dearest
Let's start of with The Kinks, and important British Garage Rock band that sometimes is sadly forgotten under the veil of The Beatles, The Who, and (most recently, even though I'm not into it) One Direction. The Kinks, however, were very important since they later became what today music historians quote as "Protopunk". (The Who were also an influential Protopunk band.) "What is protopunk?" you may be asking yourself or simply Googling it afterwards. Simple: Proto in the English language means "First" and you of course heard of Punk Rock before right? So combine them together and you get a catalogue of groups that either showed bizarre or wild antics, outfits sometimes caused some flares inside the stage, had very controversial songs and lyrics, played on experimentation or artistic looks than cliche and money, and employed a very powerful voice alongside heavy instrumentation.
Like this but earlier
That's what The Kinks were labeled as and I have to agree with them since they themselves created distortion. Ray Davies slices an amp speaker with a razor and pins it. Shit the only thing people weren't happy about it the famous solo midway of the song. It wasn't performed by any of the Davies brothers, nor Mick or Pete, but Jimmy Page (Another influential artist) who was there only for a session. It doesn't matter to me though, their songs are awesome! I mean shit, everyone should have heard of this song before (If not the Van Halen cover.)
Next up on the list takes us all the way to 2005, where an interesting Electronic group summed up their 3rd studio album. Ladytron is a group that's very hard to put in one category, since their sound tends to change a little bit every single album. "Witching Hour" is possible one of their finest albums to date, blending in Electronica with Shoegaze, Dream Pop, Experimental, Art Rock, etc. This is the finest example of what their name represents. (If you haven't heard "Ladytron" by Roxy Music, you should consider it.) "Sugar" has somewhat of a gritty 90's Depeche Mode and Lush feel to it. It's gives somewhat of a magically dirty feel to it. (Hence since the song could possibly be about cocaine.)
I wish it was this kind of Coke.
Reuben Wu, Helen Marnie, Daniel Hunt, Mira Aroyo, if magically you read this, THANK YOU! I know a lot of people are going to not like my comment but I think your music is like a 21st century comparison to The Velvet Underground or Bjork! Seriously you guys good job and keep it up! :D For a band that really seems to reel in the possibility of experimenting a shitload of genres, I couldn't have been happier then listening to awesome late 60's and 70's music!
Yes I know. It's a paper plate.
Finally, speaking of old school, I'm dragging you back to some oldies. :P Por que? Well damn because it's not bad to listen to something old once in a while, especially if they're the ones that created your favorite type of music in the first place. I'm talking about old classic Rock & Roll.
I know.........another one
Have you heard of Mickey & Sylvia? If not, I don't blame you. Sadly while there are legends like Ike & Tina Turner, Elvis Presley, Bill Haley & The Comets, Los Cinco Latinos, & Ray Charles (Hell I could keep going.) the duo have been shrouded in darkness except for one song. Yes ladies & gentlemen, ever since music was created, there have been composers, writers, singers, groups, bands, etc. that are known only for a single hit. It's been featured a lot (especially in Dirty Dancing.) but this is not their hit. In fact I believe this is their best unknown song that is even better than "Love Is Strange". "Dearest" is one of those slow jams, but possibly this is by far their most romantic also. Hell even Buddy Holly covered this before he died! I hope you guys enjoyed this.
Yeah I'm going to do two today since I missed yesterday
But in all honesty I got a lot of good sleep lately and dreamt of stupidly cute things.
Something like this with a little bit of this...
Does anyone remember this?
Moving on. Basically I was so tired and lazy yesterday that I completely forgot to do my daily stress reliever. On top of that it's double the work somewhat but who cares? :P
So today I'm going to do two sotd's to make up for lost track of time. I'm going to make it a little interesting though since I'm going to mix one half soft and the other one extreme. Todays (and yesterdays) songs are:
Dawn Richard: Break Of Dawn Genres: Dream Pop, New Wave, Ethereal Wave
and
At The Gates: Blinded By Fear Genres: Melodic Death Metal
Okay now we have two contrasting genres. Dawn Richards "Goldenheart" album incorporates Dream Pop, one of the most soothing and prettiest genres, and At The Gates is a Melodic Death Metal band. (Doesn't need explanation.) People probably think that I'm not a serious Rock & Roll fan, but I have to argue that I am. I'm so in love with it that I listen to almost everything (except Nazi Punk, those bastards contradict themselves.) ((And Pornogrind or Goregrind unless I'm in a certain mood.)) I'm extremely diverse when it comes to Rock music, since it mixes with almost every other single well known genre (Hip Hop, Country, Latino, World Music, Electronic, Pop, Reggae, etc.) So yes I have to freedom like other fellow music lovers to listen to what I want. Even though some go as so far that I continue to shake my head when they put their favorite artists in a bad light (Justin Beiber fans I'm looking at you. O.O)
First one I'm going to cover is "Break Of Dawn". Dawn Richards was previously in a group called Diddy - Dirty Money. When they broke up in 2012, Dawn wanted to experiment with her music, trying to find her identity as a solo artist. Thus her music is reminiscent of Imogen Heap, Cocteau Twins, How To Dress Well & Bjork. "Break Of Dawn" is somewhat an emotional power ballad, where Dawn softly cries out (presumingly to her ex-lover) that she will never lower herself to their level, that she's free from their chains. While not legitimately a rock ballad or rock song, it uses New Wave and incorporates elements of Dream Pop and Ethereal Wave, both heavily underground subgenres of Alternative and (sometimes) New Age music.
Even though New Age is entirely different from Rock
Second one I want to talk about is "Blinded By Fear"
To put it in terms, At The gates is one of Sweden's most awesomest fucking Metal bands in history! If not, one of the world's most awesomest fucking Metal bands in history! Their album "Slaughter Of The Soul" is considered a landmark album of the Melodic Death Metal movement. Plus they have fucking Thomas Lindberg, one of Metal's most recognized vocalists. Shit even their opening track "Blinded By Fear" opens up very well with Thomas slowly stating the following mantra, "We are blind to the worlds within us, waiting to be born" before the band storms in." A lot of Metal songs, especially a shitload, get me revved up. Nothing though seemed to hit me at the very beginning (unless it was Rage Against The Machine) until I first heard this song. I was thinking "Man, it just barely started at 8 seconds and already the song became deep." Plus I consider it an anti-groupthink sort of song. (If you don't know what it is, it's the whole thing people have been doing that makes me regret we had a brain.) You should check out both of these songs if you want to. :P Seriously, though, I consider them great songs.
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